Isuzu FA Vase First Qualifying Round Triple Header - Hadleigh United hold on to beat Barkingside at Cricklefield, Steyning Town win derby against Arundel at Mill Road & NW London see off Basildon Town at Gardiners Close

 (Steyning Town full back Max Blencowe driving forward during his sides 3-1 win over Arundel at Mill Road on Saturday)

Isuzu FA Vase First Qualifying Round, 22nd, 23rd & 24th August

It was that time of year again, a nice triple header to get the Vase campaign off and running for the new season, it only seems like yesterday when Whitstable Town defeated AFC Whyteleafe in May's finale, but before you know it, the new season's competition is underway, and I had three games planned on the opening weekend of this tournament, Cricklefield in Seven Kings on Friday evening, Mill Road, Arundel on Saturday, and Gardiners Close, Basildon on the Sunday.

Let's begin with Friday's game at Cricklefield as Barkingside took on Hadleigh United:-

Barkingside Vs Hadleigh United

It was Thurlow Nunn South against Thurlow Nunn Premier on Friday night at Cricklefield, Barkingside had began the season not to badly, they sat tenth in the standings eight points from their five games played so far and only the one loss, Hadleigh had only played three league games so far and sat down in 12th with four points from those games thus far, so despite the one level gap between the sides it appeared that this may be a tight contest.

The hosts though took a while to get going and were duly punished by their higher league opponents, Hadleigh taking a third minute lead when a ball driven into the box which looked like a shot, ended up going into the path of Luke Spurling who stretched out a boot to divert the ball beyond keeper Mackenzie Drew and in off the post to hand the visitors the perfect start, and then midway through the first period they doubled that lead when Curtis Harvey struck a powerful free kick inside the hosts near post, and it looked like the visitors would cruise this contest.

But, Side managed to settle and once they had done that they managed to win a penalty and give themselves a great chance to grab one back late on in the half, but, Elton Gjonbala saw his spot kick saved by visiting keeper Jack Munson, thwarting the hosts the chance to reduce the arrears, meaning it would remain 2-0 to Hadleigh heading into the dressing room at half time, could Side mount an unlikely comeback or would the visitors go on and win this one comfortably?

Well, the second half turned out to be pretty much all at the visitors end of the pitch as Side mounted several attacks at their goal, and the visitors had to withstand a lot of second half pressure, pressure they managed to stand up against until the hosts got one back in the 82nd minute when brilliant work down the right by Alex Strugurean ended with a ball into the box being rifled home by Nils Hlukaku, and it was very much game on at this point.

All the momentum, as it had been for most of the half, was with the hosts, and with a minimum of ten added on minutes to come, there was plenty of time to go, it ended up being sixteen minutes added on in a half that lasted over an hour, but despite this Hadleigh dug in and clung on for the win, a very hard fought one at that, meaning they progress into the next round of the competition.

Full time Barkingside 1 Hadleigh United 2

Well done to Hadleigh United then, who grabbed the win, they will travel to Biggleswade United in the next round on September 20th, the Second Qualifying Round, with a chance to real the First Round Proper of course.

Onto Saturday then, and my first trip to the town of Arundel, I'd been past it on the train before and seen the magnificent castle from the railway line, so decided I'd make a trip there at last, I'd heard good things about the town and club, and I wasn't disappointed, it's a magnificent town, and after wondering around it and having lunch by the river, I headed for the ground and the hosts tie with Steyning Town.

Arundel Vs Steyning Town

Both sides were in the Southern Combination League, Arundel were in the Step Six division, SCFL Division One, and sat sixth in the table after three games picking up six points in the process (two wins and a defeat) whereas Steyning Town were back in Step Five and the Premier Division after their relegation from Step Four the season before, so returning to the Vase as a result, and had picked up seven points from their opening three games to sit in sixth in that division as a result.

The visitors then were probably installed as favourite's for this one then, seeing as they were two divisions higher last season, and still one above their opponents this campaign, however, this was a local derby as the clubs were only around 13 miles apart or a half hour drive, so this normally throws another factor into it, considering they rarely meet due to being in different leagues, and Arundel would no doubt want to shoot down a local side above them in the pyramid.

Indeed the opening twenty five minutes were fairly even with not much in it, Arundel actually had the first real chance when a nice move ended with the hosts stinging the palms of visiting keeper Mitch Bromage, the visitors had responded when Harry Heath dragged an effort across and wide, but in the 25th minute the visitors struck, and it was a brilliant strike from Jake King, finding top bins  as you would say, the keeper had no chance whatsoever.

The remainder of the half saw Steyning have further chances, with only the woodwork and the keeper coming to the hosts aid and preventing them from going further behind, but the game was still in the balance as the half came to an end, with only one goal in it.

The next was always going to be important in this contest, and it went to the visitors fairly early on in the second period, which kind of knocked the stuffing out of Arundel, it came when skipper Dion Jarvis sent in a corner which Heath nodded home from close range, and then just past the hour mark an absolute worldie of a strike from Conrad Honore which flew into the top corner from long range, handed the visitors a three goal cushion and a rubber stamp on this tie you felt.

Arundel though to their credit didn't fold completely and with the visitors getting a bit sloppy at times the hosts did manage to get themselves a sniff back into the contest when they pulled a goal back with around twenty minutes to go, it came from a pass that was given away by the visitors, and ended up with Sam Pearson firing home a pretty decent effort beyond Bromage into the bottom corner to give the hosts some hope.

They could have grabbed another goal back to make the final few minutes interesting but Bromage managed to thwart them from point blank range, but apart from this the visitors never really looked like they would be threatened by a miraculous home side comeback, and also had chances to seal it down the other end, they didn't but they had done more than enough to see this one out and take victory in the derby at Mill Road.

Full time Arundel 1 Steyning Town 3

A good battle then at Mill Road, but Steyning deserved their win and will now welcome Lewisham Borough (Community) to their home, The Shooting Field, in the Second Qualifying Round in around a months time.  

Right, the final game of this triple header came on Sunday at Gardiners Close in Basildon as Basildon Town took on NW London in an all Thurlow Nunn South contest:-

Basildon Town vs NW London

There were only three places between these two in the league thus far, Bas Town sat 12th having picked up seven points from their six league games so far, that was three points more than NW London in their five games so far, although this was a Vase game so league form so far this season probably didn't count for much.

Bas Town's last two home games though had resulted in two wins, one in the league (3-2 against AS London) and one in the League Challenge Cup (4-2 against Cannons Wood) so they had found the net seven times in those two games, in contrast NW London's only win this season has come at home, in three away games so far this season they have lost all three (one a League Challenge Cup tie) conceding ten in the process, so it all pointed to a home win you would say, no?

We all know it doesn't work as simple as that, as football isn't played on paper, and sure enough the visitors put in a very good first half performance, and in the 21st minute the visitors grabbed a deserved lead, they had already had a goal disallowed a few minutes before, and even celebrated thinking the referee had awarded it when in fact he was pointing down the pitch for a foul, which bemused them somewhat, but they could celebrate this time when a ball swept to the back stick was converted with no issues.

Basildon Town huffed and puffed but just could not get going, they did have some efforts at goal but these were easy for the keeper, and five minutes before half time NW London doubled their lead as after they won the ball back from a sloppy home side, a ball through was emphatically finished into the bottom corner, and the visitors had a lovely two goal cushion to take into the half time break.

Could Basildon Town turn this one around or at least get back on level terms to force a penalty shoot out, well they certainly had the majority of the play after the break but just could not find that killer touch in front of goal, and they were always in danger of being countered on by the visitors who themselves had chances to seal it, Bas Town though kept plugging away and as the game entered stoppage time they gave themselves a lifeline, Lucas Willison firing in off the crossbar from an angle, could the hosts somehow salvage something in the remainder of added on time?

Well, moments later they thought they had done, the ball appeared to come off a defender and saw the hosts stretch to fire home beyond the keeper, but, the flag had gone up much to everyone's surprise, so the goal was ruled out, now if the ball comes off a defender then surely it's not offside, however, the assistant on that side was sure he had made the right call, and it meant NW London would hold on and take their place in the next round, much to their delight. 

Full time Basildon Town 1 NW London 2

Well done to NW London, a first away win of the season and a big one, they now host Letchworth Garden City Eagles in a months time to see if they can make it to the First Round Proper.

Well, that concludes my Isuzu FA Vase weekend, the competition is up and running again for another season, thanks for reading, it's been very enjoyable watching and bringing you the action I saw for you to read and hopefully enjoy too!!!

Grays Athletic 0 Hitchin Town 1 - Mbunya Alemanji's early goal enough for Hitchin Town to edge out Grays Athletic in their Emirates FA Cup Preliminary Round Replay to set up an away tie at Potters Bar Town in the First Qualifying Round

Emirates FA Cup Preliminary Round Replay, Wednesday 20th August

It was a trip over to Tilbury and Chadfields for my latest football fix, and it was an FA Cup replay between Grays Athletic & Hitchin Town to see who would travel to Potters Bar Town in the First Qualfiying Round, the sides played out a 1-1 draw on Saturday with Hitchin netting a 95th minute leveller to earn this second chance at progression, for more detail on that and the two sides involved in this one, visit https://pedroslocalfootiefix.blogspot.com/2025/08/hitchin-town-1-grays-athletic-1.html for my blog on the original tie.

As said Grays were seconds away from winning that tie at Hitchin's Top Field ground, but they would have to go again in this tie and try and see off a Hitchin outfit who were just glad to have a second bite at the cherry after they were seemingly heading out at the weekend until the last twist in that one.

Grays had started that tie well, they didn't start this one well though and found themselves a goal behind after just seven minutes, a lapse in concertation allowed a ball to be played into the path of Mbunya Alemanji and with hosts keeper George way off his line, the visiting striker sent the ball over his head and perfectly into the net, a great start for the visitors then and Grays now had to find a solution to get back into this contest if they wanted to carry on their FA Cup run for this season.

Hitchin though looked the likelier to net again, and they should of done when a close range header was brilliantly tipped over by Marsh, but once Grays settled, it took them the best part of twenty five minutes or so, they began to get a foothold in the contest, and Callum Fitzer, the man who volleyed Grays ahead in the original tie, almost levelled but saw his left footed effort well saved by Josh Bowler in the visiting goal.

Alemanji could and should have grabbed a second for himself and the visitors when he headed over from a decent position, but the game was still well in the balance at the break with Hitchin holding that slender advantage courtesy of that early goal from their number ten, all to play for you could say.

The second half certainly belonged to the hosts, they applied most of the pressure in the second period but despite this their keeper Bowler had very little to do in terms of saves as Grays could just not muster many attempts on goal, their were two scrambles inside the penalty area that would just not fall the way of a hosts boot, and another attack saw Sam Bantick's superb ball in just invade players coming in, although they didn't really attack the cross, much to the crossers dismay.

Whatever Grays tried just did not work, Hitchin were just happy to clear their lines and defend what was in front of them, and they remained solid and resolute throughout, they were a danger on the counter but they rarely threatened in the second period if truth be told, and it was the hosts who were as said applying most of the pressure.

Seven minutes of stoppage were added on at the end, could Grays do what Hitchin had done on Saturday and level late late on and force extra time, well Bowler had to help an effort over the bar but despite this moment there wasn't really any other close calls for Hitchin who defended anything that came into the box, and after several tense moments they held on to net a very hard fought win, and progress through to the First Qualifying Round.

Tough for Grays this one, they so nearly won the first tie and deserved something from this one too, but that's football and well done to Hitchin who battled well in the two games to earn their place in the next round, they will take on Isthmian Premier Potters Bar Town away from home on the last weekend in August, and with Potters Bar not starting their season too well, Hitchin will fancy beating their Step Three opponents perhaps, who knows.

Full time Grays Athletic 0 Hitchin Town 1

 

Hackney Wick 3 Bognor Regis Town 1 - Sidibe at the double as Essex Senior Hackney Wick cause Emirates FA Cup upset after seeing off Isthmian South Central Bognor Regis Town to progress into First Qualifying Round for very first time

Emirates FA Cup Preliminary Round, Sunday 17th August

My second FA Cup action of the weekend came from familiar surrounding of Witham Town's Spa Road ground (sorry but I will not call it anything else!!!) for a matchup between Essex Senior League Hackney Wick & Isthmian South Central Bognor Regis Town, so Step Five versus Step Four in the non league pyramid.

These sides were actually three steps apart last season, Wick won promotion from the Thurlow Nunn South via the playoffs at the end of last season to take their place in the ESL, whereas Bognor were relegated from the Isthmian Premier, meaning they were now in the South Central division and having a rebuild after most of last season's side disappeared following relegation.

So, how have the sides fared so far this season in there new divisions? Wick are still finding their feet but have picked up four points in their last two outings, that after opening up with two losses, and they did win in the FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round to reach this stage after defeating Bearsted in Kent 2-1, their last league outing was certainly interesting, coming back from 3-0 down at Sporting Bengal United to draw 3-3 in a bonkers game.

Bognor only began their league campaign last weekend and had an even more bonkers contest too, they were 4-1 down at AFC Portchester with thirty five minutes remaining before mounting a remarkable comeback to win 5-4!!! Madness, although they did lose last time out at Littlehampton 2-0, so a mixed start shall we say, but Bognor despite all their changes over the summer were expected to see off Step Five opposition in this game.

Wick though had nothing to lose in this one, so were always going to give it a good go, they haven't been the best first half team this season but they started this one very well indeed and after twenty minutes had their noses in front when a ball squared across goal was finished off by Leo Lopate and Wick had a shock lead at Spa Road, how would Bognor react?

Well, in the 34th minute they managed to find a leveller, a ball in from the right saw Callum Laycock send a flick at goal towards the near post which keeper Teddy Baena made a mess of and allowed the ball to squeeze over the line, it had been the visitors first attempt on target, they hadn't been at their best for sure, but they were on level terms despite this.

Wick's pace and power up front was causing the visitors issues, but despite Wick having the better of the first period, the score remained 1-1 as they headed into the break, it had been a good half from the hosts, could they possibly kick on and cause a upset or would Bognor regroup and stamp their authority on this tie?

Well, with their managers voice ringing in their ears (I can vouch for this as could hear him shouting at his players during half time break when I wondered past changing room window which was open) the visitors came out with much more vigour in the second period, at least for the early part of it, and they missed a golden chance to take the lead when Lennie Smith somehow headed wide from point black range at the back post, it was a head in hands moment and I believe a pivotal moment in the contest.   

This is because had that gone in, I believe Bognor may have taken control and gone further ahead perhaps, instead Wick, who had been on the back foot for the opening few minutes of the second period, retook the lead against the run of play eight minutes into the half when after a brilliant run down the right by Lopate saw him knock the ball past the full back and basically run past him like he wasn't there, he crossed for Issa Sidibe to flick home at the near post and give the Step Five side the lead once again.

Could Bognor respond again, well they had chances for sure, and were way more threatening this half than they had been first half, but they just could not find the target, much to the frustration of the visitors, and Wick to their credit dug deep to thwart as much as Bognor could throw at them, even when the hosts appeared to look like they were tiring somewhat.

However, just like all afternoon Wick's attackers were a danger to their opponents, and they had chances to make it 3-1 as well and seal the tie, they even saw one chalked off for offside but they were not to be denied a third which finally killed off Bognor, it came in the 86th minute and saw Sidibe blast home from close range and cue mass celebrations with all teammates and bench over in the far corner, job almost done.

Their was to be quite a lot of stoppage time due to a few breaks in play although the thirteen minutes that were added was a mystery to many of us, however, Bognor never really threatened a comeback in the time remaining and Wick duly completed what was a superb result against Step Four opposition and make it through to the First Qualifying Round of the FA Cup for the very first time in their history, a brilliant achievement for sure.

For Bognor their run ends at the first hurdle, and judging by the noises coming from their dressing room after that result, all was not well in there, mainly the manager screaming and shouting at his players who will now have to pick themselves up and go again in the next game and try and get back to winning ways, I wish them all the luck in doing that.

Full time Hackney Wick 3 Bognor Regis Town 1

Hitchin Town 1 Grays Athletic 1 - Southern One Central hosts net 95th minute equaliser to force replay in Emirates FA Cup Preliminary Round & deny Isthmian One North visitors hard fought win & passage into the next round

Emirates FA Cup Preliminary Round, Saturday 16th August

This was my first Saturday football in the UK for quite a few weeks, but it was a good one as I finally got myself over to Hitchin Town's Top Field, and it is a top field in every sense of the word let me tell you, I have heard lots of good things about it, so have always wanted to visit it myself.

Today was that day, and they were up against a familiar side to myself, and a side that are just up the road from where I live, Grays Athletic, in the Preliminary Round of the FA Cup, the hosts were a Step Three side last term but suffered relegation and are now in the Southern League One Central, which is the same level as Grays who are competing in the Isthmian One North.

Before I go on to put some meat on the bones of how this game could play out and did play out, a little bit about the ground, well it has a nice bar and lots of space to drink in, lots of TV screens and projectors showing live football and all the channels you would associate with a football club, and once inside the ground you are met with a wonderful stadium which has plenty of character too it, and considering how old the ground is, it's very good indeed.

I love these old grounds, obviously some of it has been touched up over the years, but the lovely old seated stand on one side, a superb open terrace at one end, a nice sized covered one which bends around the other end and then an old wooden terraced stand on the other side behind the dug outs, it really is a wonderful place to watch football, it also has a lovely tea bar with friendly staff serving you decent grub, even if it is a bit pricey!!!

One other thing I'd like to mention, after I had walked as far away from the tea bar as possible, I fancied a coffee, and I just happened to mention this to a club official in a lovely club suite, he had just come out of the boardroom, and he duly took me into their and got some one to make me a coffee, I mean how cool is that, very much appreciated, it's not a bad little boardroom either, so whatever happened after this didn't really matter, my day had already been made and enjoyable.

Right, to the game, Hitchin were probably favourites to win this game, they had kept largely the same squad from the season before when they were relegated from Step Three and were amongst the favourites to take the Southern One Central and get back up, Grays themselves knew this would be a tough game but they also had a decent squad assembled by the management for this campaign and were equally ready to give the season a crack and make the play offs at least.

Both sides had started their league campaigns last weekend and both had record one win and one defeat so far, Grays did gave to beat Essex Senior League Barking in the Extra Preliminary Round whereas Hitchin were beginning their journey in this years competition, so based on both sides starts, there wasn't a lot in it, but people in the know knew that the visitors would have to play very well if they were going to record a positive outcome.

Well, the opening exchanges were very promising for the Essex side, and they took a 12th minute lead when a cross from the right saw Callum Fitzer send a wonderful first time volley beyond hosts keeper Joshua Bowler and give them the early advantage, stunning the home crowd of almost 500 and sending the decent sized visiting support wild, it had been a very good start to this contest for Grays.

Hitchin had a lot of possession but found the Grays defence a tough nut to crack, and to be honest keeper George Marsh had very little to do as his defence put in a few blocks to deny the hosts any chance of testing him, and in fact Grays, who had the dangerous Jayden Silcott-Brown as an outlet down the right hand side, could easily have doubled their lead when a break from a hosts attack saw him burst in down the right, see an effort deflect towards the far stick, and seemingly find strike partner Luke Hirst to apply a finishing touch.

But no, a superb last ditch clearance from right under Hirst's nose from full back Lewis Franklin denied the visitors, it was a goal saving challenge if ever I saw one, and it kept the hosts only a goal behind rather than two, Hitchin's best chance of the half did see striker Taylor Rhiney get across his marker to glance a header just over the bar rather in into the net, it meant the visitors would go into the break a goal ahead and executing their game plan to perfection.

Hitchin once again had plenty of possession in the second period, but they just could not penetrate a solid and organised visiting back line, and the frustrations were clear to see, they were running out of ideas as the second period went on, Grays were just happy to soak it all up and repel, although they offered very little going forward in the second period and their were some rather tired bodies out there.

They kept plugging away though, and it just seemed as though Hitchin would not find that leveller, too many final balls were wanting as they tried to force the issue, caused by some superb defensive play from the visitors who were mastering a perfect gameplan and away performance, again Marsh was rarely tested in the visitors goal due to defensive blocks and wayward finishing, although they did come close when the ball struck the base of Grays post late on, and at that moment you could have been forgiven that this was the visitors day.

However, there was to be one last twist in this tie, as in the 95th minute the hosts mounted one last attack down the left, and saw Callum Kane send a ball into the box which glanced of Rhiney's head straight into the head of Grays centre half Lewis Clark and saw the ball fly perfectly beyond Marsh into the far corner, and hand the hosts a late late equaliser.

It was gutting for the visitors who had worked so so hard in this game, and had up till that point done everything correctly, but one moment right at the end of the game had denied them what would have been a superb hard working win against the odds, and saw Hitchin live to fight another day, Wednesday in fact, in a replay against Grays at Chadfields in Tilbury.

A good cup tie though and fair play to the hosts who didn't give up even if it looked as though it wasn't going to be their day, Grays will no doubt fancy their chances at home in midweek but Hitchin will certainly be a threat still and will equally fancy winning second time round, should be a decent replay that, that's for Wednesday, but today was a very enjoyable day, played at a marvellous venue.

Full time Hitchin Town 1 Grays Athletic 1