Elstow Abbey FC
Elstow Playing Field
Wilstead Road
Elstow
Bedfordshire
MK42 9YQ
Ground Number: 1298
Wednesday 17th April 2024
Wednesday 17th April 2024
Elstow Abbey 2-5 Caldecote
Bedfordshire County Premier
ELSTOW ABBEY FC - A BRIEF HISTORY
There is not a lot of information on the club, but the badge notes that they were established in 1920. After starting in local leagues, they peaked in the early 1950s. They joined the South Midlands League and after four years finished as runners-up to Stotfold in Division 2 in 1954. Their single season in Division 1 saw them finish bottom and return to Division 1. For most of their history, they have played in the Bedfordshire County League with the late 70s seeing them go as low as Division 4. The start of the new millennium saw varying fortunes with the club winning Division 1 in 2002 and the Premier Division in 2004. By the end of the noughties though, they had dropped down to Division 2 but won the title in 2012. Elstow Abbey finished as runners-up in Division 1 in 2015 behind Cranfield United. They would last just a single season in the Premier Division, finishing second bottom for an immediate relegation. They were relegated again the next year to Division 2. The team recovered to win the title in 2019 and were leading both Division 1 in 2020 and the Premier Divison in 2021 when both seasons were curtailed. Last season saw them officially crowned Premier Division champions but as a village side, they don't have the facilities to play at step 6.
Bedfordshire County League Cup wins include the Jubilee Challenge Cup in 1934 & 1979, the Galletly Cup in 1936, 1981 & 1992, the Igranic Challenge Bowl in 1961, 1993 & 2002, the Executive Cup in 1979, the Britannia Cup in 2003 and the Premier Cup in 2004. The club is based in the village of Elstow which is around two miles from Bedford and has a population of 2,700. Elstow Abbey was a monastery for Benedictine nuns in Elstow, Bedfordshire, England. It was founded c.1075 by Judith, Countess of Huntingdon, a niece of William the Conqueror, and therefore is classed as a royal foundation.
MY VISIT
This game was decided upon around a week ago when I got the Football Traveller. I wanted something as close as possible to home to cut down on fuel spending and miles on my car. I also wanted to involve Anwar as I had barely done any games with him recently. As it was, he was busy but I decided to still go.Elstow Abbey fitted the bill and with the backup of AFC Kempston Town Hammers was just a couple of miles away. That game was likely to have goals as the hosts had conceded treble figures three times this season. The game was against Queens Park Crescents though which were the only side they had gained a point from this season in a bottom-of-the-table clash. Perhaps I'd have erred towards that game if I'd known but Elstow Abbey appeared the better ground and also had a conveniently located takeaway for dinner.
It was yet more rain at last night's game which wasn't great with no cover and there appeared to be a bit for tonight's game too. From the game, I made my way home, listening to BBC Five Live and then after dropping Colin off, the Wycombe game on Wycombe Sound. I was able to watch the final half-hour at home as Wycombe got an 84th-minute winner to beat Port Vale 2-1. I'd done no research for this game at that point, opting to wait until the day of the game so I could get to bed earlier. Not early enough though as I felt jaded the next morning. I got through work and luckily it was my early finish of 12. I came home, had lunch and spent the afternoon at home. I was able to do my research for the club from a variety of sources which gave me an idea of what to expect before leaving at 3.50.
It was forecasted to be a slow journey with lots of traffic. Typically Colin was asleep when I got to his, having only got home from a four-hour shift at work around 40 minutes earlier. It wasn't too much of a problem though as I'd allowed time but it was now tight. We had to go a back route to avoid the 'roadworks' on the M1 which was causing significant delays. Of course, there was no escaping the authorities' lust for digging a hole in the road and then abandoning it, much to the inconvenience of the public. We were at our pre-match takeaway of TFC around 25 minutes before kickoff. It was a superb place with two hot wings and chips costing £2. It was freshly cooked and hot and very tasty. From there, it was a few minutes to the ground with us grabbing one of the last few spaces. It wasn't helped by bad parking from a Seat that had needlessly taken up two spaces. We met the home teams' chairman who was very friendly and stopped for a brief chat. We were in time to see the teams emerge for the kickoff.
Elstow Abbey were sat in third and would not be retaining the league title this season. They were in mixed form with a win, a loss and a draw in their last three. On Saturday, they won 3-1 at Marston Shelton Rovers. Caldecote were in 2nd, ten points behind leaders Stotfold who had completed the season. With six games in hand, they had every chance of the title. They had won 16 out of 18 games so far and the only time they dropped points was in the games against the leaders. Lats time out, they had beaten Biggleswade United Reserves 6-2. The two teams had not played each other in the league yet but Elstow Abbey had won 2-1 at Caldecote to reach the Britannia Cup Final. Elstow took the lead after five minutes, a cross from the left and a dicing header. On 26 minutes, it was all square, a cross from the right and a deft touch home from close range. Caldecote lead 2-1 on 35 minutes, a shot from the edge of the are hit the post and was followed up. The visitors hit the post before half time but they extended their lead to 3-1 on 49 minutes when a parried shot was followed up. Just before the hour, a curling shot from Elstow hit the post. On 75 minutes, a cross from the home was headed home to see Caldecote lead 4-1. Sloppy defending saw a home man reduce the arrears on 82 minutes with a curling shot. On 87 minutes, the goal of the game, a long-range effort by the visitors that flew past the home keeper to see them win 5-2.
No definitive goalscoring info was available, but the Caldecote account tweeted 'Another one ticked off tonight beating @ElstowAbbeyFC away 5-2. Goals from Brucie x3, Josh and Ozzie. Great character shown by the lads after going 1-0 down early on. A superb second-half performance secured us the 3 points.' For my part, I'd really enjoyed my first proper Bedfordshire County League game. I had seen Shefford Town & Campton before but that was only their reserves. Elstow was a lovely village and it was a pleasant ground and club to visit. The game was also good and with myself and Colin having done the same grounds so far, I can see us completing it together over time. We headed for home, listening to BBC Five Live on the way back.I dropped him off just after 9 and made my way to Tesco petrol station as I had less than 15 miles in the tank. It was as useless a branch as ever. Normally I am disappointed when the close pay at the pump overnight but this time they didn't even have any petrol. It's always been pretty hopeless so I made my way to Holmer Green which was a couple of pence a litre more expensive. From there, I headed for home, getting in at 9.30 and spending an hour completing my blog before bed.
THE GROUND
ELSTOW PLAYING FIELD is a pleasant venue and a decent one for step 7. It has a nice clubhouse with a basic range of snacks and drinks, or there is a pub up the road. Parking is fairly plentiful. As for the ground, it is shared with cricket and has two sides hard railed and a temporary barrier for the other two sides. It also has a couple of dugouts and a pair of benches for seating. Overall, it's well worth a visit to this friendly club. A decent programme is also available for £1.
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