Jarvis Brook - Limekiln Playing Fields

Jarvis Brook FC

Limekiln Playing Fields

Palesgate Lane

Crowborough

East Sussex

TN6 3HG

Official Website

Twitter

Ground Number: 1381

Saturday 28th December 2024
Jarvis Brook 1-0 Hailsham Town
Southern Combination D2

JARVIS BROOK FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club's origins can be traced back to 1888 when Jarvis Brook Cricket Club was established, although the first recorded football result is from 1897. Despite some early teething problems, by 1905 they had won the Crowborough & District League title, a competition that they would win on a number of occasions. There were strong suggestions of a merger with Crowborough Athletic in the 1910s, but the First World War ended any plans. In 1936, Jarvis Brook joined the East Hoathly League, winning the title in their first season but returning to the Crowborough & District League soon after with them winning Division 2 in their first season back. This information was gleaned from an excellent history article from the club website, but it only covered up until the 1940s. They continued in local football, winning the Mid-Sussex League in 2016, despite finishing bottom only two seasons earlier. They were runners-up to Bosham in their first season and continued to do well until they finished as runners-up to Rustington in 2022. Jarvis Brook finally got their hands on the title in 2023 and remain in the league to this day.

 Local cup honours include two Tunbridge Wells & District Football League Shields, two Humble Crofts Challenge Cups and several other competitions. The town of Crowborough is located around seven miles from Tunbridge Wells and has a population of around 22,000. Crowborough Athletic are the town's main team and they play a couple of leagues higher in the Southern Combination Premier.Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859–1930), the author of the Sherlock Holmes novels and short stories, lived at Windlesham Manor in Crowborough for the last 23 years of his life. A Sherlock Holmes festival was held in Crowborough for several years running in the mid-1990s, reportedly attracting up to 25,000 visitors. Conan Doyle is commemorated in the town through street names such as Watson Way and Sherlock Shaw, and Conan Way. Other notable people from the town include Doctor Who actor Tom Baker, David Jason who has starred in many roles including Delboy in Only Fools & Horses, actor and presenter Ross Kemp and singer Kerry Katona.

MY VISIT

From my game at Hartley Wintney on Boxing Day, I drove home, getting back just before 6. I was in a decent mood, having heard about Wycombe's 3-0 win at Stevenage. It was still very foggy as I got nearer home but I was fairly clear in my mind about my game choice - a good value fare for the New Milton v Lymington Town game. There were a few doubts. Fellow hopper Daniel had briefly offered me a lift to Beverley Town, but I had to get to Bishops Stortford which put me off. I was surprised that he didn't keep going on about it and trying to wear me town but I'd heard nothing from him. I put the finishing touches to the plan on Thursday evening and that was when I found out that no Carousel Bus Services were running on Saturday - at least according to their website. With the customer service hopeless and non-responsive on previous attempts to contact them, I'd need a new plan. My first thought was to go with Daniel, but it looked like the car was full. The second thought was Barnston, a nice easy drive in the car. However, it was a big family get-together the day before and I couldn't guarantee 100% that my car wouldn't be blocked in. In the end, I settled on Jarvis Brook v Hailsham Town. The train fare to Crowborough was pretty reasonable and there was a Wetherspoons I could tick.

Unusually for me, this was only decided on Friday afternoon. Following an easy shift at work, I came home and knew I had to make a quick decision. I wanted something fairly simple to do and so Jarvis Brook was perfect. It was a 23-minute walk from the station and although it was only an hourly service, there were no issues with the trains. It was also during this time that I discovered that I could have gone to New Milton after all, it was just that the bus company website was hopeless and showing no services running. The same sort of technological impairment also meant that you had to buy paper tickets for any trip across London, so I didn't bother buying in advance. even though I could have saved a small amount. The club were lovely and welcoming on Twitter and so I was looking forward to my visit. The evening was spent at home with lots of family around and it was nice to see everyone again.

I awoke on the day of the game well before my alarm. Even so, I decided to have extra time at home and go from Amersham rather than walk into Wycombe. It turned out to be an error as the buses unsurprisingly were not that reliable. I had to take the longer route to Amersham, taking twice as long meaning a half hour later train. I'd still be able to get to my destination at my intended time, although the connection was very tight. Having pre-purchased my ticket and having a good idea of what platform I needed helped. In the end, I made it very comfortably and was on the platform nearly ten minutes in advance.

 

It was a pleasant hour's journey through the Sussex countryside during which I spotted a Wetherspoons in Oxted that I could potentially visit. I get to Crowborough station at 12.10 and am surprised when Google Maps throws up a 40-minute walk time to the Wetherspoons and town centre. Having planned in a rush, I only checked how far the station was from the ground, but what's done is done. The Crowborough Cross is a pleasant Spoons, though no bag in box cider sadly. I order wings, strips, chips and a pint of Stowford Press for under £9, the usual great value. I don't bother with a second pint, preferring to get a head start on my walk to the ground. Even so, I still only get there with five minutes to spare, getting some pictures as the teams come out.

 

Jarvis Brook were in third place having won ten, drawn two and lost one of their games so far. They were still in with a good chance of the title and in their last game had thumped Chichester City B 6-1. Hailsham Town were a place lower in 4th having won nine, drawn two and lost three to date. Last game, they had beaten bottom tram Brighton Electricity 2-0. The two teams had met in the reverse fixture on Bank Holiday Monday in August with Jarvis Brook winning a thrilling game 4-3. It's the hosts that dominate at the start but Hailsham are well drilled in defence to propel the constant attacks. Hailsham have good spells too and there are some fierce tackles and a booking, though not many clear-cut chances. Hailsham came close to scoring just before halftime but Jarvis Brook's captain George Holman made an excellent block.  Around 55 minutes in, the goal finally came, a header from corner by Victor Penfold. The Hailsham keeper then did well to tip wide a Liam Edwards drive from the edge of the area as the hosts looked to seal the win. Hailsham also came close and it took a great save from the home keeper to prevent the equaliser from a free kick.

 

There were no further real chances although a few hefty challenges and resulting treatments meant that it was nearly 4 by the time the game finished. There was a good attendance there for the level, 140 in total. Although it didn't match the goal fest of the reverse fixture, it was still a decent game. It was a nice downhill walk to the station, which was in Jarvis Brook and not Crowborough as it claimed. It also had no waiting room, so it was a 25-minute wait on a cold platform. It was nice to get in the warm, even if Southern Railway have some of the more basic carriages out there. I was erring against stopping at Oxted as the service only ran hourly. Unusually for me, I'd only had one pint all day, but I guess easing off would do me no harm. The plan was to get home as soon as possible and have a couple of drinks and a rest before work tomorrow. It was sadly my last game of the year and it had been a decent 12 months for me, all told.

THE GROUND

LIMEKILN is a great venue for this level. The ground itself has hard standing on two sides with the other two closed off. There is a small standing area with cover and a space for a seated stand to go in. In fact, the ground has the potential to go higher although they will have to find a way around a bat-nesting issue if they want to erect floodlights. It's a nice friendly club and there's an excellent club building with merchandise, food and soft drinks such as burgers, tea and cans. There's also lots of club memorabilia. Plenty of parking is available and it's a little over 20 minutes walk from Crowborough train station.