Hatfield Peverel - Keith Bigden Memorial Ground

Hatfield Peverel FC

Keith Bigden Memorial Ground

Wickham Bishops Road

Hatfield Peverel

Chelmsford

Essex

CM3 2JL

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Ground Number: 1455
Tuesday 12th August 2025

Hatfield Peverel 2-2 Springfield
Essex & Suffolk Border Premier

HATFIELD PEVEREL FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club was established in 1903 and was originally based on a pitch at the Duke of Wellington pub. They played friendlies at first, joining the North Essex League up until the start of the First World War. Following the resumption of football, they joined the Chelmsford & District League, later renamed the Mid-Essex League, where they were runners-up to Hoffman Athletic in 1921. Various venue changes and a brief spell in the Kelvedon & District League followed during the 1920s. They won the Chelmsford & District Division 3 West in 1939 before World War 2 intervened. The post-war period saw significant progress as the club finished as joint Division 3 champions in 1948, being promoted directly to Division 1, where they followed as runners-up to Springfield the following year. They won the Division 1 title in 1959, going the entire season unbeaten. Twelve seasons in the Premier Division followed, including two third-place finishes.

In 1961/62, Hatfield Peverel won the Chelmsford & Mid Essex Combination Division 2 league and cup double. A decade later, a successful application was made to join the Essex & Suffolk Border League. Starting in Division 2, they quickly moved into Division 1, although it took several seasons to establish themselves at that level. Former Watford goalie, Roger Corrie, laid the foundations of a good first eleven, guiding them to 2nd in 1983, a season in which they also beat Heybridge Swifts Reserves, 2-1, to win the Tolleshunt D’Arcy Cup. Hatfield Peverel had a great debut in the Premier Division, finishing 3rd and winning the ESBL KO Cup on penalties against Sudbury Town Reserves. In 1985, the club were runners-up to Braintree Town Reserves before winning the league the following year. Additional Tolleshunt D’Arcy and ESBL KO Cups were won soon after.

Colin Wallington then led the side to a hat-trick of Tolleshunt D’Arcy Cup wins against Anchor Press, Bramston CML and Braintree Town Reserves, between 1989 and 1991. After another good season, the club decided to switch leagues in 1993, entering both sides in the Essex Intermediate League, the modern-day Essex Olympian League. In 1995, the team achieved a 3rd place finish but were relegated to Division 2 two years later. Various issues caused the club to resign from the league midway through the 2000/01 season, after which they returned to the Essex & Suffolk Border League.

Hatfield Peverel was the home of Agnes Waterhouse, one of the first women to be executed for witchcraft in England. Known locally as Mother Waterhouse, and she confessed to witchcraft in 1566, and two other women were also accused of witchcraft at the same time: Elizabeth Francis and Joan Waterhouse (Agnes' daughter). Peverel refers to William Peverel, the Norman knight granted lands in the area by William the Conqueror after the Norman invasion of 1066. The village is located around six miles northeast of Chelmsford and has a population of just over 3,200. Hatfield Peverel railway station is on the Great Eastern Main Line. It is served by Greater Anglia services from London Liverpool Street to Colchester and Ipswich. The station is seen in the 1976 film Exposé starring Linda Hayden and Fiona Richmond, along with views of the surrounding countryside.

MY VISIT

Originally, I had planned to go to Westmill in the Herts Senior County League on Wednesday, along with Cheshunt Development. That was the initial schedule, anyway, but football being what it is at this level, there were numerous date and venue changes. Both games were eventually moved to Thursday, which seemed strange, but it was perfect, with very little to keep me occupied on that day. However, it left me with a gap in my calendar which needed to be filled. Hatfield Peverel was the closest, narrowly edging out Sawtry. It was a suggestion that Chelmsford-born hopper Dan Turner had made on several occasions. However, it was a bit of a poor one on public transport. There wasn't much around the ground in terms of pubs, and the suggested route on the train involved a premium fare to Stansted Airport and then a bus. Therefore, the car was the way to do it, and the earlier kickoff was ideal for midweek.

From my game at Everton, it was a smooth but solemn journey home as I had work in the morning. The train from MK to Hemel was a few minutes late, but that was no biggie. I was home at 11.25 and decided against a nightcap. It took me ages to drop off, though, so I only ended up getting a few hours of sleep. I was OK the next morning initially, but needed a nap the following afternoon. I worked an extra hour on Monday and filled up with petrol as it was no cheaper near where I was going. Another fruitless time was spent looking at flights that work with football games; this time it was Tangier that was tantalisingly close, but the well-priced flight was too close to kickoff for Ittihad Tangier. I eventually plumped for a weekend in Frankfurt & Luxembourg. A German city that I enjoyed during my last visit, and a new country to explore. Accommodation and flights came out at a reasonable price, and although it wasn't my first choice, I wanted something booked.

I was up until after midnight on Monday, doing diligent research in booking hotels. I prefer not to take a gamble on a bad night's sleep and tend to go for lower mid-range. I got a poor night's sleep. I was up at 6.30 and just before 8, walked to town and back. After some chicken for lunch, I spent the afternoon at home, though I didn't have the motivation to do much and was just killing time until leaving at 3.40. It was the hottest day of the year so far, so I used the car sat nav to get us there, rather than have the phone in the window. Colin slept most of the way and we got to Hatfield Peverel at 5.30. Omar's Tandoori was our takeaway of choice and I had Chicken Dhansak and Keema Naan. I had it back at the ground and it was excellent with the free side salad. I got some pictures of the ground and settled down for kickoff. It was another spot with slow mobile internet, despite claiming a full signal.

 

Hatfield enjoyed a good start to the season after finishing in 7th place last season. They won 3-1 at Cressing United. Springfield, who finished second-bottom of the Essex Olympian Premier last season, had the perfect start as they beat Earls Colne 5-1 to top the league table. Springfield were well on top early on, dominating the early stages but not really troubling the keeper. Hatfield Peverel had a chance on the break, but the ball was headed off the line on 15 minutes. They started to have the better of the game and opened the scoring on 35 minutes when they forced the ball over the line following a scramble. Just before halftime, it was 1-1, Springfield equalising with a deflected shot from ten yards. The second half started brightly. Springfield took the lead on the hour. They broke quickly from one end to another and lobbed the ball over the keeper from 20 yards. The game was all square on 65 minutes, a free kick was swung in and a Hatfield man headed home from the edge of the six-yard box. Both sides had decent openings to win the game in the latter stages of the game. It wasn't to be, but it was a good game for the 100 or so present.

THE GROUND

THE KEITH BIGDEN MEMORIAL GROUND is an excellent setup. It was named after a local councillor who had suffered from emphysema and eventually lost his life. The car park is huge and the train station is around half-hour walk away where there are several takeaways including the excellent Omar's. The ground itself has a fully fenced pitch and a stand as well as picnic tables and a bar. They sometimes do food, probably only for Saturday games. There is big potential for expansion to step 6 and there are several pitches available for junior teams.