Dagenham United - Robert Clack Lesiure Centre

Dagenham United FC

Robert Clack Leisure Centre

Gosfield Road

Dagenham 

RM8 1DN

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Ground Number: 1510

Saturday 3rd January 2026

Dagenham United 1-2 FC Petrocub

Essex Alliance Senior Division

DAGENHAM UNITED FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club was established as early as 1961, but was mainly a youth side. Today, they have around 25 teams of varying ages and genders. Their men's side joined the Essex Olympian League Division 5 in 2015. This sits at step 12 of non-league football or tier 16 of the overall English football system. After three seasons, Dagenham United were promoted after a 5th-place finish. The following season, they finished 3rd behind Corinthians & Epping Town and were promoted again. They started the 2019/20 season in Division 3 but resigned mid-season, even before the pandemic took hold. The following season, they were admitted into the Essex Alliance League Division 2 (step 9) and were promoted after finishing 4th. Due to a rebrand, they were placed in the Premier Division and secured another promotion following a 4th place finish. One season was spent in the Step 7 Senior Division, but a 15th-place finish resulted in relegation. Another rebranding saw the club placed in the Premier Division East, where they spent two seasons before finishing as runners-up to Greengate District and winning promotion back to the Senior Division for this season.

The game was being played at the Robert Clack Leisure Centre. There is an adjacent school which opened in 1955 and was named after the former Mayor of the borough of Dagenham, who died in 1953. Robert James Daniel Clack was born in 1901 in Bromley-by-Bow. He worked as a railwayman before becoming involved in local politics. From 1931 to 1934, he was an officer in the Bow branch of the National Union of Railwaymen and in 1933, he was President of the Dagenham Trades and Labour Council. The following year, he was chairman of the Dagenham Ward Labour Party and was elected to Dagenham Council. Dagenham was then an urban district council, but became a Borough Council in 1938. Robert lived with his wife and family on Moss Road, in Dagenham, and was appointed mayor of the borough in 1940. He was so popular that he was elected to a second term, until 1942. He was known as a fighter for social justice, someone who cared passionately about the people of Dagenham and worked tirelessly to secure better outcomes for them.

MY VISIT

With the weather being very dodgy at this time of year, I was keen to avoid excessive travel and wasted journeys. Additionally, the football calendar is disrupted at this time of year due to Christmas and the New Year, resulting in a bit less choice than usual. The biggest enemy did indeed look to be the weather, with the temperature not predicted to get above 5 degrees for the next fortnight or so. Nothing unusual at this time of year normally, but we've had very mild weather for some weeks now. Before I learned of the big freeze, my first choice was Harold Hill, but after I became aware of it, I was leaning towards Shenfield. That all changed on Wednesday when I received the Football Traveller. Dagenham United was closer to my original destination than Shenfield was. The game kicked off at 3 as opposed to 2, so I would be setting off later, but also getting back later.

After I arrived home from South Wales on Boxing Day, I had a couple of pints before bed. I'd been intending on staying sober, but needed something to help me relax. I still got an early night though, and work up around my usual work time. I was delighted that my last game of the year would cost me just £1 thanks to a brilliant festive offer from Penn & Tylers Green for their game against Rising Ballers Kensington. It had been a boozy and calorie-filled Christmas period, and this was no different. I did get a lengthy walk in, though, as I went to High Wycombe for lunch beforehand. Inevitably, I ended up in Wetherspoons, trying the chicken and stuffing wrap, chips and Irn Bru beer for a touch over £9. A £1.99 pint of Stowford Press, a 90-minute walk and a can of Strongbow later, I was at Penn. They led 1-0 after 15 seconds and led 4-1 at halftime, the latest goal resulting from some very suspect goalkeeping. A cracking strike from RB Kensington made it 4-2, and ten minutes from time, a feisty scrap saw two players sent off, slightly harsh, but the referee handled it very well. It ended 5-2 in a great game, and then I headed home to see visiting family. Twelve and a half miles later, it was good to catch up with people, even though I had to watch myself drink-wise for the early morning start. It was a quiet time at work, with people having stocked up in advance of Christmas.

I find it a very boring time of year with too much time to kill and a lack of choice for midweek football. This gives the week a really weird feel, as you are not in your usual routine. Having Wycombe home games on Friday, Thursday and Sunday didn't help. My usual Tuesday off saw me walk 9.5 miles to town and back and get the ingredients to cook a Thai Green chicken curry, which I made in the afternoon. There were no Tuesday night games that I fancied going to, so it was a night in for me. I awoke to the start of the big freeze, but had taken the precaution of covering my car the previous night. It was an easy day, but a dull afternoon and evening. Having had loads of booze over Christmas, it was to be a sober New Year's Eve, which I think was also the case last year. I had a good night's sleep, albeit briefly woken up by fireworks at midnight. The following morning saw me playing some retro games on my recently purchased laptop - ISS 98 on the PlayStation was still as good as it ever was, Sega Worldwide Soccer had aged badly, perhaps due to emulation issues.

It was the usual walk for the Wycombe Wanderers v Cardiff City game. Bad news was on the agenda with Bristol City recalling Sam Bell, who had been excellent this season. My expectations went from a possible win to a probable defeat with that news. Wanting to keep costs down and being peckish, I headed for Wetherspoons, where a pint of Stowford Press and some chicken wings were less than a fiver. There were plenty of Cardiff fans in there enjoying the great value, though, as ever in Wycombe, no Black Dragon. The wings were as superb as ever, but I'd be eating again later. It was a pint of Old Rosie for £5.50 at my usual Rose and Crown, which was excellent as ever, but couldn't compete with Spoons, price-wise. As the pizza place was not displaying its usual collection deal, I opted for a Samosa and chips from the chippy nearest the ground, as a lot of places were closed. A questionable lineup from Wycombe hardly gave me confidence. Rather predictably, we struggled and went a goal down in five minutes before losing our captain. But we regrouped, Cardiff, running scared and bringing their whole team back for a free kick led to chaos in the box and a Caolan Boyd-Munce equaliser. The rest of the game was fairly level, Cardiff perhaps edging it, but the draw was a fair result. I decided to walk home, back to Wetherspoons for a repeat order. By the time I'd stopped at Tesco for a drink, I had walked fifteen miles all told. I got home just in time to watch Corrie with my Mum and in time for a decent night's sleep before work in the morning.

A couple more drinks before I got to bed at 9.30. So much for any New Year's resolutions about drinking less or eating healthier, which would benefit me greatly. I made sure I was fine for driving though, and felt fresh as a daisy when I awoke naturally at 3.30. A hard day's work was what I needed, and a hard day's work was what I got, with it beinge the busiest day since before Christmas. There was heavy snow on the way to work, but by the afternoon, it had melted away. It was a relaxed afternoon and evening at home, feeling nothing like a Friday. I got an early night and woke naturally at 6 am. I got ready and had breakfast before leaving at 8.30. It was - 2 outside, and the ground was obviously frozen. The bus was on time, though and nice and warm. I could have driven to the station, but wasn't 100% sure how the day would go with regard to pubs, so I decided to play it safe. Despite the mercury reading zero, it appeared as if everything was thawing out as we got nearer London. The Metropolitan took me all the way to Liverpool Street where I changed onto the noticeably colder Central Line. I got off at Leytonstone, and it was just under ten minutes to my first stop.

 

The Walnut Tree was Wetherspoons 468. Situated on the High Road, once part of the main Epping-to-London route, this pub is named after the area’s oldest-surviving building. Walnut Tree House, later known as Essex Hall, is a timber-framed building dating from c1500. It was built on the site of the old manor house and, subsequently, much altered. When it was leased in 1813, the new occupier was required to preserve the large walnut tree in the garden. Leytonstone also had a great football ground, Granleigh Road, up until the late 70s or early 80s. Leytonstone were one of the many clubs that would eventually go on to make the present-day Dagenham & Redbridge FC. It was also the location for a 1998 Coronation Street storyline when Toyah ran away from home. It was a great pub with a cracking range of cider. First up was a Sheppys Orchard Dew, Energy Drink and Breakfast Muffin for £6.23. I decided to make that pint last until I could get my second as part of a meal deal. Next up, Margherita Pizza with a pint of Black Dragon for £6.52. I knew how to play the game. The Cider was £3.24 by itself.

Following this rather excellent example of a Wetherspoons, I was still amazingly on schedule for my original plan, despite getting an extra meal and drink. It was still very nippy as I walked back to the station and got the 12.10 to Hainault. Everything appeared to have defrosted by now, but I've had games called off in far 'warmer' temperatures. After the bus ride and a short walk, I was at The Colley Rowe Inn. This was poor compared to the previous Spoons, but wings and a pint for under a fiver and good service made up for the limited range. Sadly, Collier Row's ground, once home to a Kunt and the Gang concert, had been turned into a landfill. This pub takes its name from the Middle English word ‘colier’, meaning charcoal burner. Colliers had inhabited the area since the earliest times. The last recorded collier was in 1570. Aside from Terry in the 1970s sitcom 'Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads', of course. The bus deposited me five minutes away. I was surprised to see hoppers Laurence and Chris there, as they were on their third choice of game due to the weather. There were a few other hoppers there, too.

 

Dagenham United sat bottom of the table and had won two, drawn two and lost eleven of their games so far. They had gone over two months without a win, and last time out, they lost 3-1 at London Harts United. FC Petrocub were 6th and had won nine and lost seven of their games so far. They were on mixed form, but a fortnight ago, they beat Ongar Town 3-0. Dagenham started the brightest, then Petrocub had a spell, but both were wasteful with finishing. 22 were in attendance, and following an injury, the Petrocub sub came on and finished from a few yards out on 38 minutes. The game lacked quality and was quite turgid. On 86 minutes, a left-sided free kick was put in and the Dagenham United #4 headed home from ten yards out. Petrocub scored a late winner in injury time, sloppy from the hosts allowed #10 a quick low finish on the break. The game dragged on until 5.10 before Laurence kindly gave me a lift to Newbury Park underground station, where I got this blog. From my other games, I missed a postponement at Harold Hill but also a cracker in Shenfield 6-7 Bishops Stortford Swifts.

 

THE GROUND 

ROBERT CLACK LEISURE CENTRE is a basic 3G cage with a reasonably sized viewing area. No dugouts or cover and the only facilities food and drink wise are vending machines. Parking is plentiful, plus there are plenty of buses linking to various underground stations.