Stapleford Town - Hickings Lane Recreation Ground

Stapleford Town FC 

Hickings Lane Recreation Ground

Hickings Lane

Stapleford

Nottingham 

Notts

NG9 8PB

Official Website

Twitter

Ground Number: 1505

Tuesday 2nd December 2025

Stapleford Town 3-3 FCV Grace Dieu

United Counties D1

STAPLEFORD TOWN FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club was established in 2012, replacing Stapleford Villa, who were established a decade earlier. They were primarily a youth side at first, establishing an adult team in 2017. They entered the Notts Senior League Division 1, winning the title at the first attempt. The success continued with the Premier Division title the following year; however, at the time, they didn't have the facilities to allow promotion. After a couple of modest finishes during the two pandemic-interrupted seasons, Stapleford finished as runners-up to Southwell City in 2022, whilst sharing at Borrowash Victoria. Further titles followed in 2023 & 2024, and following a groundsharing agreement at Radford, they were finally allowed to take promotion to the United Counties League Division 1. They finished in mid-table last season before moving home in the summer to a now-upgraded ground.

Stapleford Town entered the FA Vase for the first time this season; however, they lost 3-0 at home to Coalville Town. Local cup honours include the Notts FA Junior Trophy in 2018 and the Notts FA Senior Trophy in 2023. The town of Stapleford is located six miles from Nottingham and has a population of around 15,500.  Stapleford lies on the border between Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. To the north of Stapleford is Ilkeston, and to the east is Beeston. To the west across the River Erewash is Sandiacre, and in the south is Toton. Sir John Borlase Warren, an 18th-century MP for Nottingham and an admiral, lived in Stapleford. The now-closed Happy Man and Warren Arms pubs were named after him and his family. A large Wetherspoons named after him is located in the town centre. Dave Watson, who was a defender in the Sunderland team that won the FA Cup in 1973, was born in Stapleford in 1946.

MY VISIT

Stapleford Town was the second closest ground that I needed to visit. Originally, I was due to visit when they played Coalville Town in October, but it was moved due to a county cup game. Then, I was due to visit on 18th November, but the game sold out, something I learned before I had a wasted journey. At nearly 250 miles, though, it was a fair old way. Nevertheless, I decided that it would be done on a midweek. They played at home on a Tuesday fairly often, so I had plenty of choice. That Forest game was perfect, with not many options on, although I could have done with their 3G pitch the previous week, as I went without a game until Friday. On the day of my original visit, Twitter was down, and it was only via email that I learned that the game in the Notts Senior Cup had sold out. The third and hopefully final attempt was on 2nd December against Grace Dieu.

From my game at Mile End, it was around a ten-minute walk to the station. I learned that Wycombe had drawn at Rotherham after being 1-0 up, not a bad result all told. From there, it was a few minutes wait for a Central Line tube to Bank and then the Northern Line to Camden Town. The place was rammed for some reason, and it was a slow walk to the Ice Wharf Wetherspoons, 461 for me. Packed in there too, nowhere to sit. At least my £2.99 pint of Stowford Press was obtained quickly with excellent service at the bar, but this was not a place that I was keen to revisit. The Northern to Euston and a walk to Euston Square provided me with the final train of the day, a Metropolitan Line to Amersham. This was not as plain sailing as I'd have liked. A 'points failure' at Chalfont and Latimer meant we were booted off the train at Rickmansworth. Or not, as they fixed it within ten minutes, I made the bus by the skin of my teeth and was home by 8.40. A few drinks and dinner were had, though not enough to take my mind off of work the next day. I really could have done with more sleep, but I was not tired. In any case, I am reluctant to let work affect my day off in a negative way.

I was asleep just after 11, and slightly tired the next morning, but I didn't care. It was an OK day at work, far less stressful than other Sundays, but still very busy. As planned, I went to Flackwell Heath Ladies v Barton United Ladies after -  my first visit to Wilks Park since last July. It was a fairly decent game, Flackwell deservedly winning 2-0. After, I went to Home Bargains, which was full of the usual noisy families. I found what I wanted, though, the Irn Bru Winter Spiced drink, which I had been after for ages without luck. Finally, I got home, 12 hours after leaving for work that morning. It was an early night on Sunday, and Monday was a decent day at work. Another early night saw me sleep for eleven hours on Monday night, and I woke up just after 9 am. As a result, I didn't do my usual walk to town and back until well past 10, meaning that it was far busier than usual as I hit the shops just before lunchtime. I got all that I needed, arriving back around 2 and having lunch.

As a result, I didn't have much time to kill before it was time to go. I checked my tyre pressures and watched TV for a bit before leaving around 3.30. Colin wasn't ready, and so I had to go up to his messy flat where he was still in bed. It was lucky that everything was unlocked, as my phone calls failed to wake him up. We got going 25 minutes later than intended, as he took a long time to get ready. It was a pain getting to and onto the M1, but once we were on it, it was a very decent run up. The variable speed limit helped with both traffic flow and fuel economy. We were at the ground by 6.40 and walked the 15 minutes to the Sir Admiral John Borlase Warren Wetherspoons. A revisit for me, but an excellent example of a Spoons with several boxed ciders. I was driving, and it was midweek, so Cranberry juice it was. Along with the Christmas Brie and bacon burger, it cost £9.31. It was most enjoyable, and it was nice to sit in the warmth. From there, it was a fifteen-minute walk to the ground, where we arrived just on kickoff. £6 was excellent value for entry and would have included a programme had they not run out. News later reached us that Wycombe had lost 2-0 at Northampton in the Vertu Trophy, annoying as I enjoyed the early kickoffs at home. It was good to see and chat to Shrewsbury fan Lee Vaughan, who had made his way down for the game.

Stapleford sat 5th in the league, having won fourteen, drawn four and lost five of their games so far. They were in mixed form and had suffered a 6-0 hammering at the hands of Staveley Miners Welfare on Saturday. Newly promoted FCV Grace Dieu were a place lower in 6th, having won eleven, drawn nine and lost two. They were unbeaten in seventeen, but had drawn six of their last seven. On Saturday, they drew 1-1 at South Nortmanton Athletic. It was the visitors who were on top; they took the lead through a good run and a low shot by Jerrell Sellars on 12 minutes. They doubled their lead on 18 minutes, an attack down the left, a low cross and a shot from ten yards by Jack Butterfill. On the half hour, it was 3-0, a good ball forward and a low finish from 20 yards, which turned out to be a deflected own goal. In the second half, Stapleford were better. They pulled a goal back on 50 minutes through Oliver Ball, lobbing over the keeper after he could only palm the initial shot out. It was 3-2 on the hour; a goal-line clearance was not enough as it was over the line, scored by Max Taylor. There was another clearance off the line, a real game of two halves. Five minutes from time, Stapleford got the equaliser they deserved, a David Olatomide header from a left-wing cross to spark jubilant scenes. They had a number of chances to win it, but were quite wasteful near the end.

 

THE GROUND

HICKINGS LANE RECREATION GROUND is a fairly typical modern 3G cage. The main pitch is on a tight footprint. As a result, the space is narrow, and the ground has just one end, plus one and a bit sides. There are two metal stands, as ever, one seated and one standing. They hold around 50 each, but at least they are in good colours and have the club badge on them. The club facilities are behind the goal where you come in. They are fairly bland, but offer a basic range of food and drinks. The bar upstairs has Sports TV. There is a small car park at the ground, plus parking on the road outside. Buses run nearby. The town is a short ten-minute walk away. This offers a good range of pubs, restaurants and takeaways. Despite a road cutting straight through it, it looks like a place with plenty to make a good day out.

Honourable Artillery Club - The Artillery Ground

Honourable Artillery Company FC

The Artillery Ground

Armoury House

City Road

London 

EC1Y 2BQ

HAC Website

SAL Page

HAC FC Instagram

Ground Number: 1504

Saturday 29th November 2025

Honourable Artillery Company 4-3 Apollo London

AFA Cup 2nd Round

HONOURABLE ARTILLERY CLUB FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The Honourable Artillery Company Football Club (often abbreviated to HAC FC) is one of the oldest amateur football clubs in the United Kingdom, closely affiliated with the Honourable Artillery Company (HAC), the oldest regiment in the British Army, based at Armoury House in the City of London. The football section was established in 1897; its ties to the game stretch back even further. In 1863, HAC member Cowper “CD” Jackson, aged 24, helped frame the very first laws of football, making the Club a part of the sport’s earliest foundations, and Rugby was played as far back as 1870. They have never played in any of the FA's leagues or cups, instead adhering to the separate system of the Amateur Football Association. Despite this, they were one of the early adopters of the FA’s laws. The club played friendlies against other regimental sides, public schools, and early amateur clubs. They joined the Southern Amateur League as founder members in 1907 and had a spell away in the Amateur Football Combination, which they won in 2023, 2024 & 2025. The league was merged into the Southern Amateur League over the summer, with HAC rejoining as a consequence. They won the AFA Junior Cup in 2010, beating Polytechnic in the final. In 1999, they were Senior Cup runners-up, losing 4-1 to Old Finchleians. They also won the AFA Surrey/Kent Intermediate Cup in 2008, 2009, 2012, 2015, 2016 & 2019, with some of the titles won by their second-string side.

The Honourable Artillery Company (HAC) is a reserve regiment in the British Army. Incorporated by royal charter in 1537 by King Henry VIII, it is the oldest regiment in the British Army and is considered the second-oldest military unit in the world. Today, it is also a charity whose purpose is to attend to the "better defence of the realm", primarily through supporting the HAC regiment. In the 17th century, its members played a significant part in the formation of both the Royal Marines and the Grenadier Guards. More recently, regiments, battalions and batteries of the Company fought with distinction in both World Wars and its current regiment, which forms part of the Army Reserve, is the oldest surviving regiment in the British Army, and the second most senior in the Army Reserve. Members of the regiment are drawn, for the most part, from young men and women working in and around the City and Greater London. Those leaving the active units may become Veteran Members and remain within the fraternity of the company.

MY BLOG

Originally, I'd really fancied going for a revisit to Rotherham United v Wycombe Wanderers. It was a ground that I'd not been to since 2012. But several factors swayed me against it. Firstly, the ticket price. It was £30 on the day, or £28 in advance. At least the tickets were digital to save on postage.  Secondly, my favoured method of travel, the Independent Supporters Club, was not running a coach. This usually involves visiting a nice pub for a meal, and it's a lovely day out. The only coach on offer was the official one, which involves hanging around at a service station for 45 minutes and getting to the ground at 2. All very reliable, but not for me. At least £63 to just go, see the game and go home wasn't my idea of an enjoyable way to spend a Saturday. In the end, Honourable Artillery Club confirmed the game on Friday evening, the kickoff slightly earlier than anticipated at 1 PM. There was also the chance of a bonus game at the Mile End Stadium, but it would be a last-minute decision.

From our game at the Alexander Stadium, we headed to a chippy Daniel had spotted, which looked decent. Here, I had a Doner nacho burger and a battered Mars Bar. The burger was greed on my part, but I needed something extra so I could put it on my card. It was large and great value, but didn't live up to the pictures. The Mars was excellent, though. We left at 9.45, later than I'd have hoped. There were inevitably a few delays on the M6, but I've had worse journeys. As I was dropping Colin off and there were issues with the M40, it sent us down the M1, which added a fair few miles to the journey. Together with lots of traffic hitting the fuel economy, it wasn't as cheap as I'd hoped. I dropped Colin off at midnight and got home 15 minutes later. My initial plan when I was expecting an earlier homecoming was a 1 a.m. bedtime, and amazingly, I more or less stuck to it. I had a couple of drinks whilst I got my blog up, but tiredness meant that I was asleep by 1.15.

 

The early kickoff and pre-match plans meant a 7 am alarm. I got ready and had breakfast before leaving at 7.45. I had decided to do the entire trip by public transport, as opposed to driving to the station. This would give me more freedom with my post-match plans. It was a ghastly rainy morning, but everything was running on time, and I got the 8 am bus to the station. As usual, it didn't line up with the bus times, resulting in a 15-minute wait and a semi-busy platform. The Chiltern train was sparsely populated, though, and their free Wifi made for a pleasant and comfortable place to lay out this blog. Trains galore were cancelled going out of Marylebone, for reasons I didn't care about, as long as it was all good later. Del Amitri kept me company on Spotify for the short walk to Baker Street, where I got the Jubilee Line to London Bridge. From there, it was a few minutes walk to The Sun Wharf, Wetherspoons 460 for me. A breakfast muffin, a pint of Stowford Press and an Energy Drink for the bag set me back £6.98. The only shame was no Black Dragon but you can't win them all. A pleasant place for a pint and bolstering London Bridge as my favourite London terminus. From there, it was a walk to the Cider House in Borough Market, though due to coming from a different direction, it took me a while to get my bearings. It was found eventually and I had a pint of Pilton Pomme Pomme, a Ross on Wye Susie's Catch and an Eden Brut Natural, the latter in smaller measures. The last one was from the USA and was very good. It was then a buttermilk pheasant hot dog. I left one of my favourite places in London £24 lighter but highly content. It was a half-hour walk and a bit of a palaver to get in, but after giving my ID and contact details, I was fine. It was a splendid venue, superbly kept and very closed in.

 

HAC sat 4th in the Southern Combination Division 1, having won three, drawn two and lost three of their games so far. They had won their last two, including a 3-2 win at Weirside Rangers in the Southern Amateur Senior Cup last time out. Apollo London were top of the step 8 Middlesex County League D1 East and hailed from Finchley. They were top of the table, having won seven and drawn one. Last time out, they beat Edgware and Kingsbury Reserves 8-1, so far the only side to take points off them in a 3-3 draw last month. The game kicked off six minutes late, the hosts in their white change shirts. It was the hosts who dominated and took the lead on 7 minutes, a good finish from a right-side cross. HAC continued to dominate and hit the bar a couple of times. It was 2-0 from a cross and a close-range finish on 24 minutes. The posh bar was visited at half time, very nice and the nicest toilets I've been in. It was 3-0, a good strike and a hat trick a minute or so into the second half. Apollo pulled one back a few minutes later, a curling shot from the right. Ten minutes into the second half, it was 3-2, an attack down the left and a low-placed shot. On 56 minutes, it was 3-3, more damage from the cross and a wild game. After a spell where Apollo looked like they might turn the game on its head, HAC made it 4-3 on 83 minutes through a goal that was bundled home after many clearances.

So, a brilliant game and a deserved win for HAC, but I was running late for game two. It was a nice walk to Liverpool Street, although the main entrance was closed and I had to go back on myself and down the Elizabeth Line entrance. It was a couple of stops on the Central Line to Mile End, of course, no signal was available. I got off and walked ten minutes to the stadium. Wycombe had gone 1-0 up at Rotherham, so I was pleased I arrived just as Ilford scored their second at Sporting Bengal. £8 was a bit steep 24 minutes into the game, but there were only a handful of people there, so every penny counts. My first game was free anyway, but had I known, I'd have headed straight to Camden. I was slightly envious of the people who had brought cans with them; they turned out to be Ilford fans, as there was not a murmur when Sporting Bengal pulled one back from the corner through Brandy Makuendi on 36 minutes. Sporting Bengal had a good spell, but it was all Ilford straight after the break. They laid siege to the Sporting Bengal goal, pinning them in their own half and hitting the post. Sporting Bengal came close on the break, but it was 3-1 with a swift counterattack and smart finish from Nickal David Luzalo. It was 4-1 to Ilford ten minutes from time, the initial shot hitting the post before Rodney Dame deflected the ball in his own net for an unfortunate own goal. That was it, Sporting Bengal were second best, but not by three goals.

THE GROUND

THE ARTILLERY GROUND is a very basic venue; there is no rail or cover, just a pitch and two dugouts, plus a couple of park benches. It more than makes up for it with the stunning architecture, though. High buildings, model cannons and a lot more. It all looks very high spec and is a brilliant place to watch the game. Food and drink is available, a mobile van at the end of the pitch, plus a very posh bar with some great touches inside. Be prepared to contact the club in advance to get your name on the list, or bring photo ID and a patient attitude. It was more work than usual, but it was worth the effort.