AFC Greenwich Borough - Emico Stadium

AFC Greenwich Borough

Emico Stadium

GB10 Sports

177 Footscray Road

Eltham

London

SE9 2SZ

Official Website

Twitter

Ground Number: 1598

Saturday 14th November 2026

AFC Greenwich Borough 3-2 Phoenix Sports
SCEFL Premier

AFC GREENWICH BOROUGH - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club is a modern addition to the footballing world, having been established in 2023; they spent their first two years as a veterans team. It was only last year that they established an open-age team, taking over the Welling United Academy. It is fair to say that their first season was a huge success as they entered the SCEFL Division 1 and won the title on their first attempt, scoring 105 goals in the process. They also won the London Senior Cup, beating Wimbledon Casuals 2-1 in the final. This season saw them enter both FA competitions for the first time. A great run was had as they beat Broadbridge Heath 1-0 before overcoming higher league sides Cray Valley PM 4-2 and Sittingbourne 4-3. Their run eventually came to an end with a 3-2 loss to Chertsey Town in the 2nd Qualifying Round; all four games were played away from home. They are still in the FA Vase, and have beaten Sheerwater 3-0, Molesey 6-0 and Tooting Bec 2-1, as well as winning 5-1 at Pagham.

The club has no connection to the previous Greenwich Borough FC, which folded in 2020. They played at Holmesdale's Oakley Road for the first season and a bit before getting their own home near the Footscray Playing Fields in November 2026. The club represents Greenwich, an affluent area of South London with a population of 30,500. Greenwich is notable for its astronomical and maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian (0° longitude) and Greenwich Mean Time. The maritime connections of Greenwich were celebrated in the 20th century, with the siting of the historic vessels Cutty Sark and Gipsy Moth IV next to the riverfront, and the National Maritime Museum in the former buildings of the Royal Hospital School in 1934. Notable Greenwich residents include former James Bond actor Daniel Day-Lewis, TV presenter Jools Holland and politicians Liz Truss & Kwasi Kwarteng.

MY VISIT

Originally on this day, I was supposed to be going to Wycombe Wanderers v Huddersfield Town. However, the Yorkshire side cried off due to having international call-ups, and I would need to find an alternative game. This was no bad thing, as I prefer midweeks at Wycombe as it frees up Saturdays. It also meant a month between Wycombe home games, which meant that I'd be starting to miss the place. It's always nice to appreciate something more when you've not been for a while. I had up to twenty options at steps 1-6, but most of these were ruled out as too expensive, slow or impractical transport or minor concerns with the weather. In the end, my shortlist only included Brereton Social from my original list, which was an easy and good value trip from Hemel Hempstead. The other two were Norsemen from the Herts Senior County League or a double of Harold Hill and Canons Wood on Aveley's two pitches. However, it was AFC Greenwich Borough's first game at their new ground, which got the nod as this would give me a good day out in London and also get me a notable game and occasion.

After getting around two and a half hours' sleep on Tuesday night, I was OK at first on Wednesday morning, but soon hit a slump. It was a frustrating day at work too; the store's power cut out twice, and I was glad it was my six-hour shift with a 10 am finish. I went home and stayed up for a while before getting 90 minutes of sleep. Future plans were decided with me, including going to Greenwich Borough on Saturday and booking a Dinamo Bucharest ticket for the following week. It was a busy couple of days at work, and I could have done with a couple of drinks to help me relax. However, I was planning to go to PFC Victoria London v Holmer Green in the evening, so it would have to wait.  Colin tried to persuade me to go to the second pitch at Aveley with three hours' notice. I said no; he said I should give up hopping and that I was 'fucking useless' before hanging up. Half an hour later, he rang back saying he wanted to come with me to my game as no other hoppers would give him a lift. I wonder why. It was not a good journey, with a road closure meaning I was sent an unfamiliar route and accidentally went through the Heathrow drop-off. Even though I didn't stop, I thought it was best to pay and appeal rather than risk a fine. We got there at 7.30 and went straight in, only to find the bar locked from the inside. When it was opened at half time, they only had Inches on, too sweet for me, so I didn't bother. Holmer lost 3-1 in the game at Bedfont Sports, well beaten by an excellent PFC side. I was back home at 11, putting a refund request in and catching up on admin whilst watching YouTube.

I got up around 8, had breakfast and got ready before leaving at 8.45. My bus was on time and I had time to kill at the other end. I got a festive toastie from Costa and some dark choc tortillas from M&S as I was still peckish. I was back at the station just as the late Chiltern train was pulling up. Half of the train was closed, so it was standing room only in the bit that was open. After arriving at Marylebone, it was a walk to Baker Street and a tube to London Bridge. The London Cider House at Borough Market was my destination, where pints of Ross on Wye, Happy Little Pears, and Luke's Vintage Draught were enjoyed. Then, to Empanadas Argentinas for a quite brilliant Choripan. Then it was the Jubilee to North Greenwich and a 132 bus to Eltham. There was slight disappointment at the Park Tavern, they had sold out of chilli so a normal hot dog, fries and pint of Devon Scrumpy it was. A nice place. For my final pub, via Poundland, I had a pint of Kent Cider Russet at the Last Drop Inn. Once more, my phone said I had data coverage, but it was very selective in the information it supplied. The pub WiFi gave more, but I made the 13-minute walk to the ground in a good state. An impressive setup finding it's way greeted me but it was well run by decent people.

This was a clash between two teams in the playoffs. AFC Greenwich Borough were in 5th place, having won six, drawn two and lost two. They'd won their last two in the league, including a 3-2 victory over Hollands & Blair in their last game. They had the second-meanest defence in the league but were also the third-lowest scorers. Phoenix Sports were a couple of places above in 3rd, but they had played three more games. They had won seven, drawn one and lost five. They had won five in a row and were unbeaten in six. In their last game, they beat Kennington 3-0. The two sides recently met in the League Cup, with Greenwich winning 1-0. Greenwich were on top with Phoenix on the break. The scoring was opened on 16 minutes; some poor handling of a cross by the Phoenix keeper allowed Stefan Payne to slot home. On 25 minutes, it was 2-0, it's not unusual for Tom Jones to poke home a loose ball. Phoenix Sports kept themselves in the game with a goal soon after A minute before half time, it was 3-1, a second for Payne who finished with a low shot. The score was reduced to 3-2 on 58 minutes, Harry Gamble with the shot.

 

Further Internet issues prevented me editing my blog in an action packed game. With a lot of the action at the opposite end to where I was at, I didn't have the best view of the action. I'd been expecting a low scoring game and this wasn't the best 3-2 I've ever seen. It seemed like once Phoenix pulled it back to 3-2 they reverted to their nervous football of the first period. The whistle happy referee dragged the game out, no doubt that added to the tedium of what should have been a good game. I was unable to catch up with the earlier train and so arrived at a fairly busy platform at 17:15. A few waiting people gave up and headed for alternative transport on what was a smelly place. An irritating wait but the Harp in Covent Garden was the plan, I had not been there since the 2024 Euros game between England and Switzerland on what was another good day. Eventually, I was on my way on a warm but busy train back to Victoria.

THE GROUND

THE EMIOCO STADIUM is an emerging ground with all of the development on one side. Extensive steps of terracing, probably capable of holding around 700, are backed by a small, 100-seater covered stand. There are a few bars outside the stadium, but no shop or food from what I saw, though it is early days. Both parking and public transport links seem good.

Westfield - Knight & Davey Community Stadium

Westfield FC

The Knight and Davey Community Stadium

The Tawnies

Main Road

Westfield

East Sussex

TN35 4SL

Official Website

Twitter

Ground Number: 1597
Tuesday 10th November 2026

Westfield 2-1 Worthing United
SCFL D1 Challenge Cup 2nd Round

WESTFIELD FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club was established in 1911. They played for many years in the Hastings & District League, progressing up through the divisions. They were Division 3 East runners-up in 1952 before winning the title and promotion the following year. They were then Division 2 runners-up the following year; this earned them another promotion and placed them in Division 1 for the first time since their tumble down the leagues at the end of the 1940s. They were three-time runners-up here, winning their one and only title in 1957. In 1971, they joined the East Sussex League and were Division 2 runners-up in their debut season. They were Division 1 runners-up in 1973 before winning the Division 1 title in 1974 and the Premier Division title in 1978. However, they suffered a fall from grace and by 1991 were back in Division 2.

In 1997, Westfield applied and were accepted into Division 3 of the Sussex County League.  In 1999, they were promoted as runners-up to Oving Sports Club. Twenty seasons were spent in Division 2, with a high finish of 3rd in 2007 and a low of 15th in 2010. They switched to the Mid Sussex League in 2019 and won the title in 2016. Having been denied promotion in 2007 due to lack of floodlights and being the victims of a clubhouse fire, things looked dicey when a housing firm had their eyes on the site, which was tight in terms of size. However, an agreement was reached, and they now have a ground that made them able to take the step up to pyramid football since ground regulations were tightened around a decade ago. This sits very close to their old pitch, which is still visible from above on Google Maps and is possibly used by their second string side.

Westfield's sole game in the FA Cup came in 2008 as they lost 4-1 to Crawley Down. This season, the club made their debut in the FA Vase, losing on penalties to AFC Walcountians after a 2-2 draw in normal time. Local cup wins include the Hastings Senior Cup in 2008 & 2014, three Hastings FA Intermediate Cups, fourHastings FA Junior Cups and the Sussex Intermediate Cup in 2026. The club is part-owned by former Premiership and current Wycombe Wanderers player Steve Cook. The village of Westfield is five miles north of Hastings and has a population of 2,500. The parish contains a Site of Special Scientific Interest—Maplehurst Wood. This is a 78-acre ancient woodland containing a range of flora and avian fauna. The village has significant areas of verge, which is purposely left wild in order to preserve nature - this is most notable on approach to the village on the A28, alongside Hole Farm. The woods mentioned is the only East Sussex site for Herb Paris (Paris quadrifolia).

MY VISIT

I have really been struggling to get new ticks in midweek for some time now. Outside of silly season - where clubs without floodlights play early evenings - virtually everything is out of reach due to my 3 am work alarm. I had already been to Anstey Town, which had been pushing it to the limit. The closest option was the new pitch at Aveley, which is being used by Brimsdown & Lymore Gardens, or should I say, should be used by them. The FA had tightened up the groundsharing rules, so those sides had been allocated the back pitch. It should have been a doddle to visit, but the games kept being moved to the main pitch, as the second set of changing rooms had not been fitted out yet. That left just Westfield, another destination that was pushing the limits of what I could do. However, a 7.30 kickoff time made a positive difference. This game against Worthing United had originally been scheduled for last Tuesday, but other cup games took precedence. I'd had everything pretty much planned in, so it was easy to push them back for a week.

From my game at Cholsey United, it was back to the station, a far prettier place than expected, with an empty office and a piano in it for some reason. I had a twenty-minute wait for the 16:13, though if I'd have relied on Google Maps, I'd have faced a three-hour journey. It got me back to Reading in good time. It was a 15-minute walk to the Nags Head, where I had halves of Havana Good Time, Friels First Press, and Bumblebee Stinger, all good; the first, a sour, was especially great. I walked to the stop a few minutes early. The bus was waiting for me and took me a convoluted route home. It was a couple of minutes' wait at the bus station before the bus to Hazlemere. I'd ordered a chicken Dhansak, rice and Naan online to take home. They used those old foil containers, so it all ended up in the carrier bag, but it was still nice. I much prefer the plastic tubs. I had that with a can of cider and went to bed. Work was super busy the next day, and I ended up being asked to stay on for an extra hour, which I was happy to do. It did leave me a bit short of time, though. I was at the ground by 1:35 but needed food. Panjab Food Junction came to the rescue, with two meat samosas and a large portion of chips for under a fiver. I was back at the ground just in time for kickoff at Slough Town. The game between Inter Versa and St Josephs (Luton) was a hard-fought game with plenty of meaty tackles going in. The visitors won 5-1 convincingly, with a great 30-yard free kick being the best of the goals in the last minute.

On Monday, the FA Cup draw was made. As ever, Wycombe Wanderers got a stinker; in this case, Milton Keynes at home. It's bad enough having to witness this once a season, let alone again in the FA Cup. In short, I won't be there unless they alter the kickoff to a non-standard one.  There was good news elsewhere: my Aunt's boxer dog, Barkley, is coming to stay with us. He was a pleasure to have around the house for a fortnight. It was my day off on Tuesday and the usual walk to Wycombe & back. I had a couple of hours at home before leaving at 3.15 to meet Colin. The M25 was kind to us; the wet and dark town of Tonbridge less so, as it took half an hour to progress little over a mile. To be fair, it was rush hour and half an hour free parking was available, but nevertheless, Wetherspoons 567, The Humphrey Bean, was welcoming for a Buffalo Burger meal with a pint of Cranberry juice for £9.90. From there it was a rainy trip to Westfield; the roads were OK at first, but the last few miles were down narrow and unmarked roads, unpleasant in the dark and rain. We parked at the old ground as they had suggested, although the way round was not obvious in the dark. The ground did look good lit up in the dark though. It was £6 to get in, and I said hello to Luke, who had come from Worthing for the game. Before kickoff, there was a minutes applause for club legend Kevin Baker, who had recently passed away.

 

Westfield were in 13th place and had won five, drawn four and lost six. On Saturday, they had lost 3-1 at home to Jarvis Brook. Worthing United were 4th, with nine wins, three draws and three losses. In their last game, they beat Arundel 2-1. The two sides had met on 29th September with Westfield winning 2-1 in the league game. Worthing United were having the better of the game and they took the lead in the 11th minute when a left-sided cross was headed home by Matt Simpson. Both sides had chances but it was always Worthing on top. Westfield equalised in the 54th minute, a low close-range effort from Dan Tewkesbury. The attendance was announced as 210, a good crowd for a damp night. Westfield gradually had the better of the game. Just as it looked as if it was going to penalties, Dan Tewkesbury got on the end of a deep cross to get his second and make it 2-1. It was the same crap roads at the start on the way back, then a road closure meant we stayed on local roads for the most part until we got near the M25. I dropped Colin off at 11.30, got home at 11.45 and went to bed just after midnight, ahead of a 3 am alarm.

THE GROUND

THE KNIGHT & DAVEY COMMUNITY STADIUM is located a very short distance from the club's old ground; therefore, it is still used for supporter parking when it is a busy game. The roads when coming from the north are pretty awful for the last few miles, especially in the dark, but it is fairly easy to find. It is also doable by public transport with a bit of patience. The ground itself is a work in progress. There is a small stand holding around 100 seated, plus a couple of bits of standing cover. The food truck offers a decent range with the marked-up prices you'd expect in a ground. There is a very small bar with a limited range of drinks and snacks, though nowhere to sit in the warm in the winter. In the summer, though, I'd imagine the patio area is lovely. The ground is set in woodland and looks very nice lit up at night and a friendly welcome is guaranteed.