Saturday 23 July 2022

Ingles - Homestead Road


Ingles FC
Thringstone Miners Welfare
Homestead Road
Thringstone
Leicestershire
LE67 8LL







Ground Number: 1093
Saturday 23rd July 2022
Ingles 5-2 Friar Lane & Epworth
Friendly








INGLES FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club was established in 1972 and upon formation, joined the North Leicestershire League. Starting in Division 1, they finished 9th in their first season which saw them relegated to Division 3. They bounced back as champions the following season and this started a huge run of success as they won Division 2 and finished as runners-up in Division 1 to find themselves in the Premier Division. This would remain their home for some time and they were runners-up four times and champions three times although this period included a short spell back in Division 1. After their third title in 2014, the club made the step up to the Leicester Senior League. A third-place finish in their first season behind the reserve sides of Ashby Ivanhoe and Lutterworth Athletic. After two good seasons, Ingles were Premier Division Champions in 2018. A groundshare with Shepshed Dynamo allowed them to earn promotion to step 6. After a couple of seasons in the East Midlands Counties League, and another pair in the United Counties Division 1, Ingles transferred to the Midland Division 1 for this season.

The club first played in the FA Vase in 2018. They've reached the FA Vase on each of those occasions, although their debut was remarkable. They played Melton Town and before the game, both sides had opted for a replay if the game was drawn. However, after drawing 2-2, the sides told the referee that they wanted to decide on penalties. The man in the middle agreed and Melton won 6-5 and they thought that was that. However, the FA had other ideas and insisted that the clubs stuck to their original decision. The replay resulted in Ingles winning 1-0 but their joy was shortlived as they lost 2-0 to Rugby Town. The club's status has prevented them from competing in the FA Cup so far, but they've won a number of competitions. These include five Cobbin Trophies and two Premier Cups whilst members of the North Leicestershire League.
















The club's original home was at the Little Haw Lane Playing Fields in Shepshed and indeed their reserves still play there. It boasts a railed pitch but to gain promotion to step 6, the club had to move a mile to groundshare at Shepshed Dynamo. Ingles did secure a ground of their own at Thringstone Miners Welfare, some four miles from their original home. The town of Shepshed where the team are originally from has a population of 13,500. The most famous person to come from there is Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall who after starring at Luton Town on loan last season has broken into the Leicester City side this season. The town's main team is Shepshed Dynamo who play at the Dovecote on Butthole Lane, a notorious address in lists of funny place names. Rugby and cricket are also played in the town. Their new home is also home to Thringstone Miners Welfare, who play in the Leicestershire Senior League Division 2.

MY VISIT 

Once more on a Saturday, there was a lack of inspiring options on this Saturday. There was a potential North West treble at Pilkington, Widnes and Runcorn Linnets but the sheer mileage and cost prevented me from getting any takers for it. I was very keen on a double, so as to get my June & July total up to 25. I'm sort of aiming to do 200 games this season. I doubt I'll get there but I wanted to get a good start under my belt. Barwell turned out to be the saviours with an 11 am kickoff. It would be a revisit but it had been 9 years since I'd visited. It would be doubled up with Ingles who were playing at their new home at Thringstone Miners Welfare. This double was decided on Thursday and I was glad to have fellow hoppers Colin and Anwar on board to make it possible.

Thursday had seen me revisit Amersham for the third time as  I decided to go up to one of my local clubs. They'd had big news in the afternoon as they had signed the prolific non-league marksman Lewis Putman. Around 13 years ago, he'd hit over 80 goals in one season and was even on Wycombe's transfer radar at one point. The transfer never came to fruition but Putman continued to score plenty for whoever he played for. He certainly looked a class above in the game that I saw as Amersham Town beat Sarratt 4-0. Details were unconfirmed at present but the new man might have had a hat trick including a fantastic free kick. Friday was a bit of a return to reality. Schools breaking up meant clear roads but it also meant that the store was packed with undesirables and screaming brats. I really should look for a new job but I really like the people that I work with and if I'm too lazy to even look, what do I expect. Respite was provided by a Whin Hill Medium Sparkling cider as I did my research for this blog. I also had a revisit to Penn in the evening, a nice six-mile round walk to make up for the lack of one tomorrow.


The game at Penn was a decent one as Aylesbury Vale Dynamos won 2-1 in front of 56 fans. I had the good company or should that be the hindrance of Colin with me. It was free entry and I also got a pint of Burrow Hill cider at the bar as it was out of date. The club refused to take money for it and it was a cracking pint. I'd only had the top off of it when Colin booted it over whilst trying to stick an ice cube down my shirt. I'm a pacifist by nature and so we had a hug and got on with watching the game. I did want to put money behind the bar by buying another pint but the box had gone by full time. So I headed for home, with Colin and I altering UB40's Rat In The Kitchen to Grounhop Near Hitchin which is a whole lot more broadcastable than the lyrics that myself and MK-based hopper Chris think up for various songs whilst on our travels. There was the addition of a third game, and another visit to Boldmere St Micheals for DSC United v AFC Bentley. Another revisit and one that I've also blogged about before. Maybe the Barwell blog would have got a tidy-up had it just been two games but my small band of readers will have an extended blog here to read.


The day of the game came and it was another night's poor sleep with me waking at 5.30. With three games on today though, I felt great and raring to go. The research was done with regards to petrol and I found out that I could fill up cheapest in Aylesbury. I left at 8, meeting Colin 15 minutes later. From there we headed towards the intended petrol station. However, in Wendover, they were a penny cheaper than in Aylesbury so I filled up there for 179.9. It was the cheapest since the start of June when it had rocketed up 18p a litre in little over a week. We then headed to Anwar, getting there a few minutes later and being kept waiting for ten minutes. We got on our way and had a good journey, getting to the ground at 10.35. Dan, Richard and Andrew had come along and we had a brief chat. Gibbo and another hopper also came from York. Loughborough Dynamo started brightly and scored through a penalty after a few minutes, smashed home by #7. Barwell equalised when #17 scored on the rebound after 11 minutes. It was 2-1 after 20 minutes, a cross from the left and #11 fired home right on the line at the back post. The hosts would hit the post twice more before the break. Barwell did add a third in the second half on 62 minutes, a well-worked goal. On 70 minutes, the arrears were reduced thanks to a superb overhead kick. After the game, we made our way to Morrisons Cafe for lunch. I had ham and cheese toastie and sweet potato fries, very reasonable for under £6.

 
From there, we made our way to the ground, getting there at 2.20. Entry was free, so I bought a can of Strongbow for £3. Ingles were well on top throughout. They forced a few good saves out of the visiting keeper and wasted a few chances but finally took the lead on 32 minutes. A corner from the left was put in and the ball was headed home at the near post from a few yards out. It was 2-0 on 35 minutes, a lovely goal that found the top corner from the edge of the area. A few minutes from halftime, the deficit with a great free kick. The second half saw a vastly improved Friar Lane performance. They had the majority of play but were done by a goal on the break after 68 minutes. The hosts had the ball in the net with a huge lob from halfway, but the referee had already blown for a foul. The visitors reduced the arrears again on 75 minutes, a stunning curling shot from #15 which found the top left corner from outside the area. Ingles restored their two-goal advantage on 87 minutes with a great lob from outside the area. It was 5-2 thanks to a header a couple of minutes later.

 The afternoon had all been a bit too much for Colin who had fallen asleep at the side of the pitch due to the medication he takes. In fact, both of my passengers slept most of the 40-minute journey to Boldmere. I stopped at a Chinese called Chester House for my usual salt and chilli pepper chips. Not the greatest price at £3.90 but superbly cooked and great service. From then it was to the ground, arriving half an hour before kick-off. The bar was very impressive and I had myself a pint of Sharps Cold River for £3.85. This was nice and helped me relax after a long day. It was a decent setup, better than I remember following a face-lift. DSC dominated the first half, but couldn't get the ball in the net. They came good in the second half, scoring four goals but also missing a penalty. We left around 9.20 and made good progress home. After dropping everyone else off, I was home at 10.50. It was a less than happy homecoming thanks to it being the demon day tomorrow and also a malfunctioning PC that made sorting my blog a pain, I have a replacement in the works for the PC and the pain of Sunday was eased with a few drinks with me getting to sleep around 1 am. A great day with wonderful people ahead of the zombie apocalypse.




THE GROUND 

HOMESTEAD ROAD was very much a work in progress when I visited, with a lot of building work being done. There were a lot of nice touches that let you know who played there. When finished, it looks like there will be two stands, holding around 50 seated and 100 standing. Half of one goal is unavailable to spectators. The bar is smart and serves a basic range of drinks. The car park is quite small but there's plenty of street parking. 
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