Stansfeld (O&B) FC
Metrogas ASA
Forty Footway
Avery Hill Road
New Eltham
SE9 2EX
Ground Number: 1254
Saturday 30th December 2023
Stansfeld (O&B) 2-3 Borden Village
Kent County Premier
STANSFELD (O&B) FC - A BRIEF HISTORY
The club was established by John Stansfeld in 1897. Until he died in 1939, he was a doctor, Anglican priest and philanthropist who founded the Oxford Medical Mission in Bermondsey London, and the Stansfeld Oxford & Bermondsey Club Football Club. In 1958 they joined Division Two of the Western Section of the Kent County League and went on to win the division at the first attempt. The club were promoted into the Premier Division, skipping Division One. They were runners behind Borough Green in 1962 before winning the title in 1963 & 1964. After this, they were promoted to the Senior Division where they finished as runners-up behind Callenders Athletic in 1965 and B.O.C.M in 1970. They were later relegated to the Premier Division and won the division for a third time in 1978. Stansfeld were Senior Division runners-up behind Sevenoaks in 1981 and went on to win the championship in 1985, 1987, 1989 & 1990. The following year they were runners-up behind Oakwood. Restructuring saw the top tier renamed the Premier Division in 1992 and Stansfeld would win the title again in 1995 and finish as runners-up behind Sevenoaks in 2003. Despite finishing 4th in 2007 the club were relegated to Division One West though they bounced back as runners-up behind Phoenix Sports the following year. They were then runners-up behind Bromley Green in 2012 and current landlords Metrogas in 2015. They remain in the Premier Division to this day although in 2016 they took over the running of Eltham Palace and a merger of sorts occurred. The club, known as Stansfeld groundshare at Glebe FC and play in the SCEFL Premier Division.
MY VISIT
Once again, it was time for a decent Saturday out on the train. The options were quite limited due to the Bank Holiday disrupting things but there were still 12 options that I fancied. I spent Thursday evening working out fares and times and as usual, they were entered into a spreadsheet. For once, the fares weren't too obscene, ranging from 10p a mile to 25p a mile and this included the bus or taxi home after. In the end, I went for the cheapest option as that would also mean that I could get a tricky Wetherspoons in Rickmansworth ticked. It was the nearest one I had not been to but was out of the question in midweek as the buses stopped early. Whenever I went by train on a Saturday it was from High Wycombe, so I always missed out. Stansfeld (Oxford & Bermondsey) was not the greatest ground it was rather basic. But it went towards a league I needed in the Kent County Premier. I could also put together a pretty decent day out and with the weather looking fine, I'd made my choice.
It was nice for the league's Twitter account to thank me for choosing the game. It's always good to see some interaction if only for reassurance that I would be kept up to date if anything happened with the game. There would be plenty of backups and if this game did bite the dust, my first choice of backup was Jarvis Brook in Crowborough. I had seen a pretty terrible game on Friday night at Hornchurch and there were plenty of 0-0s about including Wycombe at Leyton Orient. I had a couple of drinks looking at all the negative about the Wycombe game online. It was after 2 by the time I got to sleep and I had a poor night's sleep before my alarm went off at 8. I got ready and left just after 8.50. Typically, there was drizzle and I only just made the bus as it was a couple of minutes early. As often happens, the weather forecast has changed, there was now rain for much of the morning and a yellow warning for wind. It was a pleasant journey on the Chiltern to Marylebone then across London on the Bakerloo to Charring Cross. It was then they SouthEaster for my pre-match libations. During the journey, I was keeping an eye out for any potential postponements. Peckham Town had already bitten the dust in the same league and my alternate game at Jarvis Brook had been moved to Ringmer There were no games in the lower reaches of the Kent County League so my only real backups were revisits. I quite fancied Dartford but the £16 price tag seemed too much, though it was around the going rate to be fair to them. I was in Bexleyheath by 11.30 and it was 15 minutes walk to Wetherspoons 293, The Wrong Un. It was unremarkable but pleasant enough for a quiet pint of Strongbow for £2.99. Another 15-minute walk away was the Furze Wren, another unremarkable Spoons where I had a Chicken Strips meal with a bottle of Aspalls. The pub was located right next to the bus stop I needed. The first bus didn't turn up so I got one ten minutes later, the 132 to North Greenwich. It was a chaotic and busy stop so I was glad to be on my way. Google Maps took me to the wrong end of the ground but I worked my way round. I was glad to see the Borden Village team starting to emerge when I arrived eight minutes before kick-off.
Stansfeld were in 11th whilst Borden Village were 8th in the table. The hosts were yet to draw this season and were on a run of three straight defeats. Halls had beaten them 3-0 in the Kent Invicta Challenge Shield and 4-1 in the league. Ide Hill had also beaten them 3-0 in their last home game. Their last win had been a 3-0 win over Bexley. Borden Village were on a run of three straight wins, beating Hawkinge Town 3-1, Bermondsey Town 2-0 and Halls 2-1. It was an even opening but Borden Village took the lead on 7 minutes. A ball was knocked back across and poked home by Matt Rowe. On 19 minutes, #7 came close for the hosts and the ball looked like it had found the top corner, only for it to be the wrong side of the post. The visitors #8 was sin-binned for one too many late tackles, or something he said to the ref. The elderly man in the middle was excellent, treating people with respect but taking no rubbish. He also let the game flow which was good for everyone. Stansfeld got a deserved equaliser on 43 minutes, a shot from the edge of the area by #2 that found the top of the net. After the hour, Borden took the lead following a spell of good pressure. There was only so many times that the hosts could get away with not clearing their lines and Ben Wyness was there to profit. They nearly had another on 74, but #5 skewed wide from a tight angle. On 78 minutes, a free kick was palmed wide and the resulting corner was poked home by Jonny Harris to seemingly seal the game. However, Stansfeld would not lie down and they pulled one back on 82, a left-sided ball was blasted into the roof of the net from a few yards out. The hosts had a couple of half chances but nothing came for them and the points were heading back eastwards.
Around 60 people turned up to see what turned out to be an entertaining game. It was dusky and just after 4 when it came time to leave. I got the bus into Eltham to visit the Berry and Barrel Micropub which had a couple of new ciders for me to try. The bus was a few minutes late, but I reached the pub at 4.35. I had a pint of Brogdale Sweet Cask which was made down the road in Faversham. They didn't have the second cider so I made my way back towards London. For once, a delay worked in my favour and I could board a train that was running twelve minutes late as soon as I reached the platform. I did a load of work on my blog but annoyingly, it was not saved for some reason and I lost it. I got off at London Bridge with the plan to visit one of my favourite pubs, The Miller, near Guys Hospital. However, Google Maps informed me it was closed until Tuesday, so I got back homeward on the train. It was very busy at first and I was only able to get a seat once we got to Wembley Park. I was able to sort my photos until I got to Rickmansworth at 6.40. It was just over a ten-minute walk to the Pennsylvanian, Wetherspoons 295 and my 50th and final one of 2023. I was able to get a table and finish up my blog as well as having something to eat and drink.
THE GROUND
METROGAS AMATEUR SPORTS GROUND is a basic but pleasant setup located near Eltham. There is plenty of parking and buses run regularly nearby. The ground itself has very little, just a pair of dugouts and a roped pitch with a bit of hard standing on one side. It does however have an enclosed feeling along three of the sides. There is a smart bar which offers a beer patio and a small bit of cover for when it rains. Overall, nice and peaceful and well worth a visit.
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