Springwest Academy
Browells Lane
Feltham
Middlesex
TW13 7EF
Ground Number: 1285
Thursday 28th March 2024
Feltham 0-5 Pitshanger Dynamo
Middlesex County Premier
FELTHAM FC - A BRIEF HISTORY
The current Feltham FC was established in 2021 to bring back an identity that had been lost following a merger with Bedfont in 2013. I can find no record of them before this season when they joined the Middlesex County League Premier Division. It has not been easy for them, they sit bottom of the table with a dramatic change in form needed to stay up. From what I can see, they play their Saturday games at pitch 2 at Spelthorne Sports Club and their midweek games at Feltham Community College owing to the need for floodlights. Situated 13 miles from central London, the population of the combined census area of Feltham, Bedfont and Hanworth is around 63,000. Famous people who have lived in Feltham include Queen's Freddie Mercury and Brian May, runner Mo Farah and footballer Steven Caulker and many more.
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The history of football in Feltham is a complicated one. The original club was established in 1946 and started in Sunday football, originally known as Hanworth Corinthians before hostilities commenced but changed their name to Tudor Park following the war. They moved into Saturday Football in 1949, initially playing in local leagues such as the Staines & District, Hounslow & District and Parthenon Leagues. They saw great success and so in 1963, they changed their name to Feltham and joined the Surrey Senior League. The same year, they moved to the Feltham Sports Arena and were the first UK team to play on an artificial surface. They were runners-up in 1966, the same year that they opened a large grandstand at the arena. From 1968 until 1973, they played in the Spartan League, finishing 3rd twice. In 1973, they joined the Athenian League's 2nd Division but in 1977, a large number of clubs broke away to join the Isthmian League's new 2nd Division. The move paid off and in 1981, they won the title to earn promotion to the Isthmian D1. A 5th-place finish was a great start but in 1984, they were relegated back to Division 2 South. Notable FA Cup achievements include two appearances in the FA Cup 3rd Qualifying Round.
MY VISIT
With me wanting to see a record number of games in March, this game was a pretty easy choice to pencil in. I had read about Feltham FC in Tony Incenzo's groundhopping column and it seemed an interesting club to write about. The Middlesex County League was one of the step 7 leagues that I was looking to complete and indeed, I had enjoyed my visit to Pitshanger Dynamo earlier in the season, the game was played at Brentham FC where they are tenants. That seemed to be a running theme with the Middlesex County League with a diverse mix of nomadic clubs representing various communities. The ever-changing grounds were quite confusing but the Middlesex County League was quite reliable. I had made a bit of an error last season when what I thought was a kids and parents game was in fact the FC Irish Of London game I'd wanted to attend at the Met Police Club in Bushey, only it was being played on a different pitch. Though it was better than getting the mix-up the other way around, I guess.
All was not lost as I saw a good game at Hemel Hempstead Rovers that night, which was part of the wonderful 'silly season' that we will soon be enjoying. This was sort of a pre-cursor to it, in the week that the clocks went forward, the 7 PM kickoff was also welcome with an early start for the South West Hop on Friday. Colin had found the fixture on Futbology and was originally coming with me. However, his want of a new phone meant that he was spending the day visiting his parents in Lincolnshire to get it sorted before our groundhopping trip. I was having second thoughts when I saw they were not using their home venue but decided to stick with it. It had been another wet week, so the 3G would be most welcome. Strangely, it stayed dry for my weekly walk to town and back on Tuesday morning, but that was about it with torrential rain on Tuesday evening.
It was a busy week for me blog-wise, with seven to prepare for the upcoming SWP hop. I did my research for this game on Wednesday evening and there was quite a lot to take in. It was one of my favourite parts of blogging though, discovering history and digesting it. I recalled visiting Feltham's ground for photos before I was into groundhopping. The data on the photos show that the pictures were taken on the way to AFC Wimbledon 3-3 Reading Town on 6th May 2004 as I used to give my mate Paul a lift to the games back then when Wycombe weren't playing.
The day of the game came and it was a mixed bag. My workload was fairly manageable so no concerns about being stuck at work. The place was rammed though and there were many people searching for Easter Eggs that had long sold out. I was in a good mood as I finished at 2 and headed home through traffic jams. I got home and had a bath and a fresh change of clothes, spending the afternoon researching the final blog of the weekend at Liskeard. There was a blow for my Sunday game. Stoke City Women were supposed to be playing their game at Norton United's old ground but switched the venue. It left me pondering what I could do instead as I had dinner and left for tonight's game at 5.40. It was a mixed journey and I was there an hour later. I wasn't sure where the game was but the group of middle aged men hanging about confirmed what pitch it was on. I saw hoppers Brekk and Spud amongst others just after the news that Honiton had suffered a call-off for the second SWP Hop in a row. A free programme was handed out and it was £1 for a badge. For the game, it was extremely windy with a bitter chill too. With the place a bit chaotic, the game kicked off ten minutes late at 7.10.
Feltham were really struggling, sitting bottom of the league. They had lost their last game 4-2 to Larkspur Rovers, one of fourteen straight defeats. The last time they'd not lost was on 28th October when they drew an exciting game 5-5 with Slough Town JFC, their only win, a 3-1 victory at Cricklewood Wanderers on 2nd September. The two sides had met back in August, with Pitshanger Dynamo winning 6-0. The visitors were going well in 2nd but their form was slightly patchy. They'd won their last game 3-2 at Shepherds Bush who ironically I'd seen them defeat 6-2 back on 26th August, to a backdrop, of would you guess it, rain and a storm. It was another storm, albeit without as much rain but strong winds that made play tricky. Unlike the narcissistic creep who had postponed the game in Devon, this referee had a functioning soul. It was a rather one-sided game. Pisthanger Dynamo took the lead after five minutes, a low shot from inside the area. A drilled shot into the bottom right made it 2-0 on 29 minutes before a scrappy goal made it 3-0 eight minutes later. A well-worked goal made it 4-0 before on 86 minutes the scoring was completed, a shot from inside the area which the keeper got a hand to.
It had been a rather one-sided game, had it not been for the home keeper, it would have been double figures. The weather was also rancid and the venue not the best. But I had been in great company, the attendance was 42. It had also been a great host club, as were Pitshanger Dynamo when I visited. Hopefully, results on the pitch will improve for them and they can return to a decent venue and level of football. The game finished just before 9 and then it was a 45-minute journey back home. I had a couple of pints as I typed my blog and really hoped that my trip to the South West would not be ruined too much by the weather.
THE GROUND
SPRINGWEST ACADEMY is a decent venue for players, two full-size pitches, plenty of parking and reasonable transport links. For spectators, it is standing around the pitch where there is a decent amount of space> Outside the cage is some cover and this offers an OK view.
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