South Liverpool - Jericho Lane Hub

South Liverpool FC

Jericho Lane Sports Hub

Otterspool Drive

Liverpool 

Merseyside

L17 5AR

South Liverpool FC Website

MBHSL FA Full-Time

South Liverpool FC Twitter

AFC Aigburth Twitter

Ground Number: 1366
Sunday 13th October 2024

AFC Aigburth 3-1 Pristine

MBHSL Division 2

SOUTH LIVERPOOL FC & THE LBH LEAGUE

The prime tenant of the Jericho Lane Sports Hub is South Liverpool FC. The hub was opened in 2019 and is owned by Leisure United, which has many similar venues nationwide. The club previously played on the same site when it was a basic pitch known as North Field, The current incarnation of South Liverpool FC was established in 1991 and was the third version of the club. A youth team at first, they merged with Cheshire Lines FC within a couple of years and for a couple of seasons were known as Cheshire LInes South Liverpool. They joined the Liverpool County Combination in 1995, winning the Division 2 title in their first season. They advanced to the Premier Division and finished a high of 4th in 2005. The following year, the County Combination merged with the I Zingari League to create the Liverpool County Premier League.

Due to their low finish in 2006, the club was placed in Division 1 but they won the title the following year. Back in the Premier Division, they finished 4th in 2009 but were relegated to the West Cheshire League Division 3 in 2011. They won that and Division 2 in the next two seasons and spent a while in Division 1. They won the title six times, the last of which came after the Jericho Lane facility opened. That allowed them promotion to the North West Counties Division 1 North. After a couple of unremarkable seasons, they finished 5th last season and qualified for the playoffs. Despite being outsiders they overcame Atherton LR and Ashton Town to reach the Premier Division.

The Merseyrail Business Houses Sunday League was founded in 1922 by a group of businessmen who wanted to provide a competitive football league for their employees. The league has grown steadily over the years and now has 75 teams competing in 5 divisions, plus a 10-team youth division. The league is sponsored by Merseyrail, a public transport operator in Merseyside. The current champions are Home Bargains, who won the Premier Division in 2024 and are regularly amongst the best teams in the FA Sunday Cup.

MY VISIT

As with Saturday, I was keen to make the most of my time on Merseyside and so the Merseyrail Business Houses League was the obvious candidate. This included teams such as Home Bargains, established in 1988 and five-time league winners. They were also regular competitors in the FA Sunday Cup which draws in big crowds in the latter stages. However, I wanted to take the opportunity to visit the ground that South Liverpool uses. That turned out to be the game between AFC Aigburth and Pristine. As with my Saturday morning game, it was reassuring that the home club had a good Twitter feed which sealed the deal.

As usual, I woke early on the day of the game due to being used to getting up for work. I felt OK though, but not about it being my last day off for some time. It would be another 138 days until I got more than one day off in a row, plus the living hell of Christmas in retail to look forward to. We got our things together and left just after 9, planning to stop at Spoons for breakfast. We had to get petrol first, the 24-hour Asda was closed so we went to Morrisons in Widnes where it was 7p a litre cheaper than home. It was then to the Childwall Fiveways Hotel, my 369th Wetherspoons. A breakfast muffin and energy drink were £3.99 and the parking was reasonable at 50p. The only pain was paying by cash as the antiquated system didn't take cards. I was happy I could get some at the bar with none on me. Breakfast was great and it was only ten minutes drive to South Liverpool FC. The car park was packed, but there was plenty opposite. We took a brief stroll down to the Mersey before walking across to the game.

 

AFC Aigburth were 5th in the league and unbeaten having won two and drawn two of their games so far. Pristine were 7th having won one, drawn two and lost two. AFC Aigburth were in red shirts and black shorts and Pristine were in an all-blue Argentina 2024 away kit. The visitors had the ball in the net after a couple of minutes, hitting the post and then the rebound into the roof of the net. However, it was ruled out for an infringement. AFC Aigburth took the lead on 6 minutes, with a rocket from just outside the area. A low shot from the edge of the area made it 2-0 on 20 minutes but it had been fairly even. After a four-minute halftime, the second half kicked off at 11.49 on 59 minutes, Pristine pulled a goal back, latching onto a long ball and finishing well. They certainly deserved it. However, on 80 minutes, Aigburth made it 3-1 on the break with a low shot.

 

THE GROUND

THE JERICHO LANE SPORTS HUB is a decent place to watch a game. The pitch area is a fairly decent cage with one seated stand and one area of cover holding around 75 each. Otherwise, it's three-sided open standing. The hub itself is nicely kept and has a cafe. There is lots of parking including opposite and buses run to near the ground.