Launceston - Pennygillam Way

Launceston FC

Pennygillam Way

Launceston

Cornwall 

PL15 7ED

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Ground Number: 1420
Saturday 19th April 2025
Launceston - Callington Town

South West Peninsula League West

LAUNCESTON FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club was established in 1922 although a former club played in the town between 1891 and 1907 before folding. Upon formation, they joined the Plymouth & District League, winning Division 2 in 1929 and the Premier Division three times in a row between 1956 and 1958. Aside from a season break, they played in the South Western League between 1958 and 1966 but never pulled up any trees.  A spell in the East Cornwall League followed before Launceston rejoined the South Western League in 1979.  This time they would finish as runners-up to Newquay in 1984 before winning the title in 1995. A series of disappointing finishes occurred around the turn of the millennium, including three bottom-placed finishes in a row. The league was merged into the South West Peninsula League in 2007 and Launceston have played in the Premier Division, latterly the Western Division ever since. This sits at step 6 of non-league and they have finished as high as 5th on three occasions.

Three FA Cup campaigns have been played with Launceston reaching the Preliminary Round twice. They also reached the FA Vase 2nd Round in 2006, beating Fairford Town & Liskeard Athletic before going out to Street following a replay. Local cup honours include two South Western League Cups and four Cornwall Senior Cups. The town of Launceston is located in Cornwall and has a population of just over 9,000.  It is 1 mile west of the middle stage of the River Tamar, which constitutes almost the entire border between Cornwall and Devon. The landscape of the town is generally steep, particularly at a sharp southwestern knoll topped by Launceston Castle.

MY VISIT

From our game at Bodmin, it was an easy half-hour drive to Launceston, straight down a dual carriageway for the most part. We arrived at 5 and parked up. I headed to the bar and the merchandise stall, where I got four football books for 50p each. The most interesting was a book about Hertfordshire Non League football during the 1986/87 season. This will hopefully inspire me to visit some grounds that are close to home and worthy of investigation. I put them back in my car and walked back to find a lorry struggling it's way down the industrial estate as cars were parked both sides. I went back to the bar and checked out the Cider. With only Cold River, I decided against it due to the drive home later. Instead, I went in the ground in search of food. Chilli Beef Nachos were superb for £4, and more importantly, the money went to the club. Night and day compared to the botulism swill from the outside caterer at Bodmin.

 

Launceston were bottom of the table and had not won in six games. Last time out, they lost 3-2 at Bodmin Town. Callington were in 5th and in mixed form. In their last game, they'd lost 2-0 to Dobwalls. The opening minute saw Callington have a shot cleared off of the line as the game got off on the right note. They had the better of the play and took the lead on 30 minutes, a low shot dispatched past the on-rushing keeper. The game dried up a bit after that until Callington hit the bar with a speculative shot on 65 minutes. Launceston had one cleared off the line on the break, and then Callington forced a good save from the keeper around 15 minutes from time.

 

From the game, it was time to go home. We left just before 8 and made good time. It was a strange route, a lot of time on the A303 but it cost a lot less than I expected. After dropping Colin off, I was home at 11.45 and spent a few hours putting a wash on and catching up on things. I even got a couple of blogs done before going to sleep at 2.30 am. It had been an excellent hop, although another pricey one. The tickets for the hop had cost £55, although the £8 left over for the Newquay ticket was wasted as I didn't go. My half of the petrol and servicing costs worked out at £70, and the two nights in hotels worked out at £90, £20 was added to extras, which was basically the food and drink that wasn't very interesting. On top of that, around another £40 getting decent food and visiting a Farm Shop. It was all well organised and it meant that I was able to get a new ground for every 78 miles driven. Some clubs did better than others, the food was especially decent at St Day and Launceston, whilst the standout ground was Nanpean Rovers.

THE GROUND

PENNYGILLAM WAY is a smart and functional venue. The one stand holds around 200 in a combination of sitting and standing and the rest of the ground is hard standing. The food was excellent when I went and the bar large with a few bits of merchandise on sale. The ground is located on an industrial estate close to the dual carriageway so the only alternative food option is Domino's Pizza. There's also a brewery nearby. Parking is plentiful but I'm not sure about public transport.