Coppull United - Blainscough Park

Coppull United Football Club 

Blainscough Park

Springfield Road 

Coppull

Lancashire

PR7 5EJ

Official Website

Twitter

Ground Number: 1575

Friday 28th August 2026

Coppull United 1-3 Freckleton

West Lancs D1

COPPULL UNITED FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club started primarily as a youth outfit, based out of the Springfield Road Playing Field. Established in the 1980s, they soon realised that they needed an open-age team, so joined the Preston & District League at Division 4 level. They won Division 3 in 1991 and progressed through the divisions. In 1996, they gained their own ground, Blainscough Park, building a clubhouse which was opened by footballing legend Sir Tom Finney. This gave them the impetus to join the West Lancashire League in 1998 as founder members of Division 2. By 2002, they were champions, winning promotion to Division 1. This was followed by the Division 1 title the following year. Coppull United then had a 23-year unbroken run in the Premier Division, enjoying their best finish of 3rd in 2004. That ended last season as they finished second-bottom and were relegated to Division 1.

 

The club won the Lancashire Amateur Shield in 2015, beating CMB 3-0 in the final at the Lancashire FA Ground. The village of Coppull is near Chorley in Lancashire. Its population is around 8,000. The settlement has an Anglo-Saxon name describing its topography, derived from the Old English copp, a hill top and hyll, a hill. The North Union Railway between Wigan and Preston opened in 1838. Coppull Colliery was owned by John Hargreaves. On 20th May 1852 was an explosion of firedamp (a flammable gas), found to be caused by a lighted candle; 90 men suffering from chokedamp (gas poisoning) or burns escaped, but 36 men and boys died. After 1850, Coppull grew rapidly; many rows of houses were built to house coal miners and factory workers. There were several collieries, and deep shafts were sunk for the John Pit, Springfield Pit, Blainscough, Hic Bibi, Darlingtons, Ellerbeck Colliery, Birkacre and Pearsons mines. Mineral lines carried coal tubs to the main railway. Since the decline in manufacturing and the end of the coal industry, the village has been converted into a satellite town for commuters to Chorley and Wigan. Notable industries today include The Yew Tree Dairy, Morris' Bakery and Staveley's egg producer. The village was previously served by the Blackpool to Liverpool Line, which stopped at Coppull railway station, but the station was closed in 1969. Recently, there has been a campaign from locals to reopen the station.

MY VISIT

The previous year's West Lancashire Hop had been a huge success, and so it was inevitable that there would be a repeat the following year. With me running out of grounds at steps 1-6, dropping down to step 7 and below was welcome.  That said, next year's North West Counties Hop had worked out well for me, less so the Northern Hop, which was a huge disappointment. But that's the luck of the draw, I guess, and there will be plenty of other hoppers who will benefit more than me. I decided to drive and do the games under my own steam, having reserved a room at the start of June when the hop was announced. It was a familiar hotel, very nice but in the middle of nowhere. We also had Boston fan Shaun joining us, which should help cut down on the costs. It was far cheaper than going on the official hop coach, but I appreciate they have a much smaller pool of hotels, since they need coach parking and a hotel that can take around 50 people. Certainly, GHUK have provided very good value on the Scottish hops when they do local pickups near where I live, especially when I didn't fancy driving that distance.

After my game on Tuesday, it was a blank couple of days for me. Wednesday was an easy day at work, with my short day, but I was looking forward to a break from the place. A long walk on Wednesday afternoon helped me relax and wind down. Thursday was the same, with me counting down the minutes until home time. I went for another walk on Thursday afternoon to get my 10k steps in, something I reckon I will struggle with this weekend. The evening was spent catching up with research for my blogs. I'd hoped to get everything done by the end of Thursday, but I still had Monday's research to do. I got a good night's sleep, going to bed at 10 and waking at 5. I could have done with getting my skates as I fancied a morning walk and debated going down Wycombe. Instead, I lazed in bed until 7, got up, got washed and dressed and put the stuff in my car. I was late leaving for my walk at 8.15, so it would only be a short one. I was back at 9, as Colin said he'd get an earlier bus. He didn't due to falling asleep, but at least he got the bus he was supposed to later. It gave me the time to start my Haslingden blog before leaving at 10.10.

 

I met Colin at the local bus stop, and we were on our way. Despite the Cadent workers standing around doing nothing like they were auditioning for a job at WH Smith at Stansted Airport, there was minimal delay there. Less could be said of the M6, which had around 40 minutes of delay around Birmingham and Stoke. We broke our journey at Wetherspoons 552, The Arnold Machin in Newcastle Under Lyme. There I had Shawarma Chips and a lime cordial for £6.54. All very good, and the pub was set in a lovely part of the town near a park. It was doing a roaring trade on this Friday afternoon. We left just after 2; there was more delay predicted. What should have taken an hour was predicted to take 1H45. We eventually got to the hotel at 3.55; of course, the M6 had the bulk of the delay, just the 90 minutes for the whole trip today. We checked in to a very nice room, having stayed here last year. Fellow hopper Shaun was checked into his room and would be joining us for the weekend in the car. We left just after 5 and parked up near the ground and Coppull Tandoori. I ordered my Chicken Samber and rice, a new curry for me and a bargain at £9.50. I then went to Bargain Booze for a bottle of cider to have with my dinner. We ate the curry on a wall after the local cafe took their chairs in and made our way to the ground. It was a fiver entry including a programme; these hops are all about helping out clubs who don't usually charge or charge a nominal fee.

 

Coppull United had endured a tricky start to the season, losing all five games and sitting bottom of the table. Currently seeking a new manager, they had lost 3-0 to Croston Sports in their last game. Freckleton were in 11th, having won two, drawn one and lost three of their games so far. Last Saturday, they had lost 6-2 at Slyne-with-Hest. It was a fairly even game; Freckleton had the first chance, thumping the bar from the edge of the area; the keeper did well to pounce on and hold the rebound. Freckleton took the lead just before half-time, a penalty in front of a crowd of 353. Sixteen minutes into the second half, it was 0-2, a good finish into the bottom left from the edge of the area. A deflected shot, probably an own goal, made it 0-3 on 65 minutes. Coppull United really lacked confidence or any idea what to do with the ball in the final third. They had not had the best of luck with the goals though: a soft penalty, a goal with the keeper unsighted and a deflection. They finally had a shot with a free kick that went in the bottom corner, 1-3 on 77 minutes. That was it for goals; it was a decent start to the hop.

THE GROUND

BLAINSCOUGH PARK is a solid step 7 (or step 8) venue. The pitch is fully railed and has a pair of dugouts. There are also training lights, but not floodlights. It's a very pleasant venue with a small car park and plenty of street parking. Facilities at the ground include a tea bar, barbecue and bar, not much merch though. Overall, well worth a visit; there is a nearby pub, The Springfield, Coppull Tandoori, a Co Op and a bargain booze shop, amongst other things in the main street.

Hardwick - Hardwick Recreation Ground

Hardwick FC

Hardwick Recreation Ground

Egremont Road

Hardwick

Cambridge

CB23 7XR

FAFT Page

Official Website

Twitter

Instagram

Ground Number: 1574

Tuesday 25th August 2026

Hardwick 2-0 Milton

Cambridgeshire County Premier

HARDWICK FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club was established in 1983 and has spent the vast majority of its history in the Cambridgeshire County League. Records only exist from 2004/05 thanks to good coverage from the FA Full Time website. Hardwick were in the Senior A division (step 8) at the time, and they remained there until 2010 when they were promoted to the Premier Division. They achieved top half finishes every season, culminating in a 3rd place finish in 2015, a runners-up spot behind Great Shelford in 2016 and the title in 2017. Despite this win, they dropped down to Division 1A due to an abrupt exodus of their managerial staff and entire playing squad. Shortly after securing the league championship, manager Ollie Drake departed to take over higher-step side Godmanchester Rovers. Following his departure, the vast majority of the title-winning squad dispersed, leaving the club without a viable first-team setup for top-tier county football. Division 1A sits at step 10 of non-league, and Hardwick would remain here for three seasons until they were promoted as runners-up behind Cherry Hinton Reserves in 2020. Three seasons were spent in the Senior B Division until they were champions in 2023, and the Senior Division A title followed the next year. They've been in the Premier Division ever since, finishing 3rd last season.

Local cup wins include the Cambridgeshire Challenge Cup in 2015 when they beat Gaminglay United 1-0 in the final. Hardwick lies about six miles west of Cambridge and has a population of just under 2,700. Historically, Hardwick is hundreds of years old, with the first recorded mention in 991 AD and an entry in the Domesday Book of 1086. Hardwick used to consist of just a few houses and farmland around St Mary's Church, on what is now the southern edge of the village. The village's bakery was sited next to a row of houses just to the east of the pub at the end closest to the church, and the only remnant is the shell of the building which has become a garage. In its very early years, Unipalm had an office in Broadway House, indirectly linking the village to the early history of commercial internet in the UK.

MY VISIT

This midweek was looking rather blank. None of the local teams was at home, and the nearest new ground was a floodlit kickoff in Gloucestershire. I was resigned to a night in and doing something on Wednesday, although even then, the nearest option was around a hundred miles away in Alresford Colne Rangers. Thankfully, the Cambridgeshire County League came to the rescue, not the greatest of grounds in that league and not the most local league, but I still would like to complete the whole of step 7 in the very distant future. Other plans were made for a blank weekend in September when I'll be off to Hamburg. Even if I don't see my preferred game at St Pauli, there will be a whole load of football to watch in a new city.

I was leaving later than usual for the Wycombe Wanderers v Plymouth Argyle game as I wanted to get my blog from the previous night up. I left at 11 and walked to Wetherspoons., There, I had a pint of Cheddar Valley and some wings before moving on to the Rose and Crown, where I had a pint of Old Rosie before walking to the ground. This was the first game with the partially closed terrace in operation, which reduced the atmosphere somewhat, especially when fans in a singing section were made to sit down. It was a rotten first half with Wycombe falling behind, but a better second with us equalising. As it had been just a draw, it was a budget post-match, a can from Tesco and another pint and chips in Wetherspoons. By the time I got home at 8.15, I had walked over 30,000 steps. Another pint before bed was had before I went to sleep at 9. This was the first week of starting at 4 am; I felt great when I got up, but needed an afternoon nap. That knackered me for Monday, so I was looking forward to my day off.

Tuesday came, and it was the usual walk to town and back. The afternoon was spent at home, and I had plenty of work to do on blogs with an extremely busy month coming up. I left at 3.45 and picked Colin up at 4. I was expecting delays due to the Cadent roadworks, but we breezed through. There was some delay on the A1 near Welwyn, around ten minutes. It was hot and Colin slept most of the way. We were there at 5.45 and met up with Peterborough groundhopper Martin. I ate my chicken, having brought my own food as there was not much en route. It was Tandoori coated so my fingers got messy. I dumped the container back in the car and washed my hands just in time for kickoff.

 

Hardwick were bottom of the table, having lost all three games so far. They'd lost 4-0 at Over Sports, 4-1 to Saffron Walden Reserves and 2-0 to Great Shelford. Milton were 13th and had also lost all three games. They'd lost 4-2 at Soham Town Rangers Reserves, 2-0 to Over Sports and 1-0 at Saffron Walden Town Reserves. The first half was competitive but a bit shot-shy. The hosts had the better of the game but not much quality up front. Hardwick took the lead around ten minutes into the second half; a free kick was put in from the left and headed in from close range. It was 2-0 on 68 minutes, a high ball and a header from around the penalty spot. Milton offered very little, but they did hit the bar with five minutes to go. We left around 8, with me dropping Colin off at 9.25. We were much delayed due to a slow cyclist weaving all over the road on a 60 mph limit road. I was home myself at 9.40, going to bed pretty much straight away.

THE GROUND

Hardwick Recreation Ground or Hardwick Sports and social club us quite a basic setup pitch-wise. On the plus side, there are a couple of fixed dugouts and goal nets in the club colours. The pitch is roped off. The social club is very smart, with a decent range of drinks, including Aspalls cider. There are also basic snacks like crisps. Parking is fairly plentiful, including the surrounding streets. There didn't appear to be many food or drink options nearby.

Afan Lido - Lido Ground

Afan Lido FC

Lido Ground

Princess Margaret Way

Port Talbot

Neath Port Talbot

SA12 6QW

Official Website

Twitter

Ground Number: 1573

Friday 21st August 2026

Afan Lido - Pontardawe Town

Cymru South

AFAN LIDO FC - A BRIEF HISTORY

The club was established in 1967 and was named after the recently opened Afan Lido Sports Centre in Aberavon, where they are still based to this day. They played for four years in the Port Talbot & District League before joining the Welsh League in 1971. They started in Division 2, which was the third tier in South Wales at the time. In 1974, Afan Lido were promoted as runners-up behind Caerau Athletic. Two years later, they finished third behind Cardiff College and Cwmbran Town to gain promotion to the Premier Division. A third-place finish in their first season was a great start, but they went back down in 1980. Another effective relegation came in 1983 due to league reorganisation. The club was promoted back to the second tier in 1985 as runners-up to Taffs Well. A third-place finish in 1990, this time behind Sully & Ferndale Athletic, saw them return to the top tier, now called the National Division, for the first time in a decade. They had won the Premier Division in the two seasons before that, but were not promoted due to ground grading criteria.

 

These were times of change for Welsh Football as UEFA and FIFA had threatened to remove Wales from international competition unless a bona fide national division was established. Despite the National Division's name, it was based largely in South Wales, as it had been for many years, with the Cymru Alliance covering the north of the country. Therefore, in 1992, the League of Wales (now called the Cymru Premier) was established. In 1995, Afan Lido recorded their highest ever finish in the Welsh Pyramid when they finished as runners-up to Bangor City in the League of Wales. Their joy was short-lived though, as the following season, they were relegated. Two seasons were spent in the Welsh League Division 1 before they finished as runners-up to Ton Pentre in 1998 to go back up. Seven seasons were spent back in the top tier, with a high of 5th in 2002. Relegation came again in 2005, but the club went back up in 2011 as runners-up to Bryntirion Athletic. They struggled for three years in Welsh Premier before relegation in 2014. They've been in the second tier ever since, with the Welsh League D1 effectively being renamed the Cymru Premier in 2019, the same season they had their best finish since relegation of 4th. Latter seasons have seen them finish lower down the table, with them ranking 12th out of 16 teams last season.

Afan Lido made their only European excursion to date in 1995. They faced RAF Jelgava of Latvia at home, with the game being played at the local rugby ground. They lost the first leg 2-1 in Wales but managed a 0-0 draw in Latvia in the second leg. They had their best Welsh Cup run during the 2006/07 season. After beating Penrhiwceiber Rangers, Barry Town, Boderddern and Ely Rangers, they narrowly won a tight local derby 1-0 at Port Talbot Town. They progressed on penalties against Welshpool Town in the semis before losing 3-2 to Carmarthen Town in the final at Llanelli. They won the Welsh League Cup in 2011, beating Newtown on penalties in the final, their third win in that competition. They also reached the FAW Premier Cup quarter-final in 2003 before losing 4-0 at Wrexham. Afan Lido's main rivals are Port Talbot Town, who are based less than half a mile away from Afan Lido's ground. However, over recent years, with Port Talbot Town dropping out of the league, a strong rivalry has formed with 3 other Port Talbot-based teams playing in the JD Cymru South. Baglan Dragons, Trefelin and Goytre United have all filled the rivalry gap left by Port Talbot Town in recent years.

Afan Lido play at the Lido Ground, their home since formation. The first Wales women's international match under the auspices of the Football Association of Wales was played here on 6 September, 1993, against Iceland. Wales lost 1-0. The club is based in Aberavon. The town derived its name from being near the mouth of the river Afan, which also gave its name to a medieval lordship. Today it is essentially a district of Port Talbot, covering the central and south-western part of the town. Aberavon is also the name of the nearby Blue Flag beach and the parish covering the same area. Little is known about Aberavon before Norman times. Bronze Age remains have been found in the hills behind the town. Roman artefacts have been found near the sea, including during the construction of the docks in the 19th century. There are three rugby grounds in the town. Aberavon RFC are the most well-known, playing in the top tier of Welsh Rugby. Their 8,000-capacity Talbot Athletic Ground is also home to the Welsh Women's Rugby team. The stadium has also hosted continental football matches. Afan Lido FC played the home leg of their UEFA Cup 1995/96 preliminary round, 1st leg tie against RAF Jelgava at the ground.

MY VISIT

This game was decided well in advance for several reasons. Firstly, as I've stated many times, I love a bit of Friday night football. Secondly, I want to complete the top three levels in Wales and this certainly qualified. Thirdly, there was a Wetherspoons that I needed in the town. I had been to Port Talbot in 2013, entered the pub but didn't bother staying as they had no Welsh cider. Therefore, I needed to go back and do a proper visit. Looking back on my blog, Port Talbot was the first Welsh League ground that I went to in 2013 when they were challenging for a European place. It was a great introduction to Welsh football, and I'd stopped at Afan Lido pictures. I knew I wanted to visit for a game, but wasn't expecting to wait thirteen years to do so. Colin was initially keen to come, but said he might have to pull out for a family meal. I decided that I'd go regardless, despite the costs. I like to unwind on a Friday, be it with a few drinks or football as a reward for hard work. As I've been doing more of the former than is good for me lately, football was an appealing prospect.

My excessively delayed game at AFC Turnford meant I was a bus behind. That bus itself had plenty of delays, so it was touch and go whether I'd have a half-hour wait at the end of my £3 ride. Thankfully, I got off one side of the abandoned roadworks by the evil Thames Water and made the train on time. I got the Weaver Line to Hackney Downs and walked 15 minutes to the Cock Tavern, a pub with a decent selection of cider. I had a pint of Little Pomona Burrels Meadow whilst I uploaded my blog. It was then an offy for some French cider to go before I got a bus to Aldgate. Or more accurately, buses, as the one I was on cut short its trip. I did make it in the end, getting through the door at 10.30 and having a final drink before bed. It had been another boozy day, and I really should cut down, but it was my last weekend before I had to start an hour early on Sunday. As it is, the 3.50 am alarm is unwelcome. I was up fairly easily, though after four hours of sleep. It was a standard Sunday, with it being unpleasantly busy despite no one acting out of turn. I was glad when it was 1, and I could leave. I went home before heading out around half an hour later after some lunch. I forgot how irritating the journey to Harefield was on tiny roads, but I was there in good time. It cost me £8 to get into Eagles Land Benfica v Virginia Water in the FA Vase.

Despite Eagles Land finishing 8th in the Middlesex County Premier last season, they merged or took over the Portuguese diaspora club SL Benfica over the summer. They are an Albanian side themselves, and it was pretty much an audacious workaround to earn promotion without doing it on the field, as there was little evidence of Benfica's involvement in the club. It showed on the field too as they've lost all three of their games so far in the Combined Counties D1. Virginia Water were in the league above, sitting in mid-table. They dominated the first half, helped when Eagles Land had a player sent off for throwing a punch. The hosts still managed to have a couple of chances on the break, having the best chance before half-time when they hit the post. Virginia Water finally took the lead on 68 minutes; a scrappy bouncing ball found its way into the net. Eagles Land gave it a good go and had chances, but they were generally wasteful with the ones they got. They were a very combative side, which the Virginia Water manager spent all afternoon moaning to the referee about. The keeper played very well and had they got to penalties, it would have been written in the stars for him to become the hero. Monday was fine at work, and in the evening, I finally booked my second week in September off, with flights to Paris & Malta. The previous week had been frustrating, and I'd spent double-digit hours trying to find something that worked, without success.

It was my day off on Tuesday with my usual walk to town and back, followed by another fruitless search for something I fancied for the first weekend in September, a frustration repeated on Wednesday after a decent day at work. In between, I made my 46th visit up to Watchet Lane to watch my local team play Spelthorne Sports. Holmer Green used to be a bit meh in terms of a warm welcome. But lately, they've been fantastic, getting families involved, getting extra support and making the matchday experience much better. They took a while to get going, but in the end won 2-0 in the last 15 minutes on a dry pitch. I took my tablet up there, watched Wycombe's Football League Trophy game at Reading before and during half-time whilst having the penalties on in the background in the second half. Thursday saw us get rain for the first time in about two months, a far cry from the start of the year when it rained pretty much every single day. Friday was a very busy day at work as it always is, but at least I had football to look forward to.

I finished just after 1, got changed and met Colin outside at 1.15. I was hoping to take it easy and save fuel, but there were lots of delays. The worst of it was at the M4/M5 interchange, never usually an issue but today it added 35 minutes to the journey. It meant we hit Wales at the start of the rush hour. As usual, the ICC building in Newport, which I like to refer to as the cricket place, despite it having nothing to do with the International Cricket Council, was slow around it. There were the usual rubber-necking noncecaskets looking at an accident on the other side near Cardiff, which slowed us further. We were at Afan Lido FC at 5.20, after an hour's delay. We walked the 40 minutes into town, going to my 551st Wetherspoons, The Lord Caradoc. It was drizzly at times, but it was a bracing walk past the wonderful Port Talbot Town FC and across the river Afan, which gave the club its name. We were there at 6.05, and I ordered Shawarma Chips and a bottle of Gywynt Y Ddraig Old Crow cider. Both were excellent and came quickly. Colin had his grubby little fingers in my dinner without asking, so I was glad when his nachos came. We left at 6.30, the rain now stopped. There was more drizzle on the way, but nothing too bad. We were there at 7.15, meeting Shaun the Boston fan who will be joining us on the West Lancs Hop next week. £6 was good value for entry; I also got a bacon burger for £4.50, which was solid but unspectacular.

A healthy crowd of 191 was in attendance with several hoppers and local football fans. Afan Lido sat 10th in the table. So far they had beaten bottom team Llantwit Major 5-0 but lost 3-1 at Carmarthen Town and 5-2 to Aberystwyth Town. Pontardawe were a place lower in 11th and had beaten Caerphilly Athletic 3-0 on opening day but had lost 3-2 at Pontypridd United and 4-0 to Newport City. The visitors dominated the opening 15 minutes. They were awarded a penalty, but Afan Lido keeper Exauce Dimonekene made a great stop. It inspired the hosts to have their first attack as they broke and headed over the bar from a cross. Not the greatest game; it drifted into a lull. Chances were few and far between, so I was glad when Jack Pascoe popped up with the winner on 64 minutes, volleying into the bottom corner. That was it for goals. We left around 9.20 and stopped at Tesco for petrol and supplies on the way. The first bit was a success but the latter a disappointment as it was a crappy little store with me unable to stock up on the Welsh cider I liked for next week. Either way, I got a drink for the way home. I dropped Colin off at 0.45 and got home myself at 1, going straight to bed.

THE GROUND

The Lido Ground is a tidy setup for the level, but is showing its age. There is a nice-sized stand holding 600; this would have looked great at the start, but had part of the roof missing. Opposite is a small standing area with the camera gantry above, and there is additional cover near the bar. Talking of the bar, it looks great with tons of club-related stuff on the walls. There is sports TV, and the range of drinks looked decent - Strongbow, Thatchers Gold and Dark Fruits on tap for cider drinkers; sadly no Welsh stuff though. There was a good range at the tea car too, not gourmet but solid enough to fill a hole. There are a few places nearby, or Port Talbot is 40 minutes walk away. There is a decent amount of parking and buses run nearby.