Chronicles of the Berkshire Pig: Very long Good Friday

Newton Abbot Spurs v Teignmouth

Wells City v Cheddar

Afon Lido v Goytre United

Good Friday is always a good challenge in that there are usually a fair number of games, spaced out throughout the day, but there are the restrictions of Easter engineering works on the trains, and a Sunday bus service at best. However, a plan was devised which got in three games, without having to resort to the 'shooting fish in a barrel' South West organised ground hop.

First move was a move to the South West, on the 'Devon Express' from Swindon, running late due to already over running engineering work.

I’m struggling to find anything new to show on this route, so here is Exeter cathedral over the roof of a Kwik Fit.

With the sighting of the town centre race course....

....it was 136 miles 8 chains later and into the destination of Newton Abbott.

Fortunately the ground is only a short walk from the station, so it was the shortest route there, which was thwarted by the curiously named river Lemon, but eventually a bridge was found.....

.....and we were at the evocatively named Newton Abbot Recreational Trust.....

....home of Newton Abbot Spurs.

Newton Abbot Spurs 2 v Teignmouth 2, Carlsberg South West Peninsula League, division One East

Newton Abbot Spurs were founded at the outbreak of WW2, the 'Spurs' suffix came from the cockerel badge the club were using. They have flittered in and out of the South Western League ever since, their latest spell has been since 2004. There have been various other clubs in the town during their time the most notable being the short lived Dynamoes, who morphed into Newton Abbott, and spent the eighties in the South Western before dropping down to the Devon County and going bust in 2009. Present day, Buckland Athletic, on the edge of the town, are in the Western League.

Teignmouth FC are the highest rank football club not to have a Wikipedia page. Probably. They joined the South Western league in the eighties, but dropped back into the Devon County by the 1990s, which then became the South West Peninsula division 1 east in 2004, where they have remained ever since. Their major notoriety was in 1996 when their social club were storming to victory in FA Sunday cup, only for someone to point out that some of the players bore a very close resemblance to the clubs first team players of different names. The Sunday side were thrown out of the cup and the first team had a mass points deduction.

Newton Abbott have even at the Recreation Ground since they managed to wrestle control of it from the rugby club after the war. I'd been here before in the early nineties when I was at Uni in Plymouth. Back then they were in the County league and the ground was relatively undeveloped. I was surprised to see how much it has progressed since then.

Firstly, it has been railed off from the adjacent cricket pitch......

.....the main stand is in the corner, behind the near goal and adjacent to the entrance and thriving tea hut.

In a slightly unique lay out, the other cover is directly opposite, being in one corner of the far goal line. A Crocodile Dundee alike being the sole occupier of the loose seating in this stand.

A nice touch was a memorial area behind the near goal line, dedicated to a couple of players who died before their time. Anyone who has earned the nickname 'Boogie' by 21, is alright by me.

Still no bloody towels.....

....with one keeper even taunting me with a wholly unnecessary cap.

A very organised nature of the groundsman's clutter.

Though some great home made signage. Fucking cricketers.

Newton Abbot scored late in the first half, only for Teignmouth to equalise just before half time. in the second half, they went ahead with a free kick, but Spurs pulled it back towards the end of the game to Finish 2-2.

My intention had been to get in the two new guide pubs in town before the game, however, the late train meant this was missed. However, the pub right next to the station has just become a brew house.

No, not in the South East England style of 'because we now sell Doombar' to attract bearded pricks on fixed wheel bikes, but because it has now started brewing. The coaster was had.

Just as impressive was the book collection.

It was then back to the station where it was the Easter meeting of the Pacer appreciation society.....

......But I rejoined the same HST as I had down, which had been to Paignton and back.

By now the sun was beaming down on the sea front at Dawlish....

....and the ship wrecks of the Exe estuary.

I'd stocked up on a pasty, some bottles of Teignworthy, and Marstons crisps.

95 miles and 58 chains later we were into Taunton, where I alighted for the Mendip explorer bus. We headed east towards the hills, first of all encountering Glastonbury Tor on the horizon.....

.....and then into Wells and the Cathedral.

This was where I alighted.

There are no longer any GBGs in Wells, so it was straight to the ground.

One of only eleven city's in non-league.

Wells City 4 v Cheddar 2, Toolstation Western League, Division 1

Wells have been around since 1890, first in the local leagues, then in the Western from 1930. They continued in it until 1960, when they dropped down to the Somerset league, surprisingly staying there for almost 50 years, before gaining promotion back to the Western in 2008.

Cheddar came into existence two years after Wells, but played in the Cheddar Valley leagues until joining the Somerset County in the 1980s. They joined the Western League in 2012.

Their nickname is the cheesemen, though dissapointingly, they have moved on from this badge.

Wells is a great example of a traditional town centre ground.

Without doubt, the main feature is the wooden stand on the far touch line.

These were once prevalent in Somerset/Wiltshire, and although this one could be deemed quite architecturally nondescript, it is good to see a surviving example.

Another double dud for towels.

Niche publication litter bins.

The home team technical area seems to be a family affair.

When the rock puns on the music board moves on from biscuits to pressure washing.

The social club is really the cricket pavilion, but an unexpected but welcome St Peters - Ruby was enjoyed.

In a stroppy game, Wells went 2-0 up, only for Cheddar to pull one back right on half time, then equalise at the start of the second half. However, Wells went on to score a couple more and the game finished 4-2.

Back to Wells bus station...

....for an onward move to Bristol Temple Meads

Up the approach road with Brunel's original train shed on the left, and the later, and more ornate and famous Devon and Exeter buildings, ahead and to the right.

This afforded a quick move into the Knights Templar for a Mauldons – White Adder, before getting a unit over to Cardiff.

Gloucestershire Cricket have just installed permanent floodlights at the County ground, and these now dominate the north Bristol skyscrape......

....much more than Rovers do. I can see a few away fans turning up at the wrong end of Gloucester Road.

Bristol seems to be a centre for hot air ballooning, whether this is to do with it having the festival, or vice versa, I don't know. However, as we stopped at Patchway, one was making its way across the city.

Anyway, into Cardiff, and straight back out on a Swansea bound HST.

This was taken to the rebuilt Port Talbot station...

....for a sturdy 30 minute walk to this place.

Afan Lido 1 v Goytre United 2, Welsh Football League, Division 1

Afan Lido are a relatively young team, only coming about in 1967 when the sea front f Port Talbot was developed with a sports and leisure complex, including a football ground. After a couple of seasons in local leagues, they entered the Welsh league (which is actually a South Wales league). They bumbled round the op divisions before becoming founder members of the league of Wales in 1992. They finished second and qualified for Europe but came up against the might of Latvia's RAF Yelgava. Since then they have swapped between the variously named Welsh Premier and the Welsh Football league, currently in the latter after relegation two seasons ago. For many years they were the top club in the area, but have now been overtaken by very near neighbours Port Talbot.

Goytre United are from a village just outside Port Talbot. I visited them a couple of months ago, so won't detail them again...

...but leave it to this poetic start to their history from the programme.

The Lido ground still has the same facilities as when it was built, but with some obvious additions.

The original stand has had a TV gantry unsympathetically plonked on top of it. These are a real feature of Welsh Premier grounds, and are obviously part of the grading, but are often the most substantial part of the whole ground.

On the opposite touch line, a relatively new stand has been built, after Afan were denied promotion on a number of occasions due to the lack of seating.

Despite being a 1930 kick off, the teams ambled out well after. But joy upon joy, the Goytre keeper was with towel. I steadied myself for a shot, only for the buggers to change ends.

Swapping ends, I found that the towel had been unceremoniously dumped on the floor.....

.....but I got my shot for @keepers_towels

The main stand seemed to be a bike shed as much as a spectator vilify.

Faded glories

Lido were in eighth and Goytre in tenth, but only one point behind with five games in hand. Top of the league are a resurgent Barry. Goytre took a 0-2 first half lead, with Lido pulling one back midway through the second half, but couldn't find an equaliser so it finished 1-2.

I headed back on the bus to the station. The only other passenger saw me taking photos of the seafront......

.....and proceeded to tell me how the original lido complex was burned down a few years ago, and has been rebuilt away from the site, which is being developed by a local property magnate on behalf of the council. He did put it a lot more libellously.