The dreaded C word - cold, colder and even colder! After spending most of Friday evening and a large part of Saturday morning trawling through the fixtures and reluctantly crossing out each entry on my list of fifteen hopeful hoppertunities, all casualties to the frost and snow, I had almost given up the wintry ghost of finding a game that was still going ahead today. However with one last throw of the internet dice, I logged onto the trusty pages of the Tony Kempster Forum to find that the Herts Senior County League Intermediate Division game between North Herts College Football Academy FC and local rivals Panshanger was given the thumbs up. Ace poster and super hopper Andy Molden from Oxford had been in touch with the club secretary and confirmed in his last message that the game at the Valley Sports Academy ground (a 3G facility) in Stevenage was definitely ON and would start at 3pm. I could hardly believe it. What a result!

With Stevenage only an hour away from home (the renowed centre for the esteemed Newmarket sausage), our destination was successfully reached well before the scheduled kick off time. After dropping daughter Jo in the town centre to finish off her Christmas shopping (how organised is that?), I continued my journey along the ring road to Broadhall Way. Whilst driving down the approach slip road I noticed to my left that both sets of players were already out on the pitch going through their warm up routines. The playing area looked in very good condition and it appeared that quite a bit of snow had been moved to the sides of the cage earlier in the day. Game on! Several like minded hoppers (including Malders, DJ, Andy M, Pete, Dave H, etc) had gathered at the ground entrance in eager anticipation of the afternoon's unexpected entertainment. Great to see you fellas!

For those of you who may not yet have read FGIF correspondent's Bob Davies' upbeat report from his visit here only a couple of weeks ago (see http://www.footballgroundsinfocus.com/TT1011126.htm), let me remind you that the hosts play in what is the newly formed HSCL Intermediate Division (a competition introduced to bridge the gap between youth and adult football this season). Designed for players aged from 18-21 years, it has sadly seen three clubs drop out leaving the league with only five remaining teams, each now having to play the others twice at home and twice away. NHCFA has so far made a great start to their campaign, losing only one game to date. For the record both sides had met twice already with the students coming out on top in both games winning by 4-2 and 3-0 scorelines. For some more info about the club click on the link at the foot of this report.

Today the youngsters impressed and continued their fine run of form, coasting to what was a comfortable 10-1 victory. For the most part they were the better side in terms of organisation, fitness, passing and control. Dressed in an all red strip the hosts were one up within the first three minutes when unmarked Josh Hare netted from the edge of the six yard area. They had scored five goals before their opponents from Welwyn Garden City replied - mind you Ben Smith's (65) speculative effort from all of thirty five yards out was certainly worth waiting for. Their fightback was shortlived though as the students continued to pile on the pressure completing the rout with three goals inside the last five minutes. Praise must go to skilful attacker Courtney Hare who scored his third goal in injury time. The best strike of the game was definitely the last one, a beautiful curling shot from Dale Aldridge (90+2). The sub bent the ball brilliantly around two defenders and the luckless keeper Richard Chalkley, one player no doubt relieved to hear the sound of the final whistle. The game was attended by a modest 12 hardy spectators, ten of whom were neutrals most having travelled here from different parts of the Southern counties compass. Despite the freezing conditions and incessant heavy rain throughout the second half, the playing surface seemed to hold up very well indeed (compared to the surrounding field which increasingly began to waterlog in several places).

A couple of observations. I should imagine the 'familiarity' of playing on this type of composite 3G rubber crumb surface can help improve your performance. It surely must give you a big advantage over other teams when you train and play on it regularly. I noticed that a couple of visiting players began to suffer with cramp during the last twenty minutes of the game. Whilst in conversation with Steve Robinson (the visiting manager) I learned how difficult it was for him to attract players to his club (meaning he was constantly fielding a different or depleted team each week - See the notes in the club website at the address below). I distinctly got the impression that it wasn't much fun. This was obviously in sharp contrast to the home side who have far more players on their books to choose from. Like Bob mentioned in his TT report, I hope that the league can sustain itself until the end of the season and has a future in local youth football. 

The Valley Sports Football Academy is located about half a mile from junction 7 of the main A1M carriageway and is found next to the Valley School. By car, go over two roundabouts and follow exit signs on your left that take you down a short approach road to the car park. The venue is set in a shallow bowl below the main road and is literally under the shadow of illustrious neighbours, Stevenage Borough FC, which is directly opposite. A sneak preview from outside (before kick-off) shows just how far the The Football League new boys have come since I first saw a game at Broadhall Way back in the early 1990's. On that day (12/12/92) Boro beat Marlow 2-0 in an entertaing Diadora League Premier Division fixture on a fog bound pitch. How time flies!    

Access to the ground is through a narrow gate in the corner of the outer perimeter fence. Immediately to the left are a couple of portacabins incorporating offices, hospitality lounge, refreshment area (serving hot drinks, biscuits and chocolate), changing rooms and a toilet block. From here a narrow roped path leads players, officials and visitors to the caged playing area, a 3G rubber crumb synthetic surface, beyond. This has several large colourful advertising posters attached to both sides of the netting. Unlike similar venues I have recently attended, I was quite surprised to learn that spectators attending matches here are not allowed to go inside the cage. I was informed by fellow hoppers that it's completely out of bounds. Instead you must continue along the path to the right and watch the game from outside the cage. Thankfully I managed on this occasion to obtain permission from the both team managers and the referee to take photos from inside during the game. Phew! Although there is no dedicated cover four portable nylon dugouts are placed (in two sections) alongside the far touchline. As the rain hammered down in the second half I was more than happy to seek refuge inside one of these designated for the visitors. Mind you by the end of the game I was quite glad to escape my 'tent' as the the amount of water collected in the material had caused the roof to sag noticeably!!! With the increasingly poor visibilty it was a good decision by the club to switch the floodlights on well before the 3pm kick off time. Beyond the main cage is a large playing field with several pitches used to host matches from mini soccer up to Under 16 level. Further details regarding the Valley Sports Football Academy can be found at the following web address: http://www.valleysportsacademy.co.uk/. 

So on a day when nearly all fixtures in the local area, if not the whole country, were wiped out altogether, I can honestly say that, along with a small group of grounds' enthusiasts, I was more than chuffed to get in a game at the little known Valley Sports Football Academy. A visit here, particularly after a spell of cold, wintry weather leading up to the game, certainly proved a winner. Finally I would just like to thank Bob Davies and Andy Molden without whom I would never have condsidered visiting the club or ground, let alone have the opportunity of watching a game. Cheers guys. Enjoy your travels. The thrills and spills of 3G continue...just. Now what did I say about the C word - I wonder if Jo managed to finish off buying her presents!?                                        

FGIF Match Stats

Scorers: (H) J Hare (3; 45); C Massey (16; 67; 90+1); G Wales (27; 58); C Pretton (81,og); S Brent (87); D Aldridge (90+2) 

and (A) B Smith (65)

Attendance: 12 (10 hoppers); Admission and Programme: None; Match rating: 5/5; Ground rating: 3/5.

NHCFA webnotes: http://www.valleysportsacademy.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=118&Itemid=113

Panshanger FC website: http://pfc.barndicott.com:8080/index.php?pageref=/mainpage