No.28 - Sat 23rd January 2016; Kent County League Division 1W; 2.45pm at the Dartford FC Community Pitch; Princes Park; Grassbanks; Darenth Road; Kent; DA1 1RT |
Matchday images (49) https://picasaweb.google.com/footballgroundsinfocus/HallsAFC Halls AFC (0) 1 Bexlians (1) 2 'It's stress-free 3G'.
'It’s
a lovely bright sunny day (for a change) and I’m making my first sortie of the
season down into Kent for my footy fix. I’m heading to Dartford for my chosen game,
the Kent County League match between Halls AFC and Bexlians who are playing
each other in a Division One West fixture. Thankfully it’s a pretty
straightforward journey made easier by no longer having to stop and pay the
crossing charge at the busy toll booths. Instead you are now able to complete
the entire transaction online (after the journey) from the comfort of your favourite
armchair and without the slightest whiff of car fumes filling your lungs.
Halls
AFC was established back in 1919 as a works team representing J and E Halls, a large
manufacturing plant located in Dartford. The company’s
long standing history goes back to 1785 when John Hall began his one man
workshop in Dartford, Kent. The company quickly became known for
manufacturing steam engines and gun carriages which were exported to Europe and
Asia. It was not until the late 19th century that J & E Hall
manufactured the cold air machine that gained the company its reputation for
refrigeration innovation that still stands today.
Indeed it was reported in The Times in 1886 that J & E Hall’s first cold air machines
froze 30,000 mutton carcasses being shipped from The Falkland Islands to the
UK. J & E Hall designed the first two stage carbon dioxide compressor
in 1886 and, as early as 1910, supplied refrigeration equipment to the National
Skating Palace. With over 120 years experience
the company has unrivalled expertise and cutting edge production capabilities
worldwide.
As
far as football is concerned the club itself is well known in the area for
being pro-active in developing new players within its ranks. Incredibly there are currently
eighteen different teams ranging from under sevens right up to the veterans age
group which compete regulary under the Halls AFC banner. The senior first team
plays its home games on the Community Pitch at Princes Park home of National League
South Division side Dartford Football Club.
It is easily accessed (no more than ten minutes) from the M25 by following the exit B1 slip road towards the town with brown signs along the A225 taking you into Darenth Road and then left into Grassbanks where a driveway leads up towards the ground and large car park on the left. The impressive stadium opened back in 2010 is found immediately beyond here on the left with the neatly landscaped Community pitch over to the right, under the shadow of the main stand. It’s a hive of activity with a golf course and mini pitches also established on site.
My
last visit here was back in November 2007 when the Darts beat Horsham YMCA 3-1 for a Ryman League Division One South fixture in front of 4100
fans in the long awaited and much publicised ground opener. Although only a few
years have passed since that memorable occasion the club has progressed remarkably
up the pyramid hosting Conference Premier football, I’ve a sneaky feeling Princes
Park looks a little bit more worn down and drab over this time.
Despite
the continuing awful weather over the last few days there’s no worries about
the game going ahead as the action is taking place on an artificial 3G grass playing surface. Indeed a
quick phone call to club secretary Chris Michaelas at midday gives me the green light before setting
out from Racing HQ. Phew. The facility is fully enclosed within a tall caged
perimeter fence with the entrance close to the corner flag in the furthest corner
meaning the players walk the short distance over from the designated changing room block
opposite. A couple of perspex dug outs positioned on the far touchline cater
for the teams and there is plenty of room for spectators to watch the action from
inside the cage itself with a few extra chairs placed behind the touchline on
the tarmac pathway. This is roped through some free standing red and white
posts on the near side which continue up to the half-way line. The venue also has six sets of
floodlights allowing locals to use the pitch throughout the winter months when it is
dark.
The
match played in beautiful warm-ish sunshine attracts almost a dozen spectators
who are treated to an exciting end to end contest throughout. The visitors from
Bexley who are dressed in their Liverpool look-a-like strip come to Princes
Park two places ahead of the hosts in the 10 team division.
Indeed
it’s quite an eerie experience as this season’s tenants and ground-sharers Greenwich
Borough is playing Deal Town (4-1) in a Southern Counties East League fixture inside the main stadium.
A few raised shouts together with a muffled tannoy-announcer's voice can be heard in the
background at key times during the afternoon to distract the attention. As the sunlight
fades late in the second half the floodlight pylons are switched on behind us but we manage
to see out our game without any extra help. Is that luck or just savvy
housekeeping?!
For more information about the club go to its terrific website which includes both match video and photo gallery sections. In addition you can check out the excellent and regularly updated county league website which is a fabulous resource and all credit to web editor Philip Smith. A visit to this friendly club comes highly recommended. It is certainly worthwhile when the forecast is bad and in the words of FGIF superstar snapper Gary Spooner ‘you don’t want to be playing with the weather lottery’. The joys of stress-free 3G! Have fun wherever you go'.
FGIF Match Stats Scorers: (H) Vanstone (83) and (A) Bradshaw (10), Turner (49) Attendance: 10; Admission and Programme: None; Match rating: 4/5; Ground rating: 4/5. Links http://full-time.thefa.com/Index.do?league=3130670 http://kentcountyfootballleague.co.uk/
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edited on 24/01/16 |