Newhaven v Crowborough

Take Me Home, Gibbon Road Newhaven FC host Crowborough FC in a friendly at Fort Road

Where are we and What’s going on?

Football is back 🎉. We’ve torn ourselves away from some frantic telly clapping 📺👏 for a preseason friendly by the Ouse. It’s cooled down from the heatwave but still warm enough. Tonight, the Dockers welcome The Crows. They are a league higher but don’t look scary like Lewes or Horsham. It will be a good test and a hard workout for the Reds.

Back at Fort Road

There has been a bit of signing news with Captain Lee and Co-Captain Blunt retained for 26-27. A new signing comes from Haywards Heath. It’s experienced midfielder Joe Radley Martin who won a league and Cup double with the Bluebells last season. Welcome Joe.

There are a few new faces in today's starting 11. We’ll get names when we can. They are the 4,5 and 6. The 5 turns out to be Max Vardy, back from the Badgers.  In the goal at the Surf’n’Skate end is a new face to us. It’s Leo Anderson. Jonny is on the bench. Billy Barker and Elliot are the full backs. Shay Tobin (8) and Ryan Blunt (10) are in the middle. Up front are Ash Wadhams (7), Lee (9) and Ezra (11).

On the bench are Rudi Jones, Dexter Lambert and youngster Harley King. The are 3 new faces on the bench as well.

In the Crowborough line up is ex-Docker defender Harry 'Reedy' Reed.

We have a new kit and a new kit sponsor. The shirt looks really nice. 👕  Thank you to Britannia Beckwith 🚛 for their support.

It’s a nice temperature for a game and nice to be sitting in the stands again. Let's see how it goes. Any cries on Come on you Dockers are drowned out by a very loud rattle and horn. Thanks Mel!

Off we go..

With our ears ringing, we kick off towards the Skate Park. The Dockers hold their own against the higher opposition. The first big chance goes to Ezra on 14. He breaks from the half way line and smashes it at the top right corner but the keeper makes a great flying save. Unlucky Ez.

Nice to see a hydration break. Did someone forget the Powerade banner?

The visitors can’t get past Leo despite going 1 v 1 a couple of times. They do however get past from close range after someone gets caught ball watching on the goal line and it’s headed in at the far post on 28. Boo. 0-1.

There is a chaotic scramble in the Dockers box and the ref awards a penalty to the Crows. We couldn’t see what it was for but there wasn’t much complaint. It’s converted from the spot on 36. 0-2. Harsh on the boys that!

It’s still a 2 goal deficit at the break.

There are 2 changes for the second half. The 4 has made way for No, 12. Max Vardy has made way for Harvey King. Maybe the other way round.

It’s a scrappy start to the half with the visitors looking most likely to score. We keep them out with some more good 1 v 1 stops from Leo.

At 70 minutes, it’s time for some more changes. Lee goes off for the new No. 17. Rudi Jones and No. 18 come on buy can’t see who has gone off. It gets a lot more chaotic.

Ezra hasn’t lost his mojo and shoots just wide on 75.

The Crows think it’s a 3rd goal on 85 but it’s thankfully offside on 87. Ha Ha.

Goal!. A storming run by Ezra down the right is crossed in for the No. 17 to head home on 90+3. ⚽. 1-2.  It there time for another?  No, it all over and it’s a loss for the Dockers but we won the 2nd half.

We think it’s all over…

It’s not all about the results. Except for those on the pitch. It was a good hard run out for the Dockers who put in a good performance. It wasn't pretty at times but there was plenty of effort and commitment. And we won the 2nd half even though it got more chaotic and scrappy as the changes started.

But football is back. There is still some telly clapping to do as Win-ger-land and still in the World Cup and face Argentina in a Falklands Derby Semi Final on Wednesday.

There were a few new faces and the No .4 looked good. Experience in the 6 position with hopefully better discipline than Tom H B.  The new No. 17 scored the goal which is  great way to start. Hope to see them both announced soon.

We don’t have to wait long to see the Dockers again as we're back here on Friday to welcome Seaford 🦡.

The Other Bits

POTM: A tough one today as there were 2 standout performances. Leo 🦁 Anderson pulled off 3 or 4 great saves when players went 1v1 with him. Great skills and bravery. Ezra brought real attacking energy and got an assist for the goal. But today it goes to Leo 🏅 as we would have taken a battering but for his outstanding performance.

Officially Opinionated: The ref did well as did the assistants. Lots of offsides to prove they were awake. Well done and thank you. FIFA take note. No technology required. And thanks to Harry Hill for taking time out of his busy schedule to run the line on the stand side. Thanks Harry.

The Scran’O’meter was disappointed with the hot chocolate scoring only a warm and wet 6/10.  

Ferry watch ⛴: Seven Sisters arrived at 8:58. Bang on time. Well done Captain.

See you soon.

Love Tranmerekat 🐾

8:58..  Ferry is on time

Newhaven v Seaford

Thank Good it's Friday Newhaven FC v Seaford Town FC in SCFL Premier League at The Crouch

Where are we and what's going on?

It’s Derby Day part 1 so the Dockers visit the Badgers on Good Friday evening. It’s April but it’s cold and windy. Having lost narrowly to the league leaders on Tuesday, exiting the PB Cup. We’re hoping that they can bring some of that confidence and defensive resilience today. They will need it as this is another game on a pitch that isn’t the best.

The line ups are out and it’s Jonny in goal as usual with Dan and Elliot in front. Richmond and Rudi are out wide. It’s Tom in the 6, Charlie in the 8 and Blunty in the 10. The front 3 is Ezra, unusually on the right, Ash on the left and Lee in the middle. Tonight the Dockers are wearing the Reform Turquoise away kit.

In the middle of the Badgers defence is ex Docker Max Vardy. Another familiar name is in the line up is Callum Connor.

Playing on the Friday night ahead of all the other fixtures on Saturday gives us the chance of a brief jump up the table. And it’s a game under the lights. We have a nice view of Seaford Head before it goes dark though.

Will they be tired from Tuesday? Let’s hope that the momentum of that performance pulls them through. Time to find out. Come on you Dockers.

Off we go..

The Badgers kick off with the wind. It is breezy so we’re sheltering in the stand. It’s first chance to the Dockers but Tom’s shot is straight at the keeper. The Badgers have clearly selected Ezra as a target. He is getting plenty of space down the right and making good use of it. He can’t make any use of it though as he is getting fouled again and again. Luckily he doesn’t get injured. They get a couple of yellows for their troubles and there is lots of moaning at the ref.

The next chance goes to Seaford but the shot is straight at Jonny. The next 2 chances go to the Dockers as Robbo heads just over from Ezra and Blunty’s cross skims across the goalmouth to be met by nobody. There are more chances as Ezra’s shot is deflected over. The resulting corner is headed straight at the keeper by Elliot.

Lee gets a good shout for a penalty but he’s not going to get that from these officials. Far too obvious 🤦.

It turns into a dull game of football after the first 15-20 minutes of end to end.

The Dockers kick off for the 2nd half. Playing with the wind now and it seems to have got stronger. It’s causing issues and catching them out a bit.

The Badgers break quickly on 51. There is a trip in the box and the ref points to the spot. The man in our stand that was in line with it says it was a mile offside but the lino was 5 yards behind the play so couldn’t see. Harsh on the Dockers. The penalty taker sends Jonny the wrong way. 1-0.

We come close as Ezra and Blunty combine to come close on 53.

Teddy comes on for Ash who has had a good game.  He is soon in the action and scores on 59 but it’s offside apparently.

We score for real this time as Charlie Gibson gets clear to equalise ⚽. 1-1.

It’s still 1-1 as Blunty hit wide on 62. Ditto for Charlie Gibson on 66.

The Dockers are in control now. It's Robbo's turn to miss as he can’t control a cross and hit over on 75.

Robbo is in the action again as he and Ezra get in each others way at the far post and no-one heads home.

Elliot is booked on 80. It’s getting a bit heated. The ref is not having a good day at the office.

Youngster Harley for Charlie on 82.

We are into injury time, this could take a while. It’s getting more bad tempered and the Badger Captain for talking back after the ref was telling off one of his teammates.

The Dockers bench are getting a talking to but refusing to sit down. The ref has lost any control of the game he may of have still had.

Play eventually continues and the Dockers are getting corner after corner. Some are just going straight over, caught in the wind.

A dreadful offside from the lino again. The Badgers keeper is time wasting and it raises the temperature even more. It’s so chaotic, how much time is he going to add on for all this carnage.

At 90+5 Billy (hooray) comes on for Tom. That’s a midfielder off and a striker on. Go Dockers.

The Dockers get another corner from the left (i.e. downhill and with the wind). There is a scramble on the goalline and the ball half crosses the line. It’s not cleared and it’s tapped home by one of the Dockers ⚽. 2-1. The Badgers are furious with the lino but I think they are clean out of favours from the officials tonight.

The keeper is refusing the restart with the ball which is still in the net 😭.

Dexter comes on for Robbo on 90+11.

There are a couple more minutes and it’s all over on 90+13. 2-1. We make a sharp exit in case it all goes off.

We think it’s all over..

Well that was good fun. The first half was not great for football or entertainment. The second had some better football and some top notch entertainment. Especially at the end when it went a bit bonkers 🤪.

The performance was good, especially at the start. We were worried that it would tail off when they got tired. They had a very hard game on Tuesday and gave their absolute all in that. It didn’t show today. The mentality told at the end with the young Dockers staying focused on the match when it was going off all around them. Lee would have been giving the ref grief whatever so making him Captain saves him getting in trouble for it.

The result helped the Dockers climb the league a couple of places. We only dropped 1 place back to 7th when the other games were played on Saturday so we’re still in the playoffs.

In other news, Tranmere lost away to Shrewsbury, glad we didn’t go. Crawley won, so did Harrogate so it’s looking grim for the Rovers at the bottom of league 2.

The Other Bits

POTM: goes to Ezra for causing them nightmares down the right wing. Well done, again, Ezra 🏅.

Officially opinionated: Well, where to start? There were some early mistakes which ramped up the pressure a bit. There were more dodgy calls and the moaning increased. The missed penalty call in the 1st half was a sign of things to come. Breachy provided some feedback and would have been booked had he not been right. It got very feisty at 90 minutes and the Badger’s Captain got sin-binned. The time wasting was the trigger for what happened in injury time. The ref and the uphill assistant were shouting at the Dockers bench for ages. To little effect. They had completely lost control. The worst officiating we have seen in a long long time.

The Scran’O’meter scored the hot chocolate a mediocre 6.5/10.

There was no programme available today. 0/10.

See you soon.

Love Tranmerekat 🐾

The Crouch

Under the lights

Newhaven v Steyning

Billy Punt! Newhaven FC play Steyning Town Community FC in the PB Cup Semi-Final at Middle Road

Where are we and what’s going on?

A new ground

The Dockers face the Barrowmen at the home of Shoreham FC. The clocks changed at the weekend so we are being treated to a lovely sunset before the kickoff. It’s cool and still but the clouds are looking threatening. As if facing the league leaders isn’t enough of a challenge! The Dockers have showed a little more consistency in recent games. Fingers crossed that it carries into today.

A fantastic sunset

Newhaven are the home team today so are in red with the Barrowmen in away Blue. There is a change in goal from Saturday with Jonny returning. Dan and Eliot are in the middle with Rudy on the left and Richmond on the right. Richmond is making his 50th appearance for the Dockers. He is a favourite of ours so we hope he adds another POTM to his collection tonight. Harry drops to the bench. Charlie is in the 6 with Shay moving up to the 8. Or maybe it’s a double pivot whatever that is? The rest is the same with Blunty is the 10 with Lee in front in the 9. Teddy is on the right with Ezra on the left.

The team news

There is a familiar face on the bench for the Barrowmen. It’s the young ex-Dockers striker, Alex Plummer.

The sun is setting in the West and also potentially on our Cup runs for this season. It could go horribly wrong but, we are here in hope. We have a good feeling after the Dockers performance on Saturday. The Barrowmen have won every game on the mainland this year having only lost to Guernsey away. Let’s hope this is the end of that run. Here we go. Come on you Dockers.

Off We Go..

The first chance goes to the Dockers attacking the East end in front of us. Blunty can’t capitalise though and it’s gone. Shame, an early goal would have been nice.

Steyning are now keeping the ball well and looking dangerous on the break. They have a couple of chances before scoring from a fast break on 15. 0-1. Too easy. 🤷

They double their lead on 19 from a corner. Jonny gets finger tips on it but only deflects it onto the head of the striker at the far post. 0-2. This could be a very long night indeed 🤦.

The Steyning Ultras behind Jonny are making a good noise, getting behind their team.

But the Dockers start to dig in and defend. There is just a single decent chance each way. Ezra can’t convert for the Dockers and Steyning hit over. Despite our early fears, it’s just a 2 goal deficit at the break. Phew!

The Barrowmen make a change at the break with, familiar face, Alex Plummer coming on for the goal scorer, Marcus Allen.

The Dockers are much more aggressive when they come back out. The chances come and go from Shay, Ezra and Rudi. A goal now would make it a very different game. Just need a bit more composure. And probably a bit of luck 🍀.

It turns scrappy again with the Docker hampering the Barrowmen’s usual free-scoring style. Eliot is booked for a desperate challenge. Taking one for the team but gives away a free-kick in a dangerous area. Relief from us at it goes just wide.

The Dockers start to make changes on 65. It’s Ash for Teddy with Ezra swapping to the right wing. Then Tom for Charlie in front of the defence. Charlie has done a good job but Tom’s experience will help us maintain our solidity.

Jonny is called into action and makes a great save on 71.

The rest of the changes happen on 75 as Shay, Ezra and Richmond are replaced by Harley, Billy and Harry.

To the surprise of no-one at all, Tom is booked for a bad tackle. The physio fixes the player up with a bit of magic spray. The Barrowmen get a free kick that thankfully skims just wide.

The Dockers young ultras are singing 🎵how shit must you be, it’s only 2 nil🎵. Love them. Hope it’s not tempting fate though.

We’re in to 4 added minutes.

We have our heads in our hands as Billy meets Ash’s low cross. His touch is awful and he hits the ball well over from just 2 yards out. What a miss. 🤦 That would have really shaken up the last 3 minutes.

But it wasn’t be although we stayed in it until the end. A night to move on from without worrying about it too much.

Playing under the lights in Shoreham

We think it’s all over..

We came in hope rather than expectation. It’s not the result that we hoped for but better than we expected. Especially early on 😱. It’s a performance that the young (mostly) Dockers should be proud of. The Barrowmen have had a great season and have been free scoring, often scoring 5 or more. That they were held to just 2 goals  tonight is a great credit to the Dockers. The second half was more confident than the first. No-one would have been surprised if the 2 early goals had turned into a hat full. But it didn’t. A goal back would have made it very exciting especially near the end. Billy must be absolutely gutted that he hit it so far over the bar from so close in. Silly Billy. Soz. Other than that, we never really looked like scoring.

A better pitch might have prompted a better game of football. How that would have impacted the result we don’t know but both teams play on 3G pitches at home.

The weather stayed nice despite the threatening clouds. It was still, dry and not too cold.

It was good to meet Russell Bromage in the 2nd half. He knows the Tucks well from his time working at Brighton. And knows the Legend that is Micky Mellon from when they were both at Bristol City. He also worked with ex Brighton, Worthing and Docker, Jake Robinson while at Brighton.

That’s our cup ambitions over for another season. It could have been worse. We are now back to concentrating on the league and pushing into the playoff places. The Easter weekend fixtures are up next so see you soon.

The Other Bits

POTM: It was a good team performance but it has to go to a defender. Our choice is Eliot Bresciani 🏅 for a solid game at the heart of the defence. Well done .

Officially opinionated: We had only just commented that the ref, who was unusually wearing glasses, that he had already been to Specsavers 👓. Then it suddenly became apparent that he hadn’t 🦯. It didn’t get any worse and he generally did well. A little moaning from both sides is often a good sign. There were enough offsides to prove that both the assistants were awake. There were mistakes at the end. Tiredness? The ref stopped play for an injury after the ball had gone out only to have the keeper point out that the ball had stopped a foot short of the touchline. Opps. Dropped ball it is then.

The Scran’O’meter rated the hot chocolate a warm and wet 6.5/10.

Programme Perusal: The free programme is cheap and cheerful. Contains what is needed about the match. Thanks👍 8/10.

See you so you at Easter 🥚🐤🐰.

Love Tranmerekat 🐾

A fantastic sunset

A new ground

The team news

Playing under the lights in Shoreham

Newhaven v Forest Row

Sweat 16 Newhaven FC host Forest Row FC in the Southern Combined Premier League at Fort Road

Where are we and What's going on?

The Dockers ⚓ host the Frow 🫎 on a changeable Spring afternoon. We won away to Pagham last Saturday. Can we make it 2 in a row? Consistency has been a bit lacking this season and we sit in 8th, just short of the playoff places. But we have poor goal difference. The Frow are just below in 12th. We beat them 2-0 here in the Sussex Cup back here in September.

Roman is in goal with Elliot and new face Dan Allen. Right back is Harry Hammond and left wing is Rudy Jones who is new to us. Shay Tobin and youngster Harley King are in midfield. Blunty is in the 10 with Lee in the 9. Ezra is on the left wing with Teddy on the right. It’s Ezra’s 50th Dockers game 🎂.

The is an Andrade in the FROW team. Rings a bell. That day ended well 🏆.

We have donated our tins of soup and beans and sneaked in some wagon wheels and skinny whips 👀.   All donations go to the Haven Hub. It got us a discount on entry that we can spend on more chocolate 🍫.

The Seven Sisters is already docked. The Ultra’s have a drum and a siren. We have chocolate. Let’s get this Frow on the road. Come on you Dockers.

Off we go..

We’re 10 minutes in when we get our first chance. It's Blunty's free kick but Lee doesn’t get enough on it.

We ge lucky not to gift a goal to the Frow. Need to be careful here!

Robbo gets another chance on 14. He runs onto a through ball on the left, chips the keeper but it runs just wide of the right post. Groan.

A couple of minutes later and Harley King does what Lee couldn’t and his chip over the keeper is on target on 18 ⚽. 1-0.

Before the restart, the ref goes to talk to the lino. The Frow No. 11 is sent off to the sin bin . Don’t know what he said but it didn’t go down well. He’s got 10 minutes to mull it over now.

The Dockers are in charge. Blunty’s next next chance goes over too.

It’s half an hour gone and the Frow are back to 11 without the Dockers capitalising on the advantage.

Harley is in the action again when he plays in Robbo. It’s a great finish on 43 ⚽. 2-0.

We’re going to have to wait until the 2nd half for the important 3rd goal as it’s 2-0 at the break.

There is one change at the break with Richmond going on for Harry Hammond.

The next chance goes to the Dockers as Blunty forces a good save.

There is little good football but the Frow force Roman into a save from range.

We get more chances but Ezra hits wide and Robbo’s its straight at the keeper.

Ezra exits the action on 67 to be replaced by Dexter with Teddy moving to the left wing.

Dexter is lively but hits just wide on 72.

Lee, Ryan and Teddy combine but the end product is saved.

Harley has had a great game and is replaced by Charlie on 76. Then Teddy is replaced by Ash on 83.

Robbo is badly fouled in the box. After the treatment, he scores from the spot into the bottom left corner on 86 ⚽. 3-0.

The last change of the night is Robbo making way for Arthur Rawlins.

And the last action of the night is Roman making a big save to keep the clean sheet.

The whistle goes to signal the end and it’s 3-0 and 3 points to the Dockers. To celebrate Seven Sisters turns around and heads for France.

We think it’s all over..

The Dockers look like the Dockers again. A commanding performance. Lots of hard work, some great creativity and a few mistakes. Love it ❤. Great performances all over the pitch. Harvey with a goal and an assist on his debut. Lee got a brace and Teddy, Ezra and Dexter were all a threat. Blunty likes to chip in with his share and nearly did. They were never really threatened except for the odd half chance and a good chance too late for it to really matter. The squad is looking settled so hopefully a good run from here to the end of the season will see them sneak into the playoffs.

Next up for the Dockers is the PB Cup Semi-Final against Steyning. It’s at Shoreham and was previously postponed. Steyning are flying at the top of the league again (again) so that will be a tough one.

The Other Bits

POTM: It was a fantastic team performance but the stand out was 16 year old Harley King with a goal and an assist on his debut. Quite an entrance. Well done Harley 🏅. Hope this is the first of many in the years to come.

Officially Opinionated: Love a ref who’s pedantic about where freekicks and throw-ins are taken. Sometimes anyway. He did OK overall. The 5th official 😶 wasn’t present today so we didn’t get the official opinion on the ref’s performance.

The Scran’O’meter was very disappointed with the hot chocolate today. The staff are new so we will not pass judgement today and see how it goes.

Programme Perusal: Elliot is on the cover today and it’s the usual excellent quality. Needs to be £2 and not £1 though. Just saying.

See you soon.

Tranmerekat 🐾

The Dockers are warming up

Seven Sisters

Team news

Worthing v Chesham

We're the Good Ol’ Rebels Worthing FC host Chesham United in the National league South at the Sussex Transport Community Stadium

Where are we and what’s going on?

For the 2nd week in a row, we are back in Sunny Worthing to watch the improving Rebels. This week it’s the Generals hoping to steal away with 3 points. The Rebels lost at the weekend away to Hornchurch so dropped to 3rd in the league. The Generals are just shy of the playoff places so will be really up for this.

It’s a mild evening in West Sussex. The crowd is a little smaller at 1575 but it’s still a good crowd for a Tuesday night. The drum is ready behind us. There is no segregation tonight. Any Chesham fans that are here, aren't making their presence felt.

There are a couple of changes from last week with 6 Ben Jackson in 5 Joe Cook. Sam Packham and Toby Byron are in for Jack Spong and Brad Dologhan. With Byron and Raz on the wings, it looks like Remerio Moulton is up front.

We don’t know any of the Generals but they do have a very nice yellow and black kit.

Can Worthing get back to winning ways. There is only one way to find out, let’s see how it goes. Come on you Rebels.

Here we go

The first chance goes to the Rebels as Jenks feeds Byron who puts it just wide. Ben Jackson is booked on 8 for a late lunge on Samual Esan just outside the box. We don’t think he made much contact but it was late so fair enough.

The Rebels are making a good noise. Bognor is still getting some stick, we’re here with the Rebels not the Rocks.

Raz gets a half chance but is unable to convert it. A much better chance comes along in a strange way. The Generals keeper picks up the ball from a backpass. The consequence is an indirect freekick inside the box. Unfortunately it’s blocked but goes out for a corner. That was different. Not seen that before.

The Generals right back 22 Josh Assae has a huge, I mean huuuge, throw. Risking straining something to save a corner and put the ball out for a throw doesn’t seem like the wisest move. He can reach the middle of the goal with it and it’s much harder to defend than a corner. It’s causing chaos when he gets to use it.

It’s Teddy Jenks turn to be booked for a late tackle. Not sure it was much of a foul.

The big throw is back. Karl Oliyide meets it well but heads just wide.

Nearing half an hour gone and Byron turns provider to Moulton but it’s wide. Back down the other end where Captain Colbran makes a couple of really good blocks.

A cross from Sam Packham is met by a charging Colbran who buries it at the back post⚽. 1-0.

The visitors no.8 Giorgio Rasulo is down injured. He can’t continue and is replaced by Alex Babos.

The Generals pressing for a goal back but Taylor denies them in the last minute of the 45.

There are 2 extra minutes. A long volley from George Cox hits the angle of the bar and post. So close. It’s a narrow lead at the break.

The 50/50 🎫 is drawn at half time 🙏. We didn’t win 👎.

There are a change for the Rebels with defender Ben (Not Stonewall, he wasn’t a Rebel) Jackson making way for Joe Cook. Ben had a good half, very solid.

George Cox is down with a head injury on 54.. It’s a long stoppage but thankfully he is OK to continue.

Byrom’s shot is saved by Goode, Packham picks up the rebound but it trickles wide.

There is danger in the Rebels goal mouth. Taylor Seymour spills his save but Colbran is on hand to make a goalline clearance. Phew!

Down the other end and Raz feeds the ball to Byrom but he puts it just wide.

There is a change for the Rebels as last week’s POTM, Remiro Moulton is replaced by Ollie Godziemski. Ollie Ollie is the chant.

He with the long throw, Josh Addae, hits over the Rebels goal from close range.

The Generals make 3 changes with Bob Lee, Patton and Grant making way for Sherman, Eisenhower and Pershing. Sorry, that’s the wrong Generals. It’s Esan, Brown and Oliyde that are replaced by Adebiyi, Bennetts and Weiss.

Bennetts soon forces a low save out of Seymour on 78.

Another General's change sees Josephs replace Williams up front.

Seyour plays the ball out to Jenks who launches a long cross field pass. A slight touch with his chest from Ollie Godziemski plays it into his path. He is very wide but has no support in the middle. Is he worried. No. Somehow he beats the keeper to squeeze it into the net from an impossible angle on 85 ⚽. 2-0. How did he do that? 4 touches from the keeper to the back of the next. Ollie Ollie indeed.

Byron makes way for Owen Spicer on 87.

There are 7 additional minutes announced.

The Generals start to apply the pressure with Seymour getting tested and needing to make a couple of great saves including a big punch clear. It’s backs to the wall for a few minutes. Zak Josephs hits a good shot but he pulls it just wide.

We get to 98 and the final whistle goes. 3 points and a clean sheet. Well done you Rebels.

We think it’s all over

Another good game at Woodside Road. We could get used to this. A great performance against another good team. The right result was ground out in the end. There were times when it was everyone back in defence with bodies on the line. Shots were blocked and saves made but the job got done. It’s very tight in the playoff spots.

It was much more fun in the standing stand. Very noisy with the drum going and a surprising variety of songs about Bognor. We know where to stand next time we visit. It’s a shame that these 2 games are the only ones we will be able to get to here this season. It's been great fun though. We’ll be back!

In other news, Tranmere lost at home to Accrington Stanley (who), conceding 2 very late goals. The chances of the Rovers meeting the Rebels next season just increased significantly.

The Other Bits

POTM: Every save, saves a goal at the other end and not all should be taken for granted. Well done Taylor Seymour, a clean sheet in a very tough game. Those late saves worth all 3 points.

The ref had a reasonably easy game and let it flow well. There were a few late challenges that maybe needed to be dealt with, The assistant at the east end missed some clear offsides for both teams so at least he was consistently poor.

The Scran’O’meter repeated last week's record 10/10 for the hot chocolate. We’re going to miss that.

We’re not sure where we will be next, hopefully the Lionesses in Nottingham. If not we’ll see you for Brighton’s trip to Kingston.

Love Tranmerekat 🐾

Three fishes FC

 

Under the lights at Woodside Road

A Full Worm Moon tonight

A bit of reading for halftime

Worthing v Torquay

Torquay Bout a Rebeloution! Worthing FC host Torquay United in the National league South at the Sussex Transport Community Stadium

Where are we and what’s going on?

We are in Sunny Worthing where the Rebels host the Gulls at Woodside Road in the NLS. We don’t see much (or any) of the NLS but this is a big game at the top end of the table. Dorking are a few points clear at the top but it’s close behind them and the winner tonight could end up 2nd.

Woodside Road has had a big upgrade since we were last here. There is a very large new stand all down the north side. It’s all standing and has segregation for the away fans. We’re in the main stand sitting in the front row. Nice view 👀.

We don’t know any of the players on either side. We do know the Rebels manager who is a bit of a Brighton and Worthing legend, Adam Hinshelwood. We thought Uncle Chris may have joined us tonight but golf is more important apparently. Hope he’s not playing with Dougie (slice it like) Tuck. Both teams have names on their shirts and squad numbers. Always a sign that they mean business.

It’s warm night in February. The all weather pitch is looking OK. It’s a big 6 pointer. Let’s see how it goes. Come on you Mackerel Men.

Off we go..

The sides are feeling each other out. Torquay look very good. They are organised, passing the ball about and giving the Rebels a bit of a run around. The Yellow army are getting behind them. The Rebels support is vocal too. It’s been a long time since we’ve heard 🎵I’d rather be a Rebel than a Rock🎵. Love it.

The Rebels are on the attack, as it breaks down George Cox decides to fall over his own feet to try to get a penalty. It’s a dreadful attempt at dive (did someone shout timber) and the ref sees it for what it is and ignores it.

We think it’s an early goal for the Rebels but Dolaghan’s strike is ruled offside. We have a rubbish view of the line so aren't going to complain about it. Although others are grumbling.

Torquay are knocking the ball about well. They are dominating the midfield but just can’t create a decent chance.

Razaq (Raz) Coleman De-Graf (feel for the kit man) goes on a run. He gets suppounded by defenders who all take a turn to pull at him. Ref eventually gives a foul. Against Raz! Don’t know what he was looking at. Numpty.

There is a delay as the Gull’s captain, Sam Drayer is injured requiring treatment. He comes back on but doesn't look great. The Torquay keeper makes a howler of a pass out, straight to Rebels striker, Brad Dolaghan. He’s too polite not to take the opportunity and puts the Rebels in the lead on 33 ⚽. 1-0. An opportunistic lead, gratefully accepted.

The Mackerel Men try to return the favour by gifting them a goal back but the Gulls make a mess of it. Very ungracious of them.

There are 2 added minutes but the half ends with a single goal advantage to the hosts.

Not long after the restart and Sam Draayer is down injured again. He can’t continue and is replaced in midfield by Dan Hayfield.

The Gull’s keeper is looking a bit rattled. The Rebels need to get at him before he recovers. They are playing much better this half. Applying pressure to the goal in front of us. We’re watching from pitchside now. We get a good view of the Rebels breaking down the left. Raz stays onside to receive the pass from Remiero Moulton and makes sure of his finish no 56 ⚽. 2-0.

Torquay make some changes on 65. Louis Dennis and Dylan Morgan make way for Cody Cooke and Matt Jay.

It’s stop/start for a while as both teams compete to see who can be hit hardest in the face with the ball. Rebels defender Harry Ransom wins. Just.

The ball is down the other end for the moment of the night. 4 or 5 balls come flying over the netting behind Gulls goal. Play has to stop to clear them. Just the neighbours wreaking their revenge. ⚽⚽⚽⚽🤣. Please can we have our ball back Mister. Not now.

The Gulls make another change on 78 as Kieron Wilson makes way for Sonny Fish. Wonder if he is related to Rebels mascot Mackie the Mackerel.

Torquay counter-attack but Remiero Moulton nicks the ball in his own half. There is no stopping him as he charges forward and makes it 3-0.⚽

It’s the hosts turn to make a change on 81. Jack Spong is replaced by Odei Martin.

The hosts' hopes of a clean sheet are over on 85 as Matt Worthington blasts home from inside the box. 3-1.

There are 3 more changes for the Rebels before the restart after the goal. Fresh legs to stop the lead slipping away. Remiero Moulton, George Cox and Teddy Jenks go off. Coming on are Toby Byron, Shiloh Remy and Ollie Godzirmski.

There are 8 minutes of added time. What? Where did they find that from? We were expecting between 3 and 5. Bonkers ref.

2 minutes into the 8 and Adam Hinshelwood is booked for something. Not sure what he did or said but it wasn’t appreciated but we do love a passionate manager. 

Then Remy is booked for a late foul. It escalates into full scale handbags on the far side.

It finally comes to an end. 3-1 to the Rebels. It was nice to be back but it’s a school night and time to go now.

We think it’s all over

That was a good game with plenty of chances both ways. It could easily have gone either way but ended up with a good result. And Torquay supporter Cousin David wouldn't be pleased to see it 😁. Must remember to send him a selfie of the scoreboard.

Hope the Yellow Army have a safe, if long, journey back to Devon. That’s some dedication on a school night.

There were some good skills on display. Not sure that we would want to watch the current Tranmere squad take on either of these. Could be a complete car crash. The worst case scenario is that Tranmere face them both in the National League next season. Gulp!

We like the big upgrade to Woodside Road. We haven’t found our favourite spot to watch from yet. Maybe we’ll try the noisy North stand next week.

It’s still tight at the top of the league with Worthing leap frogging over Torquay to tuck into 2nd behind Dorking.

Same time, same place next week for Chesham.

The Other Bits

POTM: goes to Remiero Moulton, the number 25 for a fantastic individual goal against the run of play to kill the game off. The ever important 3rd goal. Special mention to manager Adam Hinshelwood who showed his true colours, getting booked in the 92nd minute. Love a manager that is still that passionate even though the game is done and dusted.

Officially opinionated: The ref was a bit whistle happy. Or maybe more than a bit. Whether he favoured the Gulls, the Gulls just fell over easily or the Rebels fouled more; our legal team have advised us not to comment. So when asked about the useless, biased ref, that’s an official “No Comment” from us 😶.

The Scran’O’meter would rather be a Rebel than a Rock. The hot chocolate scoring a historic 10/10 beating the previous record holder and one of our favourites, Bognor. Thanks. See you next week. Yum.

Love Tranmerekat 🐾

Woodside Road

Winners

Mackeral

Tranmere v Gillingham

Why Does It Always Rainham On Me? Tranmere Rovers away to Gillingham FC In EFL 2 at the Priestfield

Where are we and what’s going on?

The Rovers visit the Gills on a very wet February afternoon. We were worried it was going to be postponed as most of the lower league games have been. There was no early inspection as you might expect. They were either confident or reckless. The ref was worried when he arrived but it seems ok now that the rain has slowed up.

Is there any team news? Just a bit. Where to start? Out-going is Josh Davidson on loan to Cheltenham and Richie Smallwood to Bristol Rovers. Sad news is that Connor has joined the ACL club so will be out for at least 9 0r 10 months. He has a contract extension so hopefully we’ll see him playing again around Christmas. Get well soon Connor ❤. The 2 injured loanees have returned to their home clubs. Soz. We’re sad to see Will Tamen and Dylan Jones go as they both looked like great additions. There are replacements and some! New in at the heart of midfield is a face we’ve seen before when he was on loan from Everton. It’s Lewis Warrington who has signed for 2 and 1/2 years from Walsall. Also in is versatile player James Plant who has signed from Port Vale for 18 months. There are 3 new loanees to replace the 2 we broke. Midfielder Zech Odiero joins from Leytond Orient. Defender Stephen Negru joins from Oxford United. Both of those are in the starting 11. On the bench is Xax Dickov who joins from Mansfield. He is the son of Scotland Legend, Paul Dickov. There is even news on the goal keeper front as Marko Marosi joins for a 1 week emergency loan from Port Vale. He starts behind a back 3 (again, FFS) of Nathan Smith, Patrick Brough and Stephen Negru. Out wide are James Plant and Omari Patrick. In the middle are Lewis Warrington and Sam Finley. It looks like Zech Obiero is playing just behind a front 2 of Joe Ironside and Charlie Whitaker.

There is just one name we know in the Gill line up. It’s Cameron Antwi from Newport.

We’re in the covered seating looking out over the away end. The temporary stand has been there over 25 years and is allegedly the most photographed scaffold in football. We can believe that having sat in it in March 2001. We are just glad we don’t have to sit in it today. There rain has eased and there are 284 SWA here, getting behind the boys. The new keeper is right in front of us. We hope he has a quiet one. Let’s see. Come on you Whites 🙏.

Off We Go…

Tranmere face an onslaught straight from the whistle. Marko is called into action early in his debut. He makes good saves on 9 and 10. The Gills are struggling to stay on-side but the assistant on the far side is struggling to get them right. Looks like he is only able to get the marginal ones right. He misses a couple of clear off-sides calls right opposite the very vocal SWA. Hope he takes the feedback on-board. Sam Vokes is a threat but can’t find the target fortunately.

Rovers get a chance from a corner. Negru gets his head on it but it’s saved.

Down the other end and the Gills get a spate of corners. One is eventually put in the net but it’s clearly offside. 1-0. The assistant ref decides to ignore that fact and keeps his flag down. It’s given on 25. He clearly didn’t hear the earlier feedback so more is provided.

Tranmere start a good spell. They get a couple of corners. Zech blasts wide from outside the box. Finley comes close with his shot.

The SWA feedback seems have finally worked as the Gills are caught offside. Their keeper goes down in protest or he is injured. Not sure which. Or he is just stopping play for a team talk as Rovers were having a good spell.

Whatever his plan, it doesn’t work as the Rovers are still on top. Whitaker misses his chance. Ironside does the same. Need to be a lot more clinical than that. We are not sure what Xg is but Tranmere’s would probably be minus at the moment. There are 2 minutes of added time and we’re still a goal behind at the break.

The Whites are now attacking the goal in front of the SWA. Let’s hope we get to see plenty of action. We’re not disappointed. Zech forces a save on 48 from a good Whitaker assist. Another Rovers corner and is Negru misses again with assistance from Omari. Brough also misses with an assist from Whitaker. The chances are coming but not being taken.

There is a miss from the Gills before Tranmere are on the offensive again. Zwech and Smith both miss the target. We hold our breath as Omari lines up one of his special curling efforts from wide left. We all groan as it goes miles over. It’s just over an hour gone as Whitaker gets in a shot on target only to see it saved.

The Gills make 3 changes. There is a brief response to the changes and they get a couple of corners. The 2nd is crossed in and is headed in by Hale for his 2nd of the match. Rovers have been in total charge and have conceded against the run of play again.

Tranmere dominate again as the Gills keeper fancies another nap. This is getting worse than Arsenal Women!

Andy Crosby makes his first changes on 71 as Plant, Obiera and Ironside are replaced by Norman, Dickov and Dennis. Hope the fresh players remembered their shooting boots. There is an immediate impact as Dickov’s set piece provides for Whitaker who scores on 78 ⚽. 2-1. A fightback?

There is another Tranmere change on 81 as Negru makes way for Lowe. Into the last 5 minutes and the Whites are still getting the most chances. Finley sees his shot go wide. Norman forces a block. Tranmere get a corner and Norman forces a save this time. It won’t go in for Tranmere.

There are 6 minutes added on. Plenty of time for an equaliser. The chances come as Omari forces a block and then a save. We’re urging them on as they get corner after corner. It is not going to go in. It doesn’t go in and it’s a 2-1 loss on the road. There is mixed feedback from the SWA. A quick round of applause as Andy and the boys come over. It’s time to hit the road and get lost in Kent again.

We think it’s all over…

At least the rain stopped. It was a good watch with lots of attacking football. The Rovers had the best of the ball but struggled to find enough power or precision with the final shot. It was so much better than the game at Cambridge. The additions to the team bringing with them both energy and quality. We look forward to it getting better between here and the end of the season.

The SWA were quite quiet but not as quiet as the home crowd. 244 out singing over 5000. The Connor Jennings song was nice to hear. He may be out injured but Mr Tranmere is not forgotten.

It was nice to see things improve with the subs. That’s when it usually falls apart because the squad is so thin. And Gillingham got worse. Big name managers don’t always get it right. And get your haircut 💇.

There is lots of talk about goalkeeper timeouts and we had 2 today. Didn’t help the Gills though did it as the momentum didn’t change. Though they did win thanks to Tranmere’s appalling performance in front of goal.

The takeover could come at any time and everything will change then. But till then, things are potentially looking up a bit if these youngsters can stay fit.

The Other Bits:

POTM: It goes to newly arrived Lewis Warrington. He was always involved in the middle and looking to move it forward. But shout out to all the arrivals who have given us something to look forward to.

The ref did OK. We like the new head injury rule where the player has to go off the pitch if they feign a head injury to stop play. 👍 Even if the physio doesn’t come on. But the assistant on the far side might as well not have been there. Three big offsides missed early on including the first goal. 👎 Useless. 🤷

The Scran’O’meter loved the breakfast at Bill’s in Bluewater, Thanks Bill. There was regret later on due to the state of the dishwater coffee 3/10 at Priestfield. Bottle sold with bottle tops on was a good improvement.

If there was a programme, we didn’t see one or anyone reading one. It’s normally for sale in the away end as far as we can remember. Their loss.

See you somewhere soon.

Love Tranmerekat 🐾

In the Priestfield

Brighton v London City

Winner City Life Brighton & Hove Albion v London City Lionesses in the WSL at The Peoples Pension Stadium

Where are we and What's going on?

The Seagulls host London City at the Broadfield on a very wet Sunday. It’s been raining since we were last here a couple of weeks ago. The big spending Kang Gang are having a great first season in the WSL. They are sitting just 1 point below Brighton in 7th. That makes this a big midtable 6 pointer. Albion won the away game in Bromley by a single goal scored by Madie on 6 minutes. Let’s hope they get it done today but that it’s less nerve-wracking. A single goal lead for 84 minutes wouldn’t be good for our nerves or our nails.

We were worried that it might be too wet but the ground has clearly had improvement work done since THAT Chelsea game. That was almost water polo 🤽.

There was some sad news in the week as we heard about the passing of Rado Vidosic. He was the father of Dario and Head of Women’s Coaching. It will be a tough one for the girls out there today.❤ Our thoughts are with his family and friends. Chris Roberts takes over management duties for the moment.

There is still no sign of Fran, either staying or we now assume going. Chia is in goal with Baggers back on the bench. We have a settled back 4 of Marisa, Moeka, Manuala and Charlie. The midfield is made up of Miasie, Jelena and Nadine. It’s the usual front 3 of Rosa, Kiko and Madie. On the bench is new signing, Norwegian midfielder, Oleug Tvedten.

The big shock with City is that they have signed Delphine Cascerino. She’s not here today but what an addition. It’s nice that Nikita (bench) and Poppy (starting) get a good welcome back to the Broadfield. That goodwill will last until kick off then the gloves are off. Kosovo Asllani starts with Freya Godfrey and extremely tall goal scoring talent, Izzy Goodwin.

There is a round of applause for Rado. It’s a difficult one to predict but it’s a big game for the Seagulls so we expect a big performance. It’s not a huge crow, just 1990. We’re more disappointed that Scooter hasn’t joined us today. It’s a small away following with only about 50 in the away end. Possibly the smallest we’ve seen. We hope those 50 are very disappointed in 90 minutes. Time to find out. Lets go Brighton, lets go!

Off we go..

It’s a lively start for the Seagulls. They dominate but Rosa can’t beat the offside trap and gets caught twice. She finally gets through but shoots over on 7. The Albion should be in a clear lead but it’s just not happening.

The Albion go off the boil after 10 lively minutes. It’s dull for a while but until Roasa gets in another shot. This time it’s blocked. It comes to life on 23 as Madie plays in Kiko on the right. She does what she does best and blasts it home. 1-0.⚽

Rosa is inspired and back on the attack. Her first shot is saved. The next one blocked. Then she is caught offside again. She needs to be more clinical with these chances.

It’s half an hour gone when City break but are caught offside. They don’t wait long to try again. The cross in from the right is met by Moeka whose attempted clearance ends up in the back of Chia’s net. The visitors have equalised without a shot on target yet. 1-1.

The Seagulls keep their heads up. Madie gets a shot in but hits the right post. Into 2 added minutes and Nadine takes her turn but hits the left post. Anywhere but in the net!

The visitors get one last attack and Freya Godfrey is given too much space. She hits a great shot from the edge of the box. Their first shot on target and Chia is picking it out of the net again. Albion are behind at the break. 1-2.

Not long into the second half and City get their first corner. They haven’t had much possession at Seagulls end until now. There may have been cheering 📣 when Poppy puts it straight into the side netting.

It’s a bit end to end now. Kiko misses to the right. Back down the other end and Jana Fernandez does the same.

We are shocked, shocked I say, that we get as far as the 64th minute before Poppy is penalised for a foul.

It’s scrappy for a while but Rosa manages to miss again.

The Albion make their first 2 changes on 71. Charlie Rule makes way for Rachel McLauchlan. Rosa is replaced by new signing Olaug Tvedten. Not going to try to pronounce that. Can’t wait until she gets a nickname.

Madie is injured on 72 and needs treatment. She is soon fixed and back in the action. It’s end to end again. Izzy Goodin sees her shot blocked. Nadine with assistance from Kiko has her shot blocked. Madie assists her next chance but that’s also blocked. The Seagulls are throwing everything at the defence in the City penalty area.

Nadine makes way for Carla on 86. A bit late for fresh legs up front. We hope she has enough time to make a difference.

Brighton are piling on the pressure now. Marisa and Oleug both have shots blocked. The Seagulls get a corner. Maisie misses a sitter from the middle of the goal. Madie’s shot is blocked and it’s another corner. And another. Just score a goal please.

There are 4 minutes of injury time to play. Plenty of time for an equaliser. Another Albion corner. It leads to a shot from Oleug that goes just wide. There is another corner. Jelena gets the first Seagulls booking on 93. Three more minutes without another corner and it’s all over on 90+6. 1-2. How did we lose that?!?

We think it’s all over

That’s not how we hoped it would go. It had it’s moments but there were large chunks that weren’t great. The aggression of the first 10 minutes dried up quickly and didn’t re-appear until after the subs made an appearance near the end. To lose 2-1 to a team that only managed 1 shot on target must be absolutely gutting. That’s efficient for you. Chia has had to pick the ball out of the net twice without the chance to make a save.The Seagulls need to learn that lesson. Sooo many misses or tame shots. It could and should have been out of sight in 5 minutes. But it has been a difficult week for the team with the loss of Rado so maybe the performance means more than the result in the circumstances.

There was no change in the league table because Villa lost as well. The “best of the rest” title is looking like a big stretch at the moment. Elsewhere in the league. Chelsea dropped to 3rd after a thrashing by Man City. Arsenal were busy winning the Club Cup Final. We planned to go but that didn’t work out. Congrats to the Gunners who won 3-2 with a Foord winner against Brazil’s Corinthians in extra time. 👏

Up next, we will be travelling to Kent for Tranmere’s outing at the Priestfield. Lord help us🙏.

The Other Bits:

POTM: goes to Rosa 🏅 who had her best game in terms of chances. Her conversion rate could do with improving but hopefully that will come as her confidence improves. Can’t fault her effort today though, well done Rosa.

Officially Opinionated: The ref missed 2 good penalty shouts and the lino had a great view of both but bottled it 🐔. Either or both might have been outside the box but both were certainly fouls yet waved away. Not wanting make waves by halting the rise of Michelle Kang’s Vanity Project 😃.

The Scran’O’meter changed the usual pizza and latte routine today and went for some chips with curry sauce and a hot chocolate. Both excellent. 9.5/10 and 9/10. Thanks.

Programme perusal: The programme is digital which we don’t do so it may well have been fantastic but if it’s not made of paper, we don’t want it. 0/10 again.

See you in Kent.

Love Tranmerekat 🐾

Our Chia warming up

Floodlights at midday 👀