A Casual change of plans on match day
All the football talk has been of how the Premier League will cope during the current lockdown, but what about the smaller clubs further down the pyramid? They’ll need your support more than ever when this is over. Martin Neal is a non-league groundhoppe
■ ELMBRIDGE XCEL SPORTS HUB
■ SOUTHERN LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION SOUTH
■ MARCH 7, 2020
■ GROUND NO 227
ALRIGHT, hands up. I admit it - I made a schoolboy error.
After arriving at the Herds Renault Stadium, home of Molesey FC, the sight of more cars leaving an already fairly empty car park than arriving aroused suspicion.
And sure enough, a quick glance at the club’s Twitter feed confirmed that the game against Badshot Lea had been called off because of a waterlogged pitch. Some hours earlier...
Oh well, I’d checked that morning but clearly should have done so again before setting out.
A quick glance at the quite wonderful London Football Guide told us that Walton Casuals were at home and the ground was only a five-minute drive away.
Result! The groundhopping equivalent of an 89th minute winner after being outplayed all game.
When you approach a new ground for the first time, it’s often the first sighting of the floodlights that offers a tantalising glimpse of what lies within - as well as giving a useful clue as to where you should be heading.
That scenario becomes a little clouded at Walton due to the sheer number of floodlights.
Due to the Casuals’ home (which they share with Walton and Hersham), an adjoining athletics stadium and a number of five-a-side pitches being housed in the complex, you’re greeted by a sea of floodlight pylons.
Apparently the team’s original crest bore the motto “suprr ominis superbia”, which by all accounts is spelt incorrectly but means “pride above all”.
Maybe the Latin for “floodlights above all” would be more appropriate these days.
The Elmbridge Sports Hub sprawls across an area that was previously the site of the Stags’ Waterside Stadium home.
They had to groundshare elsewhere for two-and-a-bit seasons while the £20 million transformation took place, eventually taking up residence in September 2017.
The development wasn’t without controversy, with a revised planning application needed and fears raised last year that it may even have to be demolished following a process of legal to-ing and fro-ing prompted by concerns over building on green belt land.
Thankfully it’s still here and it’s clearly a tremendous community asset.
And it still has that new feel to it too. You almost expect cellophane to still be on the clubhouse windows and the price tags still stuck to the 500 seats in the main stand,
The ground is smart, tidy, functional and spacious and there’s a nice, big car park too.
It does its job perfectly but, without doing it down, if you’re a discerning groundhopper with an eye for character, eye-catching architecture and memorable features, this isn’t one that’s going to feature high on your ‘must visit’ list.
The main distinguishing feature is the main stand which serves both the football and athletics stadiums - the clubhouse at the top designed to be shared by spectators of both sports. Although presumably not at the same time.
Straddling the two stadiums with its flat roof and seats cascading down either side, it looks like a giant coffee table as you approach it.
Aside from that, it’s flat, uncovered standing all around the 3G pitch.
All in all, not a great deal to wax lyrical about - but the match (which turned out to be an enjoyable 1-1 draw) was on and therefore saved me from paying the price of that basic error earlier in the day.
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