Today I am visiting the Briar Mill ground of one of my local teams, Droitwich Spa. I had looked to see their recent semi-final of the Worcestershire Junior Cup v local rivals Fairfield Villa. Unfortunately the game was called off 2 weeks ago and then I was unable to make the re-arranged tie last week. They were the holders from last season but succumbed to a last minute penalty to go out 1-2 to Villa who now face old rivals Feckenham in the final.
So their game against the runaway leaders of Coventry United was a good opportunity to see them in their recent revival against the best in this division.
The weather conditions were not promising as I journeyed the short distance from Worcester by train. Cold and cloudy with possible sunny periods later in the afternoon.
When I get to Droitwich I have time to have a wander round, have a bite to eat and visit the Tourist Information to see what local walks I might do later in the year.
When I near the ground which is basically a railed off playing field near the canal in the Briar Mill area, I do spot a few spectators around, which means the match is on today. I have time to buy a pre-match cup of tea in the hockey club house which currently does the catering. The hockey pitches are located at the back and there is also a building close by which houses the local boxing club.
So to the match and when the teams kick off, there seems to be a sizeable crowd for this level. The pitch is looking muddy and Droitwich are in their usual red and black stripes while Coventry are in their 2nd strip of light blue shirts and white shirts and socks.
After just 5 minutes, Coventry's Rob Prinzel launches a speculative shot from 30 yards or more and although the Droitwich keeper, Matt Oliver, looks to have it covered, he manages to spill the ball in to the net by the post.
Then just a minute later, the Coventry captain Chris Cox tries his luck and with a terrific shot sees the ball loop over Oliver from 25 yards.
Although it's good to have goals scored in a match you are watching I don't relish the prospect of 6 or 7-0 rout, which my mind is hurriedly calculating to be the outcome. Fortunately though Droitwich are made of sterner stuff these days and battle back in to the match. Indeed after 22 minutes they are awarded a penalty, when the referee spots a hand ball by a defender when a free kick has been played in to the Coventry penalty area. James Lemon, the young Droitwich No.9 who is on loan from Worcester City, takes the kick but places his shot too close to the Coventry keeper, Jason Fox, who pulls off a good save.
Six minutes later, in another Droitwich attack, the ball is chested down for Lemon but he's unable to keep his shot down low enough and sees it sail over the bar.
Coventry do look to be the more dangerous side and occasionally manage to put together some slick passing moves despite the unfavourable playing conditions. Also the Droitwich defence, well marshalled by Mike Seeley are proving to be a stumbling block to their attacking ambitions.
Half-time arrives with no more scoring and I think Droitwich will be looking for an early goal in the next 45 minutes.
I see that another blogger is at the match today. It's a guy called Peter Rae who lives in Solihull and runs 'The Mowdog on the Road' blog , who visits and reports on a lot of matches at this level. I see him having a long chat with one of the Coventry United coaching staff.
So the second half begins and it's Droitwich straight on the attack, with Macaulay Finch shaving the post with a close range effort. Then a few minutes later, United's No.11, Gift Mussa, cleverly beats 2 Droitwich defenders on the left before launching a shot that goes just over the bar.
In the 26th minute, James Lemon turns in the box to shoot just the wrong side of the post.
On 30 minutes from a Coventry corner, the ball is headed down for their prolific scorer, Josh Blake, who sees his effort well saved by Oliver.
There are no more goals in the game and Droitwich have battled well today after the setback of those early goals. They certainly gave the visitor's defence some problems with Lemon and Finch at times combining well and Coventry United have a talented team who look like likely champions. Both teams did well in trying playing conditions.
Match attendance: 55
Entrance fee: free
Match programme: usually £1 (was given one free)
Entertainment value: 6/10
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