Richmond 18-13 Chinnor ( att : 1,000 est ) - 2025/26 English Championship

October 4, 2025

The English Championship, or The Champ as it has now been rebranded, finally started its season this weekend, weeks after every other league had commenced, and Chinnor began with a visit to newly promoted Richmond.

Chinnor had played two pre-season friendlies, with a 34-59 home loss to last season’s champions Ealing Trailfinders which was covered by these diaries, and last week travelled to Caldy, and returned with a 17-14 victory. Details of the Caldy match had been scant, apart from a comment it had been bruising !

Richmond had played three warm-up matches, going down 14-33 at National League One Blackheath, 10-71 at Cardiff but last time out were victorious 36-26 against fellow Championship side Cambridge.

Previous Meetings

Chinnor and Richmond last meet in the 2023/24 National League One when Chinnor did the double, with both matches reported on by Fatbear. In March 2024, Chinnor took an important step to winning the league when after being held to just a one point lead, they pulled away in the final 20 minutes for in the end, an emphatic 41-16 victory for their first ever success at the Richmond Athletic Ground ( RAG ). The home fixture in the previous November had seen Chinnor romp to a 55-26 home win, with two late tries for Richmond adding some respectability to the scoreline and bring a 4 try bonus point.

https://fatbearssportingdiaries.blogspot.com/2024/03/richmond-16-41-chinnor-att-918-national.html 

https://fatbearssportingdiaries.blogspot.com/2023/11/chinnor-55-26-richmond-att-800-est.html 

Prior to this Richmond had won all four previous meetings. In Chinnor’s first ever season at the 4^th level of English rugby in 2008/09, they lost 21-35 at home and 21-23 at the RAG as Richmond finished 4^th in the league and Chinnor were relegated.

In the aborted 2019/20 season, Richmond won 26-14 at home, and in a game featured in these diaries, they were victorious 21-5. The match was a lot closer than the scoreline would suggest as Richmond’s greater experience and nous saw them through. Richmond were champions whilst Chinnor were placed 4^th

https://fatbearssportingdiaries.blogspot.com/2020/01/chinnor-5-21-richmond-att-625.html 

Richmond Last Season

A deeper background on Richmond can be found in the report on their visit to Chinnor in November 2023.

Richmond had been relegated from the Championship in 2022/23 in controversial circumstances when tenants London Scottish brought in a dozen or so players on loan from Harlequins to help them avoid relegation after having earlier looked to be doomed. Whilst this was all within the rules and regulations, a lot of observers thought it went against the spirit of the game.

Richmond were many pundits to bounce straight back but ended the 2023/24 season in a disappointing 6^th place, 44 points behind champions Chinnor. However, Richmond licked their wounds and stormed to the 2024/25 National League One title, finishing 11 points ahead of Rosslyn Park, having lost just three matches all season.

Ex-Durham University fly-half/full-back Callum Grieve scored 258 points whilst ex-Cornish Pirates Welsh scrum-half and captain Alex Schwarz scored 12 tries.

Richmond’s average attendance for the season was 947 but this was boosted by two bumper crowds in their final two home games in their procession to the title, with 1,421 turning up for the game against Rams and 1,950 against Blackheath.

Richmond Squad

Richmond had reportedly retained all but one of their players which had achieved promotion, and had announced several signings to augmented their squad for the new campaign.

Two notable signing were South African centre/wing Ronnie Du Randt who had received rave reports at Rotherham last season, and lock/back row forward Luke Frost from Bedford who had relocated to London for work.

Two players had joined from Cambridge, back-row forward Jared Cardew and prop Seb Brownhill, whilst back-row forward Donnacha Byrne had joined from Irish province Connacht. None of the other announced new signings were in their matchday squad for today’s game.

Matchday Information

The journey from Thame to Richmond is around 50 miles and takes just over an hour.

Whilst the weather was dry, there were 40+ mph gusts of winds at the 15.00 kick-off, and the temperature was 13 degrees.

Adult tickets were £20 online for non-members purchased in advance, or £25 on the day. An online programme had been produced for the game.

Chinnor named only two of their summer signings in their starting XV, prop Kai Owen and lock Jamie Campbell. Richmond also had only two of their new players starting, Du Randt and Cardew, although Brownhill and Byrne were amongst the substitutes.

Chinnor’s line-up contained 7 of the players who started the last meeting between the two sides in March 2024, but only three of Richmond’s side that day were playing today.

Richmond were playing in their traditional yellow, red and black hoops with black shorts whilst Chinnor were in their usual black and white.

Betway made Richmond 9/20 favourites, with Chinnor at 2/1 and the draw 20/1

The match was live streamed on the Clubber TV. When I took a look the individual game option at £6.99 had disappeared, only the weekly pass for all games at £12.99.

Match Report

Chinnor kicked off into the very strong wind, and Richmond cleared to half-way. Richmond won the Chinnor line-out but knocked on midway inside Chinnor half. Richmond won a penalty at the scrum and opted to go for the posts rather than the corner. Grieve was successful from the tee so it was 3-0 after 3 minutes

Richmond returned the kick-off and Chinnor ran and won a penalty on their 10-metre line. The wind kept the kick to just the Richmond 10-metre line. Chinnor won the line-out through Campbell and worked their way up to the Richmond 22, but a big hit by lock George Nugent on George Stokes halted the attack and Richmond won a penalty, which was kicked to half-way.

Campbell stole the line-out and Chinnor spread to the left then to the right and to the left again until full-back Nick Smith knocked-on. Richmond played on and kicked ahead, and Smith was unfortunate when the ball bounced unkindly to strike him on the arm for a knock on. Richmond had a scrum just outside Chinnor 22.

Richmond were forced into making two early changes in the opening 10 minutes but this didn’t seem to unduly affect them. Wing Chidera Obonna fed full-back Greg Kitson, who was tackled 5 metres short of the line, and ball went forward for a scrum to Chinnor. A free-kick was awarded to Chinnor at the scrum, which they kicked to their 10 metre line.

Richmond secured their ball but Chinnor won a penalty to go to the Richmond 10 metre line. The visitors won their lineout and Grant Hughes broke in to the Richmond 22 but Richmond defended well and were awarded the put in at the scrum. The Richmond scrum was solid and Grieve kicked to just beyond half-way.

Richmond won the Chinnor line-out and won a penalty at the subsequent ruck, and kicked to the Chinnor 22. The throw to the front of the line-out was messy and Chinnor were able to turnover and clear.

Richmond won their line-out and spread the ball wide, but there was a forward pass so Chinnor had a scrum midway inside their half. Number 8 Scott Hall picked up and ran and Richmond were caught offside. The penalty was nudged into the wind up to the Richmond 10 metre line.

Campbell again won the line-out and Richmond guilty off not rolling away at the ruck, enabling Chinnor kick to inside the Richmond 22 with 20 minutes on the clock.

Campbell again rose the highest and Smith went on a mazy run. Campbell was tackled short of the try line and Chinnor went left but a long, floated pass was too high for Keiran Goss and went into touch. However, Chinnor had been playing with a penalty advantage so were able to kick to 5 metres. Again, Campbell won line-out ball but the Chinnor rolling maul was held up, Richmond were awarded a penalty, and with the wind behind them were able to clear to the half-way line.

The Richmond throw went long and Chinnor gathered. Richmond flanker Mile Wakeling then intercepted a pass from Chinnor scrum-half Luke Carter as he was looking to break. Richmond recycled and launched a high kick. Goss made the catch, but Richmond won the turnover. Good hands from Obonna released Kitson, who burst past static Chinnor centre James Bourton to run to the try-line. Greive’s conversion slipped wide of far post so the score was now 8-0 after 27 minutes.

Richmond gathered the restart but Grieve’s clearing kick caught the wind and went the length of the field and bounced dead. Therefore, Chinnor had a scrum 10 metres from the Richmond line. Hughes made a break but was illegally stopped. With a penalty advantage, Chinnor pounded the Richmond line but were held up over the line. Chinnor opted for the points and fly-half Nathan Chamberlain had an easy kick in front of the posts to take the score to 8-3 after 31 minutes.

Chinnor were having a good spell and although Kitson caught Carter’s box-kick he was pinged for not releasing. Chinnor kicked the penalty to 10 metres from the Richmond line but Nugent stolen the line-out at the front and Richmond kicked into the Chinnor half. Carter’s kick was charged down and Chinnor conceded a penalty at the breakdown. Richmond again went for the posts and Grieve slotted the kick through the uprights from around 35 metres. Richmond now led 11-3 after 35 minutes.

Richmond won the restart and cleared to half-way. Conor Brockschmidt won the line-out but Chinnor were again tackled in midfield. Carter again saw a kick charged down, but Chinnor were able to win the ball back, but were frustrated by a forward pass when trying to send back-row forward Harry Dugmore down the touchline.

Richmond’s backs went on a good move but Kitson’s pass went behind Obonna and into touch. However, the referee gave a scrum to Richmond but Chinnor were awarded a free-kick at scrum, which was then upgraded into a penalty, possibly for backchat ?

Chinnor were only able to kick to Richmond’s 10 metre line, but Campbell secured line-out possession, and Chinnor won a penalty as a half break was illegally stopped. Chinnor were back to just outside the 22, and from a short throw Carter sniped down blindside but Chinnor then offended and conceded a penalty. After Richmond won their ball, the referee ended the half when the ball was spilled.

Although Chinnor trailed 3-11 at the interval, they would have been encouraged by most of the play having been in the Richmond half despite playing into the strong wind. However, they had rarely looked like scoring, Richmond had defended well, and had looked dangerous on their occasional attacks.

When the second period commenced, the wind had dropped significantly in its velocity so it was not quite the advantage for Chinnor that Richmond had enjoyed. The half began with some kick tennis until Richmond won a penalty midway inside their own half and kicked up to Chinnor 10m.

Chinnor won the Richmond lineout and kicked. Kitson dropped the high ball but it was judged to have gone backwards. Richmond retained possession and a long, floated pass found Obanna but he was tackled by touchline. Richmond reworked and kicked but Obonna knocked on.

Chinnor had a line-out 25 metres from the Richmond line, and although Richmond got hand to the throw, Chinnor hooker Alun Walker caught the ball, from which substitute Will Cave made some yards. Chinnor reworked and Chamberlain’s cross-field kick was caught by Hughes, who stepped inside and went close to the try-line before being stopped. Chinnor spread to the other wing and Goss was given a straight run to the corner from a pass from Smith. Chamberlain superbly judged the conversion with the wind to convert from close to the touch-line. The scored had moved to 11-10 after 47 minutes.

Carter cleared the restart to half-way, but Richmond won a penalty from a scrappy lineout and progressed up to the Chinnor 22. However, Richmond struggled to make a breakthrough and were off their feet at ruck.

A superb kick from the penalty from Chamberlain took Chinnor to within 7 or 8 metres of the Richmond try line. Campbell won the line-out and the rolling maul looked to have been illegally taken down the Richmond defenders, but referee saw it as a knock on and so awarded a scrum to Richmond. Richmond were given a free-kick at the scrum, and kicked to just outside their 22 so it was a throw for Chinnor.

Campbell again won the Chinnor line-out, but Chinnor floundered in their attempts to breach the sturdy Richmond defence and conceded a penalty at a ruck. Richmond were back up to the Chinnor 10 metre line with 54 minutes played.

From the line-out, Obonna made a break to run clear but Cardew had clearly blocked a would-be Chinnor tackler and Chinnor were given a penalty for crossing.  Chamberlain took play back to the Richmond 22.

Richmond stole the line-out but were unable to make any progress with ball in hand so had to kick, and Goss dropped the high ball to give Richmond a scrum on the Chinnor 10 metre line.

The impressive Obonna broke through the gain line and Nugent carried on the move but although Chinnor defended, they were pinged for off-side. Greive took penalty from in front of the posts 25 metres out but surprisingly hit the post. Chinnor just about managed to claim the bouncing ball, and Carter cleared to close to half-way.

Jake Monson won the lineout for Richmond and although Obonna was snagged as he attempted a break, Richmond kept possession but Chinnor substitute prop Ramaz Rukhadze won turnover at the ruck. Richmond defended well and were awarded the put for the scrum following the subsequent ruck.

62 minutes had now been played and although the Richmond scrum was solid, Richmond were pushed back and Schwarz was forced to kick. Campbell made a good catch near half-way and Carter chipped ahead. Kitson gathered, skipped past two tacklers before being brought to ground, and Chinnor conceded another penalty at the ruck.

Richmond were back up to half-way, but Chinnor stole the line-out and Carter kicked. Richmond kicked back to Crowley who ran but Stokes knocked on.

With 13 minutes remaining, Richmond had a scrum close to Chinnor 10 metre line. Kitson and Addams make yards but Richmond were forced into touch. Chinnor scrappily won their line-out 15 metres from their line and substitute scrum-half Callum Pascoe cleared.

Chinnor forced a penalty at a ruck but Chamberlain failed to find touch with his deep kick. Kitson ran across the field until being tackled and Chinnor pinned Richmond to just outside the 22. Schwarz finally cleared, Crowley caught on the half-way line and Pascoe chipped over a flat defensive line. Richmond gathered but Schwarz’s kick didn’t go very far, and Richmond were offside.

With 8 minutes left to play, and with the opportunity to take the lead for the first time in the match, Chinnor decided to go for the posts. The kick was around 35 yards and close to right-hand touchline but Chamberlain’s kick slid narrowly wide of left-hand upright.

Chinnor fielded the Richmond 25 metre drop out but Monson intercepted a flat pass and kicked ahead. Crowley gathered inside his 22 but Richmond forced the penalty to have a 5-metre lineout. Their rolling maul was held up but Richmond made several drives for the line to get a penalty advantage, but more drives were defended. Finally, substitute scrum-half Luke Jones dived over close to the posts. Grieve added the conversion added so after coming close to falling behind, Richmond now had an almost certain match winning lead, with the score 18-10 after 77 minutes.

Desperate Chinnor attacks got nowhere, but after they had dropped the ball, a Richmond kick went straight into touch for a line-out to Chinnor midway inside Richmond half. However, their throw was not straight and Richmond won a penalty at the scrum. It was then Richmond’s turn to not throw straight and then Chinnor were awarded a penalty at the scrum, which took them into the Richmond 22

A high tackle by Byrne saw him receive a yellow card and give Chinnor a penalty in front of the posts. Chinnor opted to take the points to grab a losing bonus point, and Chamberlain duly obliged. The score moved to 18-13 and the referee blew his whistle to end the match.

Overall, it was a deserved win for Richmond, who were defensively very strong and Chinnor hardly made a break.  The Richmond back three of Kitson, Obonna and Addams looked very quick.

Chinnor made far too many errors and gave away too many penalties at the ruck. They would also be disappointed that their rolling maul, which had been so successful last season, was ineffective today

Thame United 2-2 AFC Dunstable ( att : 100 ) – 2025/26 Southern League Division One Central

September 30, 2025

After securing their first league points of the season last Saturday with a dramatic 1-0 victory over Stotfold, Thame had an opportunity to add to that with the Tuesday night visit of AFC Dunstable. After starting the season with just one home fixture in their opening 7 matches, Thame were now playing their third home game in a run of six consecutive home matches.

AFC Dunstable were in 15^th place in the table, with three more points than Thame but from two more games played. Thame were third from bottom.

Previous Meetings

Fatbear was in attendance for last season’s meeting between these two sides, also played in mid-week, when Dunstable came from behind to score two goals in the last 5 minutes plus added time to achieve a 3-2 victory in a thoroughly entertaining game for the neutral.

https://fatbearssportingdiaries.blogspot.com/2024/10/thame-united-2-3-afc-dunstable-att-112.html 

This would be the third time this fixture had been covered in these diaries, with the 1-1 draw on New Year’s Day in 2022 also being featured.

https://fatbearssportingdiaries.blogspot.com/2022/01/thame-united-1-1-afc-dunstable-att-165.html 

Thame and Dunstable have been in the same division since the 2017/18 season and overall Dunstable have had the edge. Thame had won just two of seven home matches, with two draws, and Dunstable had lost only once at home in 6 meetings, with two draws.

AFC Dunstable

Founded in 1981, they are not to be confused with Dunstable Town, the side George Best briefly played for in the 1973, and who are currently in the South Midlands Premier Division. The two sides both play at Creasey Park. Their nickname is the ODs, which stands for Old Dunstablians, their previous name, and not a reference to drug overdoses !

At the time of last season’s visit to the ASM, AFC Dunstable were owned by Varsity Nine, who are described as “a sports management company that specialises in delivering services for high performing players and student athletes”, which explained why everyone in their squad was 23 or younger. In November 2024, ownership of the club was moved to a private limited company, and is now run by a committee, although the focus on young players has continued.

Last season, AFC Dunstable finished in 14^th place, with an average home attendance of 149.

AFC Dunstable This Season

Dunstable arrived at the ASM stadium with a 1-3-3 record. The season commenced with a 2-2 home draw with Northwood Town, which was followed with a 1-0 victory at Welwyn Garden City and another home draw, this time 1-1 against Hadley.

The first defeat came at the hands of Enfield, 2-5 away, then another, 1-2 at home to Milton Keynes Irish after which a 1-1 home draw with Beaconsfield Town was recorded. On Saturday, Dunstable subsided to a 0-1 loss at Hitchin Town with a red card to left-back Carmicheal Uchenna.

AFC Dunstable had been unlucky with their Cup draws, coming out of the hat second on four occasions. In the FA Cup, Harwich and Parkeston were vanquished 4-1 but AFC then exited the competition 0-1 at Tilbury.

In the FA trophy, Maldon and Tiptree were beaten 1-0, after which revenge was obtained over Enfield for the defeat in the league, with a 3-1 win. Dunstable finally had a home draw in the next round, where they will host step 3 Folkestone Invicta.

Dunstable’s average home league attendance this season is 113.

AFC Dunstable Squad

Ex-Holmer Green and Aylesbury Vale Dynamos striker Sean Duodu is now dual registered with step 2 Slough Town, and was the top scorer in all competitions with four goals. Striker Timothy Okwusogu played for Ware last season and had found the net three times this season.

At 23 years old, ex-Newport Pagnell Town defender Ben Lynch was the oldest player in the AFC Dunstable squad whilst centre-back Harry Riley played 11 matches for Thame in 2023/24.

Midfielder Maks Jarzabek had previously played for Beaconsfield Town and Aylesbury United whilst right-back Joshua Clark-Anderson was formerly part of the MK Dons Academy, and attacking midfielder Avtandil Akhsiashvilli hails from Georgia and was with Beaconsfield Town last season.

From the squad that featured in last season’s encounter, midfielders Tali Jallow, George Joyce, Kyle Brooks, and forward Tommy Blennerhassett were also involved tonight. Left-back Khyan Frazer-Williams, who was outstanding in last season’s meeting as a 16 year old, has now signed to be part of Crystal Palace’s Academy.

Matchday Information

According to AA Route Planner the journey from Dunstable to Thame is 26 miles and should normally just under 50 minutes.

The weather at the 19.45 kick-off was dry and the temperature was around 13 degrees.

Entrance to the game was £10 for adults and £5 for concessions, £3 for Under 16s, whilst under 5s went in for free. A large cup of tea cost £1.50. An online programme had been produced for the match.

Dunstable made four changes to the side that started at Hitchin, with Sam Carmen taking over between the sticks, Mwita Mgoyo coming in at centre-back and Jarzabek and Bruce Nsang in midfield. Jallow, Avtandil and Shawn Joseph dropped to the bench. Thame made two changes to the side that beat Stotfold, with starts for Ty Njogu and Abu Khan.

Dunstable were in sky blue shirts with white sleeves, black shorts and sky blue socks. The white numbers on the back of their shirts were not easy to see from a distance ! Thame were in their usual red and black shirts.

Matchday Report

Thame kicked off and almost immediately Khan was fouled near the right-hand touchline. Harry Alexander’s in-swinging free-kick bounced near the six-yard line and keeper Carmen fumbled. Dunstable were unable to clear the loose ball and a shot from Louis Walsh was blocked for a corner. The visitors’ defending at the corner was unconvincing, but the ball was eventually cleared.

Walsh then ran past Okwusogu and passed to Alexander, but his curling left-footed effort drifted wide of the far post.

The first on target shot arrived in the 9^th minute. Callum Hall’s long throw was headed on by Mark Riddick, but Alexander’s stabbed shot went into the arms of the keeper.

Dunstable had their first attempt on goal in the 12^th minute. A right-wing cross found Okwusogu unmarked at the far post but the header was totally mis-timed, and headed off towards the corner flag.  It was a great chance wasted.

Play went down the other end and Walsh delivered a fierce cross but unfortunately for Thame, it went behind the two attackers bearing down on goal.

A nice flowing move from Dunstable then ended with Brooks’ cross-cum-shot flying high and wide across the goalmouth.

With 24 minutes on the clock, a suspiciously looking offside Brown ran onto a cross-field pass from Walsh and managed to get a cross in before the ball went out of play. Jenson Wright shaped to volley from 12 yards but completely missed the ball.

Two minutes later Carmen, under pressure from Riddick, dropped an over-hit cross from Khan. Dunstable were able to clear the loose ball but Thame lumped it back to the edge of the area. Riddick, with his back to the goal, held the ball up. Alexander took the ball away from him and burst into the penalty area and with just the keeper to beat, finished smartly. 1-0 after 26 minutes.

Walsh then sprayed another cross-field pass for Brown to scamper to the byline but his cross was put-off for a corner by Mgoyo. Alexander’s in-swinging delivery put pressure on Carmen but the keeper was able to punch away from under his crossbar. Khan sent the loose ball high over the bar from 30 yards.

Thame should have doubled their lead in the 34^th minute. Njogu won possession as Dunstable tried to play out from the back and played the ball to Brown, who played a low ball across the goalmouth. Walsh, 8 yards out, failed to make contract, and a golden chance went begging.

Dunstable’s first serious effort of the match game two minutes later, but a good strike from Jarzabek was tipped over the bar by Thame keeper Pettitt. Thame cleared the corner and Walsh ran onto a long ball out of defence. With Uchenna trying to cover, Walsh spotted Carmen well out of his goal area and attempted to chip into the vacant goal from distance, but the ball sailed a yard over the bar.

Dunstable again attempted to play out from the back from the goal-kick and Brooks appeared to be very fortunate when he fell to the ground when challenged by Alexander, who was then clear on goal with just Carmen to beat. However, the referee judged that a foul had been committed on the Dunstable player.

A couple of minutes later Alexander won possession just inside the Thame half and played down the right-hand channel. Brown got past Uchenna but Mgoyo was covering and forced Brown wide, and good defending saw him block the cross at the expense of a corner. Mgoyo was again in the right place to concede another corner when Thame attempted a short corner routine.

Thame continued to dominate and Walsh went on a mazy run down the left and played the ball across goal from the byline. Wright’s effort was blocked at close range and the rebound fell to Brown, whose attempt from the bouncing ball went back across goal but high and wide. It was another good chance that Thame had failed to take advantage of.

Dunstable enjoyed a brief spell of pressure as the game moved into first half added time. First, a cross from Clark-Anderson went straight to the Thame keeper. Blennerhassett then ran at the retreating Thame backline and fired a foot or two wide of the post from 20 yards, with Pettitt holding a watching brief. The visitors then penned Thame into their area but good defence ensured there were no further chances.

Thame headed to the dressing rooms with a deserved 1-0 half-time lead, which perhaps should have been greater. They had looked physically stronger and won nearly all of the 50/50 tackles, with Njogu catching the eye with his ability to break-up play and calmly offload to a team-mate to launch an attack. Dunstable had looked good in patches but had rarely threatened until the close moments of the half.

Whatever was said in the Dunstable dressing room at half-time seemed to have had an effect, as the visitors made an impressive start to the second period. Okwusogu made a strong run down the left and then cut inside for a 20-yard shot that stung the hands of Pettitt, who gathered at the second attempt. Blennerhassett then spun on the edge of the area, but his effort lacked power and rolled several yards wide.

Walsh showed good vision for Thame to play another splendid cross-field ball in to the acres of space on the right to which Brown ran into, but good defending by Uchenna resulted in a goal-kick. Jazarbek then became the first player to be shown a yellow card after hauling Brown to the floor as Thame attempted to counter-attack from inside their half.

Uchenna continued his good play with a strong run down the left-wing and his pull-back reached Blennerhassett, but the left footed shot on the turn from 12 yards was screwed wide. It was Dunstable’s best chance of the game so far.

Brown was then shown a yellow card for taking too long at a throw in, after which Wright teed up Walsh for a 20-yard drive which was pushed away by Carmen, and Wright was flagged for offside when he tried to latch onto the rebound.

Dunstable thought they had grabbed an equaliser when Okwusogu’s 25 yards swerving effort looked to have deceived Pettitt, who was going the wrong way, but he was able to stick out an arm and deflect the ball over the bar.

Substitute Jallow picked up a loose ball and made a surging run into the Thame area but was stopped by a superb tackle by Dan West, and Okwusogu send the rebound high over the bar. Jallow then selfishly attempted to score from 30 yards, only for it go high and wide, when there were several better options.

At the other end Walsh got past Clark-Anderson but from a tight angle opted to shoot, sending the ball high and wide across goal.

After some scrappy play on the edge of the area, Okwusogu saw another shot blocked. Jallow then attempted another selfish effort from 25 yards, this time nearly sending the ball out of the stadium. Several of his team-mates were not impressed !

In the 68^th minute Uchenna did well to prevent Khan from shepherding the ball out for a Thame goal-kick and passed to Okwusogu, who this time shot wildly over the bar. Another good move from Dunstable ended with another shot from Okwusogu being blocked.

Dunstable were now on top but were looking pretty toothless in attack.

With 77 minutes played another good move from the visitors ended with Blennerhassett shooting a couple of yards over the bar, shortly after which, Jallow ran through two would be tacklers and surprisingly opted to pass rather than shoot, and Okwusogu was the beneficiary, this time turning and shooting left-footed into the bottom corner for the equaliser. 1-1 after 78 minutes.

Dunstable were looking the side more likely to go on to win the game, and Uchenna broke down the left but Jallow’s weak shot from the edge of the area was easily saved by Pettitt.

Thame won a corner, but Riddick’s header at the far post was a routine save for Carmen. Dunstable then took play down the other end, and Avtandil’s chip across the goal from a tight angle struck the crossbar and bounced away to safety.

Avtandil played a pass to Blennerhassett after a probing run, but the shot from the edge of the area was weak and Pettitt had another regulation save to make.

Thame won another corner, which was taken by Jack Tutton, and Riddick rose the highest at the far post to head home from 6 yards. It was against the run of play, but Thame now led 2-1 after 83 minutes.

Avtandil made another good run for the visitors but Dunstable were unable to line up a shot for anyone and Khan was able to clear.

As the game moved into added on time, Clark-Anderson won a corner for Dunstable after good defending by Khan. Thame were desperately hanging on and were hitting it anywhere. When Dunstable had a throw-in midway inside the Thame half, every Thame player was defending inside their area. The ball was thrown short and a Dunstable defender launched the ball high into the Thame penalty. Keeper Pettitt decided to come to claim the ball but hopelessly misjudged it, and was caught in no-man’s land. The ball came off a Dunstable head and looped slowly into the vacant net. Brooks was credited with the goal and it was 2-2 after 94 minutes.

There was still time for one last attack by Thame, but after cutting in from the left Greg Hackett’s blazed effort was closer to the corner flag than to the goal.

At the final whistle a draw probably the right result. Thame were much the better side in the first half, whereas Dunstable were the better team in the second period, and although the equaliser came deep into added time and had a strong element of good fortune, it felt deserved.

With results elsewhere this evening, Thame had slipped to second from bottom. Dunstable moved up a place to 14^th.

Thame United : Pettitt – Khan, Tingey, West, Hall – Njogu ( Monroe ), Riddick, Wright ( Williams ), Walsh ( Tutton ) – Alexander, Brown ( Hackett )

AFC Dunstable :  Carmen – Clark-Anderson, Lynch ( Jospeh ), Mgoyo ( Addy ), Uchenna – Nsang ( Avtandil ), Brooks, Joyce ( Jallow ), Jarzabek ( Lucas ), Okwusogu - Blennerhassett

 

 

Thame United 1-0 Stotfold ( att : 92 ) – 2025/26 Southern League Division One Central

September 27, 2025

It was back to the bread and butter of league football for Thame after success in the FA Trophy last weekend, for which they were rewarded with an attractive Oxfordshire derby at home to step 3 Banbury United in the next round.

Today’s opposition were Stotfold, struggling in 18^th place in the league table, but Thame were bottom having lost all four league matches to date !

Previous Meetings

Last season’s fixture at Thame was a fabulous game for the neutral. With fewer than 30 minutes left to play, Stotfold led by 4-0, but Thame amazingly stormed back to draw 4-4, including two goals in added on time. Fatbear was there to report on the match

https://fatbearssportingdiaries.blogspot.com/2025/02/thame-united-4-4-stotfold-att-106.html 

The return match at Stotfold also ended with honours even, as this time Stotfold twice came from behind to draw 2-2.

Despite fighting against relegation in 2023/24, Thame did the double over Stotfold, winning 2-1 at home and 2-0 away.

Stotfold

Stotfold is a town in central Bedfordshire with a population estimated at just under 10,000 and located between Biggleswade and Letchworth Garden City.

Its football club were founded in 1946 and are known as The Eagles, although more recently the colloquial term “the fold” has become increasingly popular. Home is New Roker Park, which cost £2M to build and opened in 2020 after their original Roker Park ground was sold for housing.

Stotfold’s first season at step 4 was in 2023/24 where they finished a respectable 7^th place, but last season the ended up in 17^th place, two points clear of the relegation places, with an average attendance of 204.

Stotfold This Season

Stotfold had a disastrous start to their season, losing their first six matches in all competitions before beating Marlow 2-0 at home in their last outing.

The season began with a 0-4 home defeat to step 4 Redbridge in the FA Cup, after which league matches were lost 0-3 at home to Beaconsfield, 4-5 at Ware, 2-3 at home to Leverstock Green, 2-4 at Hadley before a 0-2 home defeat to Isthmian League Division One North Mildenhall in the FA Trophy.

 The average home league attendance was 133 so far.

Stotfold Squad

Striker Henry Snee, who rejoined Stotfold in the summer after spells at Biggleswade United and Hitchin Town, was the top scorer with 4 goals, whilst another returning player, winger Luca Cardines, and who had played for Biggleswade Town, Kempston Rovers and Hertford, had found the net twice.

New signing ex-Potters Bar midfielder Richesse Mvioki scored on his debut against Marlow, whilst other recent signings to strengthen the squad after the poor start to the season included ex-Arlesey Town defender Hamid Sesay, ex Hitchin and Ashford Town forward Joseph Chidyausiku and ex-Biggleswade Town, Leighton and Cambridge City midfielder Sebastian Simpson.

Keeper Liam Gooch, defender Jack Brown and midfielders Alex Coppin and Mitchell Gooch were survivors from last season’s encounter at the ASM Stadium.

Matchday Information

According to AA Route Planner the journey from Stotfold to Thame is 47 miles and should normally take one hour twenty minutes down the A418 via Aylesbury.

The weather at the 15.00 kick-off was dry and cloudy, and the temperature was around 15 degrees.

Entrance to the game was £10 for adults and £5 for concessions, £3 for Under 16s, whilst under 5s went in for free. A large cup of tea cost £1.50. An online programme had been produced for the match.

Stotfold were unchanged from the side that beat Marlow last time out, whilst Thame made two changes to the side that beat Winchester. With keeper Matt Crowther suffering a serious looking shoulder injury in that game and likely to out for several months, Thame had moved to signed Johnny Pettitt on loan from Wycombe Wanderers. The other change was striker Lance Williams coming in for last week’s two goal hero Greg Hackett, who was missing today.

Stotfold were playing in a change kit of all purple, whilst Thame were in their usual red and black shirts.

Matchday Report

A one-minute silence was observed in respect of Chichester City’s Bill Vigar, who passed away during the week, after having suffered a head injury last weekend at Leyton & Wingate.

Immediately from the kick-off, Curtis Brown made a strong run to the Stotfold byline but his pull-back was cut-out by Mvioki. A long throw for Thame reached Williams, whose shot was blocked for a corner, to which Coppin was able to get a head to for another throw-in for the home side.

Stotfold won their first corner of the game when Coppin’s long cross-field pass was put out by Thame left-back Callum Hall with winger Dan Kemp lurking behind him. Cardines delivery sailed over the keeper and off a goal-kick.

The first chance of the game arrived in the 8^th minute when Harry Alexander teed up Jenson Wright, whose 20-yard piledriver was pushed away by the diving Stotfold keeper. Gooch was called into action again a minute later, bravely diving at the feet of Williams to claim Brown’s dangerous looking low cross.

At the other end, Mvioki nicked the ball away from Dan West, but his 20 yard left-footed attempt was sent well wide of the goal.

A Thame long throw was headed on by Riddick but bounced into the arm of Gooch, shortly after which Stotfold’s Lewis Thomas was in the right position to intercept a low cross from Louis Walsh intended for Alexander.

The end-to-end nature of the opening stages continued when Kemp sent an inviting cross from the right wing, but Luke Tingay made an important sliding block at the near post to prevent Snee having a chance to finish. It was then the visitors’ turn to launch a long throw in the 6-yard box, which Pettitt tentatively pushed over the crossbar, and the corner was headed clear at the near post.

Both sides were struggling to make a breakthrough, and Alexander was denied by good covering defending by Seisay.

The first yellow card was shown in the 19^th minute to Thame’s Mark Riddick, who appeared to have made a splendid tackle on Mvioki, but the referee thought otherwise. It looked like Thame manager Ben Williams also saw yellow for his comments after the card to Riddick had been produced.

Walsh then lofted a ball into the Stotfold area for Alexander, who went to ground very easily after a challenge by Olatunde Okeowo, and although there were some half-hearted appeals for a penalty, a goal-kick was given.

Thame were gradually getting on top, with some nice passing, but were failing to make much of an impression on the well organised Stotfold defence. Walsh did well down the left-hand channel but his ball into the area for Williams was cut-out by the outstretched foot of Thomas. Momentarily, it looked like the ball might sneak past the wrong-footed keeper, but fortunately for Stotfold, it went wide of the post for a corner. The set-piece was wasted, landing on the roof of the net.

Another long throw by Brown was headed out to Alexander, but his volley from 20 yards went a couple of feet over the bar.

A Stotfold break saw Kemp put a poor cross straight to the Thame keeper, and in the 35^th minute Seisay scythed down Walsh for the first yellow for the visitors, but the free-kick was poor and easily headed away. Walsh was in the wars, being fouled twice more in quick succession.

A poor clearance from keeper Gooch went straight off for a throw to Thame, which Brown again sent into the mixer. A defender headed the ball away as far as Alexander just outside the area, but his goal-bound shot was blocked by Seisay a couple of feet off his goal-line for a corner.

Play was held up for several minutes after Okeowo landed awkwardly after trying to challenge Alexander, but fortunately the left-back was okay to continue.

Stotfold’s best chance of the game came in first half added on time. A bouncing left-wing cross from Cardines, was pushed away by the diving Pettitt only as far as Mitchell Gooch, who could only spoon high into the air, and Pettitt recovered to make the catch.

The last action of the half saw Thame’s Dan West receive a yellow card, for a handball whilst under pressure from Snee. The resulting free-kick was headed clear by Wright, following which the referee blew his whistle to end the first half

As the teams headed towards the dressing rooms, the scores were deservedly level. There had been some nice play from both sides but there had been few clear-cut chances.

Thame one made change for the start of the second half, with Abu Khan coming on for Williams, but taking the right-back berth, with Brown moving up front.

The opening 20 minutes or so of the second period were not great, with both sides’ main weapon being long-throws. For Stotfold, Coppin’s 25-yard shot went well wide but Pettitt was claiming Seisay’s long throws with increasing confidence although Thomas got his head to one throw, which Pettitt only gathered at the second attempt before a Stotfold attacker could poke in from close range.

For Thame, Tutton sent a 25-yard free-kick high over the bar, and Alexander beat Coppin three times and a couple of other Stotfold defenders on a mazy run, but was eventually disposed by Thomas. Walsh got past Brown to run into the Stotfold area but then lost control whilst bearing down on the keeper.

The most eye-catching piece of play came in the 62^nd minute, and saw Khan run from close to the half-way line past four Stotfold players to be one-v-one against Gooch, but his poked shot hit the chest of the keeper and rolled off for a corner. A short-corner routine was messed up.

Alexander headed on a long throw, but it was cleared. When Thame reworked possession, Hall made a good run down the left, only to cross straight to Gooch.

With 65 minutes on the clock, Stotfold brought on the portly Chidyausiku to add some beef to their attack.

Thame finally found the back of the net in the 70^th minute, but Brown’s smart header from Wright’s cross was chalked off for offside. Brown could have scored a minute later, being found in space inside the Stotfold area after Wright and Alexander had exchanged passes, but a poor touch enabled Seisay to take the ball away from him.

In an increasingly rare foray into the Thame area, Cardines volleyed over the bar after a long throw had been headed out to him.

The game’s controversial moment occurred in the 76^th minute. Thame played a long ball down the left and substitute Ethan Lack was clearly standing in an offside position and stopped. Alexander looked to have timed his run perfectly, and the referee ignored the linesman’s raised flag and waved play on. Alexander ran on, drew the keeper and unselfishly squared the ball to Lack to tap into the empty goal. The referee then consulted with his assistant, and disallowed the goal and awarded a free-kick to Stotfold.

It was all Thame now, and Alexander did well to cross from the left to beyond the far post, but Riddick was unable to get his header on target. Walsh made a good run and found Brown inside the visitors’ area but Okeowo made a vital block. Thame recycled possession but Lack shot over the bar.

With 88 minutes played, Walsh found Alexander who released Brown to run at goal, but he wanted too much time and was unable to get a shot away. Alexander won the loose ball and fed Lack, but the deflected shot went into the side netting for a corner. Walsh’s delivery was headed away for a throw, from which Tingey headed on but Gooch was able to gather. Brown then got past Okeowo close to the byline but Thomas put the ball off for another corner.

With play having been stopped on several occasions due to injuries to Stotfold players, 10 added minutes were to be played, and Thame laid siege to the Stotfold goal.

Brown again got free on the right but his intended ball to the unmarked Lack was cut out, when perhaps he could have gone on his own. Khan was then wrestled to the ground near the corner flag, and Snee entered the referee’s notebook. Gooch though made a good catch from the free-kick.

The referee clearly warned Seisay not to go any further when taking a throw-in, the centre-back ignored the directive and stole a few more yards, resulting in the referee stopping play when the ball had entered play, and gave the throw to Thame.

Thame continued to pile on the pressure, and a shot from Walsh from just outside the area produced a top save from Gooch, not only diving low to his right, but holding onto the ball.

Just when it looked like the overworked Stotfold rearguard would hold on for a point, Hall crossed from left to right where Khan and Brown combined. The ball across the goalmouth was slightly behind Walsh, but the midfielder was able to spin and shoot left footed into the bottom corner past the despairing Gooch. 1-0 in the 11^th minute of added on time

With there being more injuries in added time, the referee played another three minutes, but Thame were able to see out the closing stages without any alarms, for what was in the end a deserved victory, albeit tough on Stotfold who came so close to holding out.

Thame’s first points of the season took them off the bottom of the table, to be one of five sides, together with Stotfold, on three points.

Thame United : Pettitt – Brown, Tingey, West, Hall – Tutton ( Lack ), Wright ( Njogu ), Riddick, Walsh – Alexander, Williams ( Khan )

Stotfold : L. Gooch – Brown, Seisay, Thomas ( Bunyan ), Okeowo – Kemp ( Chidyausiku ), Coppin ( Peters ), M. Gooch, Mvioki ( Simpson ), Cardines - Snee