South West Peninsula League "Double Header"

Easter Monday, a traditional time of year for a football "double header" and today was no exception. However for me today it was a double that I never planned on doing! Thanks to storm Katie wreeking havoc across the South West, my original plans went out of the window whilst I was tucking into my breakfast. Therefore, as I had stayed over in Exeter the previous night, it made perfect sense to remain in Devon for a few more hours.....

11am, South West Peninsula League Division One East
Coombe Valley
Teignmouth 1-2 St Martins
Attendance: 56 (h/c)

Teignmouth confirmed very early that their game with St Martins would definitely be going ahead, so it was through narrow lanes I made the journey from Exeter to Coombe Valley. As the name suggests, the ground is set into a valley overlooking the town and it is a fantastic set up and vista is tremendous. The ground is effectively two-sided and there is a small stand/overhang from the teabar, and a length of open terrace alongside the pitch.

The game kicked off in glorious sunshine but within 10 minutes the heavens had truly opened. The pitch, which had obviously took a battering from the rain overnight, suddenly became a bit of a quagmire. I began to doubt whether this game would be played to a finish. Teignmouth led 1-0 at the interval thanks to a Geoff Breslan (38) penalty.

St Martins equalised soon after break thanks to a shot from (the fabulously named) Ace High, which just managed to crawl over line before it stopped in the mud. St Martins, despite being down to 10 men, clinched the victory with a goal in the last minute of the match, courtesy of a header from High. Credit to both teams for producing a very good game in very difficult conditions.

2pm, South West Peninsula League Division One East
Recreation Ground
Newton Abbot Spurs 5-0 Appledore
Attendance: 57 (h/c)

After confirmation via twitter this game was definitely on, I decided to take in a visit to the Recreation Ground for my second installment of the day. I was greeted with a cheery smile by a couple of club officials, one of whom happened to clock my Everton badge. She told me she was also a blue, so time was spent discussing the "merits" of Mr Martinez. Disappointingly there was no programme due to a printer error (stop me if you think you've heard this one before) but this was actually genuine for a change! The chap said he would kindly forward one on when the problem was sorted and, a few days later, said programme did indeed land on my doormat. Thanks again.

The Recreation Ground is shared with cricket but it is a fine set up. The pitch is fully railed off and there is a seated stand behind one goal, plus the small covered 'Willie Boyd' terrace behind the other goal. In another corner of the ground there is also a seated memorial area in memory of former players. A nice touch.

Considering the rain that had been falling the pitch looked in good condition, if a little heavy. The game turned out to be a very comfortable win for the home side, though clearly Appledore had one eye on their upcoming Devon Premier Cup Semi Final. Newton Abbot led 1-0 at the break thanks to Shaun Bowden (24) and further second half goals from Matt Williams (53) Carl Bradley (67) and  Adam Dyson (73 & 88) ensured the three points for Spurs.