Category: First Team

Tuffley Rovers will be looking to find a little of what Iain Dowie once termed “bouncebackbility” when they travel to face Westfields in the Uhlsport Hellenic League on Tuesday evening, after a rather disappointing end to their Buildbase FA Vase campaign on Saturday, when visitors Street FC left Glevum Park with a 4-1 victory – read the match report here.

Despite being in the same division as Tuesday night’s hosts since the start of the 2019/20 season, Rovers have only faced them once in competitive fixtures, when Sam Hill scored a late consolation goal in a crushing 5-1 defeat on 19 November 2019.

Rovers will visit Westfields’ allpay.park looking for an improved performance but should be able to welcome back several players who didn’t feature in the defeat to Street. Jamal Lawrence, Joshua Aldridge, Archie Woodall, Brennan Denness-Barrett and Joel White should all return to the squad and manager Rich Cox is also looking at an option to add a further player in time for the game.

Anyone looking to travel should look for Widemarsh Common, Hereford, HR4 9NA. Those who cannot attend should be able to follow the game via the club’s Twitter account.

After four successive seasons where they exited the FA Vase competition at the first hurdle, Tuffley Rovers will have a chance to match their best ever run in the competition this Saturday, when they host Toolstation Western League side Street FC in the First Round Proper at Glevum Park.

Having already seen off Malmesbury Victoria in the First Qualifying Round, Rovers defeated Fleet Spurs in the Second Qualifying Round, in the first competitive fixture back at their home after summer drainage work, to set-up Saturday’s tie against a side who were playing Southern League football as recently as 2018/19.

A win against their visitors from Somerset will take Rovers into the Second Round Proper for the first time since 2016/17 and for only the second time in their history, equaling the club’s best ever run in the competition.

The Rovers’ manager, Rich Cox, will be deprived of the three Cheltenham Town work experience signings – Brennan Denness-Barrett, Archie Woodall and Josh Aldridge – but his side are on a good run of form, with the exception of their recent mauling at the hands of Hereford Lads Club, having lost just twice in their last twelve competitive fixtures.

In line with the rules of the competition, Season Tickets will not be valid for the fixture with Street. Admission prices will be £5 (standard/adult), £3 concessions and U16s free. Kick-off is at 3pm but the ground and bar will be open from 1pm.

The match-day programme is available online or printed copied can be purchased at the turnstiles at the ground.

After a record Hellenic League defeat in their previous outing, at Hereford Lads Club on Saturday when they suffered a crushing 9-1 reverse, Tuffley Rovers have an immediate opportunity to restore any lost confidence when they host Calne Town in their latest Premier Division fixture at Glevum Park on Tuesday evening (7:45pm).

Rovers manager, Rich Cox, is hoping that his side will show the mental resolve needed to bounce back after such a chastening experience at the weekend.

“We’ve had some good performances and results of late, so I’d like to believe Saturday’s result was a one-off, freak occasion”, he said. “We pride ourselves on our battling qualities, especially during tough moments, but as a group we let ourselves and the club down.”

Rovers have already beaten Calne Town this season, when goals from Lewis Bainbridge and Brennan Denness-Barrett were enough to see Rovers to a 2-1 victory. Although Cox is hoping for a positive response from his team, he is also wary of the threat posed by the latest visitors to Glevum Park.

“Calne Town are a decent outfit who have some big threats and it was a close game at their place, so I expect this to be the case again. If we play well we have every chance of taking the points”, he confirmed.

Rovers look forward to welcoming Calne to Glevum Park. Admission rates are unchanged, at £5 per adult/standard admission, £3 concessions and U16s entitled to free admission.

Seven days after finally playing a home fixture, in the form of a Buildbase FA Vase tie, Tuffley Rovers will tomorrow play their first home Hellenic League, Premier Division fixture in over 12 months, as in-form Bradford Town visit Glevum Park (3pm KO).

The fixture, which will be the first of nine competitive fixtures for Rich Cox’s side in the month of October, comes 368 days after Rovers hosted Ardley United in a league match in September 2020 and they will face tough opposition in the form of a visiting side that has seven points from the last nine available and with only defeat in their last seven competitive fixtures.

Rovers were defeated by Brimscombe & Thrupp in their last league outing but returned to winning ways against Fleet Spurs, in the Buildbase FA Vase, last weekend.

As ever, the Rovers match-day programme will be available in print at the game and also available online.

 

For Tuffley Rovers football is finally coming home on Saturday, 25 September as they host Fleet Spurs in The BuildBase FA Vase 2nd Qualifying Round, in a 3pm KO at Glevum Park – the first home competitive game at which spectators are permitted since 29 September 2020; a gap of 361 days!

In fact, since the start of the 2020 calendar year Rovers have played just four competitive fixtures at their home ground when spectators have been in attendance, with two additional games played in April 2021 when spectators weren’t permitted, due to a combination of poor weather in the 2019/20 season, the Covid-19 pandemic across the 19/20 and 20/21 seasons, and then a delayed start to their 2021/22 home campaign due to pitch renovation works.

Rovers have played three games as the host club since the drainage works started but all have been played at opposition grounds or at neutral venues, but their pitch has now been declared fit for play by an independent turf consultant and passed an inspection by a match official earlier this week, so it is ‘game on’ on Saturday.

Fleet Spurs, of the Wessex League, will be the first visitors since Rovers beat Ardley United 2-1 a year ago and the fixture will KO at 3pm.

Admission to the FA Vase tie will be £5 for Adults, £3 Concessions and Under 16s are entitled to free entry to the game. Season tickets are not valid for the game.

Almost one year after the last competitive home game with spectators allowed, Tuffley Rovers will finally host a first team fixture at Glevum Park this Saturday.

Having commenced a significant pitch improvement scheme in April 2021, Rovers had hoped to be hosting games before this Saturday’s FA Vase tie against Fleet Spurs, but the moment has now arrived when football can come home!

Following a delay in the installation of a new irrigation system, Rovers have been forced to play all their league games away from home and two cup ties have been played away from Glevum Park, albeit with Rovers as the home team. This included playing at Windsor and Brimscombe & Thrupp whilst being the host club.

The work that began back in April saw an entirely new drainage system installed and it required extensive work to first install and then to allow the grass to recover.

    

The installation became a fairly protracted process when delays in the availability of parts pushed the project back 14 weeks but following two separate inspections this week, the pitch has been declared fit for play and Rovers will finally host a game.

Although there is still some grass growth pending, meaning visible areas of sand on the surface, as well as visible drainage lines (due to changes in the colour of the grass) it is anticipated that the considerable problems faced by the club in the past – with the pitch usually unplayable for much of the winter – are finally consigned to the past.

Rovers are due to welcome spectators back for the 3pm KO on Saturday, as they look to book a place in the 1st Round Proper of this season’s FA Vase.

 

 

A late goal from substitute Lucas Price rescued Tuffley Rovers’ Emirates FA Cup aspirations as he netted an 88th minute equaliser that secured a 2-2 draw with Flackwell Heath, at Brimscombe & Thrupps’ The Meadow on Saturday afternoon.

The full match report is available on our website, together with a video of Lucas Price’s late goal. Thank you to Peter Barnes, of the Non-League Club Directory, for his photographs.

A replay will now be needed to see who progresses to the First Qualifying Round, with the game being played on Tuesday at Flackwell Heath’s Wilks Park. Please contact Neil Spiller (details via the Contacts directory on this website) if you would like to travel on the coach to the game. The squad will leave Glevum Park at 4:15pm on Tuesday – travel is free.