That was the week that was….

…the last of the full, competitive 2018/19 season and we had a relatively decent week, as it happens!

The week started with the final Uhlsport Hellenic League, Premier Division fixture for the first team, and it was a great day for the club, as the GroundhopUK group made our game the 12th (or 13) of their groundhopping weekend. The consequence was that we had a crowd of 221 to watch us record an excellent 3-0 win over Fairford Town, not only a great way to end the competitive season, but also enough to secure a 15th place finish that looked incredibly unlikely earlier in the season. Kieran Alder netted his 13th of the season, after Adam Bloomfield had scored twice in the first half to put Pritch’s side in charge of the game.

We then saw the Reserves, Thirds and Fifths all end their seasons on Saturday, with one win, one draw and one defeat to show for the day’s endeavours.

Dan Gillespie, Russ Williams and Phil Ryder-Jones signed off their time with the Reserves with a disappointing result, albeit a 3-1 reverse away at title challengers Chalford. Will Emery’s sixth goal of the season wasn’t enough to secure any points, as the second team finished with three consecutive defeats, albeit after a string of good results that had taken the squad up the table, ultimately securing them a creditable fifth place finish.

The Thirds went better than that, finishing third in their division, as Dan Boon’s side came from behind to beat Upton St. Leonards Reserves 3-1. The visitors took a first half lead, before Andy Meek, Mark Pritchett (making a very rare Stroud League appearance) and Chris Giddy scored to make it a good end to the season.

A full set of results was complete when the Fifths got a point, courtesy of a 1-1 draw, away at Champions Cashes Green. Alfie Fortey’s goal, equalising after the hosts had taken the lead, meant that Will Cronshaw’s side finished fourth in Division Six, only a year after promotion.

On Sunday, the Vets completed their season, too, and they held title challengers Quedgeley Wanderers to a 3-3 draw, despite playing much of the second half with only ten players, after a threadbare squad lost a couple of players to injuries. A brace from Shayne Bradley and another from Gary Cornwall were enough to help secure a third place finish for Mark Patterson’s team.