Welcome to the latest instalment of the Gloucester Groundhopper blog.
We went to see a team in Gloucestershire which is steeped in British history and was an epicentre during the Roman Empire, for this chapter of the blog. Cirencester Town currently competes in the Southern League Division One South and is vying for promotion. The Centurions play their home games at the Corinium Stadium in Cirencester, Gloucestershire. This was another new stadium for myself, and this trip saw the return of AFC Finners and The Doctor.
The Corinium Stadium is a football stadium located in the heart of Cirencester, a market town in the south west of England. It is also around a fifteen minute drive from the town centre. The town boasts a lot of history, especially a lot of Roman history. It has a a lot of Roman architecture including a Roman amphitheatre. There is also a Roman catholic church, Abbey House and Cirencester Park for people to enjoy. There are also lots of bars and cafes for people to buy a cup of coffee. After taking all this in, we headed over to the stadium.
It’s All In The Name
Cirencester Town's nickname is The Centurions. Cirencester was another prosperous town during the Roman Empire and a Centurion was a Roman army commander. Cirencester's nickname reflects their pride in their Roman heritage, as well as their expectation of their players to put up a fight in every game.
Some Notable Former Players
Julian Alsop
Michael Duff
Notable People From Cirencester:
Charlie Cooper- Actor
Daisy May Cooper- Actress
Cozy Powell- Drummer
Elizabeth Brown- Astronomer
Theophila Townsend- Quaker Writer
The Doctor- Friend of Gloucester Groundhopper
A History Lesson With AFC Finners
Cirencester Town was founded in 1889. Cirencester realised in the late 1990s that they needed to move away from a limited site where they could focus primarily on their First Team, with the Juniors and Ladies playing on pitches scattered throughout the town, and built the Corinium Stadium.
Cirencester is known for its red and black stripes, which have been worn for the majority of the town's history. The current home kit consists of a black and red striped jersey with plain black shorts, while the away kit is light blue.
The squad has worn white shirts with a red sash since its inception in 1889. For the next five years, until 1904, the squad wore all white with a vertical red line. Until 1915, men wore red and white striped shirts instead.
In the 1916/17 season, they introduced black and red striped kit, which has been worn ever since. They won the Cheltenham League in 1928 and again in 1930. They would spend a few seasons in the Gloucestershire League before returning to the Cheltenham League, where they would win the title three more times. They won back-to-back Gloucestershire Northern Senior Leagues in 1967 and 1968 before becoming a founding member of the Gloucestershire County League and bouncing around between it and the Hellenic League for many years.
In 1996, the Centurions won the Hellenic Premier Division for the first time and then completed the double by winning the Gloucestershire Senior Cup. They won the cup again in 2016, and now play in the Southern League Division One South, England's eighth division. In total, they have one Hellenic League, two Gloucestershire Northern Senior Leagues, five Cheltenham Leagues, and two Gloucestershire Senior Cups.
Cirencester Town also pioneered the Academy model and was the first club to be recognised by the FA Charter Standard. Cirencester College's curriculum has been recognised with a National Training Award, the highest level of distinction. The club's first Academy Director of Coaching, Dave Hockaday, was the first in the country to establish an Academy. He recruited locally, but he also gave boys who had been kicked out of professional clubs at the age of 16 a second chance, this time focusing on academics as well as sports. As a result of his success, professional clubs approached Hockaday and asked him to create the Academy model for them. He began his career with Watford FC, then moved on to Southampton as Director of the Academy after a brief stint with Leicester City. In September 2009, he was named manager of Forest Green Rovers, Cirencester’s Conference rivals. He then went on to become head coach at championship side, Leeds United, in 2014.
Honours
🏆Southern League Division One South & West (Champions: 2013–14) 🏆Hellenic League Premier Division (Champions: 1995–96) 🏆Hellenic League Division One (Champions: 1973–74) 🏆 Gloucestershire Northern Senior League (Champions:1966–67, 1967–68) 🏆Cheltenham League Division One (Champions: 1927–28, 1929–30, 1948–49, 1954–55, 1955–56) 🏆Cheltenham Senior Charities Cup (Winners: 1948–49, 1949–50, 1955–56) 🏆Gloucestershire Senior Cup (Winners: 1995–96, 2015–16)
Matchday: Cirencester Town 1-0 Highworth Town
The stadium is approximately a five-minute drive from the town centre. Free parking is available on the ground level. The car park is conveniently located near to the ground, making it quite easy to stroll from your car. We entered the ground after paying the ten-pound entrance fee.
We headed straight to the club bar, where they sell pin badges, pens, and keyrings, among other things. I was able to get my usual pin badge for two pounds, which is incredible value. We continued to stroll around the perimeter of the site, as we had done in the past. The Steve Abbley stand, located near the ground's entrance, can accommodate roughly 100 people. Then there's the Shed End, which is a stand behind the goal that allows fans to stand during the game if they want to. Should the need arise, there is another stand opposite the Steve Abbley stand that can accommodate around 250 people. We chose to buy a packet of crisps in the club bar instead of eating at the ground because it was cash only. However, there is a selection of burgers and hotdogs available should people want them.
The ticketing system at Cirencester was practically non-existent. The concept is that you enter through a door (rather than a turnstile) and pay a man on the other side (I hope he was the ticket man otherwise he just made twenty quid very easily). At the stadium, supporters can mingle with one another.
With the fans, there were two highlights. To begin with, there were a couple of boys playing a football game at the door. The goal was to get the ball into a wheelie bin, a game at which I am poor (surprise). Second, there were a group of lads on their way to a stag do. They told me that they hung a world map on the wall, threw a dart at it, and then attended a game in the location where the dart landed. 'I could have ended up in Prague, Thailand, or America, but I ended up in Cirencester,' they said. It was lovely to see people having a good time at a game.
From where we were, the atmosphere was fantastic, with fans joking with Highworth Town goalkeeper Connor Johns. Throughout the game, the keeper was clearly wasting time, going down injured at every opportunity. When one of the fans asked if he did this on a regular basis, he turned around and said yes, which elicited a lot of laughter. He was fine after a few sprays from a can, though.
Teamsheets
Cirencester Town
Manager: John Brough
Alexander Johns
Shayne Anson
Tom Handley
Joe Turley
Jake Lee (C) ⚽
Ellison Dunton
Thomas Anderson
Joshua Nelmes
Aidan Bennett
Benjamin Whitehead
Levi Irving
Substitutes
Michael Pook
Jake Mawford
Jordan Morris
Reegan Messenger
Ross Gabriel
Highworth Town
Manager: Ross Adams
Connor Johns (C)
Oliver Case
Mani Roper
Liam Haines
Daniel Comer
Leon Morrison
Matthew Cheetham
Robert Dean
Ashley Edenborough
Daniel Drewett
Luke Jones
Substitutes
Sean Wood
Callum McGhee-Parsons
Harry Ayres
Daniel Grieve
Both teams were cautious at the start of the game. Cirencester and Highworth both worked hard to gain an advantage in the game. After ten minutes, the Highworth manager made a double substitution, clearly dissatisfied with the way his team was playing. Cirencester had a free kick that was heading for the top corner saved by the Highworth goalkeeper in the same minute. After that, the game became very cagey again, with neither side getting a shot. Cirencester were awarded a penalty after Thomas Anderson ran into the box and was bundled to the ground by a Highworth Town defender near the end of the first half. Jake Lee, a former Cheltenham Town player, stepped up and slotted into the bottom left corner. That was the final action of the first half, and the score was 1-0 at the break.
In the second half, it was a domination from Cirencester Town. They first came close when they crossed a corner into the back post and Jake Lee headed over from close range. Levi Irving then raced through on goal and was denied by a good save from the keeper. Irving was denied again by the goalkeeper, Connor Johns. His shot was destined for the top corner but Johns tipped it over. The final chance fell to Cirencester. A cross from the left landed on the head of Jake Lee who fired wide from close range. In the end, it finished 1-0 to Cirencester. The Centurions will be competing in the play-offs as they seek promotion to the Southern League Premier Division South. Highworth Town are expected to finish in the middle of the table. Overall, if Cirencester show the tenacity that John Brough demanded during this game, they have a good chance of succeeding in the play-offs and beyond.
Scores On The Doors
Atmosphere: 5/10
Food and Drink: 3/10
Stadium: 6/10
Welcome: 6.5/10
Overall Experience: 7/10 GG
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