Welcome to the latest instalment of the Gloucester Groundhopper blog.
We visited another non-league ground for this blog, the sixth since the Gloucester Groundhopper began, and it was a club with a bright future ahead of them. This was Wildsmith Meadow, the home of Newent Town AFC, a club based in Gloucestershire's heartland. This was yet another new experience for me, and it was one to remember.
Wildsmith Meadow is approximately a five-minute drive from the centre of Newent, a village in the heart of Gloucestershire, and approximately fifteen minutes from Gloucester. Myself and AFC Finners ventured into the heart of Newent. It is exactly what you would expect a village to be like in the centre. You can enjoy a building on stilts, a few shops, and not one, but two co-ops. There is also a lovely lake where you can go for a walk. We headed to the stadium after enjoying Newent's delights and AFC Finners' enjoyment of perusing the many charity shops on offer.
It’s All In The Name
Newent Town is known as "The Daffodils." Newent is known for being covered in daffodils, hence the name. They are part of the Golden Triangle, which encompasses Dymock, Kempley, and Oxenhall, and have a market dedicated to them in Dymock.
Some Notable People From Newent:
Stuart Fleetwood- Footballer
Vicky Holland- World Triathlon Champion
Joe Meek- Record Producer
Andi Gladwin- Magician
A History Lesson With AFC Finners
Newent Town AFC was established in 1920 and won the Second Division of the Gloucestershire Northern Senior League in 1973. They were a founding member of the Gloucestershire County League in 1980.
They entered a reserve team into the Hellenic Premier Division's second division in 2018, but were expelled from the Gloucestershire Senior League as a result of accusations of not playing their full strength team when fixtures clashed. They won Hellenic Division Two West in 2018 and now compete in Hellenic Division Two West. The club played their first ever FA Cup match in 2020, against Cribbs FC, in a game described as the "biggest in the club's history."
Honours
🏆 Hellenic Division Two West (Winners: 2017-2018)
🏆 Gloucestershire Northern Senior League Division Two (Winners: 1972-1973)
🏆 North Gloucestershire Premier League (Winners: 2012-2013)
🏆 Reg Davis Trophy (Winners: 2015, 2016)
An Interview With Newent Town Joint Manager: Andy Bevan
Earlier this week, Newent Town's joint manager, Andy Bevan, kindly agreed to answer a few questions on Newent Town AFC and his experiences in football. Andy Bevan shares the role as manager of Newent Town with Ben Stringer, and he has enjoyed a variety of successes whilst in the role.
GG: Good evening Andy, firstly welcome to the Gloucester Groundhopper, it is a privilege to have some time with you just to get to know you and get to know Newent Town Football Club. Firstly, tell us a little more about Newent Town as a club:
AB: The club was established in 1920 and throughout their history they have played in the North Gloucester League. They were then promoted to Northern Senior League in 1970 and then they stayed in the Gloucester County League. In 2012 they won the North Gloucestershire Premier League as Champions on last game of season. They then completed back-to-back promotions from the Northern Senior League 2 the very next season. They then spent three years in the Northern Senior League 1, with a best place finish of 3rd, picking up the League Cup twice in a row. Then the club invested heavily in their own facilities and were invited to join Hellenic League Division 2, under the new Management of Ben Stringer and Martin Elton (former Newent players), and Newent finished as Champions at the first attempt. They were awarded a £70,000 grant from the FA, with which they installed Floodlighting and a 75 seater stand and claimed their promotion to Hellenic Division 1 West. With this promotion to Division 1, their reserves were now in the Hellenic League Division 2. Having joined Hellenic 1 West in 2018/19 (the highest level in their history), they have adapted pretty well to the National League step 6 standard. With Floodlights and a ground grading ‘G’, they entered the FA Vase last season, winning their first round game. This season Newent's first team made their debut in the FA Cup, losing narrowly out at Cribbs 3-1 and putting themselves firmly on the map.
GG: How long have you been the manager of the club and how did the manager’s job come about for you? Does managing a club work differently in the lower leagues?
AB: My name is Andy Bevan, I work for Cheltenham Town FC and I’m a UEFA A Licence Coach, I was interviewed by the board back in October and agreed to join on 10/10/21. I agreed that the current structure of board and manager Ben Stringer should all remain as it is. This was because all of the members are local and the people that got this local club to this level. I said I would come in as head coach, I along with Ben would do all the coaching and managing the club between us.
The difference, as I see it, in the lower leagues (Step 6) to the higher leagues (Step 2) is, in my opinion, the level of commitment of the players. At the higher steps, a lot of players are on very good wages. Even at step 5 most clubs pay well whilst at step 6 some pay and others don’t. This is where it becomes difficult, in terms of the commitment you want from your players, if they are not getting paid it's difficult to ask a player to commit ahead of other commitments in their lives, such as family events, weekends away and, of course, work. All of these take precedent over football, and then it becomes hard to expect players to train and play week in week out. If you’re struggling in the league as well it becomes increasingly hard to attract players, you have to rely a lot on the quality of coaching and match day experiences to entice and keep your players. On the other hand, if you have a player that has the opportunity to play at a higher level, we are never going to stand in their way.
GG: What are Newent Town’s hopes for this season and beyond?
AB: The priority has to be to stay in the league. When I joined after eleven games we were 3rd from bottom and had taken only five points- an average of 0.45 points per game. We have now taken an average of 1.4 points per game over fourteen games and are 5th from bottom on 22pts, but we are still in a relegation battle, so like I say the priority is to stay up. We have brought through eleven u18’s in my time here, six played in last game, but I think the craziest statistic is that in my 16 games, not once have I named the same side, due to injuries, Covid-19, suspensions and family events, so it has been incredibly hard to gain any consistency. Going forward this has to be a priority, ultimately our aim is in the next 3/5 years to get to step 5 Hellenic Premier, but we are under no illusions that won’t be easy, but we will give it a right go.
GG: Can you tell us a fun fact about the club?
AB: Well, one fun fact is that the chairman and the joint manager are father and son, David and Ben Stringer. Another would be that the Clarkes, who are father and son, played 90 minutes in a league game for Newent, which is the only time this has happened in their 100 year history. A valued member of the club, Alan Basset, completed over 50 years at Newent Town AFC as a player, manager, linesman, secretary, treasurer and president. As a result of this, Alan received an award from the FA. Also, only three players have reached the 100 goal barrier for Newent Town: Daryl Baylis, Pat Gibbs and Kevin Goff, although current striker Jordan Cooper has scored 46 times in 60 appearances.
GG: Finally, what does the club mean to the community?
AB: Newent Town Football Club is a village club that has progressed through the local leagues and aims to ply its trade in the National League one day. The journey all started with a 90th minute header, in the very last league game, and we won 1-0 in front of 400 crazy and loyal, local fans. That shows what the club means to the community.
A special thanks to Andy and all at Newent Town Football Club for taking the time to do this interview. All of us at the Gloucester Groundhopper appreciate it massively.
So What Does It Mean To Get A Ground Grading Of ‘G’?
At every level of football, a stadium will be categorised with a letter. A ground grading of 'G' is the required level for step 6 of the English football pyramid. In order to get this grading, a club has to reach a number of standards set by the FA, and trust me when I say, there are a lot. For this reason, I will not name them all, but you can read them all in the link below this section.
Selected standards include:
There must be car parking available at the ground.
The playing area must be a minimum of 100 metres x 64 metres and must conform to the requirements of the Laws of the Game.
Floodlights must be provided to an average lux reading of at least 120.
There must be at least one fully operational turnstile (which must be of the revolving type) or a pay box where a charge for entry to the ground can be taken.
A stretcher must be provided for the removal of injured players from the pitch.
More information can be found at: Ground Grading 'G' Standards
Matchday: Newent Town 1-1 Tuffley Rovers
The ground itself is simple to locate. It's on the side of the road leading into Newent town centre, near the intersection with Hooks Lane. It's difficult to miss the large sign that says 'Welcome to Newent Town FC.' Car parking is free at the stadium, just outside the spectator entrance, and there is also plenty of parking at the pub next door. The first thing you see is a small shed where you can pay for your admission. The entry fee for the game was £5 for an adult, £3 for a concession (apparently, if you are a student, you do not fall into this category), and free for children under the age of 16. You can also get a pin badge for £3.50, which is still very reasonable.
You can purchase a variety of beverages at a reasonable price in the clubhouse. A pint of Guinness costs £3.50, and a can of Dr Pepper costs a pound. They appeared to sell food, but we didn't ask because the clubhouse is connected to the players' lounge, and we didn't want to eat their food.
We were welcomed with open arms at Newent Town, and we were able to speak with many locals, including the most enthusiastic steward I've ever met. We also spoke with Dan, the chairman of Tuffley Rovers, and Neil, a club official (Neil when you read this remember you owe me a pin badge). We talked about the recent fundraiser I organised for their new stand, and we were able to raise over £300 for the cause, so everyone did a great job. It was great to be able to talk to so many people, which wasn't always possible during previous club visits.
The ground has the aforementioned one stand, which seats approximately 150 people, with the remainder of the ground consisting of a white bar against which you can lean. We did our usual circuit of the pitch, passing by a cottage (putting a literal spin on the phrase "in your own backyard"), a bridge that apparently used to house a railway line (thank you Karl for informing me of this), and a firepit. It's safe to say that Newent Town is full of personality. Following that, we decided to stand just to the right of the stand, next to the halfway line.
Teamsheets:
Newent Town
Managers: Andy Bevan & Ben Stringer
Seb Osment
Ollie Guinane
Frank Pemberton
Ryan Glenister
Ryan Barry
Brindley Woodward
Luke Hawkins
Tyler Weir
Jordan Cooper (C)⚽
Jeremiah Idowu
Matt Evans
Substitutes
Jake Bevan
Nathan Weale
Finleigh Brown
Tuffley Rovers
Manager: Neil Mustoe
Jack Copland
Demilade Yussuf
Brett James⚽
Jacob Geddes
Scott Nicholls
Joe Shutt
Dominik Kent (C)
Tomos Shyamapant
Aaron Basford
Ruben Hallmann
Substitutes
Jordan Barry
Charlie Yates
The game itself began very evenly, with neither side able to gain a foothold. Both teams struggled to keep possession and neither could string together a pass for the first twenty minutes. Brett James, Tuffley Rovers' left back, stormed forward with the ball, cut inside, channelled his inner Roberto Carlos, and rifled the ball into the top right hand corner. With Tuffley in command, Newent began to gain a foothold in the game. They were passing the ball around with ease, and it wasn't long before they were on equal footing. The ball was passed out wide by the Newent midfield, giving striker Jordan Cooper space to cut back in onto his left foot and fire low into the bottom right hand corner. The halftime whistle blew with the game level.
The second half was a lethargic affair. Following a busy schedule, both teams appeared sluggish. Tuffley and Newent both passed the ball well, but neither really opened up the other. As the game appeared to be heading to penalties, the players lost their cool for a brief moment, and the referee handed out slices of cheese (yellow cards) left, right, and centre. As it stood, the score was 1-1, and the game was headed to penalties.
Tuffley Rovers and Newent both scored their first penalties. Jordan Cooper, the game's leading scorer, missed the first penalty attempt, firing high over the crossbar. Tuffley missed their own penalty, which was saved well, but Newent missed their next penalty, allowing Tuffley to advance if they scored their final penalty. Tuffley Rovers advanced to the next round after their player stepped up and fired into the bottom right hand corner.
Scores On The Doors
Atmosphere: 3/10 Food and Drink: 3/10 Stadium: 5/10 Welcome: 9/10
Overall Experience: 6/10
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