OFFICIAL MATCH PROGRAMME SATURDAY 19th JANUARY 2019 SPARTAN SOUTH MIDLANDS LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION
BIGGLESWADE UNITED v STOTFOLD
What’s Inside • Welcome • The Players • Guillem Balague on Biggleswade United • Premier Division Round Up • Current League Standings • Next Up at Second Meadow • Biggleswade United Under 23s • Biggleswade United Ladies FC • Our Forthcoming Fixtures • Our Club History • Stotfold FC Club History • Venue for Hire • Meet our Mascots
Welcome Welcome to Second Meadow Good afternoon and welcome to Second Meadow for today’s Spartan South Midlands League Premier Division fixture. We extend a warm welcome to the players, officials and supporters from STOTFOLD FOOTBALL CLUB. We also welcome our three match officials and hope that you all enjoy your short stay with us. Match preview – Courtesy of Leon Waite @leonwaite98 An attritional affair at Bedfordshire neighbours Arlesey Town on Tuesday night ended in stalemate as Sam Holmes’ strike cancelled out an Arlesey goal by newcomer Billy Lannon. Departing New Lamb Meadow with a point against a side sitting in sixth place is a respectable result under the circumstances and ensures United’s positive response to losing for the first time in thirteen league games a couple weeks ago continues. And it’s imperative that this youthful squad demonstrate a high level of maturity amid a second managerial change announced on Thursday. Alex Salvador is stepping up from his role as assistant coach that he assumed in November following Emilio Guttierez’ return to Spain to take a reputable position as boss of UD Tomares’ under18s. Jimmy Martin’s premature departure in November didn’t hamper the club’s upward trajectory and this squad will undoubtedly respond in a similar manner to this latest shift at the top with Salvador’s first assignment arriving in the shape of another local derby against familiar foes Stotfold. Today’s opponents Stotfold The Eagles finished bottom of the pile last season and have struggled similarly this term with twelve points from their twenty-three matches seeing them propping up the division once again. However, despite their lowly position, Stotfold’s two league wins this year have actually come in their last two games as they prevailed 2-1 against Arlesey and Harpenden Town respectively. Prior to that they picked up credible points at title frontrunners Biggleswade FC and at home to fifth-placed Potton United so they’ve shown tangible improvement. United’s 4-2 victory over the Eagles last time met was vital as it halted a run of four consecutive defeats against their rivals, including a 2-0 loss in the North Beds Charity Cup final back in 2017. Stotfold will be hoping to regain the upper hand in this fixture, while Alex Salvador seeks to make a strong start to his reign in charge. Up Next On Tuesday night we welcome COLNEY HEATH to Second Meadow. Kick Off 7.45pm. This is followed by a trip to EDGWARE TOWN on Saturday 26 th.
The Players..
Picture courtesy of GUY WILLS PHOTOGRAPHY
Pictured: Jaiden Irish
Balague on Biggleswade United GUILLEM BALAGUE Biggleswade United Chairman, Guillem Balague, provides this weekly column for The Biggleswade Chronicle.
The news that we are to lose our head coach for the second time this season leaves all of us here at Biggleswade United with mixed feelings. After a short though extremely successful stint as first team coach since taking over from Jimmy Martin in early November, Emilio Millรกn will be leaving the club to take over as head coach at UD Tomares Under 18 side in Spain. UD Tomares are based just out of Seville and play in one of the highest leagues for its age group in the country playing in the same division as the same aged sides of Primera Liga clubs like Sevilla and Real Betis.
Those who do well there are invariably head hunted by professional clubs in Spain. It was certainly an offer he could not refuse and Emilio leaves with our blessing and our thanks for what he has done for the club during his time with us. We are truly honoured to have helped to play a part, however small, in his development. It comes as no surprise to me that his progression as a coach should have come to the notice of bigger fish than ourselves and confirmation that in this technological age that we find ourselves, anything is possible and there truly are no frontiers in the world of football.
Personally, I always knew Emilio was It is a league regarded by everyone in destined for bigger things and I'm Spain as very much the proving sure that he will also feel his brief ground of both players and coaches though very timely stay with us has alike and an environment where helped set him on the path to success success both on and off the pitch and career fulfilment. invariably brings with it elevation to the higher echelon of Spanish football.
Continued Overleaf
Balague on Biggleswade United GUILLEM BALAGUE Continued That said I cannot pretend to be particularly enamoured with his new club who did not have the good grace to call us first to request permission to speak to Emilio. Small and modest we may be, but we are nonetheless old fashioned enough to believe that there is a correct way of doing things and making initial contact with us before contacting Emilio would have been little more than basic manners and a detail that would have been appreciated.
But we move on. Fortunately when you have a game plan, policy, ideology and look to continuity as we do at Biggleswade United then the next step is as easy as it is logical and so Alex Salvador (pictured) - currently assistant first team coach - moves up to number one, the same transition as when Emilio took over from Jimmy and the way we like to operate at this club.
Alex is just 27 years old but is already a Pro Licence holder with a wealth of experience behind him.
I am convinced he will slot seamlessly into his new role where he will be aided by his new number two, Tom Farr, aged just 22, who will be combining his role as coach at Stevenage FC Academy to work with us.
And they will look to hit the floor running with two home games on the bounce starting today as we face a recently rejuvenated Stotfold and then Colney Heath on Tuesday night.
Premier Division Round-up Saturday 12th January: Karen Browne (League Fixture Secretary) PREMIER DIVISION Stotfold wins are like buses, you wait ages for one then two come along at once, the Eagles followed up last week’s success with a 2-1 win at neighbours Arlesey Town and are now just one point behind Cockfosters at the bottom, the Fosters going down 1-2 at home to Wembley who are now unbeaten in their last six outings. Hadley now top the table after recording their third successive 3-0 win, this time against Harpenden Town as morning leaders Tring Athletic were held to a 4-4 draw at North Greenford United FC, the hosts equalising in stoppage time. Oxhey Jets certainly seem to like visiting Biggleswade as they followed up last weeks win at United with a 1-1 draw at Biggleswade FC. What goes around comes around as Biggleswade United found out when after suffering a last minute defeat last week they netted an injury time winner at Colney Heath. Leighton Town gained revenge for last week’s home defeat by Potton United by winning the return fixture by a solitary goal. Elsewhere Crawley Green were beaten 0-2 at London Colney, Edgware Town were 3-1 winners against visiting Leverstock Green and Baldock Town recorded a 41 success at London Tigers. Full results and goalscorers (where known) are listed below. 1-2 Arlesey Town v Stotfold (O’Brien) / (Da Silva, Miles) Attendance: 130 1-1 Biggleswade FC v Oxhey Jets (A Marsh) / (Lawford) Attendance: 102 1-2 Cockfosters v Wembley (Mountford) / (Weir, D’Alessio) Attendance: 49 2-3 Colney Heath v Biggleswade United (Blunden, Clarke-Mardel) / (Holmes [2], Goodman) Attendance: 84 3-1 Edgware Town v Leverstock Green (Benavides, McCluskey, Hunte) / (Smith) Attendance: 51 3-0 Hadley v Harpenden Town (Alfano, Clarke, Wright [pen]) Attendance: 52 2-0 London Colney v Crawley Green (Reynolds, Smith) Attendance: 41 1-4 London Tigers v Baldock Town (Unknown) / (Barker, Buchanan, Forsythe, Denniss) Attendance: Unknown 4-4 North Greenford United FC v Tring Athletic (Turner, Long, McLeish, Gardiner) / (Riddick, Dunstan, Ironton, Turner [pen]) Attendance: 73 0-1 Potton United v Leighton Town (McBride) Attendance: 83
Current League Standings
Results and Fixtures
Next Up at Second Meadow SPARTAN SOUTH MIDLANDS LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION TUESDAY 22ND JANUARY 2019 KICK OFF 7.45pm
BIGGLESWADE UNITED V COLNEY HEATH FC SPARTAN SOUTH MIDLANDS LEAGUE DEVELOPMENT DIVISION CUP SATURDAY 26TH JANUARY 2019 KICK OFF 3pm
BIGGLESWADE UNITED U23 V BERKHAMSTED
Biggleswade United Under 23
Biggleswade United Ladies
BEDFORDSHIRE & HERTFORDSHIRE WOMEN’S FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION 3 SUNDAY 27TH JANUARY 2019 KICK OFF 2pm
BIGGLESWADE UNITED LADIES V STOTFOLD LADIES
Our Forthcoming Fixtures
Our History 1959 - 1999 Biggleswade United Football Club was re-formed on the 16th July 1959. However, local history records indicate that there was a Biggleswade United side playing at Second Meadow as early as 1929. Our first season (1959/60) saw us competing in Division Three of the North Herts. League (NHL). After 10 successful years in the NHL the club made the step up to South Midlands League (SML) football. But towards the end of a 15-year association with the SML the club began to struggle and after three years of finishing in the bottom three of Division One we sought fresh fields. The club joined the Herts. Senior but club continued to find the going tough. In 1986 we elected to return to local League football, joining the Bedford and District Football League and began to build again.
The appointment of Brian Swords as first team manager in 87/88 proved to be the turning point in the club's fortunes. During the next ten years the club achieved a tremendous amount of success on and off the football pitch. Our record of League and Cup honours speak for themselves but aligned to this a great deal of work went on behind the scenes to match the on-field success. The club now boasts one of the best clubhouse and ground facilities in the Mid-Bedfordshire area. The success of the club has also attracted many new players as well as commanding a great deal of loyalty from those players who helped the club progress from Division Three of the Bedford and District League to County Senior Club status in just 15 years. The 1995/96 season was the most successful in the club's history - winning five major honours; the Beds Intermediate County Cup, Bedford and District League Championship, League Cup Championship and as the League's representatives the club won the Beds. FA Centenary Cup. Having won every major Bedford League honour the club felt it was time to move on and made the decision to make the step up once again and returned to Division One of the SML. In an exceptionally successful first season we celebrated a Division One "double" by winning the Championship and the Division One Cup. We also retained the Beds. FA Intermediate County Cup, only the second club in the competition's history to achieve this feat. To crown our success the club were awarded the SML Special Achievement Trophy in July 1997. In the season 1997/98 we finally achieved Senior status. This was achieved not only through the endeavours of the players on the field but ultimately as a result of an extremely hard working committee. With the help of the Biggleswade Town Council a new stand was erected and perimeter fencing installed. And two seasons later the club erected floodlights and on the evening of 26th October 1999 we played our first-ever floodlit game at Second Meadow, Ryman League side Leighton Town were the visitors in the Bedfordshire Premier Cup.
Our History 2000- 2018 The next eleven years saw the first team led by Steve "Snowy" Wright and under his management the club continued to enjoy a very high level of League and Cup success ultimately achieving promotion to the Molten Spartan South Midlands League Premier Division and with it the opportunity to compete in the FA Cup. And under Snowy the club made three Beds FA Senior Challenge Cup final appearances, winning two of the three with victories over Stotfold (4-1) and Leighton Town (1-0) but missed out in 2006/07 going down 2-0 to Dunstable Town. Snowy's other cup successes came in the form of the Hunts Premier Cup, North Beds Charity Cup, Hinchingbrooke Cup, the SML Division One Cup and the SML Special Achievement Award once again. The end of the 2006 2007 saw Snowy step down as manager with his assistant, Nick Burton taking over the first team reins. January 5th 2009 saw the club embark on further ambitious ground improvements. With financial backing from Biggleswade Town Council, Mid Beds District Council and the Football Foundation we installed a 260-seater stand, fully enclosed the ground with a double turnstile entrance and players' secure walkway, which raised the ground to Grade E status. After several years of stability in terms of first team managers the next six years saw a regular turnover of first team and reserve team managers with Nick Burton, Dave Elkin and Phil Childs all taking over the first team reins for a time. At the start of the 2013-2014 season we appointed Mick Reardon and Mark Royal as first team managers both of whom had enjoyed success as coaches at the higher levels of football. Their disciplined approach was quickly adhered to and responded to by the players and under their stewardship we achieved the highest Premier Division position in nine years and first silverware in seven years winning the North Beds Charity Cup for the first time in the club’s history. In November 2014 the club took a further positive step to realise our ambitions with the appointment of Sky Sports Presenter and renowned author, Guillem Balague as Biggleswade United’s Director of Football. Following Mick and Mark’s decision to step down at the end 2014 2015, Guillem was quick to act and recruited a new Head Coach in Cristian Colas Beccera. Cristian was assisted by former professional player, Stuart Bimson, and under their guidance the team finished in eighth spot in the Premier Division in 2017 2018 - the highest position in the club’s history. Having built a strong reputation for their outstanding coaching ability and playing philosophy Cristian and Stuart moved up to Step 3 level club, Staines Town, for the start of the 2018 2019 season. Guillem was again in search for a high quality coach and Jimmy Martin came highly recommended by his predecessor, Colas, who worked with Jimmy at Stevenage FC Academy. Jimmy was appointed Manager in May 2018 and will be assisted by a former United playing legend and well respected character in SML football, Dean Bull. Also on the coaching staff is Spanish coach Emilio Gutierrez. The club has certainly come a long way in relatively few years but we could not have done it without the help of a very supportive Town and District Council who clearly understands the benefits of having a community based club in Biggleswade. Our success is also very much down to a very hard working committee who throughout the year - not just the football season continue to volunteer their time and commitment to the club, to help it continue to thrive and be a source of enjoyment for our supporters and the Biggleswade community.
The History of Stotfold FC
The first recorded football in the town was 1904, however it is certain that the game was played for a number of years before that. In those early 1900s, Stotfold sides played in the Biggleswade and District League. This was followed by a spell of nearly 30 years in North Herts Football. The first record of a trophy being won was 1911 when Potton were beaten 1-0 in the Biggleswade and District Championship. Stotfold FC was officially founded, with proper financing, stewardship and recordkeeping, after WW2 in 1946. In 1951 we joined the South Midlands League Division 2 and in 1953 were promoted to Division 1. Our present ground, when it was just a meadow named 'Roker', had first been used in 1911 by Stotfold Athletic. So, we were delighted to move into the newly-developed 'Roker Park' ground in 1965, having played previously at the Hitchin Road Recreation Ground. In 1955 we were promoted to the Premier Division, where we stayed for 30 years winning the championship in 1980 and were runners-up no fewer than 9 times. The club joined the United Counties League in 1984/85 season with our best placing as runners-up in 1993/94 and 1995/96 under the guidance of ex-Arsenal player Ian Allinson. During 1998-2000 the club won The Beds Senior and Premier Cups, UCL League Cup, and the Hinchingbrooke Cup as well as being runners-up and finalists in two North Beds Charity Cups. The club also reached the last 32 of the FA Vase and the 3rd Qualifying Rd of the FA Cup in 2000 under Phil Pateman's management. Kenny Davidson took over the side in 2001, reaching the final of the Beds Senior Cup but resigned in Dec 2002. Phil Pateman assumed charge of the side again and the team won the North Beds Charity Cup and were finalists in the Hunts Premier Cup. However, their most notable success came from being awarded national fair play team of the year by Ladbrokes in association with The Non League paper as well as the UCL fair play award. They finished a creditable 10th place from a previous 18th and retained the NBCC. During the summer, Phil Pateman stepped down to concentrate solely on his chairman duties securing the services of ex-player and former St. Albans City and Baldock manager, Steve Cook for the 2004/05 season. Steve left the club for Borehamwood after one season, and Jim Benton, stepped forward to take charge for the 05/06 season. This saw many familiar faces drift away from the club and many new ones appear. Poor discipline and performances on and off the pitch resulted in a bad year all round for the club, and after Jim's departure, local manager Glen Clarke was handed the position, handing in his notice on the eve of the new season. Coach/physio Ian Williscroft took charge for the first 9 games before Mark Teeling took over midway through September. After gaining 11 points from 17 league games and some heavy defeats, Mark was replaced in December by the previously successful partnership of Ian Donnelly and Ian Allinson.
The History of Stotfold FC Continued With the club staring relegation in the face, Ian recruited several senior players and combined these with the best of our young squad and the club hauled themselves out of the bottom two, winning 8 of our last 10 games. During the summer the squad was strengthened further, and this culminated in the most successful season in the clubs history. The first and second team squads won their respective league and county cup competitions, (the first club to do so), with the second team remaining unbeaten in the league. In addition the club were the only UCL club to reach the 3rd Qualifying Round of the FA Cup before losing to Tonbridge Angels. So it was a shock and bitter disappointment when the UCL decided against awarding Ian Allinson the Manager of the Year Award. During the summer Ian was offered the managers job at Ryman Premier League Borehamwood and this was an offer he could ill afford to miss. He has since given the opportunity to several of the successful side to play with him at that level. However he left a great legacy and we promoted Ian Donnelly to the position with reserve manager Terry Kitchener stepping up to assist him. Success continued, winning the UCL League Cup and North Beds Charity Cup and finishing League Runners Up. The Reserves and the Under 18 Academy continued to sweep all before them under Gordon Bickerstaff's management and after Ian Donnelly stepped down with Terry at the end of the previous season, it was easy to promote from within again, with Gordon bringing his Assistant Cecil Lee with him. In what turned out to be the club's final season in the UCL, 2009/10 saw the first team produce a very creditable performance reaching the 4th round of the FA Vase and finishing 7th in the league. Having finally been granted a move to the Molten Spartan South Midlands League in 2010/2011 the Eagles struggled to adapt until the new year and eventually finished mid-table. The first team reached the final of the NBCC, losing to Biggleswade Town 2-1. The reserves lost many of their players who needed a fresh challenge after being so successful, leaving Manager Malcolm Ward with a difficult task and they also finished in a respectable mid-table position. The Academy continued to go from strength to strength with the U15 and U18 Academy teams winning the Beds County Cup. The U18s also won the County Floodlit Cup and the Ridgeon's League West title under Manager Ryan Brooke. In season 2012-13 Gordon Bickerstaff stood down and Steve Young took charge of first team duties, supported by Roy Ryall. Gary Hoy took over the Reserves whilst continuing to run our Under 17 and 18 Academy teams. After another poor start the first team secured a respectable mid-table position whilst the Reserves, made up almost entirely of Academy players, won the Biggleswade KO Cup. Our Under 18s reached the first round of the FA Youth club for the very first time despite playing mostly 16-year-old players before going out to Leyton Orient. The U17s finished 2nd and U18s first in their respective leagues. Continued overleaf
The History of Stotfold FC Continued Steve promoted from within the club, Michael Parkin and Matt Endersby stepping up and the club also appointed Rob Bates as the Under 18 Academy Manager. Rob played professionally for Colchester United and was the Academy Manager for Biggleswade Town last season before resigning his position in the summer, most of that academy side following him to the club after a hugely successful 2013 season. The club also reformed the Reserve side after a traumatic 2013 season and Dave Elkin and Dave McCoy joined from Langford. The 2014/15 season was once again a challenge. Steve Young decided to resign his position in January 2015 for personal reasons and we had no hesitation in appointing Rob Bates as the manager of the first eleven. During his 5 months in charge he managed to mould a team to stave off relegation from the Premier League and finish a creditable 16th with 44 points. We were narrowly beaten 2-1 in the North Beds Charity cup by Biggleswade United. Rob Bates having brought his under 18 side from Biggleswade Town took them to second place in the Southern Counties Olympian Division and winners of the Colwyn Cup Final beating the league winners Cockfosters 3-2. The last 2 seasons delivered stability with the first team following the trend of struggling in their league programme up to Xmas and then storming to mid table by the end of it. The reserves changed to position stability. We dropped the Reserve squad for an U21 side and then as U25s last year and won the Biggleswade KO in 2016, finishing top four in their leagues. The first team won the NBCC in May defeating Biggleswade United 2-0 in the final in what turned out to be the last game under Rob Bates and his management team who resigned shortly after. Mick Reardon took over but lasted less than 2 months with the club losing all but a couple of the previous seasons team and suffered a humiliating 12-1 FA Cup loss to Berkhamsted. He was relieved of his duties and Michael Parkin stepped up. The club recycled most of the squad but struggled and despite a terrific run in at the end of the season we finished bottom of the league. However the FA reprieved us. Michael stepped down due to work commitments and the club appointed Julian Robinson. However Julian resigned after a poor start to the season and has been replaced by Mark Nervais who has worked with Kempston Rovers and Bedford FC. The management team have been refreshed and we have started to rebuild with almost a complete new squad. The club have entered a team in the U25 league and now have 4 EJA teams covering U13 to U16 as a full merger of the two clubs moves forward.
Biggleswade United FC Clubhouse is available to hire for every occasion – Birthdays*, Children’s parties, wedding parties, christenings, naming ceremonies and lots more… The clubhouse can accommodate up to 100. Hire charges are from £25 to £100. For more information contact Tracey James on 07714 661827 or 01767 316270
* We are unable to accommodate 18th birthday parties
Meet Our Mascots today.. Our mascots today are the players from our Biggleswade United Academy Under 8s Blues and Reds teams. The two teams compete in The Trophy UK Royston Crow League, Burgundy and Emerald Divisions. They are coached by Jimmy Norris, Paul Darlow and Peter Nicholson. Many thanks to the coaches, parents and families of the teams for giving up their time to bring the boys to the match today. We hope you enjoy your time with us.
Picture courtesy of GUY WILLS PHOTOGRAPHY
Pictured: James Smith