A Tale Of Two Towns - Farnham Town vs. Sandhurst Town

Great view from the stand at Mead Lane.

Before this weekend, I only had three more Combined Counties Premier League Grounds to visit. I reduced that number to two when I visited Mead Lane, home of Farnham Town. The Town were having a tough time in their first season back in the Premier Division following their promotion. Before the game they were just outside the relegation zone on goal difference and they had suffered at the hands of Camberley last time out and so they were looking to make amends. Sandhurst were in mid table and were keen to put a bit more space between themselves and the drop zone.  

Farnham push forward with the stand in the background.

Neither side are dominant in the opening stages of the first half and it takes a while for the first chance to arrive. When it arrives, it falls to Farnham and the shot from just inside the box goes wide. They then come close when a corner is headed just over. Sandhurst however are the first to score. The tricky Sandhurst winger is allowed to turn on the edge of the box and smash home a brilliant strike. Farnham's heads don't drop and shortly before half time they hit the bar. They do get an equaliser in the final minute of the first half from a well taken header.

Just after the Farnham effort went over the bar.

Sandhurst look to regain the lead at the start of the second half and put Farnham under a lot of pressure. When Farnham do attack it is mainly on the break but they don't create any clear cut chances. Sandhurst retake the lead with another great finish. Again the Sandhurst player is allowed far too much time on the edge of the box and his dipping effort beats the keeper. The result is put beyond any reasonable doubt when Sandhurst win a penalty and the Farnham player is sent off for the foul. The penalty is duly converted and Sandhurst see out the rest of the game. The score was a little harsh on Farnham who were undone by two quality strikes and a penalty. 

The third Sandhurst goal.

Farnham is another pleasant market town which is worth an explore before hand and also has a castle. I spent a while looking for a pub with ESPN but eventually gave up and went for a drink in The Queens Head which had a great feel to it and one wall was covered in music flyers which was quite interesting. Mead Lane is about a twenty minute walk right through the centre of Farnham. Trains depart hourly from London Waterloo and they take just over an hour. The clubhouse is a decent size and very welcoming. As you can tell from the pictures you can lots of different perspectives of the game and I'd highly recommend a visit to Mead Lane.

Set back view of the action.