Daniels Finally At Home - Stamford vs. Hyde United

Covered accommodation at The Zeeco Stadium

A serious amount of rain was covering the south of England last weekend and the only area which looked to be escaping the deluge was East Anglia. With this in mind I wanted to go to Sudbury to see either Long Melford or Cornard United but rail engineering works added a layer of complexity to proceedings. The next best dryish place was Stamford where both Stamford and Blackstones were due to be playing at home. Blackstones was postponed while I was travelling so I eventually settled on Stamford. I was lucky enough to catch a game at Stamford's previous Kettering Road home against Marine in one of the final games at the ground. Hyde United were relegated from the Conference North last season and were in mid table. Stamford were yet to win at home in the league this season and were looking for a win to get out of the relegation places. They were also looking to avenge the 7-1 hammering they were given at Ewen Fields back in September.

Kick off at The Zeeco

Hyde United believe they've scored an early goal but the effort is ruled out for offside. Stamford do however take an early lead. The attacker is allowed to get to the byline and from his pull back the Stamford forward slots the ball home to make it one nil. Hyde go on the attack for the equaliser and the winger is allowed to cut in and it takes a good punch away by the goalie at the near post to keep his side in front. Both sides then have long range efforts which fail to trouble either keeper. A dipping Hyde effort from range then does force the keeper into a save and the resulting corner is not cleared by the Stamford defence and the ball is scrambled home from close range for the equaliser. They then come very close to taking the lead when the forward is played in but he only manages to hit the post.

Moments before the opening goal

At the start of the second half the pitch is becoming very heavy and the players as well as the ball are getting held up. The Hyde keeper is nearly caught out by a long clearance forward but he manages to save his own blushes and tip the ball over the bar. It is then Stamford's turn to hit the woodwork as the referee plays a good advantage which allows the winger to put in a great cross and the ball is headed onto the top of the bar. It is from another cross shortly afterwards that Stamford score the winner. The ball is again crossed in and after the goalie saves the initial shot he is powerless to stop the rebound being put into the net. Both sides have late half chances but Stamford claim the 2-1 win.

Stamford fend off a Hyde attack in the first half.

There are no direct trains from London to Stamford. You have to catch a train to Peterborough from Kings Cross and change there for a train to Stamford. There is only one train an hour from Peterborough so there can be a bit of a wait at Peterborough. The ground is then a good half hour walk from the station. As well as the pubs I visited on my previous visit, I also found another couple of gems. I firstly went to The All Saints Brewery which is a brilliant setting and had a great selection of beers. On the edge of the town centre on the way to the ground is The Tobie Norris which was another fantastic building and had five hand pulled ales. The clubhouse at the ground had BT Sports and also sold the excellent Hanson's Field ale which went down very well.

Side on view of the stand