Lillywhites Clip Red Kites - Brimscombe And Thrupp vs. Henley Town

Stunning setting in Gloucestershire

The start of The FA Cup is always a grand occasion and to celebrate the start of this year's competition, I ticked off a ground I've had an eye for a long time. Brimscombe and Thrupp's Meadow ground is a glorious setting for football as the pictures will show. The visitors in this Extra Preliminary Round tie were Henley Town of The Hellenic League Premier Division. I visited their Triangle ground for a league match with Milton United several seasons ago. This was the first ever meeting between the two sides however there would of course two further meetings following Henley's promotion last season. Brimscombe had gotten their league campaign under way in midweek, losing two nil to Lydney Town on Tuesday evening.

Kick off at The Meadow

Brimscombe have the first half chance of the match when a free kick is headed just wide of the goal. As you can see from the pictures, it was a beautiful day and the heat contributed to the sluggish start to the game. Henley are then played in on goal but the forward takes too long and the defender is able to get back and block the effort on goal. Brimscombe soon come close with a header that goes just over the bar following a cross from out wide. It is a Brimscombe mistake that leads to the opening goal as they lose the ball in midfield and the forward is played in before he lashes the ball past the Brimscombe keeper. It isn't long until the home side are gifted a way back level. While attempting a diving header, the referee rules that the Henley defender handled the ball and he points to the spot despite the visitor's protests. The Henley keeper guesses right but he can't keep the ball out and it is one one at half time. 

Brimscombe defend a Henley corner

Henley come close to retaking the lead at the start of the second half but the Brimscombe defender is able to get back and make the tackle at the critical moment. It is however Brimscombe who get the next goal. A long diagonal ball forward finds the forward in space and he hammers the ball into the net. It doesn't take long for the home side to get the third. The left winger is able to control the ball and his pull back on the edge of the area finds the forward in space and he slots home to make it 3-1. Henley now have to score and the Brimscombe defence has to be alert to block a close range header on the line. The game is now really opening up as it Brimscombe who are next played in on goal but the Henley keeper is quick off his to block the danger. Henley continue to press in the closing stages and they should do better when the Brimscombe keeper doesn't connect with a corner but the ball is put well over the bar. The last chance of the game is a sharp half volley at the Henley back post which the keeper does well to keep out.

The Henley defender emphatically deals with a ball into the box

The closest station to Brimscombe is Stroud which is served by trains out of Paddington and this part of the trip takes an hour and a half if there are no issues with level crossings. Before getting the bus onto Brimscombe I recommend taking in The Alehouse which had a fantastic selection of ales and is just around the corner from the station. On the way out of Stroud I took the 64 bus from outside Lloyd's to Brimscombe. In the village itself I visited The Ship which was a friendly local which did the job. The ground is then five minutes away. The clubhouse was welcoming and had the usual selection of drinks as well as Sky Sports on a projector screen. If I'd planned my trip better I would have got a later train as The Stroud Brewery  is next door to the ground but didn't open until three. On the way back I got the 29 bus as catching the 64 would have meant I would have missed the last fifteen minutes.

Elevated view behind the goal