Wind Fails To Uproot Oakley - Little Oakley vs Leiston Reserves

Ball carried high on the wind

Looking through the fixtures in the week, no games were really standing out until I got to Division One of The Eastern Counties League. Little Oakley who were in their first season in The Eastern Counites were at home to Leiston Reserves and as the Tendering district of Essex was a big unknown area to me, it was an easy choice. Leiston is also an area I've never really been near before but the tricky nature of getting there means my trip there will require an overnight stay. So back to Little Oakley who won The Essex and Suffolk Border League to gain promotion were in the lower half of the table with a mixed set of results and had lost away at Diss the previous weekend. Leiston were up in seventh place before kick off.  

Haunting skies at kick off

It was actually winder at kick off then anytime during Storm Brian the previous weekend at Thame but this doesn't deter the two sides from playing football. It is Little Oakley who have the first chance with a shot on the turn from the edge of the area that goes over the bar. When Leiston first get in on goal, the run is abruptly ended by the Little Oakley keeper which leaves the referee no choice but to give a penalty. He redeems himself however as he saves the penalty and then gets up quickly to save the rebound. This inspires Little Oakley who create a couple of chances but fail to seriously trouble the Leiston keeper. They do however force the Leiston keeper into a critical save of his own late in the half. A cross from close range following a cross is saved and his defence then help him out as they block a shot on the line before the third effort is blazed over. 

Little Oakley get a ball in the box during the first half

There are few clear cut chances during the second period and in the opening stages, both sides lash crosses across the six yard box but fail to get the final touch. The Leiston winger is able to get to the byline but is forced off the ball at the last moment. The best chance (that I saw anyway) comes when the Little Oakley attacker gets in on goal and the Leiston keeper makes a decent stop at his near post. Then from the resulting corner a chance goes just over the bar as the points are shared.

Little Oakley just couldn't find the killer touch

To get to Little Oakley I took the train to Harwich as I figured they'd be more there, but the closest station is actually Dovercourt. To get to either of these stations you have to get a train from Liverpool Street to Manningtree and changing there for a connecting train. The whole train journey takes around an hour an a half. Harwich is an interesting mix of buildings and worth exploring beforehand. Before I caught the bus I popped into The Globe which had a good choice of bottled ales and real ciders as well and The Bell Inn which had a couple of ales on hand pull. I took the number 3 bus to and from the ground but there are a couple of routes that go to Little Oakley. In the village itself there is Ye Olde Cherry Tree which was a great village local with decent looking bar meals. The ground is then a short walk away. The clubhouse had the usual selection of drinks as well as Sky Sports. The ground is a work in progress and I really liked the welcome from the club and the programme is a great effort. A really good day out exploring a part of Essex I previously knew little about.

Dugout side of the ground