This felt like a season of 0-0 draws. Which is hard to explain given that in reality I saw only one. But stick with me, whilst I thrash this out. I saw 31 football matches and though all of them offered me something, none really stand out. All of them – even the six-goal thriller I saw at Penrhiwceiber, even Wales qualifying for a major tournament – felt less like games I’ll one day tell people I was there for, and more like matches I will be reminded I was at.
Maybe this wistfulness is born out of the 2019-20 season’s uncompleted nature. Half the games I watched have since been declared null and void, half a dozen others I planned to see will never happen. In past seasons I’ve seen play-offs and cup finals, league titles decided, semi-finals reached, but of all the games I saw in this, only four were in competitions that will ever reach their conclusion. I’m writing this in a week when football supposedly came back, but what use is glory if you can’t be a part of it? In my 2019-20 football world, everything and everyone was mid-table and always will be.
There’s a chance this feeling of emptiness is perpetuated by the teams I watched the most. Doncaster Rovers under Darren Moore were capable of brilliance, but devoid of luck; Lewisham Borough topped the table in August, but spent the rest of the season tumbling away; and Wales somehow qualified for the European Championships despite only turning in two decent performances in two years.
But this is largely hindsight talking, that and three months spent working and sleeping and relaxing in the same room. I don’t want you thinking I didn’t enjoy the season as it happened. There was a grand night out at the seaside for Rovers’ record away win, Sunday morning beers and drum banging at Blansko; a cup upset at Sutton Town, a perfect pre-Christmas afternoon at Carshalton; laughing along with the chants of the Hornchurch hardcore and a 90 minute end-to-end six-goal slugathon at Penrhiwceiber.
And on top of all that, there was one of the best goals I’ve ever seen live; as Lewisham Borough’s number nine injected a moment of brilliance into an otherwise perpetually grey day in Dartford. Twenty yards from goal he chested up a cross and executed a perfect overhead kick into the top corner of the Kent Football United net. It was inspired, it was magical… it was disallowed for offside. How very 2019-20.
by Glen Wilson
Below is a photograph from every match I attended this season. No expensive cameras, no special lenses. Just a far from the latest iPhone and the Instagram app.
Match 1, August
Dulwich Hamlet 1-0 Wealdstone
National League South at Champion Hill
Match 2, August
Sutton Athletic 3-2 Deal Town
FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round at London Hire Stadium
Match 3, August
Erith Town 3-3 Lordswood
Southern Counties East League Premier Division at Erith Sports Stadium
Match 4, August
VCD Athletic 3-3 AFC Uckfield Town
FA Cup Preliminary Round at The Oakwood
Match 5, August
Tottenham Hotspur 0-1 Newcastle United
FA Premier League at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Match 6, August
Ilford 1-2 Enfield
FA Vase Qualifying round at Cricklefields Stadium
Match 7, September
Lewisham Borough 4-1 Forest Hill Park
Southern Counties East League Division One’s ‘LadywEll-Clasico’ at Ladywell Arena
Match 8, September
Wales 2-1 Azerbaijan
Euro 2020 Qualifier at Cardiff City Stadium
Match 9, September
Penrhiwceiber Rangers 4-2 Ynyshir Albions
Welsh League Division Two at Glassbrook Field
Match 10, September
Ipswich Town 0-0 Doncaster Rovers
EFL League One at Portman Road
Match 11, September
Coventry City 1-1 Doncaster Rovers
EFL League One at St Andrews
Match 12, September
West Ham United 0-2 Tottenham Hotspur
FA Women’s Super League at London Olympic Stadium
Match 13, October
Welling United 4-1 Tavistock AFC
FA Cup 3rd Qualifying Round at Park View Road
Match 14, October
Slovakia 1-1 Wales
UEFA Euro 2020 Qualifier at Štadión Antona Malatinského
Match 15, October
FK Blansko 1-0 MFK Frýdek-Místek
Moravskoslezská fotbalová liga at Stadion na Údolní
Match 16, October
Wales 1-1 Croatia
UEFA Euro 2020 Qualifier at Cardiff City Stadium
Match 17, October
Southend United 1-7 Doncaster Rovers
EFL League One at Roots Hall
Match 18, November
Wales 2-0 Hungary
UEFA Euro 2020 Qualifier at Cardiff City Stadium
Match 19, December
AFC Wimbledon 2-1 Doncaster Rovers
EFL League One at Kingsmeadow
Match 20, December
Carshalton Athletic 1-1 Merstham
Isthmian Premier League at War Memorial Sports Ground
Match 21, December
Matlock Town 2-4 Buxton
Northern Premier League Premier Division at Causeway Lane
Match 22, December
Penmaenmawr Phoenix 3-1 Barmouth & Dyffryn United
Welsh Alliance Division Two at Cae Sling
Match 23, January
AFC Hornchurch 2-1 Horsham
Isthmian League Premier Division at Hornchurch Stadium
Match 24, January
Kent Football United 0-1 Lewisham Borough
Southern Counties East League Division One at Glentworth Sports Club
Match 25, January
Dulwich Hamlet 1-3 Havant & Waterlooville
National League South at Champion Hill
Match 26, February
Fisher 3-1 Glebe
Southern Counties East League Premier Division at St Paul’s Sports Ground
Match 27, February
Wingate & Finchley 2-1 East Thurrock United
Isthmian League Premier Division at Maurice Rebak Stadium
Match 28, February
Gillingham 2-1 Doncaster Rovers
EFL League One at Priestfield
Match 29, February
Shrewsbury Town 1-0 Doncaster Rovers
EFL League One at New Meadow
Match 30, March
Corinthian 4-3 Leighton Town
FA Vase Quarter Final at Gay Dawn
Match 31, March
Lewisham Borough 0-3 Croydon
Southern Counties East League Division One at Ladywell Arena
Further photographs from each of the games featured in this blog can be found on the popular STAND fanzine, Instagram account
popular STAND fanzine 