There were 14 games and thrills and spills galore in the latest round of West London Vets’ League (WLVL) matches.
Claygate Royals Hares spring a surprise
Whippet Wanderers cruised past Wandsworth Borough, but the other three games in the Prem were all tight affairs. Claygate Royals’ Hares and Ascot United arguably served up the most intriguing of those encounters, with the hosts edging a tight contest 3-2. That sees Claygate safely embed themselves in mid-table.
Ascot United remain top, but the gap to second placed Chelsea is now down to two points. And, Chelsea have two games in hand. Tommy Williams’s side beat Croxley Green 2-0 at the weekend.
The final game in the top division saw Bank of England and Kew Park Rangers (KPR) play out a 3-3 draw. The ever-dependable Farouk Ampou El Ela led the way with a couple of goals. That means that neither side were able to break their win drought, but they do at least remain within touching distance of seventh placed Wandsworth Borough.
Actonians keep their 100 per cent record going
Actonians carry on their merry way at the top of Division One. They welcomed the dangerous West Kensington Kings (WKK) to Brunel. WKK certainly didn’t take their fate lying down, but Actonians ultimately had enough to run out 4-2 winners.
Army Crusaders remain three points behind the pacesetters. They won 2-0 at Ascot United’s second string on Friday night. The Yellas had plenty of the ball but never really looked like getting it in the onion bag. Laz Bircsak and Ryan Ford, meanwhile, took their chances when they came along and that was enough to see the Crusaders home.
At the bottom there was a tight contest between Civil Service and Acton Ealing Whistlers. Indeed, it was so tight that neither managed a goal. It’s not often you get a 0-0 in Vets’ football, but this was indeed one such occasion.
Poly took advantage of the bottom two firing blanks to move six points clear of them. They beat Nottsborough 2-1 and are now subsequently level on points with their opponents from last weekend and indeed only two behind Ascot United IIs.
Lyonians on the move
Actonians are going well at the top of Div 1, but Ruislip Rangers are flying along like a veritable juggernaut. They welcomed Laleham to north-west London on Saturday and won 8-2.
Clapham Old Xaverians kept the distance between the top two at, erm, nine points thanks to a win against Old Meadonians. Goals were flying in everywhere there, with Clapham notching six and Meads four. Got to be first game on Match of the Day, that one.
The final game in the division saw Old Lyonians continue their recent uptick in form. They travelled to Thames Ditton and came home 4-1 victors. That sees them out of the relegation zone and indeed just the five points off the promotion places. Ruislip aside, this division is a pretty close one.
Claygate Hounds cruise ahead
There were just the two games in Division Three, and both were tight affairs.
The game of the day took place in Kempton where league leaders Claygate Royals’ Hounds travelled to play second placed MMB. The Hounds kept their nerve and ended up 3-1 victors. That sees them stretch their lead at the top to a mammoth ten points. They are going to take some hauling in.
Elsewhere Putney Vale Rangers (PVR) are officially up and running. They travelled to Double H and took a hard-earned point back up with them. That draw sees Double H move up to fourth, just a couple of points off the promotion places. As is the case in Div 2, you get the feeling that the fight for second place could go right down to the wire.
Supervets in Action
There was also a catch-up game in the Supervets on 30 November. Stonehouse travelled to Cheam. Both sides were on three points, although by the end Cheam had doubled that. They won 3-0.
Looking ahead, there is a full round of Supervets’ fixtures on 6/7 December. League leaders Ascot United start things off when they welcome the only other unbeaten side in the league – Nottsborough – to the Racecourse Ground on 6 December. Could be an intriguing one.
Second placed Croxley will be watching that game with interest before then travelling over to Claygate Royals’ Strollers on 7 December. Stonehouse are once again in action; they will be off round to Old Lyonians. The final game in the division sees Cheam once again at home, only this time they play fifth placed Chelsea.
The Magic of the Cup
The two O40 cup competitions properly kick off this weekend. That means there are eight League Cup and seven Vase games to look forward to.
None of the big guns appear to have been drawn against each other in the League Cup; Chelsea host Latimer Road, the Rams travel to Nottsborough whilst Ascot United were scheduled to play Wandsworth (although the Borough have unfortunately had to concede).
One of the standout ties involves the top two in Division One. Will Army Crusaders continue their good form from last week when they host Actonians? We shall see.
In terms of the Vase, Thames Ditton have got the draw that no one wanted. They play Ruislip Rangers. They do at least do so at home. Chance for an upset there, maybe?
Division Three pacesetters Claygate Royals Hounds are off to Roehampton to play Bank of England IIs whilst PVR might fancy their chances against Div 2 Old Tiffinians.
As a reminder, ties in both cup competitions go straight to penalties if all square after 90 minutes. No extra-time. Playing120 minutes might prove the end for a fair few of us!
Go well everyone!