[Football] Sussex Sunday League Football 80s to Today

[Dave the OAP]

Played a few times at Ford - pitch was usually very good. We did okay but many teams were intimidated by the crowd - it helped that, as the keeper, I would take a carrier rather than my usual glove bag and it would be filled with cigarettes and then left for the Ford keeper to share out.

I've told this story on here before but had one of my most awkward moments there. We went two nil down in the first ten minutes and, as the goalkeeper, I yelled at my team to play with some conviction. Obviously the inmates didn't appreciate my choice of words, not helped by my attempt at apologising by saying 'no offence' to those massed behind the goal. As you would expect, I got loads of abuse for the rest of the half.



I played for Ilex for a while and remember a 15-1 win on a tiny pitch over at Wild Park which would have been around 1986/7.

Yes that was the game.

We used to play a few games on the pitches at ditching road at the top by the golf course. On a bloody great slope and if someone kicked it off, it was a long walk to get the ball back.

 

[Is it PotG?]

Mmmm, grown men in the park, a pint at half-time.

Quick fag, then off the to pub.

Hmmm, isn't it, wasn't it?

 

[Miami Seagull]

I played for the mighty Billingshurst Beavers from 1978 - 1986 in the Horsham Mini-Minor League ... until an enforced name change (possibly due to the film Naked Gun)

Remember you guys well..Roffey Robins Wanderers!! Albeit 1975 - 1980

 

[papajaff]

Of course you know him, no-one can ever forget the world's most MISERABLE centre forward

My misery was legendary but I put it down to a will to win every game. I didn't even like drawing a game, that made me grumpy as well.

 

[Shropshire Seagull]

My misery was legendary but I put it down to a will to win every game. I didn't even like drawing a game, that made me grumpy as well.

Ah, Miss Critchell - aerial supremacist and regular goal-scorer - I don't remember you being miserable, just dodgy knees ...

 

[papajaff]

During my time reffing I heard some really scary stuff that would put people off of reffing, refs being chased by people with hammers, being followed home after the game and being assaulted on the pitch. The worst thing I ever had was being accused of being racist after booking a black player, this was despite booking at least three other white players and not booking the other black player on the pitch - that really hurt.

I used to feel so sorry for refs and as I was player manager for a long time, my players were not allowed to speak to the referee and we had a self styled code of conduct.

One day, I brought on a sub and within 10 minutes he was shouting at the ref so I subbed him off again. He refused to play for me again and I cared not a bit.

Nice to bump into referees these days and they remember me and say that it was always a pleasure to ref my teams. It's called Respect, seen that once or twice haven't we?

Also, I remember going to a Brighton League AGM about 15 years ago and I pleaded with them to help teams by changing KO times as the Albion will be at Falmer soon. And to help reduce pitch costs which were 50-60 quid at the time. They virtually laughed at me. So I said that you are all overseeing the demise of the Brighton League and predicted that within 10 years it would be a shambles. Which it is. Arrogant pricks.

 

[papajaff]

Ah, Miss Critchell - aerial supremacist and regular goal-scorer - I don't remember you being miserable, just dodgy knees ...

I'm not SuperMitch, I'm SuperMac.

 

[osgood]

Mmmm, grown men in the park, a pint at half-time.

Quick fag, then off the to pub.

Hmmm, isn't it, wasn't it?

View attachment 118970

Cold changing rooms ,dodging dog turds, Bucky Park,...jumpers for goalposts....

 

[timbha]

Cold changing rooms ,dodging dog turds, Bucky Park,...jumpers for goalposts....

Isn’t that Preston Park?

 

[Shropshire Seagull]

I'm not SuperMitch, I'm SuperMac.

PM sent

 

[MTSeagulls]

Isn’t that Preston Park?

Buckingham Park in Shoreham I am guessing.
My home pitch for Shoreham Utd and Greenjacket.

 

[Jack Hackett]

Played for Seeboard (Worthing) from 1982 to 1993. Had some great years, we went from Div 13 to Div 1 in that time. We had some tremendous players, and the privilege of the odd appearance from Terry Withers. Met some incredibly tough opponents along the way, Glynde, Caxton, Ree-Even Hire, Green Jacket to name but a few were very good sides in their day. Different world then, proper men playing proper football, no prisoners taken. Also played for Hove Park Rangers in the the Brighton Midweek League, got to the Midweek Cup Final in 1988, so got to play (and score) at The Goldstone, a memory I will always treasure.

 

[Is it PotG?]

My 50p is on Preston Park.

Wtf is the #2 doing?

 

[papajaff]

Played for Seeboard (Worthing) from 1982 to 1993. Had some great years, we went from Div 13 to Div 1 in that time.

Did you come on the 1983 tour to Dortmund? A combined Brighton Electricity and Worthing Seeboard team. Great game that was, 4-2 to us over the Leccy workers there.

 

[Jack Hackett]

Unfortunately not, seem to recall a woman came before the tour. Big, big mistake.

Did you come on the 1983 tour to Dortmund? A combined Brighton Electricity and Worthing Seeboard team. Great game that was, 4-2 to us over the Leccy workers there.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

When I played for Brighton Electricity (and I did for many years), we were drawn against Ford United in the semi final of the oddly named Sussex Junior Cup. This was made up of the inmates AND screws of Ford Prison. 1982/83 season.

When we arrived, it was obviously set up for us to have to walk through the prison gym where a load of them were working out and every one of them just stopped and stared us out.

As for the game, there must have been every single prisoner watching, all up one side of the pitch and behind the goal. So loud and intimidating. As a cocky 22 year old, I loved it.

1-1 at 90 minutes, Ford went 2-1 ahead in the 2nd period of ET and we then scored two late goals to win 3-2. They were not happy. As we walked off I had one screw and one inmate either side of me threatening to kill me.

What a day that was. Lost in the bloody final though!

Good times.

But...isn't Ford Open Prison, populated by bankrupted vintage car dealers, bigamists, fruity vicars and alcoholic medics struck off for incompetance?

 

[papajaff]

Good times.

But...isn't Ford Open Prison, populated by bankrupted vintage car dealers, bigamists, fruity vicars and alcoholic medics struck off for incompetance?

The ones I came up against looked like heavyweight boxers, East End drug dealers, serial killers in drag and dodgy heart specialists who fell off the rails. The latter were the scariest.

 

[BN9 BHA]

Isn’t that Preston Park?

Looks very much like Preston Park to me.

 

[Sirnormangall]

Yes that was the game.

We used to play a few games on the pitches at ditching road at the top by the golf course. On a bloody great slope and if someone kicked it off, it was a long walk to get the ball back.

Yes - long walk to get the ball. Sometimes down to Five Ways!

 

[The Wizard]

Played Sunday league between 2013 and 2017 and the cost is absolutely extortionate to run a club, most clubs end up folding and the facilities are absolutely horrendous in the most part. Not sure what it’s being ran like now but it seemed to be ran by a load of dinosaurs.