After suggesting last week's piece could be the last one of the season, I hereby confirm that this one definitely will be.
I had a quiet week on the live football front but it finished on a fairly raucous note at the Actonians end-of-season awards do.
It's been a couple of years since I last went and this one seemed to be a far more lively affair as all three senior squads came together to celebrate their achievements.
Held against a backdrop of an Arsenal win in the Women's Champions League, which was broadcast in the clubhouse before things got underway, there was a joyous mood from the off.
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| The Unity Cup takes place at Brentford this week |
In fact, the actual ceremony was slightly delayed as several players and coaches had gone to the Emirates to watch the live screening.
There was a bit of controversy when the Supporters' Player of the Year came up - all the first-team players stared my way only for me to reveal that I hadn't received a vote!
Even among women's fourth-tier fanbases, politics comes into play - the person who probably decided the outcome wasn't even present at the ceremony and this didn't go down well in some quarters.
Nevertheless, the winner was someone who was highly worthy of recognition and I'm glad she won it.
I was invited up on stage and thanked for my efforts, picking up a giant Toblerone and a season-ticket for 2025/26 which was very gratefully received.
The after-party went on until midnight with Sweet Caroline and numerous other anthems getting belted out at some point.
It's now all about planning for next season when the level of competition is likely to increase significantly.
With local rivals Fulham now in the division and other clubs like Luton Town and MK Dons likely to be coming our way too, it's going to be tough.
It will also see the start of a groundshare agreement with CCL club North Greenford United were they played a few years ago.
Playing at a proper ground rather than Rectory Park will be great but whether the pitch, which is prone to waterlogging, can take it remains to be seen.
The most fun event of the week ahead would appear to be the Unity Cup at Brentford.
Ghana, Jamaica, Nigeria and Trinidad & Tobago meet in this mini tournament on Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday.
In a weird quirk of fate, my wife and daughters will be going for a ladies' night trip to the opening game between Jamaica and Trindad & Tobago with some friends who are supporters of the latter - whilst I stay home!
Well that's it from me for a month or so.
I'm hoping to take the opportunity to apply for a new job over the next few weeks - my current job on the railway has undergone a radical change in its roles and responsibilities and I simply know it's not for me.
If you know of anything interesting going, particularly in the world of football, please get in touch.
THE WEEK AHEAD
This week's highlights include the Unity Cup, an England women's game and the National League play-off final.
As always, please make sure you check with clubs before you travel just in case a game has been called off or the venue or kick-off time has changed - this is highly possible for some of the lower non-league clubs. Also, please let me know if anything is wrong or missing.
Details on all of this week's games can be found on the following match maps. If you've never used them before, please note that when there is more than one match at a specific ground you'll only be able to see individual match pins if you zoom right in. If you don't, the pins obscure each other and you might miss them. To avoid this, you can also scroll down the list of games on the drop down menu at the top of the map page to make sure you get all the information. Games are listed from top to bottom in date order so Monday's games (yellow pin) will appear first and Sunday's (orange pin) last. Games are also ranked in terms of status so the higher the division, the higher up the list they will appear on each day.
Also if you're unfamiliar with the English league structure I indicate the level at which an individual league sits in the national 'pyramid' with the Premier League at the top (Level 1) and various minor leagues at the bottom (Level 10). Typically a top level game will see crowds of anywhere between 20,000-60,000. These figures will gradually decline as you go down the leagues until you get to Levels 8-10 where attendances of 150 or less are most common.
It should also be noted that the top four levels are for fully professional teams. Level 5 has a mixture of professional and semi-professional teams, while Levels 6-10 will see most players paid but it will vary from no more than travel expenses at the bottom, right up to several hundred pounds a week at the top.
MATCH MAP
Tuesday fixtures - green pin
Wednesday fixtures - turquoise pin
Friday fixtures - black pin
Saturday fixtures - blue pin
Sunday fixtures - orange pin
TLFG DAILY DIGEST
In the following section, I list what are in my opinion the most notable games of the week and give some brief reasons for my choice. Check the maps above for kick-off times, ticket info and directions.
Tuesday 27 May
Unity Cup Semi-Final
Jamaica v Trinidad & Tobago @745pm - this mini international tournament will be dominating proceedings in the capital this week. Being played at Brentford's GTech Stadium, the atmosphere should hopefully be really great. The Reggae Boyz are ranked 63 in the world and will start as marginal favourites under former England manager Steve McClaren. The Soca Warriors are down in 100th but games between these two are usually close. They played twice back in February with Jamaica winning the first game 1-0 before the second one ended 1-1. Dwight Yorke, who played at Manchester United whilst McClaren was a coach, is in charge of T&T and he'll be looking for his first win over their local rivals.
Tickets - use code CARIBBEAN20 to get a discount
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Wednesday 28 May
Unity Cup Semi-Final
Ghana v Nigeria @745pm - in the second semi final, we get to see the two giants of West African football go head-to-head. These sides have won seven AFCON titles between them, with Ghana narrowly ahead on four wins but it's been a long time since either of them won. I was surprised to discover that the Black Stars are only 76th in the world. Led by Bundesliga winner Otto Addo, they'll start as marginal underdogs against the Super Eagles. At 43 in the rankings, Eric Chelle's side look like the favourites to win the whole thing.
Tickets - use code SOCCER10 to get a discount
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Friday 30 May
UEFA Women's Nations League
England v Portugal @745pm - this competition seems very overcomplicated but I think I've got the gist of it. To win it you have to begin the campaign in League A which these teams have. There are four groups of four and the winner of each makes the semi-finals. The bottom team in each group gets relegated to League B and the third place team goes into a relegation play-off. With two games to go, England are second and Portugal third. When they met in Portimao in February it finished 1-1. A semi-final place is still there for the taking but a win would seem to be absolutely necessary unless Spain suffer a shock defeat to Belgium in the other group game. This is being played at Wembley and
tickets are available
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Saturday 31 May
Unity Cup Finals Day
The concluding day of action at Brentford gets underway at 1230pm with a third-place play-off followed by the final. At the time of writing we don't know who will contest each game. There appear to be a number of musical acts booked to perform between matches so you shouldn't get bored.
Tickets are available
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Sunday 1 June
National League Play-Off Final
Oldham Athletic v Southend United @3pm - finishing fifth and seventh in the fifth tier, neither of these sides were expected to get this far so they've done really well to make it to Wembley. Up for grabs is a place back in the EFL from which both of these clubs originally descended. It seems hard to believe but the Latics were founder members of the Premier League in 1992 and made the FA Cup semi-finals twice in 1990 and 1994. After a slow decline, they've been playing non-league football for three years but have got better every season. The Shrimpers were in the second tier as recently as 2007 and have endured a very turbulent time off the field in recent years, which makes this run to the play-offs even more remarkable. Games between the two this season were really tight with a 1-1 draw at Boundary Park and a 1-0 win for Southend back in Essex in March. At the time of writing, ticketing for the game is a real sore point. Both sides were given much smaller allocations than normal in part because Wembley Park station is closed on the day of the game. Lobbying attempts were expected to yield some results from the relevant authorities but check with both clubs for the latest news
If you're going to see a game, whether you're a local or a visitor, please let me know what you've been up to. If you're interested in reviewing a ground in the London area for this blog then get in touch. I also very much welcome photos of your football travels.
Got any questions about visiting London? Don't hesitate to ask - be they football or more general travel/touristy queries. I do not charge for this advice like some other sites so don't hold back!
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Thanks James for so much invaluable work again this season. Always my first port of call when I fancy a game at short notice.
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