Greetings one and all and welcome to this week's TLFG.
It's a big few days for a lot of our local ninth and tenth tier non-league clubs as their seasons actually get underway - yes, you read that right, competitive football in July.
However, for the neutral, the most eye-catching fixtures will still be pre-season friendlies.
Over the last week I managed to get to one game - Actonians' first friendly of the summer at Dartford.
Famous for being the home town of the Rolling Stones' Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, I'd never been to this part of Kent before.
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| Actonians travelled to Dartford for a friendly |
A straightforward train ride from Charing Cross, it took me a little over two hours to get from door-to-door from my home in Shepherds Bush, including a 20-minute or so walk from the station to the ground.
Princes Park is one of the finest non-league stadiums in the south-east and I'd always wanted to go so when this fixture came up, I thought it was finally my chance.
However, with this only being a women's pre-season friendly it was shunted onto the 4G pitch outside.
To be fair, it had a small stand of its own and wasn't a bad facility but it was still disappointing.
The game itself wasn't a classic with the only goal coming near the end of the first half for the hosts.
With most of last season's squad retained and a number of decent new recruits on show, the A's looked solid enough and they needed to be as it was a bruising and bad-tempered encounter.
However, there is still an obvious need for a striker, following the departure of Dior Knorr to AFC Wimbledon last season (she's since gone to America and been called up by Ghana).
If you know anyone, let me know!
In other news, my own personal sporting achievement of the week saw me continue my A-Z of London football club runs.
Meeting up with TLFG reader Liam, we ran from Shepherds Bush to Millwall - a distance of just over 15km.
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| Liam and I ran to Millwall on Tuesday |
My fitness hasn't been great recently but I was really pleased how this went as we cut through Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park, before passing Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament.
With Elephant & Castle behind us, we had less than 5km to go.
As The Den came into view, the police began pulling a 'Police Line Do Not Cross' tape right across our path, requiring a last-minute diversion - adding a really authentic touch to our visit to Millwall country!
So N is next and I think it'll be CCL Premier North side North Greenford United - it's not too far from here and Actonians will be playing home games there next season.
I think that's it from me - have a great week.
THE WEEK AHEAD
This week's highlights include friendlies featuring several EFL teams and one from the Premier League. We've also got the opening weekend of fixtures in several non-league competitions.
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.
MIDWEEK MATCH MAP
Monday fixtures - yellow pin
Tuesday fixtures - green pin
Wednesday fixtures - turquoise pin
Thursday fixtures - purple pin
Friday fixtures - black pin
WEEKEND MATCH MAP
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.
Monday 21 July
Friendly
Hashtag United v Chelmsford City @745pm - to my knowledge, this match on the east side of town is the only men's game taking place within the M25. It's an all-Essex affair with the seventh-tier Tags taking on a team from the division above. This is being played at Aveley's ground
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Tuesday 22 July
Friendlies
AFC Wimbledon v Millwall @730pm - the match of the night would appear to be this London derby at Plough Lane. Newly promoted to League One, the Dons will hope to impress against Championship opposition.
Tickets Leyton Orient v Tottenham Hotspur U21 @745pm - the O's have scored 19 goals in their four pre-season games so far as they've made an impressive start to their preparations. Spurs' youngsters have yet to win in July but you'd expect this to be a bit closer than some of Orient's games so far.
Tickets Barnet v Wycombe Wanderers @745pm - at The Hive, the Bees welcome the League One Chairboys. After seeing their match against a Leyton Orient XI rained off on Saturday, this will be their first match since losing 3-1 to a Crystal Palace side last week.
Tickets Bromley v Crystal Palace U21 @745pm - those Eagles youngsters are next in action here in what is a south-east London derby. The Ravens have won three of their four pre-season games and beat a Chelsea XI 2-1 on Saturday.
Tickets Dagenham & Redbridge v Colchester United @730pm - the Daggers suffered relegation last season and have been inconsistent in pre-season. Colchester are in League Two as are Crawley who thrashed them 5-1 last week. It could be another tough night.
Tickets
A bit further afield
MK Dons v Peterborough United @730pm - about 50 miles north of London, these two EFL sides meet at Stadium MK. The hosts play a level below Posh so should be underdogs on paper.
Tickets Ebbsfleet United v Gillingham @745pm - head east along the Thames and you'll come to Ebbsfleet which hosts this Kent derby. Back down in the National League South for this campaign, Ebbsfleet are two divisions below the Gills.
Tickets -------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday 23 July
Friendlies
Wealdstone v Charlton Athletic @630pm - with wins over Northwood and MK Dons in their first two friendlies, the fifth-tier Stones head into this challenging game against Championship opposition in good nick. Note the earlier than normal kick-off time for this.
Tickets Dulwich Hamlet v Leyton Orient @745pm - in the build up to their second season in the women's fourth tier, the Hamlet welcome a hugely ambitious O's team. Although way down in the seventh tier, the east London club have recruited third tier Hashtag United's management team and captain plus a number of other players who should be way too good for the level. Many teams in the GLWFL Premier play on little more than park pitches and are entirely amateur so that division is going to be a massive non-event this season as they all get steamrollered!
Tickets
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Thursday 24 July
Friendly
London Bees v Maidenhead United @745pm - there are a couple of non-league men's friendlies on Thursday (which are on the map) but if it was me, I'd choose this women's game every time. Being played at Barnet's Hive complex in north London, this match between sides in parallel fourth-tier divisions should be keenly contested
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Friday 25 July
Friendlies
Boreham Wood v West Ham United U21 @730pm - there are a decent selection of games on Friday night including this one at Meadow Park. Now back in the fifth tier, the Wood have failed to win any of their five pre-season games but they have managed a draw against young sides from Arsenal and Spurs. They'll be hoping to get their first breakthrough against the Hammers' youngsters.
Tickets
CCL Premier South
Epsom & Ewell v Guildford City @745pm - it may well still be July but several ninth and tenth-tier leagues get underway this weekend. Being played at Cobham, both these sides will hope for better campaigns than last year as they made little headway in midtable. Tickets will be available on the gate
Essex Senior League
West Essex v Romford @745pm - groundsharing with Walthamstow at Wadham Lodge, the hosts play most of their home games on Fridays. These two had almost identical seasons last year, finishing in midtable alongside each other on 48 points. Tickets will be available on the gate
ECL Division 1 South
Cannons Wood v Brimsdown @745pm - the hosts were in play-off contention in this tenth-tier division last season but fell away towards the end. Playing at Aveley, they'd expect to start as favourites for this one. Tickets will be available on the gate
Lymore Gardens v Hoddesdon Town @745pm - after finishing as runners-up in the 11th tier Essex Alliance League, LG are stepping up to this level for what I believe is the first time in their history. They welcome a Hoddesdon side who finished eighth last season. This is being played at Redbridge. Tickets will be available on the gate
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Saturday 26 July
Friendlies
QPR v Heerenveen @3pm - for my money, the top game in town is the R's encounter with De Superfriezen. The Dutch side finished ninth in the Eredivisie last season so this should be a pretty even contest. QPR have been very inconsistent in pre-season but they did beat French side Toulouse 2-1 on Friday.
Tickets Leyton Orient v Watford @3pm - although not quite as glamorous, this game is effectively a derby. The O's made it to the League One play-off final last season whilst the Hornets pottered along in Championship midtable - it's another one that's hard to call.
Tickets Bromley v Millwall @3pm - there's no doubt about the derby status of this game in south-east London. The Lions often keep their pre-season games pretty local and this match against the Ravens definitely fits that description. Preparing for their second season in League Two, the Ravens will expect a tough afternoon against their Championship opponents.
Tickets Sutton United v Crystal Palace U21 @3pm - there's another all-south London game at Gander Green Lane as the National League U's take on a side from one of their local Premier League clubs.
Tickets Dartford v Gillingham @3pm - the Darts made it to the Isthmian Premier play-offs last year but lost to remain in the seventh tier for another year. On Saturday they welcome their local League Two club for a derby.
Tickets
A bit further afield
Luton Town v Tottenham Hotspur @3pm - Spurs began their pre-season with a 2-0 win at Reading last weekend and fielded pretty much all their main players at some stage. Next up they make the short journey north to play the Hatters in Bedfordshire. If you've never been to Kenilworth Road, it's unique and set to close at the end of 2027/28 season so get a visit in while you can.
Tickets
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Sunday 27 July
Friendlies
AFC Wimbledon v Loughborough Lightning @2pm - it's all about women's football on Sunday. This match tops the bill and will be the Dons' first at Tooting & Mitcham United's stadium since announcing their new groundshare. They finished in midtable in the third tier in 2024/25, their first at this level. The visitors won their fourth-tier division to move up to this level so it should be a decent contest
Charlton Athletic U21 v Actonians @3pm - the A's played the Addicks' youngsters a couple of years ago in pre-season and I went to the game. It was played at the EFL club's training ground which I found to be quite an impressive facility. I'm not sure if it will be open to the public yet but I would recommend visiting if it is
Dulwich Hamlet v Hashtag United @2pm - after playing Leyton Orient in midweek, it will be really interesting to see how good this Hashtag side now is. Shorn of the management team and most of the players which made them third-tier title contenders last season, many expect the Tags to really struggle
London Bees v Farnham Town @2pm - the visitors are a team to keep an eye on. With the men's team moving through the divisions quickly after having fortunes lavished on them, the women's side are making notable progress too. Still down in the sixth tier, a strong Bees side from two levels above them should provide a stern test
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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