TLFG: 12-18 July 2021

Well that's that - after three hours, us England fans taste bitter defeat on penalties yet again.

It was so close but looking at the tournament overall, Italy did just deserve to win it - they beat Belgium and Spain as well as Turkey, Switzerland, Wales and Austria. 

Our main hurdle were a far from brilliant Germany side - everyone else was fairly average.

It was my eight-year-old daughter's first real experience of tournament football and despite mucking about and fighting with her younger sister for most of it, she's only just stopped sobbing nearly half an hour after the final whistle - maybe I should set up a fundraising page and cash in!

To put it in context and to be positive, this is the best England performance most fans of the Three Lions have ever seen and very few thought we would get anywhere near this far.

But to be one penalty away from glory is pretty tough take.

Anyway, it's late, I'm tired and I have a challenging week ahead - two of my in-laws have come down with Covid in the last few days to name just one problem.

Here's your guide to this week's action - there's lots going on.

PS - tickets for the Women's Euro 2022, which is being hosted by England next summer, go on sale in a couple of days so you can put yourself through it all over again.

 

                                                              THE WEEK AHEAD

The highlights of the next few days include numerous friendlies which feature a handful of Premier League and EFL teams and lots of non-league ones too.

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.

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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, by day, 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 12 July

Friendly

Carshalton Athletic v VCD Athletic @745pm - the Robins registered a decent 1-0 win over National League South (NLS) side Dulwich Hamlet on Saturday. VCD play a level below their hosts so could find it tough going. Update - MATCH OFF 

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Tuesday 13 July

Friendlies

Leyton Orient v West Ham United @7pm - the match of the night sees these two east London neighbours go head-to-head at Brisbane Road. Tickets for this highly anticipated match were allocated via a ballot 

Dartford v Gillingham @745pm - a crowd of over 1,600 were at Princes Park to see the Darts narrowly lose 1-0 to Ipswich Town on Saturday. On Tuesday they face further League One opposition in the form of the Gills. Tickets are £10 and can be bought online

Welling United v Charlton Athletic @730pm - there's another derby to enjoy in south-east London were the Addicks pay a visit to Park View Road and NLS outfit Welling. Tickets are £15 and available online

Edgware Town v Hendon @730pm - there's a grounshare derby at Silver Jubilee Park where the sides will contest the Jeffrey Over Memorial Cup to celebrate the contribution of the former committee member who died during the pandemic

A bit further afield

Hitchin Town v Watford U23 @745pm - to the north of London, the ever popular Top Field sees Hitchin welcome a squad from Premier League Watford. Tickets are £8

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Wednesday 14 July

Friendly

Grays Athletic v Phoenix Sports @745pm - the pick of the day's action takes place at Parkside which Grays share with Aveley on the far east side of town. The clubs both play in the eighth tier so it should be close

A bit further afield

Slough Town v Fulham U23 @745pm - the Rebels make TLFG again. Of the out of London teams, their Arbour Park home is very easy to get to by car or public transport. Tickets are a bargain at £6

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Thursday 15 July

Friendly

Dulwich Hamlet v Millwall U23 @745pm - the Hamlet have managed to land a friendly against fellow south-east Londoners Millwall. The Championship side will be sending a young squad to Champion Hill ahead of a season where they will hope to push for a play-off spot. No ticket details are currently available

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Friday 16 July

Friendly

Barking v Fisher @745pm - the pick of the action in London on Friday is to be found at Mayesbrook Park where the Isthmian League Blues welcome the Fish who play a level below them

A bit further afield

Gillingham v QPR @7pm - the best action on Friday is to be found just beyond London's borders with this match between two EFL sides topping the bill. Ticketing arrangements are a bit complicated as the Gills have already announced that away fans will not be allowed and that's about all we know. Check their website for the latest UPDATE - MATCH OFF

Woking v West Bromwich Albion @745pm - the Cards have landed a prestigious friendly against the Baggies as they commemorate the 30th anniversary of beating them in the FA Cup. Tickets are £12 and must be bought in advance

Oxford City v Oxford United @7pm - there's more good news at the Velocity Stadium where the Oxford derby is also on general sale, tickets for this are £14

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Saturday 17 July

Friendlies

AFC Wimbledon v Brentford @3pm - pre-season goes up another notch on Saturday as more Premier League sides begin to send teams into action. Arguably the hottest ticket of the afternoon will be for this match at the Dons' new Plough Lane ground. Top-flight new boys Brentford are the visitors for what should be a decent derby match. Unsurprisingly, tickets are not on general sale

Leyton Orient v Tottenham Hotspur @3pm - the O's follow up their game against West Ham with another high profile derby against Spurs. Once again, tickets were available by a ballot which has now closed. The West Ham ballot re-opened to non-members at the end of last week so maybe the same will happen for this match in the next couple of days - keep an eye on the website 

Boreham Wood v Luton Town @3pm - the Championship Hatters head to Meadow Park to kick-off another strong programme of pre-season games for the Wood. With the clubs on the same train line about 20 miles apart, this is a derby of sorts and tickets are available for £12

Bromley v Fulham U23 @3pm - the Ravens made it to the National League play-offs last season and will hope for more of the same this time round. Like Boreham Wood, they've also lined up some eye-catching pre-season opposition. Although Fulham are only sending an U23 squad, tickets are still £15

Dartford v Charlton Athletic @3pm - after games against Ipswich and Gillingham, the Darts take on their third League One opponent in a week. After a quick visit to Dartford's ticketing site, it looks like this one has sold out as I couldn't get any

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Sunday 18 July

Friendlies

Hampton & Richmond Borough v Carshalton Athletic @1pm - the Beavers were supposed to host  a Brentford XI on Sunday but Covid has hit the visitors and Isthmian League Carshalton have stepped in. Capacity is limited so you're advised to buy tickets in advance 

Cray Wanderers v AFC Wimbledon XI @3pm - thankfully there is an alternative which hasn't sold out yet. Cray are the oldest club in London and they'll be taking on a Dons' side at Bromley's ground. Tickets are £10 

GET INVOLVED

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.

NEED HELP?

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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