Greetings everyone and welcome to this week's TLFG as we enter March.
On Saturday I headed out to the north-west suburbs, where I spent my formative years, to watch Harrow Borough for the first time in 2025.
The season had started really well but by the time I last went to see them on Boxing Day, they'd drifted out of title contention and held Hayes & Yeading United to an uninspiring 0-0 draw.
Since then, manager Ben Bukowski has been headhunted by local rivals Hendon who play a division above and some of his remaining coaching staff have taken over.
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| There's now less than a month to go until Non-League Day |
One of the benefits of being relegated to the eighth tier for the first time in decades, is the huge reduction in travel and its associated costs.
For the last few years, Harrow had been forced to play in a seventh-tier league against teams based in Cornwall, Devon and even Wales - I was told yesterday that that alone had cost the club around £20,000 a season which is a huge amount for a side at that level.
With that money now largely saved, Harrow also face a lot more derbies which increases interest.
On Saturday they welcomed one of those local sides in the form of Hanworth Villa.
One of a group of clubs located just to the south of Heathrow Airport, the Villains appear to be a club on an upward trajectory with promotion from the Combined Counties League followed by two top-seven finishes at this level.
After beating Harrow earlier in the season and just above them in the table, they started as marginal favourites.
With the sun out, there was a real feeling that Spring was on the way but any other optimism was blown away for Harrow fans in the 11th minute when goalkeeper Andrew McCorkell got needlessly caught in possession and his efforts to recover the situation conceded a penalty.
Arsenal legend Paul Merson's son Sam has become a bit of a Hanworth legend in recent seasons and he duly converted the spot-kick.
It went on to become the Sam Merson show as he scored two more, either side of Mack Miskin's strike, to see the visitors to a 3-1 win an also reach 100 goals for his club.
They're now five points shy of the play-off places with a game in hand and take on fifth placed Hartley Wintney on Tuesday night at Rectory Meadow in what has become quite an important game.
Harrow have little to play for in the league now but have a big Middlesex Senior Cup Semi-Final against very local rivals Rayners Lane on Tuesday which I hope to be at.
With less than a month to go until Non-League Day, we've hopefully got some big announcements to make in the coming week.
I'm also booked for some interviews and podcasts as we look to build the momentum ahead of the big day.
You know I love a match map, well I've built one for the whole country covering all games in the fifth to tenth tiers taking place on 22 March.
Unlike the ones I use in this blog, you can search for your nearest game using your postcode - functionality that's more expensive and covered by other people!
THE WEEK AHEAD
This week's highlights include games in the Premier League, EFL, National League, FA Trophy, FA Vase, Women's Nations League, Women's Super League and lots of other games featuring our local non-league and women's clubs.
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 24 February
U18 & Development football
I had to do a bit of digging to find anything taking place today and from what I can tell, it's just non-league clubs' U18 sides who are in action this evening. All the ones I discovered are in south-west London - see the match map for details
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Tuesday 25 February
Professional Development League
Millwall v Brentford @2pm - it's a very different story on Tuesday, with plenty going on. You can also easily see two games thanks to this early kick-off at The Den. It features two of the top three in Group South of this U21 league so it should be worth a watch. Tickets are usually available through the club's website but I haven't seen anything advertised yet - check on the day
Premier League
Crystal Palace v Aston Villa @730pm - both of these sides had excellent weekends with the Eagles winning 2-0 at Fulham and Villa beating Chelsea 2-1. Palace have now won three of their last five to banish any fear of relegation and now a top-ten finish would appear to be their main target. Villa had been on an iffy run with the defeat of the Blues being their first win in six. The hosts are unbeaten in three against Unai Emery's side and won 5-0 here last season. Tickets
Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester City @730pm - this time two weeks ago, it was all doom and gloom at Spurs. Knocked out of the EFL Cup and FA Cup in consecutive matches and floundering in the bottom half, they've now won three in a row in the league and things seem a bit more cheerful. Here they welcome a side who are also having a relatively poor spell. Knocked of the Champions League by Real Madrid, they lost to Liverpool on Sunday and head to the THS with the memory of being demolished 4-0 by Ange Postecoglou's team back in November. It's actually quite hard to pick a winner here but given their history of good results against City, I'm tipping Spurs to have a positive night. Tickets are only available to members but hospitality packages are available from £399
Chelsea v Southampton @815pm - at one point in the latter part of 2024, the Blues were being touted as challengers to Liverpool but it's gone a bit wrong since then. With only two wins from their last 10, the Stamford Bridge club are 21 points behind the Reds and down to seventh. There's still plenty to play for though with a place in the top four well within their grasp and the UEFA Conference League seemingly there for the taking. The Saints suffered another dreadful 4-0 loss at home to Brighton on Saturday to keep them bottom but now 13 points adrift of safety. A home win looks like a certainty. Tickets
League Two
Bromley v Bradford City @745pm - the Ravens' win over Harrogate made it three in a row and must have made a few fans start to seriously think a play-off push is back on the cards. Still seven points behind seventh-placed Crewe, they have a game in hand and 14 games left to catch them. The Bantams are in the top five and have only lost one of their last six. The Yorkshire club won the reverse fixture 3-1 back in August so the hosts are going to have to be at their best to keep their good run going. Tickets
National League
Wealdstone v Boston United @745pm - the Stones came from behind to pick up a crucial 4-2 win over bottom club Ebbsfleet as they look to beat the drop themselves. The battle to stay up is incredibly tight with only three points between the teams in 17th to 22nd. The visiting Pilgrims have really struggled since promotion, are 23rd and 10 points adrift of safety. It's looking pretty grim for them but they do have two games in hand on the teams immediately above them so a win here will give them a glimmer of hope. Tickets
National League Cup Quarter-Final
Sutton United v Manchester United U21 @7pm - the inaugural playing of this unpopular new cup is down to its last eight clubs. To recap, this is new competition where pro clubs field U21 sides against National League ones to gain experience of playing against senior players. The U's got through a group containing academy sides from Nottingham Forest, Tottenham Hotspur and West Bromwich Albion and now face a side from one of the biggest clubs in the world. How much the public buy into it remains to be seen but it's rare for a non-league club from south London to ever face a Red Devils XI so you'd think a reasonable amount of fans might turn up just for the novelty. Tickets are available from £12
National League South
Boreham Wood v Chelmsford City @745pm - after a wobble which saw them lose three in four, the Wood are now celebrating two wins in a row after success at local rivals St Albans City on Saturday. With the top two drawing, the Hertfordshire club are now fourth and five points off top spot. Chelmsford, on the other hand, pulled off a dramatic late comeback against former leaders Torquay which puts the Devon club in real danger of losing their top-seven place. Although ninth, the Essex club are still 11 points adrift of the play-off places. Tickets
Isthmian League North
Walthamstow v Witham Town @745pm - the 'Stow are a side to firmly keep an eye on in the eighth tier. Sitting one place and three points outside the play-off places, they come into this on the back of a thrilling 5-3 win over then leaders Felixstowe & Walton United. It was their fifth triumph on the trot and put them top of the division's form table. Witham sit just below them but their form seemed to be going in the other direction before Saturday's 1-0 win over a struggling Newmarket side. Tickets are £10 on the gate
Middlesex Senior Cup Semi-Finals
Bedfont Sports v Hanwell Town @745pm - I don't tend to feature county cup matches until this stage of competitions as clubs often field weakened sides and the ties can be a bit of a non-event, a bit like the early rounds of the EFL Cup for Premier League sides. When you get to the final four then you know you're probably going to watch some sides who are taking things seriously and want to win. Of the remaining clubs, ninth tier Bedfont are the lowest ranked and Hanwell from the seventh tier are the highest. The hosts have never been to the final whilst the Geordies have won it once in 2021. Tickets are £8 on the gate
Rayners Lane v Harrow Borough @745pm - two very local rivals from the eighth tier meet in the other tie. As the crow flies, their grounds are 0.8 miles apart and they're only two places apart in the Isthmian League South Central. Rayners Lane thrashed Harrow 4-0 in this competition last season before winning the title for the first time after beating Hayes & Yeading United in the final. They also come into this in some form having won their last two games 5-1. Harrow are really up and down at the moment, equally capable of winning 4-1 as losing by it. They are, however, much weaker away from home so it will take something to win here. I haven't seen any ticket prices published but it shouldn't exceed £10
SCEFL Premier
VCD Athletic v Snodland Town @745pm - things are getting exciting for the Vickers. Having seen them lose top spot to Faversham, I personally believed their title shot had gone and a play-off spot would be the best they could get. However, with the Lilywhites only managing a draw at Erith & Belvedere on Saturday, VCD got right back in it with a 1-0 win at Larkfield & New Hythe. The gap between them is now only two points and this match is the first of two games in hand. Snodland are in the bottom four so, although weak on paper, they have plenty to play for themselves. The going rate for tickets in this division is around £8
FA Youth Cup Quarter-Final
Watford v Southampton @7pm - after beating Spurs 4-2 in the last round, the Hornets have made into the last eight of the country's most prestigious U18 competition. The Saints' academy has had a great reputation for many years so it's no surprise to see them make it to this stage and they should start as favourites. This is being played at Vicarage Road. Tickets
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Wednesday 26 February
UEFA Women's Nations League
England v Spain @8pm - the biggest crowd of the night will be found at Wembley where fans will be treated to a repeat of 2023's World Cup Final. Since the glorious Euros campaign of 2022, the Lionesses have struggled to reach those heights again. Yes, they did make the World Cup Final a year later but it was stodgy and sometimes lucky stuff which got them there. Spain won that day and have looked more impressive since. Currently second in the world and top in Europe, for me they will start this match as favourites. They come into this on the back of a very dramatic 3-2 win over Belgium on Friday, a game they were losing 2-1 as late as the 92nd minute. England, on the other hand, could only manage a 1-1 draw with Portugal in the Algarve. Tickets
Premier League
Brentford v Everton @730pm - a couple of months ago, this fixture would've generated little interest for the neutral but now both teams are hitting some form and could provide us with a very entertaining game. The Bees crushed Leicester City 4-0 in the Midlands on Friday night to keep a place in the top 10 well within reach. The Toffees are a team transformed following the return of David Moyes to Goodison Park. Second in the form table, they've only lost one of the seven games he's presided over and were unlucky to only draw with Manchester United on Saturday. The Merseyside club are also unbeaten in five against the Bees so I have to say I fancy them to get something here. Tickets are only available to members
SCEFL Division 1
Forest Hill Park v Welling Town @745pm - Wednesday gives us another chance to take a look at FHP/SE Dons. Sadly their game at SOUL Tower Hamlets was postponed on Saturday so they missed the chance to go top. A point behind leaders Canterbury City, they now have six games in hand so they really are in a very strong position. The visiting Boots only formed in 2016 and enjoyed consecutive promotions in their first three seasons as they shot up to the ninth tier. Sadly things are really slowing down and they're now on course for a second consecutive relegation and a place back in the Kent County League. Tickets are £6
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Thursday 27 February
Premier League
West Ham United v Leicester City @8pm - the Hammers are one of the most unpredictable teams in the top flight. In the bottom half for most of the season and capable of some real horror shows on their day, they can also go to the Emirates at beat Arsenal as they did on Saturday. Although they're still in the bottom five, they're well clear of the relegation dogfight and have very little to play for. The Foxes are one of those teams who look increasingly likely to go down. How they've gone from Premier League and FA Cup winners to a side which yo-yos between the divisions is hard to fathom but that's what they're becoming. However, they do have a good record against West Ham and beat them 3-1 in December and won at the London Stadium last season too. Tickets
Development football
With West Ham providing the only senior football, I delved into the development football calendar and beefed up the Thursday offering on the map. There's now a reasonable selection of U23 and U18 sides for you to choose from at a number of non-league clubs
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Friday 21 February
FA Youth Cup Quarter-Final
Arsenal v Manchester United @7pm - the biggest crowd of the night will be found at the Emirates. The visitors are having much the better season in the U18 Premier League so they should start as favourites. The Red Devils are also the most successful club in the competition's history with 11 wins since it began in the 1950s, with their last title coming in 2022. The Gunners got thrashed by West Ham in the final two years ago and haven't won it since 2009. There is a reduced capacity of 9,999 for this game but tickets are still available for £4
Professional Development League
Brentford v Birmingham City @1pm - it's possible to see two games today as the Bees provide us with another lunchtime U21 fixture. If Brentford win at Millwall earlier in the week, then they could be going for top spot here against a Birmingham side who've really struggled this season. This is being played at Wheatsheaf Park in Staines. Tickets
Essex Senior League
West Essex v Woodford Town @745pm - in my opinion, the best non-league option of the night is this north-east London derby at Wadham Lodge. The hosts have had a busy month, playing five league games and losing only one - a whopping 8-1 drubbing by leaders Stanway Rovers. In midtable, they're now just playing for position. Woodford, on the other hand, are firmly in the title race after beating Sawbridgeworth on Friday night. A point behind Stanway, third place Takeley are keeping the pressure on too. Tickets are £8 on the gate
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Previews for the 1&2 March to follow
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?
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