Written by Emma
Ground #62
Thursday 25th July 2024
Pre-season friendly
Aslockton & Orston (Step 7) 3 – 3 Notts Olympic (Step 9)
Attendance: 39
Entry: FREE
WELCOME BACK!! Feels like it has been a very long time since we got ourselves to a football game and we are kicking off the 2024/25 season with a sunny Thursday evening pre-season game.
Aslockton & Orston were formed in the year 2000 as Aslockton Cranmers FC as a youth team to provide local children from the primary school with a place to play football. The club started with just one team at under 8s and these were so successful that the club was built around them. In 2001, Martin Hallam joined the club as under 10s manager for his son’s team. Fast forward 23 years and Martin is now first team manager, club chairman, groundsman, social media manager and much much more. If it wasn’t for Martin there would be no Aslockton & Orston FC and people like him are what make grassroots football. An absolute local legend. Hope you enjoy the blog Martin!
In 2016, the senior first team was formed and a year later the village of Orston was added to the club name as a thank you for the support the village has given to the club. The club hold their own against the odds in the Notts Senior League against sides from much bigger areas of the county.
Today’s game saw them come up against Notts Olympic who have a very interesting history themselves, they were originally founded in 1876 and played in the FA Cup before dissolving in 1916. The club were revived last season and have a really interesting ownership model where anyone can pay £3 a month to become a board member and help shape the future of the club.
Straight from kick off the visitors came forward and took the lead with a nice finish from a squared ball. This was a shock start to the game as Notts Olympic are two leagues lower than their hosts.
Aslockton equalised not long after, but before half time Olympic saw the referee point to the spot and the penalty was slotted home as they took a half time lead.
Second half began and another penalty was given, this time to The Cranmers but unfortunately this was scuffed wide. Just two minutes later and once again the ref was pointing to the spot for Notts Olympics second spot kick of the game. This was the most emphatic of them all as it was smashed into the top right hand corner, a fantastic penalty which put Olympic 3-1 up.
After a period of Notts Olympic pressure, Aslockton finally managed to hit them on the break and reduced the arrears to 3-2. Just a couple of minutes later and another counter attack saw a shanked cross fly over the keepers head and into the back of the net 3-3!!!!!!
That was how it would end, a fantastic six goals and a game that was played much more like a league game than a friendly. Both sides contributed to a really entertaining evening and a fantastic way to star our season.
Now to rate our night in Orston.
Location: 2/10
The Cranmers play at the Orston recreation ground just outside the village of Orston, around 3 miles from Aslockton. The village is tiny and in the 2021 census was home to just 512 people. There is a train station over a mile walk from the ground, however, isn’t the most useful as there is only 2 trains per day, which makes it one of the least used stations in the country – so plan your groundhop wisely!
Car parking at the ground is always available on the grass of the second pitch.
Kit: 8/10
The kit the team play in is a royal blue with a vertical black striped pattern. The sponsor fits ‘flush’ on the front with the team badge above, the black shorts and blue socks compliment the kit very well and is definitely a stand out.
We must also mention the Notts Olympic black and red shirt which is based off early AC Milan kits. This made the game seem like a mini Milan derby.
Facilities: 6/10
Spa Lane has a nice set up, the club house, which was built in 2018, is small but more than big enough for a club of their size and stocks every thing you could need for a summers evening watching the game. It is smartly decorated and even includes a small area for kids entertainment.
Look: 5/10
The ground consists of railings round all four sides, with hard standing down two and the majority of the crowd stand alongside one side of the pitch on the grass.
They have a small stand which was surprising to see but even came with garden chairs for you to sit and watch the game from behind the goal.
Food and Drink: 3/10
We weren’t sure what the crowd would be at the game and with it being a preseason friendly we weren’t sure if there would be any food at all. Thankfully there were hotdogs available for £2.50, they were microwaved and you only had a choice of tomato sauce to go on it, but having not had one since we were kids we were pleasantly surprised with how much we enjoyed this, even if they were the only option.
The drinks fridge behind the bar was stocked with an assortment of drinks, we have been here in the past and it is always pot luck with what you get but you are never disappointed. We opted for a Fosters shandy and a Koppaberg cider, no darks fruits although frustratingly there have been in the past.
TOTAL SCORE: 24/50
To sum up Aslockton & Orston, it’s a fantastic little ground and community club. If you ever get the chance to go, do it. You won’t regret it, we have visited here many times and the people there are very welcoming and at the end of the day you can’t beat a cider in the sun watching some non-league football.
One of the positives about groundhopping is the people you meet, often at the most random of places and today was one of those occasions. As we pulled into the car park we notice two familiar faces, as fellow groundhopping couple Jack and Hannah were there. Big thanks to Jack as we have stolen a couple of photos for this blog. Hope to see you again very soon, wherever that may be.
If you would like to see where this places Aslockton & Orston in our Non League Leaderboard click here: NON LEAGUE
If you’d like to see the Football League grounds we have visited click here: The 92
Emma’s Ground Guide 