Written by Max
Ground #54
Saturday 16th September 2023
UCL Premier League North (Step 5)
Sleaford Town 1-0 Newark & Sherwood United
Attendance: 164
Entry: £7
Sleaford Town FC were formed in 1923 and this season are celebrating their centenary year. The club have spent almost their entire history playing locally in the Lincolnshire League but in 2003 they announced plans to seek a higher level of football, and were successful at the first time of asking, winning the league for the 1st time in 23 years and winning promotion to the UCL 1st division. Just 2 years later they won the league but were unable to gain promotion as their new ground at Eslaforde Park wasn’t ready. They didn’t have to wait long though as just 1 year later they finished 2nd and with the ground now complete gained promotion to step 5 where they have been ever since.
Today’s game saw the greens come up against one of our local teams Newark and Sherwood United and we decided to get the train to the game and see what Sleaford had to offer before the game!
A positive start as just a short walk from the train station we found the towns Wetherspoons. Emma’s first dark fruits of the day was ordered as the day got off to a flying start. From here just a short walk to the White Horse which is the closest pub to the ground.
Just before 2pm and we left the White Horse and headed towards the ground, but wait a minute….WHAT IS THIS?
On a park between the ground and the pub was Sleaford Oktoberfest! Well it would be rude not to! £3 to get in and a couple of German beers were sampled before heading to the game just in time for kick off.
So onto the game and going into it you would have struggled to pick a favourite with both teams in some poor form of late. An early goal for the Green’s put them ahead as the ball was chipped over the onrushing Newark keeper. Very few clear cut chances were created as the hosts went in to the half time break ahead.
Into the second half and on the hour mark a second yellow for one of the Sleaford midfielders saw them go down to 10 men. This gave the visitors the upper hand but they struggled to create any clear cut chances even with the extra man. With around 10 minutes to go they managed to win multiple corners but once again didn’t test the home keeper anywhere near enough.
As the clock ticked over 90 the visitors were becoming frustrated and went down to 10 men themselves after a late tackle. From there the hosts saw out the game comfortably to win a deserved and much needed 3 points to end a run of 6 games without a win.
Now to rate our day at Eslaforde Park, or to give it it’s official sponsored name, The Longwater Stadium:
Location: 6/10
Eslaforde Park is located just outside the Town around a 20 minute walk from the Town centre and train station. There is a good sized car park at the ground.
The nearest pub to the ground is The White Horse which is around a 15 minute walk away.
Kit: 4/10
Sleaford Town’s kit is a plain nike template consisting of a dark green shirt, black shorts and green socks. We both liked the colour of the shirt but thought it was a little plain.
A special mention has to go to the club for the sponsor, Never Alone, highlighting the importance of men’s mental health and the fact that if you’re going though a tough time there’s always somebody there to talk to.
Facilities: 6/10
The clubhouse at Eslaforde Park is a huge building which spans the full length of the pitch and includes the bar, as well as the players and officials changing rooms. The bar itself is a decent size and had plenty of seating. The walls were covered in photos from the clubs past and around the bar were all the trophies the club have won.
We would have liked to see some more green in the decoration to fit with the club colours.
Look: 4/10
The main feature of the ground is the large seated stand which straddles the half way line on the far side of the ground. This contains all of the grounds seating.
Behind one of the goals is a small covered terrace with the rest of the ground all flat hard standing. The ground is surrounded by a wooden fence and behind that are a number of training and smaller pitches which are used by the clubs numerous other teams. The ground itself is very tidy and well looked after although is pretty basic for the level. With it being on the edge of town is very open meaning the wind swirls around throughout the game.
Food and Drink: 4.5/10
As mentioned above we had been to a number of pubs, and even the Oktoberfest beer tent before the game so as kick off approached some food was required! On the front of the food hatch was a large list of available drinks but nothing about food. We asked the woman serving what food was available which she replied ‘we don’t have a menu, it’s burgers or chips’. So burgers and chips it was!
The burgers were small and there were no onions on offer meaning they were quite bland and dry. Luckily the chips were much nicer, crispy and well cooked but not the biggest portion in the world meaning we were still hungry afterwards. Luckily for Sleaford all was forgiven as the bar served Dark Fruits cider, so the bonus half point is added!
After the game we returned to the Sleaford Oktoberfest tent and treated ourselves to a Bratwurst. These were amazing and filled us up nicely
TOTAL SCORE: 24.5/50
It was great to be visiting a new ground for the first time since the 1st July, and I’ve enjoyed putting together this blog. It was great to catch up with Newark & Sherwood fans Dave and Darren who we haven’t bumped into for a while and Emma is still feeling famous after being spotted by Sleaford Chairman Dean. It was great to have a short chat with him and the fact you can do this whilst watching the game is one of the best parts about non league football. We hope you agree with our scores Dean!
Below is a photo taken by Dave, who also co-hosts the Grassroots Plus non league podcast which we would recommend to anyone who is a fan of non league football in our area.
The day itself was a reminder of exactly why we love doing this! Sleaford is a town we would never have visited for any other reason and we had a brilliant day out, and even got the bonus of a beer festival including the worlds worst umpah band! We can’t wait to see what our next trip has in store for us!
If you would like to see where this places Sleaford in our Non League Leader board 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 