Tag: lidstone cup

liverton united south devon football league division two

Liverton Take Their Chances to Lift Lidstone Cup

TORBAY CLEARANCE SERVICES, SOUTH DEVON FOOTBALL LEAGUE. WEEKLY MATCH REPORTS 26th APRIL, report by Alastair Muirden. Photo of Liverton United contributed by SDFL

Friday 25th April: Division Two Lidstone Cup Final

Liverton Utd 1st Versus Watcombe Wanderers 2nds

The end result of this well-supported cup final did not tell the whole story of the game; whilst 7-nil is a big scoreline for any game, never mind a cup final, it was all about taking chances which Liverton United did and Watcome Wanderers did not. The game itself was end to end for 90 minutes, and Watcombe, to their credit, never gave up even when they found themselves 1-nil down to a Joshua Passmore-Tarpey strike 4 minutes into the game. The same player ended up with a cup final hat-trick and was presented with the sponsor’s man of the match by Coast and Country Estate Agents. Liverton’s other scorers on the night were Harry Atkinson, who got two, and there were singles for Jamie Passmore and Marco Lekkas.

Saturday 26th April

In the top of the table Premier League game at Osborne Park, Newton Abbot Spurs Reserves won the town’s bragging rights, as well as the 3 points, against their closest neighbours Newton Abbot ’66 who were playing their final game of the campaign. A 1-nil win, courtesy of a Beck Hannah strike, was enough to put Spurs just 5 points behind Ilsington Villa with 2 games in hand and 4 to play; the defeat for Sixes guarantees them a respectable third place in the top division. At the other end of the table, Chudleigh Athletic continued with their end of season upturn in results with a 3 – 1 win at Elburton Villa Seconds and this condemns Villa to Division One next term; Gavin Lake, who scored twice, and Tom Corbin were on target for Chudleigh who not only move 5 points clear of Beesands, who have 2 games in hand, but also drag Paignton Saints into the relegation pack, and they only have one game to play and that is against Beesands who may be able to catch them. Totnes and Dartington had a great result with a 3-1 win against Herald Cup finalists Waldon Athletic who still have fifth place in their sights but only just, as they will need to win 3 of their final 4 games to get there.

In Division One, True Blues secured promotion to next season’s Premier Division without kicking a ball; not for the first time this season, a Watcombe Wanderers team failed to raise a side and gifted the opposition the points; the decision for Watcombe, who occupy sixth place in the division, could be a costly one; as it stands, if Paignton Villa win their final game of the season against Watcombe on 17/05, then the Greens could be relegated to Division Two which, in turn, could affect their reserve team. Brixham Town all but cemented their place for another season in Division One with a 5-2 win against Ivybridge Town Reserves at Modbury Playing Fields; the result confirms Ivies’ second relegation in two seasons; on target for the Fisherman were Macca Dallow, with a hat trick, Hugo Griffiths and Jack Thompson. Elsewhere in Division One, Phoenix will join Windmill in the Dartmouth Cup final for what will be a first for the South Devon Football League where two Plymouth based teams will contest a cup final; a 3-1 win at South Devon College against Paignton Villa has come at a cost for the visitors: 6 yellow cards will no doubt attract a misconduct charge from the county FA, but the hat-trick from David Moore was well received. The Dartmouth Cup Final is scheduled for 9th May at a venue to be confirmed.

In Division Two, another team were gifted 3 points: Mount Gould were this week’s benefactors as Harbertonford failed to play them for the third time. The gap at the top is now down to 9 points and the Mounties have 6 games in hand. Fords are in mid-table and are safe from the drop, but again a costly decision was made. The mid-table game between Paignton Saints Seconds and Paignton Villa Seconds had to be abandoned due to the Villa ‘keeper Adam Taylor breaking his leg; all in the South Devon Football Family wish him a speady recovery. The big scorers of the day were East Allington Utd Seconds: they enjoyed a 12-nil win over Upton Athletic who are just about safe from the drop, whilst the reserve Pirates chase a top four place. The final game in Division Two was at Bakers Park where Newton Rovers were beaten 6-nil by Babbacombe Corries who will probably settle for third or fourth place which will give them something to work on next season.

In Division Three, Ashburton remain on course for the title; a 4-nil win at bottom team Brixham Town Reserves sees them move closer to a championship winning season. As second placed Drake FC have played all of their games, Elburton Villa Thirds are the only other team that can possibly join them in Division Two next season. They were playing in the divisional Ronald Cup against Stoke Gabriel TP and they won it 3-1 to set up what should be a great final against Ashburton on 22nd May. Kingsteignton Athletic Seconds moved into third place with a 2-1 home win versus South Brent; Dan Rankin scored both goals for the Rams who have just 2 games left to complete a successful season. Liverton United Reserves leapfrogged Brent with a 7-3 win against Paignton Saints Thirds; the result will keep them safe from the drop and having won the Fred Hewings Cup just a couple of weeks before their first team picked up the Lidstone Cup, the volunteers will be happy with the season that has been delivered at Liverton Utd.

Game coming up

Friday 2nd May: The Herald Cup Final 100 years anniversary. Kick Off is 7pm at Newton Abbot Recreational Trust between Kingsteignton Athletic and Waldon Athletic

Congratulations to both teams on reaching this season’s Herald Cup Final. Both had to endure a gruelling experience in their semi-finals by having to win by a penalty shootout in front of a big attendance. In the league, both teams have had a rollercoaster of a season by their own expectations but both should get a top five finish. The fixtures that were played between them in the league ended up with Kingsteignton winning 2-nil at Broadpark whilst Waldon came out on top by 3 goals to 1 at Windmill Hill. Kingsteignton go into the game as slight favourites being the third highest goalscorers in the premier league with 49 goals compared to Waldon’s 29, but at the other end, Waldon’s defence has the third best defensive record having only conceded 29 goals compared to Kingsteigntons 40.

A reminder that there is no spectator parking at the Rec, and supporters should use the Cricketfield Road car park which is a two minute walk from the ground. The hosts will have a full bar and barbecue service available from 6pm.

Enjoy your grassroots football.

south brent fc

WBB in discussions to salvage season

TORBAY CLEARANCE SERVICES, SOUTH DEVON FOOTBALL LEAGUE. WEEKLY MATCH REPORTS 25th JANUARY, report by Alastair Muirden. Photo of South Brent (Div 3), who almost folded but came back from the brink, contributed by SDFL

It is always disappointing to have to report of the demise of any team and, not for the first time this season, another club, in Watts Blake Bearne, have decided that it’s time to call it a day and have given the SDFL notice to withdraw. The rules state that they must now enter a period of discussion with the league management to try to save the club who have 35 registered players. They will be given four weeks without fixtures to attempt to reset and complete the season.

Storm Eowyn also played a part in this weeks grassroots football, knocking out 12 of the 25 games that were due to be played, but in the 13 that were played, there were plenty of goals and talking points. It’s as you were at the top of the Premier Division position-wise, but Ilsington Villa were held to a 1 – 1 draw by Waldon Athletic in a game that would not have been out of place in the pyramid; Jack Langford was again on target for the Moorlanders, but it was not enough to win the game, and the Torquay-based team remain in 3rd place just 2 points off the lead. In fact, only 4 points separate the top 4 teams in what is turning out to be a very tight title race. Sandwiched between these two, on goal difference, are Newton Abbot ’66 who had a massive scare at Beesands Rovers; in the end, goals from Ashley Dove, Callum Foskett and Joe Clarke Farley cancelled out the 2 home team goals to keep Sixes in the mix. Buckfastleigh Rangers have also moved into a challenging position with a 2-nil win at Paignton Saints; Tyler Wark was the Rangers hero with both goals. The win puts Rangers into fourth place just 4 points shy of ’66, with a game in hand. East Allington United finally secured their first win in 2025 by beating Elburton Villa Reserves by 6 goals to 2 in a game where the venue was switched on Saturday morning, by the hosts, to ensure that it went ahead, so well done to the management at Villa for being proactive; Finley Bullen moved up the golden boot ranks by netting 4 goals with singles from Dan Hurrell and Fred Massey. This puts the Pirates towards mid-table and should help the Weeks family avoid any squeaky bum time this season.

In Division One, only two games survived and both were mid-table games; Newton Abbot Spurs Thirds continue on their rollercoaster of a season; this time, they were on the up with a 3 – 2 win at Paignton Villa thanks to a Toby Pullman hat-trick; and Buckland Athletic Reserves, who lead the mid-table pack, had a good 3 – 2 victory at Watcombe Wanderers, but they remain 7 points off the top four. Interestingly in this division, Paignton Villa only have 7 games left in the league and Plymouth Phoenix have 13 plus interest in 3 cups; one reason is that Phoenix have been fixtured twice to play Brixham AFC Reserves and WBB who are both on a short leave from league games as they continue to work with the league to keep their teams afloat.

In Division Two, Babbacombe Corries moved into second place with a fantastic 5 – 3 victory against league leaders Barton Athletic; Keiron Sweet bagged a brace and there were singles from Jack Cole, Joshua Easterbrook and James Thompson; that put Corries 6 points from top spot with 2 games in hand, and Barton only have 8 games to play, so they could need to win 7 of them for a top two place. Mount Gould remain favourites with 14 games remaining and were victims of the wet weather. East Allington Seconds are also in contention and have games in hand; a comfortable 5 – 1 home win versus Newton Rovers sees them move up to 6th place. At the other end of the table, Ipplepen Athletic Seconds and Buckfastleigh Rangers Seconds remain a few points from safety; the Pens lost 5-nil at home to Paignton Saints Seconds and Rangers put up a fight at Watcombe Wanderers Seconds but lost 4 – 3 in the end.

The big game in Division Three saw Ashburton and Stoke Gabriel TP share the points in a 2 – 2 draw; Daniel Treseze scored both the goals for the home team who also had a substitute sent off in what must have been a short spell on the pitch. In the only other game to be played in this division, South Brent picked up a valuable win that gives them a bit of a cushion over the bottom two, Paignton Saints Thirds and Brixham Town Seconds, who were both rained off.

In Division Four, Templer Way closed the gap at the top but used another game; they are now 5 points from Kingskerswell who have played two games less. They had to work hard to overcome Kingsbridge and Kellaton United, a 4 – 3 scoreline with goals from Bradley and JJ Breslen, with another single for Alfie Moffatt, keeps Templer in the mix for second place; they also finished the game with ten players. Paignton Villa Thirds also had a good win; a 4 – 3 victory at home to Broadhempston United sees them safely into mid-table and Broadhempston just 6 points above the bottom two, and Kingsbridge have 3 games in hand. Earlier, I mentioned the number of games that some teams have left to play; in Division Four, Waldon Athletic Thirds have just 2 league games to play to complete their season whilst Templer Way and Barton Athletic Seconds have 3 games left.

The Fixture Secretary has reported that compared with recent seasons, the league fixtures are in a fairly healthy position with only 3 or 4 teams out of 59 two or three fixtures behind.

Games to catch on Saturday 1st February:

The divisional cups get under way providing all clubs with the shortest route to winning a trophy.

An absolute belter in the Belli Cup, and my game of the day is a repeat of last seasons Herald Cup semi-final and a local derby at Osborne Park where Newton Abbot ’66 and Newton Abbot Spurs lock horns at 2pm.

In Division One’s Dartmouth Cup, can Watcombe Wanderers overcome The Windmill in what will be a tricky test for the Plymouth outfit?

The Division Two, the knockout competition offers another local derby in Barton Athletic versus Watcombe Wanderers Seconds at Paignton Community College.

The Ronald Cup for Division Three teams sees Liverton United Seconds travel to the Manadon sports hub to play Drake FC in a fixture that normally keeps on giving.

And in the Division Four cup at Bakers Park, Newton Rovers Seconds meet Templer Way in what could be an interesting game as the visitors are looking for some silverware in their first season in the competition.

All cup games kick off at 2pm. Enjoy your grassroots football.