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The M25 Football Experience

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Last week Vital QPR member toboboly embarked on a challenge that sees him taking 37 teams in and around the M25 in one season.

He and his gang kicked off the ‘M25 experience’ at the home of football – Loftus Road, here is toboboly’s review of the day and preview to his next game with the newly formed Fisher FC.

Make sure you visit the websites for more features and photos at: http://www.m25football.com/blog

If you’re on Facebook, check out their group here and give toboboly and the gang your support!

Review – Game 1: QPR 1-1 Blackpool

On a very hot August afternoon I made the short walk from Hammersmith to Shepherds Bush to see QPR take on Blackpool.

Only a fool would have put money on Blackpool winning either looking at the teams on paper or historically with Blackpool not having won at Loftus Road for about 500 years. Still, every fool has his day.

Prior to the kick off there was a minutes applause for Sir Bobby Robson however many in the executive boxes didn`t bother either standing or clapping which, in my opinion, is disgraceful. Still the QPR board have never bothered to try and placate fans and on numerous occasions have stated their disinterest in the sport as a whole.

The match started and the first 20 minutes were dominated by QPR, in particular their young attacking midfielders Angelo Balanta and Adel Taraabt. Carving through a fairly slow Blackpool defence became commonplace but the problem that hamstrung the team last year has not been rectified and they still would have trouble scoring in a brothel. Helguson managed to crack one into the bar from 5 yards when it would have been easier to score and the crowd as one groaned knowing that last year`s ineptitude seemed to be the order of the day.

Blackpool obviously came for a point and only sporadically counter attacked, launching the ball when Rangers committed most of their men to attack. However only once had this looked dangerous with Ben Burgess failing to get his shot on target.

However QPR didn`t heed the warning and on 37 minutes Blackpool somehow managed to find themselves in possession of the ball after Fitz Hall had completely bollocked up an easy clearance (not for the first time in his QPR career. After a quick tussle in the box Burgess scored what was a mirror of the strike 5 minutes earlier, Cerny may have been unsighted by a few pairs of legs but it would be Blackpool`s only shot on target.

After half time, with no changes, QPR started as they had the first. And Balanta managed to thunder a ball against the post from an acute angle after Rachubka had palmed away a cross. For much of the second half in fact Rachubka was often called on to palm away crosses as his defence got deeper and deeper and QPR became more and more desperate for a goal. Blackpool offered little up front but would occasionally get QPR supporters hearts in their mouths as they broke towards Cerny but nothing ever came of their efforts.

With around 6 minutes to go Peter Ramage received the ball on the right wing for QPR, looking up he measured his cross and executed it fairly poorly, however the intended cross managed to loop over the despairing backwards dive of Rachubka and QPR found themselves on level terms in the most unlikeliest of circumstances, even Ramage looked embarrassed!

Rangers wasted a number of half chances after the goal, often doing the hard work of negating the Blackpool defence with ease only for the final ball or shot to be woeful. The game ended 1-1 with Blackpool the happier of the two teams and probably ruing not putting Ramage under any pressure for his scuffed cross goal.

Rangers will consider this two points dropped and will also be concerned about the injury received to captain Martin Rowlands which didn`t look good and may well see him out of the starting line up for a little while. Also they will surely have to find/purchase someone who can score regularly or else this season will be no better than last.

Att. 14,519.

Build Up – Game Two: Fisher FC v Beckenham Town

History;

We will be a part of history for game 2. This will be the first ever competitive game for the newly (re)formed Fisher after being wound up over the summer due to entering administration.

Known as the Fish or the Martyrs, the original Fisher Athletic were formed in 1908 to give underprivileged youths the chance to have proper sporting facilities. They are one of the few teams in the world to be named after a person, Saint John Fisher, rather than a location.

The club have had a more eventful time off of the pitch than on it and were first wound up back in 1965. Reforming they started at the bottom of the football pyramid however the 80`s proved a to be a decade of rejuvenation and Fisher managed to win a number of promotions to find themselves in the Conference. They also twice reached the FA Cup first round during this time.

The millennium years saw the club yo-yoing from the Conference but dire finances eventually caught up with them and the club were wound up in the summer of 2009. The reformed club now play in the Bulmers Cider Kent Football League.

They are included in the M25 experience due to having been in the Conference when the list was compiled, in order to support a new club in an era when those not with a sugardaddy or tv money struggle to make ends meet and as a whistfullness to watch football the way it should be played, not for money but for the love of the game.

Honours:

Spartan League Champions 1980-81, 1981-82.

Southern League Southern Division Champions 1982-83.

Southern League Premier Division 1986-87.

Southern League Eastern Division 1999-2000, 2004-05.

London Senior Cup 1984-85, 1987-88, 1988-89, 2004-05, 2005-06.

Isthmian League Cup 2006.

Directions:

By train:

Nearest BR station is East Dulwich (served from London Bridge). Go out of the station and turn left. Follow the road and turn left and go through the park. The turnstiles is at the lower car park on the right as you come out of the park. For the bar (can not be accessed from inside the ground until half time), continue the small road straight ahead. You can also get to the ground from Denmark Hill (15 min walk). Turn left as you get out of the station and left again and walk up Dog Kennel Hill. Turn right on at Sainsbury`s. The ground is located next to the superstore.

The nearest tube is Brixton but it`s a fair walk. Buses 40,P13 (East Dulwich Sainsbury`s stop).

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