Holmes Park pitch

TartanFox

TartanFox

Roofer
They've ruined it.

Went to watch a county cup final last night, couldn't believe the state of the pitch.

Between LCFC and the county FA they've messed up a great playing surface.
 
Played a final there many years ago for Epworth (Empire pub) but can’t remember who we played, they had a few Rasta lads playing, lost on penalties…
 
Played there for Syston St Peters a few times back in the 70s/80s. Sure it was called the Dog and Gun ground in those days ..who the home team was escapes me..Blaby and Whetstone maybe, someone will know. Good pitch back then, used for county finals.
 
Wigston Town played there for a while if I remember correctly.
I played in a senior cup final on a Monday night in the 80's and we had a load of snow that day that blocked a load of roads, I think it was record snowfall in a day in April in Leicester, it was only Leicestershire that got it, totally freak weather.
 
My last ever game was a county medals final against a team of pot hunters called Belgrave something or other. Lost 1-0 after extra time. Pitch was like iron.
 
I looked after it for years, from around 1987 to around 2018, before LCFC took it over anyway.
I have never been up there since then so i don't know what's gone wrong.
There was a good young lad there but he went to work at Seagrave.
Midland Athletic originally owned the ground, then as you say Wigston Town played there for a while before The County FA took over the ground.
 
Did my coaching badge there and at the time it was all they banged on about,how it was the same size as Wembley,top quality turf, best drainage etc etc. they’ll be a few old timers not happy about that
 
Mountsorrel Malc said:
Played there for Syston St Peters a few times back in the 70s/80s. Sure it was called the Dog and Gun ground in those days ..who the home team was escapes me..Blaby and Whetstone maybe, someone will know. Good pitch back then, used for county finals.
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I think it’s on Dog & Gun Lane…
 
JohnMitten said:
I looked after it for years, from around 1987 to around 2018, before LCFC took it over anyway.
I have never been up there since then so i don't know what's gone wrong.
There was a good young lad there but he went to work at Seagrave.
Midland Athletic originally owned the ground, then as you say Wigston Town played there for a while before The County FA took over the ground.
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I thought it was midland athletic, they were 70's if I remember correctly, and then Wigston town, the ground was OK and I remember the goal posts were a proper shape, ie professional like a triangle.
 
JohnMitten said:
I looked after it for years, from around 1987 to around 2018, before LCFC took it over anyway.
I have never been up there since then so i don't know what's gone wrong.
There was a good young lad there but he went to work at Seagrave.
Midland Athletic originally owned the ground, then as you say Wigston Town played there for a while before The County FA took over the ground.
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Well you did a cracking job with it JM, loved playing on it back in the day, even with that quirky hump on the touch line stand side.
 
Here's a secret for you. When the County FA first took over the ground,(not Holmes Park then) as GF says the goal posts were replaced.

John Weston, (who incidentally played for Anstey Nomads against Hayes when they had that great FA Amateur Cup run around 1954) was the FA ground supervisor, he scrounged some old Elipitcal goalposts from LCFC at Belvoir Drive (the FA never did pay for em).

Also a friend of JW and on the FA was Ivor Finn from Bell Woodworking on Narborough Road South, Ivor revamped the posts to top condition and they served the County FA well for a number of years until these new Aluminium goalposts came out.

And still some commentaters say " He's hit the woodwork" :)
 
JohnMitten said:
Here's a secret for you. When the County FA first took over the ground,(not Holmes Park then) as GF says the goal posts were replaced.

John Weston, (who incidentally played for Anstey Nomads against Hayes when they had that great FA Amateur Cup run around 1954) was the FA ground supervisor, he scrounged some old Elipitcal goalposts from LCFC at Belvoir Drive (the FA never did pay for em).

Also a friend of JW and on the FA was Ivor Finn from Bell Woodworking on Narborough Road South, Ivor revamped the posts to top condition and they served the County FA well for a number of years until these new Aluminium goalposts came out.

And still some commentaters say " He's hit the woodwork" :)
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Well done JM. Elliptical was the word I was looking for.Incidentally I think the last time I played with wooden goalposts was at school.
 
Mountsorrel Malc said:
View attachment 5671
Wooden crossbars were shit !!
Playing for Syston Olympic circa 1980
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Oh the joy of setting up the wooden goalposts on a wet & windy Sunday morning on various council parks around the County, someone nicked ours up the top end of Western Park (Sportsman Pub) so we borrowed the Alexton BC set, good old row when they came ove to get them back, turns out they had nicked ours the week before but thankfully it all got sorted out, beer infused Sunday morning football was great fun… 😳
 
Feckit said:
Oh the joy of setting up the wooden goalposts on a wet & windy Sunday morning on various council parks around the County, someone nicked ours up the top end of Western Park (Sportsman Pub) so we borrowed the Alexton BC set, good old row when they came ove to get them back, turns out they had nicked ours the week before but thankfully it all got sorted out, beer infused Sunday morning football was great fun… 😳
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So true, we were spoilt playing in the senior league on Saturdays never had to put goal posts up ...just turn up and play!. But Sunday football we all had to muck in put 'em up and take 'em down, not always an easy task ie oversize post holes , missing net pegs etc, and in the case of the picture I posted, rotten wooden crossbars ...great days!
 
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