Highmoor Ibis 1-2 Binfield FC
Stadium De Moor
14/10/13
Att: about 25
Going to school in the neighbouring borough to Reading I am all too familiar with Palmer Park Stadium (as it's locally known) even if I'd never visited prior to this match. You see, I was never athletic enough to be chosen for 'district sports' or whatever it was called. Instead I'd have to wait until a wet Monday night in the middle of October to get my chance to finally visit. I was cautious before leaving, as the relentless rain had seen plans the day prior scuppered due to the rain, but Binfield tweeted me to confirm the game was on and off I said.
I only had to pay £3 admission (programme free) for this Berks & Berks Trophy/Cup (I forget which) clash which was rather entertaining. As usual I shall link Binfields website for better photos (I struggle with the rain) and an extensive match report, which can be found here. If you want a summary, Binfield went 2-0 with two decent goals. The home side had a sending off (I missed it). Highmoor pressed and pressed but could only pull the game back to 2-1.
For those that haven't heard of Highmoor *cough* Phil *cough* who remarked that it sounded like a hotel, they were only formed as recently as the 2000/01 season following a merger of Highmoor and Ibis, who had only played in local football leagues. Under the new guise they have slowly begun to rise up the leagues. First they gained promotion from the Reading Football League, to the Hellenic 1E, in 2011/12. This promotion meant they had to leave their Scours Lane home (next to Reading Town) and move across town, to meet ground grading requirements. Their debut season in the Hellenic League was a successful one, with a second place finish promoting them to the Premier division, where they finished in a respectable 12th place last season.
For football Palmer Park, which opened in 1988, is a pretty poor venue for spectators, as with all athletics tracks. The only real development is the 780 capacity stand that runs for half the pitch on one side. This provides welcome cover, particularly on a night like this, and I imagine has fairly good facilities underneath. This is split from the pitch by not only a running track, but the cycling track, meaning you are probably further from the pitch than at other tracks and it feels that way! The remaining sides have some hard standing, although I didn't really wander as I was getting soaked through. The ground is completed by 10 floodlights, which were rather bright!
I only had to pay £3 admission (programme free) for this Berks & Berks Trophy/Cup (I forget which) clash which was rather entertaining. As usual I shall link Binfields website for better photos (I struggle with the rain) and an extensive match report, which can be found here. If you want a summary, Binfield went 2-0 with two decent goals. The home side had a sending off (I missed it). Highmoor pressed and pressed but could only pull the game back to 2-1.
For those that haven't heard of Highmoor *cough* Phil *cough* who remarked that it sounded like a hotel, they were only formed as recently as the 2000/01 season following a merger of Highmoor and Ibis, who had only played in local football leagues. Under the new guise they have slowly begun to rise up the leagues. First they gained promotion from the Reading Football League, to the Hellenic 1E, in 2011/12. This promotion meant they had to leave their Scours Lane home (next to Reading Town) and move across town, to meet ground grading requirements. Their debut season in the Hellenic League was a successful one, with a second place finish promoting them to the Premier division, where they finished in a respectable 12th place last season.
For football Palmer Park, which opened in 1988, is a pretty poor venue for spectators, as with all athletics tracks. The only real development is the 780 capacity stand that runs for half the pitch on one side. This provides welcome cover, particularly on a night like this, and I imagine has fairly good facilities underneath. This is split from the pitch by not only a running track, but the cycling track, meaning you are probably further from the pitch than at other tracks and it feels that way! The remaining sides have some hard standing, although I didn't really wander as I was getting soaked through. The ground is completed by 10 floodlights, which were rather bright!