Category: First team

Match Preview: Willand Rovers vs Larkhall Athletic (Wednesday 2nd October 2024)

Date: Wednesday 2nd October 2024
Venue: Silver Street
Kick-off: 7:30 PM

Willand Rovers are back in action on Wednesday night as they host Larkhall Athletic at Silver Street, aiming to build momentum and secure a much-needed victory. When the two sides last met, Larkhall edged a 2-1 win at their home ground, Plain Ham, so the Rovers will be hungry for revenge as they look to make the most of their home advantage.

Last Time Out: Willand Rovers 1-1 Yate Town

Willand Rovers were held to a 1-1 draw in Saturday’s clash with Yate Town. It was a quiet affair for 80 minutes but in the 82nd minute Yate would break the deadlock through James Taylor’s scrappy strike. Willand would level it in the 86th minute claiming back a point with Josh Baker’s towering header making sure the Bluebells didn’t go back to Gloucestershire with the three points.

Manager David Steele praised Baker after the match, saying on social media “It was a great header from Josh Baker, im pleased as punch with the reaction and I analysed the first half and we could’ve had more”

Baker will be a key player to watch on Wednesday night, and the Rovers faithful will be hoping he can add to his goal tally and lead the charge to victory against Larkhall.

A Look at the Opposition: Larkhall Athletic

Larkhall Athletic arrive at Silver Street fresh from exiting the FA Cup after National League South Boreham Wood got the better of them at the weekend as the hosts booked themselves into the fourth qualifying round of the competition. The Larks are sitting confidently in mid-table and will come into this fixture with high spirits trying to cement their push towards the Southern Premier League.

When the two teams last met, Larkhall secured a 2-1 victory at Plain Ham, with a late goal proving the difference. Willand will need to be more resilient this time around if they’re to prevent a repeat result and put pressure on the visiting side.

Get Down to Silver Street and Support the Boys!

This match has all the ingredients for a thrilling contest, and Willand Rovers need your support! With Josh Baker in fine form and the team eager to right the wrongs from their previous encounter, Wednesday night is set to be an unmissable fixture. Kick-off is at 7:30PM so grab your tickets at the gate and bring your passion to Silver Street.

Will Willand Rovers be able to get back on track and take all three points? Be there to find out and cheer the lads on!

📆 | 𝐔𝐩 𝐍𝐞𝐱𝐭!

It’s a Willand Wednesday next week as we take on @LarkhallAFC in the @SouthernLeague1 Division One South!

This fixture will also be our dedicated @ExeterCollege media takeover so keep your eyes peeled on our socials for that 👀

📸 | @GerryHunt19

@swsportsnews

#WeAreRovers #COYR

Match preview versus Yate Town

Willand Rovers are back at Silver Street this weekend after a big 4-0 win over Cribbs FC as they try to build on that performance and better their unbeaten league run after our first league win of the campaign after accumulating 3 draws in the league campaign. Our opponent Yate Town is looking to have a promotion-pushing season, with last season being eight points off the
playoffs.

The side from South Gloucestershire have been off to a flying start, being top of the southern league, winning five games already out of the six that they have played.

Yate Town also have a strong, experienced squad with a lot of ex-EFL players in the squad, the likes of Lloyd James, who came from Taunton Town last season to play for the Bristolion side; they also have EFL and non-league journeyman Maron Jackson, who recently signed from Western Super Mare.

One of the Yate players to look out for is youngster Stan Wyatt, who has scored 5 goals within 2 FA trophy games against Bemerton Heath Harlequins, with a hat-trick coming in the first of the two in a 5-0 win away from home and the other 2 coming in a 3-1 win once again away from home. The youngster was at Step 5 club Thornbury Town last season, coming from a big football background as his father Mike played for both Bristol City and Bristol Rovers.

The last time the 2 teams played each other was at Silver Street in a 2-2 draw with Owen Howe and Ross Edwards getting on the scoresheet to get the point with new signings from both clubs.

There is bound to be a lot of tension in the matchup as both teams will be focused on the league as they are out of the FA Cup, losing to division one central club Kidlington FC.

We hope you can join us for a brilliant game at Silver Street on Saturday.

Willand vs. Cribbs FC

“The development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race.” Stephen Hawking

When Professor Hawking made the quote in 2014, more than 30 years after The Terminator’s release, one can only speculate as to whether he had visited a Blockbuster liquidation sale.

Pop culture has pushed The Terminator film into a singular quoted memory for multiple generations, but the film remains a timeless exploration of technology, fate, and the human condition, telling the story of a powerful artificial intelligence called Skynet, originally created as a defence system, as it gains sentience and perceives humanity as a threat to its existence.

To prevent being shut down, Skynet launches a nuclear war, wiping out much of humanity and launching the survivors into a post-apocalyptic world.

Imagine Stoke with investment.

It’s not the first example of the dangers of AI that have entered human discord, and as far back as 1968, HAL issued an early warning as to the dangers of AI surpassing human control, and the immaculately titled ‘Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?’ established an insight into the eradication of human life for self-preservation.

The history of artificial intelligence began in the 1950s, and early AI focused on rule-based systems, symbolic reasoning, and problem-solving, such as John Searles seminal work ‘Beer cans and Meat Machines’.

AI really took off in the 1990s and early 2000s when stories jumped from the pages of ‘Science Weekly’ to mainstream media with systems like IBM’s Deep Blue showcasing AI’s potential as it defeated chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov and the introduction into our homes of virtual assistants like Siri and Alexa, and more recently, degree denigrator Chat GPT.

Football hasn’t escaped the onslaught of artificial intelligence, with its coverage advancing rapidly since the early 2000s. Performance analytics systems like Opta and Prozone began offering teams tactical insights, while the rise of wearable technology left mercurial players with nowhere to hide in post-match debriefs.

And, of course, there was the introduction of the Video Assistant Referee.

Pierluigi Collina, Italian icon and current Chairman of FIFA’s Referees Committee, once stated that ‘the objective of VAR is not to achieve 100% accuracy in every decision but to avoid clear and obvious mistakes that affect the outcome of the game.’, but its track record is as inconsistent as Wellington’s Floodlights.

Take the 2019 Champions League showdown between Tottenham and Manchester City. VAR gave the thumbs down to Sterling’s last-minute goal while its thumb was stuck somewhere decidedly darker when Llorente practically picked the ball up on route to his own scoring exploits.

Or VAR ignoring a perfectly legitimate Sheffield United goal, ignoring a faux pas from its technological teammate, goal-line technology, collectively morphing from state of the art to Art Nouveau, embracing curves like a Gaudí masterpiece.

These examples, along with countless others, may dominate the back pages of the Sunday papers and linger in our collective memories, but they merely scratch the surface of why fans despise the new technology. Goal celebrations have lost their spontaneous joy, with players and fans now obliged to cast an anxious eye towards the referee as he waits for confirmation from the never-present VAR, while supporters are still in the stadiums at 5 p.m. as they wave goodbye to their ticketed trains.

Thankfully, AI hasn’t reached the realms of non-league football—yet—allowing us to enjoy the game’s unrefined essence until the inevitable onslaught of progress arrives at Silver Street.

David Steele welcomed new signing Jordan Lamb to a changed lineup, which also included recalls for Josh Searle, Jake Miller, and captain Owen Howe as the Whites looked to bounce back from their recent cup exploits.

The opposition came in the form of Cribbs FC, who find themselves at the wrong end of the Southern League after an eventful summer that saw their manager and a number of regulars move on to Taunton and whose only league win came on the opening weekend.

It’s generally considered good form in a match report to address the action in at least the general order in which it occurred on the pitch, but history should tell you that convention was never a pressing concern.

Indeed, the entire match could effortlessly be broken down into three crucial episodes, a combined seven-minute spectacle: one at the kickoff and another at the finale of each half, with the rest of the game resembling filler data in an AI model—processed but ultimately irrelevant to the outcome.

Episode one saw the onset of immediate fireworks. Just three minutes in, Lamb found space down the left flank, worked the ball well, and the eventual cross was met by Dorothy with a thunderous header that gave Johnson in the Cribbs goal no chance.

The second episode came just before the break, with Owen Howe picking up a loose ball before pinging a powerful shot from 20 yards into the bottom corner.

Half Time – Willand 2 – Cribbs FC 0

In the best tradition of all good dramas, the third episode was a two-parter, with the au d’oeuvre being a well-taken goal for substitute Sully in the 87th minute, who took advantage of a loose ball in the box to slot home and extend Willand’s lead.

The main course and finale came three minutes into stoppage time, when River Allen delivered a moment of pure magic—a stunning shot from just inside the Cribbs half that sailed over the keeper’s head and into the net. It was a goal that will be talked about for seasons to come, a fitting capstone on a masterful performance.

The three-episode narrative is, of course, a dramatic interlude, and nothing should be taken away from George Burton, who made some saves that were as impressive as they were important, or the back four, who were marshalled magnificently by the MOTM Jamie Richards.

But if I were to ask AI how they would summarise the game… well, let’s ask

‘The match ended 4-0 to Willand, highlighted by Allen’s breathtaking goal, a fitting finale to a stellar performance.’

Full Time – Willand 4 – Cribbs FC 0

Up Next ⚽️

📆 Saturday 28th September

🆚 Yate Town FC

⌚️ 3pm KO

🏟️ Stan Robinson, Silver Street, Willand. EX15 2RG

🎟️ Adults £10 Concessions £8 under 16’s £1

Match day sponsors 👏
Paul Forman Financial Services

Match ball sponsors 👏
Mat & Laura Thresher

Willand Rovers v Cribbs FC

Rovers are finally back in league action this weekend as we take on Cribbs in our first of three on the trot at Silver Street in the coming weeks.

The Cup fever has been healed and Willand will be determined to kick on with the league campaign for the rest of the 24/25 season as last weekend’s defeat at Oxford City signalled the end of our FA Cup endeavours but it was still a huge day for the club nonetheless and a chance to of taken on a different club off the fixture list.

Back to the action in hand, it’ll be playoff semi-finalists Cribbs who make the trip down the M5 to come to Silver Street this weekend. With a summer of all change at The Lawns with then first team manager Richard Luffman heading to our friends at Taunton Town alongside a plethora of players, Cribbs have had to rebuild their squad with several new signings linking up with the Gloucestershire side.

Their start to the Southern League campaign has been a bit slow for Ashley Bennett’s men as they are just above the drop zone after playing 4 games and gaining 3 points in the process with most of the promotion contenders taking on Cribbs in the opening weeks of the Southern League.

One to look out for the visitors this weekend is on-loan winger Alfie Clark who is at Southern League Premier Taunton and has been sent out on loan to Cribbs to gain experience, last season he was at local side Bideford AFC and made a great account for himself for the Robins.

The last time Rovers and Cribbs met each other was back in February with a 1-1 draw at The Lawns where Ashton Hewitt tanked one in to earn us a draw on a cold night up the M5 with Aysa Corrick scoring for the hosts on the afternoon.

Can Rovers get back to winning ways after the cup exits or will Cribbs pick up their form after a slow start to the season, it’s all to play for at Silver Street this Saturday at 3 PM.

Up Next ⚽️

📆 Saturday 21st September

🆚 Cribbs Football Club

⌚️ 3pm KO

🏆 Southern Football League Division 1 South

🏟️ Stan Robinson Stadium Willand, EX15 3PG

🎟️ Adults £10, Concessions £8, Under 16’s £1

Match day sponsors are SWIFILL LTD.
Thank you for your support 👏

Willand Rovers vs Oxford City

The magic of the FA Cup finally ran out of stardust for Rovers as we exited the competition in the 2nd round of qualifying when we travelled to National League North side Oxford City.

In the first few seconds, the hosts put themselves in front as Olly Sully played the ball to the middle as no one was there and McEachran latched onto the ball and took a daring shot which flew past George Burton and into the left-hand corner to put the Hoops in front.

Willand would try and get a response from going down very early on as a free kick is worked around the box to River Allen who crosses the ball to Jamie Richards who heads the ball across the goal as a shot goes at the ball but is straight at the hands of Rylee Mitchell.

Disaster for David Steele’s men in the first 15 minutes as the ball was played down the right-hand side and driven low into the box, leaving George Burton scrambling to get a grip but not before Louis Walsh tapped it in to double the lead.

Fin Rooke then attempted to make his stamp on the game as he got his head on it and tried to put it just right of the keeper but it was too close and was another one off the training pitch for Mitchell.

When Rovers thought the goals had come to a halt in the first half, Oxford had different ideas as the ball went down the right-hand side to the winger whose quick feet and good reactions were fast enough to get past Nathan Byrne who crossed the ball to Louis Walsh who heads in his second goal of the game. A name which will become too familiar as the afternoon goes on.

Nearly a fourth before the whistle the ball is sent in again but this time Louis Walsh gets on the end of the cross and plays it back to the Oxford player in the box but George Burton makes a big stop as it goes out for a corner keeping the scoreline at 3 at the break.

As the second half started about 2 minutes into the half it was almost deja vu for George Burton 4 as Louis Walsh got his hat-trick and slotted the ball to the left of the Rovers shot-stopper.

Another shot on goal for Oxford as the ball was once again crossed in this time from the left flank and crossed to the far post where Jayden Carbon leaps over Josh Searle to head it close enough to George Burton for him to tip it over the bar.

4 became 5 at the midway point of the second half as the hosts directly from a free kick made sure that no matter what their place was booked in the next round as Lewis Coyle stood over it on the edge of the box it soars into the near post bottom corner of the net as George Burton is glued in place.

It was a somewhat rare Willand attack in this game as Josh Searle crossed the ball into the box but Rylee Mitchel punched it out and the ball looked to drop onto Harvey Dorothy’s head.

Just when the game was put to bed, the final goal of the afternoon rolled in to make it 6 with Louis Walsh making it 4 on the afternoon and securing the match ball as we were utterly torn apart as he was clear through and 1 on 1 with George Burton.

Despite being down 6-0, Rovers still wanted a consolation towards the end of the game with Harvey Dorothy testing Mitchell as he had a shot and tried to slot it through the keeper’s legs but Mitchell read it and stopped the chance.

Full-Time at Court Place Farm with the scoreline standing at 6-0 to the hosts and their place booked in the next round and a momentous FA Cup Journey coming to a grinding halt as described by manager David Steele. On the day they could have had the scoreline potentially higher but a test nonetheless for the Rovers and league action to focus on for the rest of the 24/25 Season.