Monday 23 April 2012

Metrogas

Metrogas play in the Kent County League First Division, which is on the eighth rung of the non-league pyramid. Their ground is fairly local, being based in South-East London, over at New Eltham, but it's one of many I'd not got round to seeing a game at. 've never got round to having seen them, but a team, rather than a ground, I've wanted for many years, as in the first couple of decades of the last century they were local rivals, in the county cups, to Dulwich Hamlet! We defeated them in the Surrey Senior final in our record 1919/20 season.

I saw them beat University of Kent 3-1, on Tuesday 3rd April 2012.



There are lots of sports grounds in the Eltham area, the Metrogas Sportsground is at the end of this access road.



Home to  a numbers of other clubs... New Eltham Joggers; Our Lady's Youth & RACS Cricket.



As you would expect at this level, it's just a basic playing field. Here is the entrance off of the approach, with the only buildings, which house the bar & changing rooms straight ahead.



To the right is the car park area, pitches are by the cars on the left.



There is more parking just inside these gates, with the pitch in view.



The ground is funded by this charity.



Pavilion straight ahead, the corner of the pitch is to the right.



From the corner to the halfway line, where the dugouts are, there is hardstanding.



Here we look along it, behind the rope.



Around the rest of the pitch it's just grassed, with no rope behind the goal, as you can see here.



We're going to head round the pitch, clockwise. So we're now past the corner flag, looking down the paved side.




The front of the bar area. The overhang further along came in handy when it started raining in the second half.



Heading towards the goal at the clubhouse end.



Another look at the clubhouse, changing rooms just past the overhang.



Behind the net, turning to the spectator side.



Directly behind the goal.



And on to the next corner.



Past our pitch is the fenced off cricket square, with a second football pitch beyond it.



Now at the corner, like behind the goal, not roped off down this side.



Moving along the touchline, past the cricket square.



Over the halfway line.



Zooming in on the home dugout, across the pitch.



And a few yards along, the visitors' one.



Now turning back, to look along the pitch, back to the club buildings.



And then onward to the far end.



At the next corner now, looking behind the goal, where it is roped off again, but the perimeter is set back a little from the touchline.



Here we are behind the start of it.



Looking along the roped area.



Directly behind the post, toward the dugouts.



Moving on, behind the net.



At the last corner now.



Turning back behind the goal, you can see the rope wasn't strung the full length.



It starts again here, down the side.



Pitch equipment, presumably by the groundstaff hut.




And now at the first dugout, as we move laong, the away one.



And the home one, just past the halfway line, where the path then starts.



A little closer, but similar shot.



Here are the dugouts in the same photo, from the front.



Circuit almost complete, the start of the path.



Behind the rope, heading to the corner where we started.



This finishes our walk round the pitch.



A few snaps from the game, not many, the light quality wasn't very good for my average camera.





















2 comments:

Anonymous said...

the Metrogas ground at the beginning of the 20th century was down the Old Kent Road.

Rabbler said...

Many thanks, I was vaguely aware of that, somewhere behind the old gasworks site. It would be interesting if someone ever had the time to research their history properly. An almost completely 'forgotten name' in South-East London football.