February Review

A look back at some of the teams who featured on the blog in February.

The weather has dominated the picture this month, causing plenty of postponements, flooding and damage to grounds across the country.

Our games of the week at Durham WFC and Felixstowe & Walton United were called off, Felixstowe carried forward their offer of ‘Pay What You Want’ admission for the home fixture against Witham Town earlier today (Saturday 29th) but that too fell foul of a waterlogged pitch.

Fund-raising efforts continue, however, for the club's floodlight fund.

The opening match of the SWPL season in Scotland saw honours even, in difficult conditions, between Celtic Women and Glasgow City while Brechin City remain adrift at the foot of the SPFL Division Two table after Saturday's defeat by Stirling Albion.

Reduced prices are again in operation for their game against Annan Athletic this coming Wednesday.

York City edged further clear at the top of the National League North on Saturday with a home draw against Curzon Ashton as they begin to call time on Bootham Crescent while Manchester United's youngsters joined Chelsea in the last four of the FA Youth Cup with an Old Trafford win over Wigan on Friday evening.

The other two quarter-finals are scheduled for the Academy Stadium in Manchester and Ewood Park, Blackburn, this coming week.

Game of the Week: Manchester United v Wigan Athletic

This season's FA Youth Cup is at the quarter-final stage and there is a great opportunity to watch a match under the lights at Old Trafford on Friday at 7pm.

Surprisingly for a club where young players are such a part of the fabric this is the first time Manchester United have been in the last eight of the competition since 2012.

Wigan have looked impressive in defeating Tottenham Hotspur and Birmingham City to get this far and now have a great opportunity to shine in front of what should be a big crowd.

No tickets are required and admission is free.

In other quarter-finals Manchester City host Burnley at the Academy Stadium on Wednesday 4th March (7pm, admission £3/£1) while Ewood Park is the venue for Blackburn Rovers against Arsenal on Friday 6th (7pm, admission £4/£2).

Busy Week in Brechin's Survival Battle

A hard-fought goalles draw at Edinburgh City on Saturday has set up a huge week for Brechin City as they attempt to make up an eight-point gap between themselves and Albion Rovers at the bottom of Scottish League Two.

A recent BBC Sport article highlighted what has been a rapid fall since an unexpected promotion to the Championship in 2017 and just how much of a blow relegation (if Brechin finish bottom they will play-off against either the Lowland or Highland League champions) would be for a club that has proudly represented their town since 1906.

Three home matches in quick succession begin against Queen's Park on Wednesday (26th) with Stirling Albion (Saturday 29th) and Annan Athletic (Wednesday 4th March) also visiting Glebe Park.

Admission for each of these crucial matches has been reduced to £10 Adults, £5 Concessions and kids go free.

Queen's Park, meanwhile, are repeating their 'Fiver Football' offer for Saturday's home game against Annan at Hampden Park.

837 came through the doors at the beginning of January when the offer was last run and the club are hoping for 1,000 this time around.

The Final Few at Bootham Crescent

Delays to the construction and opening of the new Community Stadium have given Bootham Crescent a period of extra-time this season but the final whistle is being readied for the famous old ground (and my intention to visit for a game having only ever seen it from the outside).

There's a lovely article in this month's When Saturday Comes about what the Crescent means to York City supporters, something more than the sum of its parts that will be hard to recreate for all the mod cons that the new stadium will have.

After a number of years of decline on the pitch this has been a much better season for the Minstermen and Bootham Crescent may yet see scenes of celebration on a par with Keith Houchen's FA Cup winner against Arsenal if they can clinch the National League North title.

There are five more scheduled league matches over the next couple of months and also a North Riding Senior Cup tie against Thornaby on Wednesday 18th March (7.30pm) for which admission is just £3 Adults and £1 Concessions.

They are also the prices for tomorrow (Friday) evening's scheduled game between Leeds United U23's and their Wolves counterparts but therein lies a sad tale from the recent bad weather as that match has been moved from the Global Stadium home of Tadcaster Albion.

For the second time in under a year the nearby River Wharfe has burst its banks but the Brewers fear that this setback could even see the club fold.

A fundraising page has been set up which can be accessed here.

Game Of The Week: Celtic Women v Glasgow City

I wrote a few weeks ago about the possible challenge to Glasgow City’s dominance of the Scottish scene from the increased commitment of both Celtic and Rangers to their women’s teams.

An early indicator of that will come this Friday evening at 7.35pm (weather permitting as with so much football at the moment) when the new Scottish Women’s Premier League (SWPL) season kicks-off at K-Park in East Kilbride.

Celtic have continued to be busy in the transfer market, this week signing Spanish striker Anita Marcos on loan from Atletico Madrid.

Can they strike an early blow in Glasgow’s attempt for a 14th consecutive title or will City's experience allow them to see off the challenge?

Admission to the game is priced at £5 for Adults, £3 for Concessions and free for Under-16's while there is also live coverage on BBC Alba.

On Sunday there are three further SWPL 1 matches scheduled with Rangers, Hibernian and Forfar Farmington the respective home teams.

International Football in March

Plenty of international matches to take in next month for a tenner or less…

England Under-21’s are in European Championship qualifying action with matches against Andorra at Stoke City on the 26th and Turkey at Burnley's Turf Moor on the 30th.

Tickets for the games are priced at £10 Adults if purchased prior to Sunday 16th February (11.59pm, £15 afterwards). Concession tickets are £5 and Under 16's £1.

Colchester United host England Under-20’s for a friendly with Germany on the 30th which is priced at £5 Adults, £ Concessions.

UEFA Under-19 Elite Round fixtures are taking place in South Wales towards the end of the month with free admission to Wales games against Germany, Serbia and Austria at the Leckwith Stadium in Cardiff and Newport's Rodney Parade.

Wales C (under 23 players from the Cymru Premier) host England C (under 23’s from outside of the Football League) at Caernarfon Town on the 24th in an International Challenge Match.

Tickets are priced at £10 Adults, £5 Seniors and £2 Juniors.

And there are a couple of Under 21 Euro qualifiers on the 27th where ticket details haven’t yet been released but which shouldn’t cost more than a fiver as Wales take on Moldova at the Racecourse in Wrexham and Scotland face Croatia at Tynecastle.

Game Of The Week: Felixstowe & Walton Utd v Canvey Island

'Pay What You Want' admission at the Goldstar Ground this Saturday for an Isthmian League North clash that is crucial for hosts Felixstowe as they currently sit just one place above the bottom of the table.

As with many clubs across the UK the weather this winter has caused plenty of problems for the Seasiders, not just with their playing surface but with the operation of the floodlights at the ground with the building that houses the controls having been damaged by the persistent, heavy rain.

A fundraising page is in operation to try and help with the cost of refurbishing the building and Saturday's match will be followed by a prize draw and auction that will hopefully raise money not just for the floodlights but also the Barts Charity.

Speaking of weather, Poole Town FC have suffered a host of postponements over the past couple of months, the latest being Tuesday evening's game with Salisbury, which have severely impacted on cashflow at the Black Gold Stadium.

Their scheduled home match this Saturday against Truro City will also be 'Pay What You Want' on the turnstiles.

Catch A Match At These Premier League Grounds

Today is probably the wrong day to talk about improving weather but the next few weeks are set to see a number of Premier League 2 (Under 23) matches being played at top-flight grounds now that we are, theoretically at least, over the worst of winter.

There are scheduled matches in February at St James' Park (Newcastle v Sunderland on Friday 14th, Valentines Day although there is never any love lost between these two), Goodison Park (Everton v Derby on Monday 17th), the London Stadium (West Ham v Stoke on the same evening) and the Emirates Stadium (Arsenal v Man City on Friday 28th).

Keep an eye on the official Premier League website for fixtures and the club websites for details of admission and any late changes.

Tickets are already on sale for the West Ham game, priced at £5/£3 for non-members.

Game Of The Week: Durham WFC v Aston Villa Women

The top two teams in the FA Women’s Championship meet at midday on Sunday with five points currently separating Durham from league leaders Villa.

Whatever the outcome of this particular game it has been another season of progress for the Wildcats, who are unusual in the top two tiers of the English game in not having an affiliation to a men’s club but who mounted a promotion challenge last year in addition to pushing Chelsea very close in an FA Cup tie that attracted over 1,600 to New Ferens Park.

If you’re planning a visit then what I like about Durham is that admission prices (£6 Adults, £3 Concessions and £14 for a family of four with no increase on the turnstiles), the cost of food and drink at the ground and all the relevant information about getting to the ground is easy to find on their website.

Can The Old Firm Muscle In On Glasgow's City?

After 2019 saw the national team reach their first ever World Cup Finals, the women's game in Scotland continues to grow, providing welcome increases in participation at all levels.

At the apex of the club game, the Scottish Women's Premier League has expanded its second division to ten teams this year with the introduction of promotion play-offs to both SWPL 1 and 2.

Scottish Women’s Football Executive Officer, Fiona McIntyre, told scotwomensfootball.com that "It's an extremely exciting time for the Scottish game. The changes we’ve made to our senior game are significant and we strongly believe will have a positive impact for all involved. I believe we will see an incredibly competitive and exciting season across both premier leagues."

Glasgow City have dominated the landscape in recent years with 13 consecutive league titles with only Hibernian managing to get in a blow with the occasional cup triumph.

But both Celtic and Rangers have upped their commitment to their women's teams over the winter, the experienced Fran Alonso appointed as Head Coach at Parkhead and the two clubs making a number of potentially significant signings.

Celtic host Glasgow City on the opening weekend of the season (23rd February) and with an extra Champions League spot set to be on offer (Glasgow City take on Wolfsburg in the quarter-finals in March) there is plenty to play for over the course of the campaign.

But the bigger picture will be plenty of affordable football over the next few months (follow ScotWFootball and scotfootfixs on Twitter) and increased opportunities for participation for women and girls all across the country.