Author: Moley

The official mascot of Binfield Football Club. I do website posts, newsletters and digging.

November 25, 2022November 25, 2022

Harrison Bayley returns to Binfield FC

Binfield FC are delighted to announce the signing of Harrison Bayley to bolster our Isthmian League squad.

Bayley, most recently with Hungerford Town in the Vanarama National League South, played for the Moles nine times during the 2016/17 season, winning a Player of the Month award in the process.

Since then, the popular midfielder has won the FA Vase with Thatcham Town, played for Bracknell Town, Hartley Wintney and Marlow as well as playing regularly in the National League with the Crusaders.

Binfield chairman Andy Cotton said of Bayley’s return: “The club is delighted to have signed Harrison Bayley and see him return back with the Moles – a truly exceptional player, Harrison’s experience will add real quality to our already formidable young squad – welcome back to Hill Farm Lane Harrison.”

Binfield would like to thank to Hungerford Town and Hartley Wintney for their help in getting Harrison registered in time for the weekend.

Next up for the Moles, it’s the small matter of Leatherhead at home as we look to build on Tuesday night’s terrific 4-1 league win over Tooting & Mitcham United. Tickets are available in advance here.

November 24, 2022May 11, 2025

Where do Binfield FC play?

Binfield Football Club is home to hundreds of young footballers across Bracknell Forest and includes youth and senior teams.

But where do the Moles call home? Well, that’s a fairly straightforward question to answer in that it’s the smart-looking Hill Farm Lane ground on the outskirts of the village.

The club’s address is Binfield FC, Hill Farm Lane, Bracknell RG42 5NR. What3Words fans should search bath.topic.vocal or click here.

The ground, sometimes mistakenly called Stubbs Hill – the name of a road that runs down the side of the ground, sits just off Hill Farm Lane in Binfield which itself is accessed via the B3018 (Church Lane).

The facility includes three football pitches, a superb clubhouse and bar as well as changing rooms, a medical area and tea bar.

If you’d like to come and experience a Moles matchday, why not check out the First Team fixtures here.

How far is the ground from Binfield village?

Hill Farm Lane is a 20-minute walk from the centre of Binfield village or a brief three-minute car journey.

It is an eight-minute drive from the nearest railway station in Bracknell town centre.

The nearest bus stop to the ground is on Church Lane and is served by the 151 and 151A Thames Valley Bus service which travels between Bracknell Bus Station and Wokingham Station. More details on the bus route here.

Is there parking at Binfield FC

If entry into Binfield Football Club feels a little narrow with a country lane or two thrown in for good measure, then you’ll be delighted to hear the club boasts an ample car park with plenty of spaces, including a few more recently added following the removal of a ‘mole hill’.

November 23, 2022November 24, 2022

Liam Tack departs Binfield FC

Binfield FC can this morning confirm the departure of midfielder Liam Tack to neighbours Bracknell Town.

‘Tacky’ will team up again with former Moles managers Carl Withers and Jamie McClurg, and he goes with our best wishes, making a step up in division.

Liam joined us in the summer of 2021 from Thame United for our maiden Step 4 season in the Isthmian League. He played 62 times for the club scoring 10 goals over a season and a half at Hill Farm Lane.

Tack will join former Binfield team mate Elliott Legg as well as our former managers at Bracknell.

Next up for the Moles though, it’s the small matter of Leatherhead at home as we look to build on Tuesday night’s terrific 4-1 league win over Tooting & Mitcham United. Tickets are available in advance here.

November 23, 2022July 27, 2023

Binfield’s East Berks Football Alliance trophies presented to club

On Tuesday night Binfield chairman Andy Cotton was presented with the trophies the club’s under 18s Spitfires side won during the 2021/22 season in the East Berks Football Alliance.

The trophies were presented by the current u23s manager Andy Harvey who last season was in charge of the side that won the EBFA Division One league and cup double.

Mr Harvey presented the trophies along with a framed photo for the clubhouse wall.

He said: “It was the success of last season’s u18s that prompted the u23s to be established earlier than originally expected and five of the Spitfire lads are in the u23 side – Thomas Harvey, Zac Baker, Luke Territt, Aaron Reed and Charlie Martin. Both Thomas and Zac have been with the club since Soccer School.

November 23, 2022November 23, 2022

Match Preview: Leatherhead FC – Home

Following the 4-1 win over Tooting & Mitcham, the Moles have the second of three home games in a week with the visit of Leatherhead in the Isthmian League South Central Division.

Matchday: November 26, 2022
Kickoff: 3:00 PM

About Leatherhead FC

Leatherhead came into being in its’ current form with the merger of Leatherhead Rose and Leatherhead United just after the end of the Second World War. They based themselves at the home of Leatherhead United, Fetcham Grove. This is still there home to this day.

The merger club won the Surrey League four times in a row before moving across to the Metropolitan and District league in 1950.

In the 1970s, they had several runs deep into the FA Cup. In 1974, they beat Colchester in the 2nd round, Brighton in the 3rd round before losing 3-2 away at Leicester City despite being 2-0 up.

They struggled in the early 1980s and were relegated down to Isthmian Division 2. In 2011, they had an extra time win over Dulwich Hamlet to take them back into the Premier Division. They only survived for one season before being relegated back to Division One South. Another promoted via playoffs and relegated places them into the South Central Division.

Head To Head

Leatherhead are a new team to the division this year so there are no recent head to heads. They come into the game after a 2-0 defeat to Marlow in the League. Although they did beat Premier Division side Kingstonian 2-1 in the league cup. They currently sit in 15th place in the league just two places outside of the relegation play-off zone.

Tickets

Tickets can be purchased on the gate or in advance via Ticketpass. We take both cash and cards on the gate.

Prices are;

Adults: £8
Concession: £5
Under 16: £1

About Hill Farm Lane

The club house and changing rooms at Hill Farm Lane. Photo: C2 Photography.

Address: Hill Farm Lane, Bracknell RG42 5NR

Hill Farm Lane is a modern non-league football ground with parking on site, disabled access and more including:

Licenced bar
Tea bar serving hot and cold food
Disabled access to pitch side
Toilets
Standing and seated covered areas to watch the match
Card payments taken on the gate, in the bar and at the tea bar.

There are over 200 spaces available to park at the ground.

November 20, 2022November 23, 2022

Match Preview: Tooting & Mitcham FC – Home

Just because the Premiership and Championship aren’t playing for a month due to the FIFA World Cup in Qatar that doesn’t mean there isn’t any live football on.

Why watch France vs Australia, when you can come down to Hill Farm Lane for some football under floodlights with a game between Binfield and Tooting & Mitcham.

Matchday: November 22, 2022
Kickoff: 7:45 PM

About Tooting & Mitcham

Tooting & Mitcham FC are based in the London Borough of Merton and play at Imperial Fields, Mitcham. They were formed in 1932 by the merger of Tooting FC and Mitcham Wanderers FC.

The club have a strong history in the FA Cup. In 1959, they reached the third round taking Nottingham Forest to a replay which they lost 3-0. There is a great British Pathe newsreel of the home game. Their best was to reach the Fourth round in the 1975-76 where they lost away to Bradford City.

Alex Stepney played for Tooting & Mitcham in the early 60s before signing for Millwall and then later, signing for Manchester United for whom he played over 430 games.

Head To Head

Last season, the Moles did the double over the Terrors; a 1-0 win at home followed by a 2-0 win away at the Imperial Sports Ground.

Last weekend, Binfield lost 2-1 away to Southall and Tooting and Mitcham lost 4-2 away to Basingstoke Town.

Tickets

Tickets can be purchased on the gate or in advance via Ticketpass.

Prices are;

Adults: £8
Concession: £5
Under 16: £1

About Hill Farm Lane

Address: Hill Farm Lane, Bracknell RG42 5NR

Hill Farm Lane is a modern non-league football ground with parking on site, disabled access and more including:

Licenced bar
Tea bar serving hot and cold food
Disabled access to pitch side
Toilets
Standing and seated covered areas to watch the match

There are over 200 spaces available to park at the ground.

November 19, 2022November 19, 2022

In Pictures: Southall Away

Photographer Daisy Spiers took the trip to watch Southall beat the Moles 2-1 away at Short Lane.

November 18, 2022November 18, 2022

Sean Moore departs

Club captain and striker Sean Moore has informed the club that he will be accepting an offer from Southern Premier League side Hanwell Town.

Sean rejoined the Moles after a spell with local rivals Bracknell Town and was handed the captaincy by the now-Bracknell Town managers Carl Withers and Jamie McClurg during their time at the club. Moore captained us to a glorious season in 2020/21 where the team won promotion from Hellenic League Premier Division, as well as leading the side out at Wembley Stadium for the FA Vase Final, the greatest day in the club’s history.

This season has seen Sean score seven goals in 17 appearances, and will sure be a big miss for the boys due to his ability to lead from the front.

Binfield would like to thank Sean for all of his hard work and effort throughout his time with the moles, and wish him well for the rest of the season and beyond.

Once a Mole!

November 16, 2022November 23, 2022

Match Preview: Southall FC – Away

After two home games, the Moles are back on the road this time visiting Southall FC in Isthmian League South Central Division One.

Matchday: November 19, 2022
Kickoff: 3:00 PM

About Southall FC

Southall FC was founded in 1871, making it one of England’s oldest football clubs and they celebrated their 150th anniversary in 2021. They played friendlies for the first 20 years before joining the West London League. Their recent history involve them playing in both the Combined Counties and Spartan South Midland leagues. They were Spartan South Midland Division One champions in 2017–18 before then playing in the Combined Counties Premier division the following season.

The club has quite a role call of former players including Les Ferndinand, Alan Devonshire, Gordon Hill and Justin Fashanu. Given their location in West London, a lot of their players have gone on to play for Brentford, QPR, Fulham amongst other clubs.

Current Form

Southall sit one place above the Moles in the league separated by only one point but having played three games more. Last Saturday, they drew 0-0 away at Westfield.

Where do Southall FC play?

Southall have been nomadic since leaving their Western Road Stadium in 1992. They currently play at the Robert Parker Stadium in Stanwell, home of Ashford Town (Middlesex).

November 16, 2022November 24, 2022

Referee’s boost as Binfield FC course ‘fully booked’

The referee shortage across football in the UK is well documented and affects Binfield Football Club as much as any other club in the country, particularly in junior football with volunteers regularly dashing from game to game to ensure there is someone to take charge.

At times it must seem a thankless task to be a referee, but Binfield are at least attempting to do something about the shortage by arranging and hosting refereeing courses at the club with the Berks & Bucks County FA.

Binfield’s Youth Referee Co-ordinator Kelly Howes said: “We’re delighted we’ve filled all 24 spaces on our course and we have a waiting list for future courses now as well. It’s been instigated by Bob Chapple at the club and we’re delighted it has been so popular.

“The fact we’ve got the numbers to run the course is great for Binfield but also football locally as well.”

The course will run over two days on Thursday 2nd February 2023 (evening) and Sunday 5th February 2023 and include classroom and outdoor learning.

If you are interested in joining any future referee courses at Binfield FC, please get in touch with the club here.

You can find out more about getting into refereeing, register your interest and find other courses here.

November 15, 2022June 7, 2024

U10 Panthers showing togetherness

The U10 Panthers won their second match in succession after a difficult start to the season the players have improved and are playing some good football. The early defeats did not dampen their enthusiasm with their togetherness being a major factor.

November 15, 2022June 7, 2024

Binfield U12 Chargers get past stubborn Hawley

The Chargers first home game at The Parks saw both teams complete a minute’s silence; unified in a moment of respect before the game.

The boys dug deep against a stubborn Hawley side who made it very difficult for the Chargers to play their normal passing game.

The first half finished 0-0 despite the Chargers having much of the possession with the opposition goal keeper making a string of outstanding saves.

Hawley started the second half on the front foot attacking the Chargers goal. The Chargers then started to impose themselves on the game which was then punctuated by a through ball from Jake Nickols; taking a slight deflection, and beautifully falling into the path of Wilson Charles who made it 1-0.

The Chargers now full of confidence quickly found the back of the net again after Wilson completed a beautiful turn and skilful slotted the ball home: 2-0.

The boys continued to battle well as a team until the end with a third goal by Jake in the final seconds of the game.

Captain for the day and MOTM, Callum Knight said: “The whole team worked together to get the 3 points against a difficult side. I’m really proud to have led the team to victory and receive MOTM’.

Coaches MOTM – Callum

Report by Ben Churchill (Team Manager)

November 14, 2022November 14, 2022

Lewis Hall back in Chelsea First Team action

A little bit more history at the end of last week for one of our own as Lewis Hall was back in the Chelsea team in the Carabao Cup.

Hall – a graduate of our famous Soccer School and younger brother of FA Cup hero Connor – made his first start for Premier League Chelsea in the Carabao Cup defeat to Manchester City.

Football in Berkshire’s Dan Walkley was at the game at the Etihad Stadium – just the 53,000 attendance – and said of Hall’s performance: “Lewis Hall’s performance last night was bright energetic and confident in a Chelsea side that has struggled to get going recently. Hall looked to create chances and could have had two goals if not for some excellent goalkeeping.

“A bright future in store for the young left back who will continue to try to break into the Chelsea First Team squad in future. The youngster has already earned England youth honours up to under 19 level.”

Lewis Hall (second right) playing for Binfield FC.

Last year Lewis – also a keen cricketer with Binfield Cricket Club – started his sides FA Cup tie against Chesterfield at Stamford Bridge and subsequently became the youngest player ever to start an FA Cup match for the club.

Congratulations Lewis on your debut from all of us here at Binfield Football Club. Find out more about our Soccer School sessions here.

November 13, 2022November 23, 2022

Match Preview: Guernsey FC – Home

THIS MATCH HAS BEEN POSTPONED DUE TO A WATERLOGGED PITCH. NEW DATE TO BE ADVISED.

Like buses, after 4 away games, we only had to wait 4 days before another home game. The visitors to Hill Farm Lane this time are Guernsey.

About Guernsey FC

Guernsey Football Association has existed for nearly 130 years but Guernsey FC only joined the England Football Period in 2011. They were the first team from the Channel Islands to join a mainland league – Jersey and then the Isle of Man have since followed suit.

They initially joined the Combined Counties Football League Division One which they won in their first season and gained promotion to the Premier League. After only one season in this division, they were promoted to Isthmian League Division One South. They have played at this level since – losing out in the playoffs in the 2013–14 season.

Head To Head

In the corresponding fixture last season, the score was 1-1 with Liam Tack scoring a penalty. The reverse fixture at Footes Lane finished with the Moles beating the Green Lions 3-1.