Full Throttle
Anstey Nomads 2-2 Alvechurch (Southern League Central Division)
As it goes, I know little about either team… Even though I probably should know more, neither is that far from my home in distance, Alvechurch is 64 miles from Nottingham over in the West Midlands, Anstey just a 30-minute drive south of my house, both have played in the local leagues, but both largely at steps 4 & 5 which is why I haven’t perhaps crossed paths until now.
I might have even played against Anstey Nomads in my days of kicking balls at Sileby Town in Leicestershire as a kid, but I don’t recall them? Formed as long ago as 1946 they have largely been a Leicestershire Senior League side until promotion in 2010 had them transfer up to the East Midlands Counties League, where they would spend nine seasons ahead of switching to the United Counties League in 2018.
The Nomads won the UCL Premier Division North in 2023 which led to promotion to the Northern Premier League Midlands Division, a couple of near misses in finishing second, then third, they at won at the third attempt in 2024/25 and are this season playing at step 3 for the first time in the club’s history.
Alvechurch are even older than Anstey, formed in 1929 they spent many years in the old Midland Alliance which merged with the Midland Combination to produce the Midland League in 2014. After coming second in 2015, Alvechurch won the title in 2016 thus securing promotion to the Northern Premier League South Division, gaining immediate promotion as runners up in their only season at the level, since 2018 they have been in the Southern Premier League Central Division and have regularly finished within the middle of the pack.
This season ‘The Church’ as they are known are second in the table with six wins and a defeat in their seven league games played, Kyle Storer’s side beat Racing Club Warwick in the FA Cup at the weekend to set up a tie in the next round at Cambridge City, whilst Anstey also won in the cup, they beat Newcastle Town ahead of drawing the winners of either Gainsborough Trinity or Leamington, Conrad Logan’s reds are also going well in the league, sixth with four wins, two draws and a single defeat from their seven played so far.
So tonight is a tough one to call, I’m out the door for just gone 6pm, along the Melton Road and onto the A46, traffic calm as I come off towards a town on the southern edge of Charnwood Borough apparently first recalled in the Doomsday Book as ‘Hanstige’ which means narrow, or steep forest track.
The Venue
It’s not a place that rings my doorbells all be it not that far from my home, it’s pretty close to the lovely Bradgate Park which I frequent on occasion with the wife and dog, the idyllic Cropston Reservoir only a short distance away, but the town centre I may have passed through once or twice before without noticing? It has a rather odd roundabout to navigate, called the Nook, before I turn on to the Cropston Road and find somewhere to park in a housing estate close to the ground.
It’s a nice pleasant place, big houses line the road opposite the football ground which is hidden behind large green bushes, I walk through the club gates where a steward in pink hi vis patrols with a sign by his knees saying ‘car park full’. Just under an hour until kick off I’m greeted immediately by the small unglamorous turnstile in the corner of the venue, where a pleasant lady takes £12 from my card.
I’m early, it’s eerily quiet, it feels like an old step 5 or 6 ground at best, humble and aged, hardly anywhere for me to sit.
I have a walk around the side of the pitch, a small covered stand with one row of seats runs half the length, the issue is the seats are so low you can hardly see over the fence when sat.
Further down it’s open behind the dugouts, a grassy open end behind the goal with a bar style kiosk set back for anyone who can walk far enough to grab a pint. Opposite side is a collection of cabins, no real vantage points other than standing room only without much cover, the clubhouse has windows onto the pitch, whilst behind the goal to my left there is some seats, a couple of small covered stands with three or four rows of red plastic chairs.
It’s quaint, rustic looking, the pitch doesn’t look too bad, nice and wide as the players come out to do some stretches, but my biggest issue is where to place myself tonight, as I deliberate standing with the Alvechurch fans before walking back beneath the covered row of seats and simply standing in front of them to the left of the dugouts.
The Game
I feel ill-prepared, no media table, no power point, no decent seated vantage that allows me to feel all comfortable and nesh, but there’s plenty of space, a sparse crowd of 311 means I’m not too crammed in.
Anstey in red kick down to my right in the first half, Alvechurch in sky blue (which I believe is their changed kit) slightly up hill, the crowd behind the goal to my left are making a racket, the Anstey die-hards have a drum kit and are singing to the tune of a famous Millwall number ‘no one knows us, we don’t care’.
It’s honest, brutal, fast paced as both sets go at each other with intensity from the off. The pressing is so hard that anything mistimed looks like GBH, as each foul committed is called out by each others dugouts as worthy as a booking.
I count four yellows in the first half alone, three within the opening half hour, it feels feisty but not nasty, just two teams with promotion ambition, understanding the magnitude of the game.
Full throttle, the only annoying thing is I can’t sit down and watch it unfold, that and the fact the floodlights are so poor it’s hard to tell who’s who on the far side, but I’m persevering as the initial beginnings of two teams lumping the ball to each other settle down, Manny Ilesanmi skins his marker before taking a dive inside the box, he’s carded for his troubles as the Anstey fans give him a boo each and every time he touches the ball.
There’s chances at both ends, Jamey Osborne is a player I’ve long enjoyed, he takes aim from outside the box as I say to myself ‘this is his range’ and his whipping right footed effort is inches from the bottom corner. At the other end Grantham heads wide when he should have found the target, Bastos makes the keeper work but probably should have scored when through, then the deadlock is broken, on the stroke of half time a neat move out left has the ball crossed into Kyle Tomlin. I’m not sure what the defender is doing up there, but he heads home brilliantly inside the opposition box.
The Score
You feel it’s a little harsh on Alvechurch who have given as good as they have got, two teams testing each other tenaciously but both playing similar in style, defenders who lump it, midfielders who try and play, forwards powerful and aggressive who look to hurt their opponents.
I’m expecting the second half to slow down a tad but the pace continues at a frantic rate, its hustle, bustle, bish, bash, bosh, if you take a touch, make sure it’s good, because you only have time (at the most) for two.
There’s an hour gone and Anstey are holding their own, defensively they look to have seen off the best of Alvechurch forward Miracle Okafor who is now struggling to bring it under, but a free kick won in opposition territory gives chance from a set play. Jamey Osborne is behind it, he couldn’t, could he? I don’t even consider it to be a shooting position, but as Osborne runs towards the ball, I’m the least surprised person in the ground as it curls beautifully home, all of 35 yards as the former Solihull star runs away in scoring celebration.
That gives new found hope to the visiting army who now feel they can win it, and they rally again, this time a long pumped ball forward towards Okafor is cut out by the keeper, his sliding challenge takes out the opposition striker who's on the floor in agony but the ball lands to the feet of Callum Sullivan who's only just in enemy territory, like Osborne he’s a brilliant midfielder and he has the ability to loft back the ball from range into the empty net, and give the away side the lead.
That you feel should be it, but late on Anstey use their subs wisely, as big Luis Rose comes on for tiring debutant Kevin Bastos in attack, Alvechurch Manager Kyle Storer immediately shouting ‘set plays’ telling his left full back Jack Kelly ‘you know who you’ve got’… But with five minutes left, a late corner is crossed to Rose, who heads home a leveller.... An obvious danger from said set plays which will no doubt be reminded in the changing rooms to Kelly after.
The Stars
Both teams gave their all and there wasn’t a player on the pitch who didn’t do themselves some Tuesday night justice on their calorie burning regime, but standing out in quality there were some just a cut above the rest, Jamey Osborne is now 34, has played hundreds of games at much higher levels than this, he looks like he could play hundreds more, even if I did notice late on his hands on his knees whilst slumped down in taking a well-deserved breather following a frantic football fest.
Osborne is a lovely footballer with a decent dig from outside the box, he combines well with Callum Sullivan who’s another lovely midfielder, smaller, nimbler, but equally as productive on the ball.
Further stand outs in attack, both Miracle Okafor and Manny Ilesanmi will no doubt cause plenty more opponent’s problems this season, pacey and powerful, whilst Jessy Bavanganga was decent at the back, a big solid defender, he made one important block which looked destined for the goal, and paired with Archie Crowther well in the heart of the back four.
Meanwhile, Anstey had plenty about them too, all game and all gritty I liked the look in particular of left sider Oscar Tonge who had a good battle with Alvechurch right back Harry Reilly, whilst both Courey Grantham and Tendai Chitiza worked hard in attack, Brad Clarkson doing well for them in goal, it was certainly a battler’s track, not much quality on show, but plenty of aggression from them, against lesser opposition I assume they have players like Jordan Annable and Harry Bestwick, who are much neater on the ball then they got to show tonight.
The Verdict
In all it was a fair result, and the way both approached the game from the outset, it would have been tough had anyone lost.
The point slips Alvechurch down to fourth in the table, whilst ‘big spending’ Real Bedford are top, I don’t see them troubling a team backed by Facebook founders who have ambition to one day reach the Premier League, but I do fancy the Church to be playoff contenders, as I do Anstey who have every bit the chance of going up again.
As for coming back here? Well if they sort the lights out, and provide some better side on seating arrangements, I may pop over in the future, but it’s not one of my favourite places to watch football, had it been busier, I might have struggled myself to get a good spot, which is a shame, as there's some decent players to come see here and if the club wants to be playing higher (which it does), it still has a lot to do in improving the fan experience that many other teams in step 3 currently do much better.
The Teams
Ansey Nomads: Brad Clarkson, Kyle Tomlin, Darien Wauchope (Tristen Thomas 75), Jordan Annable, Lewis Gibbens, Tobias Liversidge (Rubyn Gill 57), Kevin Bastos (Luis Rose 70), Henry Bestwick, Courey Grantham (Harvey Kirby-Moore 65), Tendai Chitiza, Oscar Tonge.
Alvechurch: Redman Evans, Harry Reilly, Jack Kelly, Jamey Osborne, Archie Crowther, Sam Perry, Miracle Okafor, Callum Sullivan (Jonny Ngandu 77), Kieran Wakefield, Jessy Bavanganga, Manny Ilesanmi (Nick Clayton-Phillips 46).
7:45pm Kick Off. Tuesday 22nd September 2026, Cropston Roads, Anstey (att 311).
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