2025 Groundhop: The Review
Tue 4th March 2025 | Match Reviews | By Ben Wilkinson
Three days. Seven games. Nineteen goals. 4,700+ in attendance. This is the story of the 2025 NWCFL Groundhop weekend.
The latest instalment of the Groundhop weekend (run in conjunction with GroundhopUK) was a riproaring success from the first whistle to the last, with seven fixtures across all three divisions providing entertainment to hundreds of groundhoppers who had travelled from all over the country to sample the local non-league scene. Attendance records were sent tumbling during a true festival of football in Greater Manchester.
First up was a trip to Ramsbottom United for their Friday night home clash against FC St Helens. This was a pivotal game at the top end of the Premier Division; prior to kick off the home side were seven points behind leaders Bury but with two games in hand, with every point being battled for in the title race. A crowd of 551 were inside the Harry Williams Riverside Stadium (including Bury manager Dave McNabb - demonstrating how important this game was to those further down the M66!) and visiting groundhoppers (and supporters of both clubs) were enjoying the facilities and browsing the stands of traders that had brought badges, football books and old programmes to sell to the punters.
The queue at the turnstiles at the Harry Williams Riverside Stadium before kick-off
It was a thrilling start to the weekend as FC St Helens mounted a stunning comeback to win the game 3-2, having been 2-0 down with half an hour left to play. Harvey Whyte and Thomas Hoyle gave Ramsbottom a two-goal advantage early in the second half before a Joe Barker header and Connor Spiers brace flipped the game on its' head and the points were taken back to St Helens.
Action under the lights at the HWRS
It was another second-half show at Cromley Road where Stockport Georgians beat promotion-chasing Sandbach United by three goals to one. There was a healthy queue for sausage and bacon barms all morning as a ground attendance record of 532 was set for the 11am kick off on Saturday. Georgians hit the woodwork twice in the first half before Kyle Wych finally opened the scoring three minutes after half time, capitalising on a goalkeeping error to get the day up and running. Ben Greenop drew Sandbach level before an Oliver McFadyen brace, one from the spot, won the Stockport side all three points in a result not many would have predicted before kick off.
Groundhoppers added to their pin badge collection at Terry's Badges stall before kick-off
The early kick off didn't stop a few beers being enjoyed! (Photo credit: Geoff Quinn)
Ben Greenop nets the equaliser for Sandbach (Photo credit: Geoff Quinn)
Onwards to the next clash, this one just across town at Stockport Sports Village. Kick off between Stockport Town and Cheadle Town was pushed back by ten minutes after heavy traffic delayed fans travelling from the first match. This late change didn't knock the 'Lions' in the opening exchanges however as they had the ball in the net inside two minutes - but Jack Atkinson's effort was ruled out by the officials. It was the visitors that did take the lead, Liam Delaney confidently dispatching a penalty after teammate Oliver Putnam was hauled down inside the penalty area.
The hosts found themselves a man down as well as a goal down before the half hour when 'keeper Joshua Schofield was dismissed by the referee for denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity; taking one for the team and wiping out Izac Khan after the Cheadle man gained possession of a loose back-pass. It was none other than player-manager Paul Turnbull who swapped his place in the heart of defence for one further back when he took on the gloves to lead his side from the rear for the remainder of the game.
Paul Turnbull's first job was to defend this free-kick
Edward Servuts hit the crossbar for Cheadle in the second half before the visitors survived a scare with a goalbound effort cleared off the line. It was actually the lowest crowd of the weekend at SSV but an impressive 432 were there to witness Cheadle Town hold on in the derby game to seal all three points.
With another game done and dusted it was time to head into the Peak District for the First Division South match-up between New Mills and Cheadle Heath Nomads. 558 were in attendance as the 'Millers' scored two early goals to chalk up a 2-0 victory and record their first home win since 31st August. William Shawcross saw his penalty saved before Ashley Woods opened the scoring, and it was arguably the goal of the weekend for the second as veteran defender Chris Pauley unleashed a thunderous volley into the back of the net before he and his teammates ran over to the dugout to celebrate with manager Chris Baguley.
The visiting Nomads threatened to get themselves back into the game but New Mills stood strong and closed the game out comfortable amidst some stunning views as the sun set over the town.
It wasn't just humans enjoying the action at Church Lane! (Photo credit: @RussWWFC on X)
Hoppers and supporters watch on at New Mills (Photo credit: @Jones94Kyle on X)
The silhouette of the church as the sun set at Church Lane provided an imposing backdrop for the Millers' 2-0 win (Photo credit: @trickyvegas on X)
Last, but certainly not least, on Saturday's schedule was West Didsbury & Chorlton's visit to Glossop North End and their Surrey Street home. West are known for their vocal and numerous travelling support and the later kick-off didn't deter many as hundreds of them packed on a terrace, bringing their trademark flags and chants to support their side to a solid 2-0 away win. For the fourth game in succession there was a penalty kick, Jordan Lazenbury's first half effort from 12 yards held by GNE 'keeper Alex Brown at the second attempt. Jack Banister's curling effort on the hour mark finally broke the deadlock before Reuben Dass danced through the Glossop back line and slotted the ball home, sparking scenes amongst the West faithful as their side returned to the play-off positions.
Glossop's Lee Rick lines up a set-piece (Photo credit: @Scott10354188 on X)
West Didsbury & Chorlton players and supporters celebrate together after an important win on the road (Photo credit: @Hopey_Media on X)
Onto Sunday and although the sun didn't come out for us today, conditions were mild (and importantly, dry!) and The Abbey Stadium awaited us for game six of the weekend. Programmes sold out over half an hour before kick off as a crowd of 610 enjoyed the Sunday morning festivities, with breakfast barms aplenty as the atmosphere built in East Manchester. Prestwich Heys were the visitors on Sunday morning and they battled to a goalless draw against hosts Abbey Hey, Max Bardsley-Rowe saw a penalty saved late on before he was sent off for violent conduct in added time.
The two sides toil at the Abbey Stadium (Photo credit: @Gwebb125 on X)
Now for the final game of the weekend, just three miles away at Droylsden's Butchers' Arms Ground. From speaking to some 'hoppers, this was the most anticipated fixture of the Groundhop and that was reflected in the attendance as a whopping 1,184 crammed into the stadium for the 'Bloods' clash with Darwen at 2.30pm. The first goal of the day arrived just four minutes in and it was the visitors that went ahead; Chris Bailey bundling a corner kick home in front of the vociferous home support in the flag-adorned terrace.
The Droylsden supporters packed out the terrace
The ground erupted when Fuad Kasali's right footed strike squeezed underneath Louis Hood and into the Darwen goal with just 12 minutes on the clock, and things got even better for the 'Bloods' faithful inside half an hour when George Kattah, who was finally presented with his November 2024 POTM award before kick-off, finished off a superb counter-attacking move.
The players fight to get on the end of a corner kick early in the first half (Photo credit: @cabmanglyn on X)
An acrobatic shot from the Salmoners' Bruno de Almeida Severino got them back into the game just after half time, but Nellson Van grabbed what proved to be the decisive goal with a powerful strike on 54 minutes. Darwen had another leveller controversially ruled out when man of the match Jordan Latham was adjudged to have been fouled in his six-yard box when Jack Foster had the ball in the net direct from a corner kick.
It was a real attacking game of football on show but neither side increased their tally and the full time whistle was blown with the score at 3-2 to bring the curtain down on a fantastic weekend.
Clubs worked hard to produce printed programmes for these fixtures for visitors to read through while enjoying the games (Photo credit: @puffpuff65 on X)
League Media Officer Ben Wilkinson said afterwards: "This was the first Groundhop weekend that I've done in full and it was a fantastic experience. The weather turned up for us and to have an average crowd of over 650 across all seven games was amazing, and I'm told that this includes the 2nd and 3rd highest ever GroundhopUK crowds! [at Droylsden and Glossop respectively]. Everyone seemed to really enjoy the football and the facilties on offer across all the grounds and I believe the bars, pie huts and merch stands did a roaring trade all weekend.
"A big thank you has to go to all of the hard-working volunteers at each and every one of the clubs who pulled out all of the stops to create a brilliant atmosphere, including the away sides who agreed to travel to play at unusual times - without this sacrifice the event could simply not go ahead. I hope all of the clubs enjoyed being a part of a great event in the non-league calendar and that all of the travelling groundhoppers leave with a good impression of what the clubs in the Counties are about."
League Director Martin Fallon is already looking ahead to next year: "It has been a hugely enjoyable weekend and from a League perspective it has been our most popular groundhop to date in terms of attendance. We had people attending from across the UK, with the most travelled coming from Germany and Norway to visit our clubs! We twice set a NWCFL Groundhop record over the weekend, with 830 at Glossop North End and 1184 at Droylsden. The total attendance across the seven games was 4,700, whilst the total takes us over the 20,000 mark across the with an incredible average of 451 per game since the first event in 2017.
"I'd like to personally thank every club that hosted this year and I hope that they benefitted tremendously. I would also like to thank the away clubs, who give up their usual 3.00pm Saturday game to allow the groundhop to go ahead. As always thanks to GroundhopUK for their organisation of the event, and finally thanks to everyone who attended the games this weekend. I hope you have made some fond memories!
"The aim as always is to cover every club in the league and we have now visited 45 clubs. It's definitely getting more challenging but we have identified seven clubs that we can do in 2026, and we look forward to announcing the clubs involved in the summer. It might take us until then to get over it!"
Jonothan Gains, General Manager at Stockport Town, said the following after their game: "For a number of seasons, we have always been interested in participating in the NWCFL Groundhop weekend and to find out that our local derby game against Cheadle Town was chosen for this seasons GroundHop was a great achievement for Stockport Town Football Club.
"To see so many people, from different areas of the UK attend the game was brilliant to see, and whilst the added benefit of income from the increased crowd was very welcome, it was equally important for people to witness the matchday experience at Stockport Sports Village and hopefully we can see them back at SSV very soon."
Nigel Barlow, Secretary of Droylsden, also gave us his thoughts: "It was wonderful to host the last game of the Groundhopper weekend. The Butchers Arms has had its biggest crowd of the season so far and we feel that both teams put on an entertaining game for the spectators. The atmosphere was fantastic in the ground and I hope that for those new to Droylsden, they will have liked what they have seen and make a return visit, where they will be more than welcome."
Dan Bates, Director of Communications at Glossop North End, gives an insight into the financial impact of the weekend: "I'm sure we can all agree that a top night was had by all on Saturday evening, as we welcomed a fantastic crowd of 830 to the Asgard Engineering Stadium for what was a great advert for the league and step 5 football in the North West. Two well supported sides, along with a healthy ground hopping contingent made for a great atmosphere under the lights.
"Like almost all outfits in the NWCFL, GNE is a largely voluntary organisation that relies on the efforts of the few people who make the club what it is, whilst the night took a lot of putting together, the revenue generated from the event certainly helps the cashflow situation in the short term as the season draws to a close. We'd like to thank everyone who came down on the night and we hope to see you all again soon."
Stockport Georgians Secretary Jeff Owen shared a similar sentiment: "For Stockport Georgians it was another first and we were honoured and delighted to be selected for the Groundhop 2025. A fantastic experience, it's days like Saturday that make football special.
The impact for the club and community is huge, a welcome financial boost which will help to continue our development as a club and for our community, a day to enjoy and see how far we have come in recent years and what we can achieve. Overall I thought it was a fantastic advert for the North West Counties and I hope we have made some new friends we can welcome to Cromley Road."
2025 Groundhop: The Review
Tue 4th March 2025 | Match Reviews
By Ben Wilkinson
Three days. Seven games. Nineteen goals. 4,700+ in attendance. This is the story of the 2025 NWCFL Groundhop weekend.
The latest instalment of the Groundhop weekend (run in conjunction with GroundhopUK) was a riproaring success from the first whistle to the last, with seven fixtures across all three divisions providing entertainment to hundreds of groundhoppers who had travelled from all over the country to sample the local non-league scene. Attendance records were sent tumbling during a true festival of football in Greater Manchester.
First up was a trip to Ramsbottom United for their Friday night home clash against FC St Helens. This was a pivotal game at the top end of the Premier Division; prior to kick off the home side were seven points behind leaders Bury but with two games in hand, with every point being battled for in the title race. A crowd of 551 were inside the Harry Williams Riverside Stadium (including Bury manager Dave McNabb - demonstrating how important this game was to those further down the M66!) and visiting groundhoppers (and supporters of both clubs) were enjoying the facilities and browsing the stands of traders that had brought badges, football books and old programmes to sell to the punters.
The queue at the turnstiles at the Harry Williams Riverside Stadium before kick-off
It was a thrilling start to the weekend as FC St Helens mounted a stunning comeback to win the game 3-2, having been 2-0 down with half an hour left to play. Harvey Whyte and Thomas Hoyle gave Ramsbottom a two-goal advantage early in the second half before a Joe Barker header and Connor Spiers brace flipped the game on its' head and the points were taken back to St Helens.
Action under the lights at the HWRS
It was another second-half show at Cromley Road where Stockport Georgians beat promotion-chasing Sandbach United by three goals to one. There was a healthy queue for sausage and bacon barms all morning as a ground attendance record of 532 was set for the 11am kick off on Saturday. Georgians hit the woodwork twice in the first half before Kyle Wych finally opened the scoring three minutes after half time, capitalising on a goalkeeping error to get the day up and running. Ben Greenop drew Sandbach level before an Oliver McFadyen brace, one from the spot, won the Stockport side all three points in a result not many would have predicted before kick off.
Groundhoppers added to their pin badge collection at Terry's Badges stall before kick-off
The early kick off didn't stop a few beers being enjoyed! (Photo credit: Geoff Quinn)
Ben Greenop nets the equaliser for Sandbach (Photo credit: Geoff Quinn)
Onwards to the next clash, this one just across town at Stockport Sports Village. Kick off between Stockport Town and Cheadle Town was pushed back by ten minutes after heavy traffic delayed fans travelling from the first match. This late change didn't knock the 'Lions' in the opening exchanges however as they had the ball in the net inside two minutes - but Jack Atkinson's effort was ruled out by the officials. It was the visitors that did take the lead, Liam Delaney confidently dispatching a penalty after teammate Oliver Putnam was hauled down inside the penalty area.
The hosts found themselves a man down as well as a goal down before the half hour when 'keeper Joshua Schofield was dismissed by the referee for denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity; taking one for the team and wiping out Izac Khan after the Cheadle man gained possession of a loose back-pass. It was none other than player-manager Paul Turnbull who swapped his place in the heart of defence for one further back when he took on the gloves to lead his side from the rear for the remainder of the game.
Paul Turnbull's first job was to defend this free-kick
Edward Servuts hit the crossbar for Cheadle in the second half before the visitors survived a scare with a goalbound effort cleared off the line. It was actually the lowest crowd of the weekend at SSV but an impressive 432 were there to witness Cheadle Town hold on in the derby game to seal all three points.
With another game done and dusted it was time to head into the Peak District for the First Division South match-up between New Mills and Cheadle Heath Nomads. 558 were in attendance as the 'Millers' scored two early goals to chalk up a 2-0 victory and record their first home win since 31st August. William Shawcross saw his penalty saved before Ashley Woods opened the scoring, and it was arguably the goal of the weekend for the second as veteran defender Chris Pauley unleashed a thunderous volley into the back of the net before he and his teammates ran over to the dugout to celebrate with manager Chris Baguley.
The visiting Nomads threatened to get themselves back into the game but New Mills stood strong and closed the game out comfortable amidst some stunning views as the sun set over the town.
It wasn't just humans enjoying the action at Church Lane! (Photo credit: @RussWWFC on X)
Hoppers and supporters watch on at New Mills (Photo credit: @Jones94Kyle on X)
The silhouette of the church as the sun set at Church Lane provided an imposing backdrop for the Millers' 2-0 win (Photo credit: @trickyvegas on X)
Last, but certainly not least, on Saturday's schedule was West Didsbury & Chorlton's visit to Glossop North End and their Surrey Street home. West are known for their vocal and numerous travelling support and the later kick-off didn't deter many as hundreds of them packed on a terrace, bringing their trademark flags and chants to support their side to a solid 2-0 away win. For the fourth game in succession there was a penalty kick, Jordan Lazenbury's first half effort from 12 yards held by GNE 'keeper Alex Brown at the second attempt. Jack Banister's curling effort on the hour mark finally broke the deadlock before Reuben Dass danced through the Glossop back line and slotted the ball home, sparking scenes amongst the West faithful as their side returned to the play-off positions.
Glossop's Lee Rick lines up a set-piece (Photo credit: @Scott10354188 on X)
West Didsbury & Chorlton players and supporters celebrate together after an important win on the road (Photo credit: @Hopey_Media on X)
Onto Sunday and although the sun didn't come out for us today, conditions were mild (and importantly, dry!) and The Abbey Stadium awaited us for game six of the weekend. Programmes sold out over half an hour before kick off as a crowd of 610 enjoyed the Sunday morning festivities, with breakfast barms aplenty as the atmosphere built in East Manchester. Prestwich Heys were the visitors on Sunday morning and they battled to a goalless draw against hosts Abbey Hey, Max Bardsley-Rowe saw a penalty saved late on before he was sent off for violent conduct in added time.
The two sides toil at the Abbey Stadium (Photo credit: @Gwebb125 on X)
Now for the final game of the weekend, just three miles away at Droylsden's Butchers' Arms Ground. From speaking to some 'hoppers, this was the most anticipated fixture of the Groundhop and that was reflected in the attendance as a whopping 1,184 crammed into the stadium for the 'Bloods' clash with Darwen at 2.30pm. The first goal of the day arrived just four minutes in and it was the visitors that went ahead; Chris Bailey bundling a corner kick home in front of the vociferous home support in the flag-adorned terrace.
The Droylsden supporters packed out the terrace
The ground erupted when Fuad Kasali's right footed strike squeezed underneath Louis Hood and into the Darwen goal with just 12 minutes on the clock, and things got even better for the 'Bloods' faithful inside half an hour when George Kattah, who was finally presented with his November 2024 POTM award before kick-off, finished off a superb counter-attacking move.
The players fight to get on the end of a corner kick early in the first half (Photo credit: @cabmanglyn on X)
An acrobatic shot from the Salmoners' Bruno de Almeida Severino got them back into the game just after half time, but Nellson Van grabbed what proved to be the decisive goal with a powerful strike on 54 minutes. Darwen had another leveller controversially ruled out when man of the match Jordan Latham was adjudged to have been fouled in his six-yard box when Jack Foster had the ball in the net direct from a corner kick.
It was a real attacking game of football on show but neither side increased their tally and the full time whistle was blown with the score at 3-2 to bring the curtain down on a fantastic weekend.
Clubs worked hard to produce printed programmes for these fixtures for visitors to read through while enjoying the games (Photo credit: @puffpuff65 on X)
League Media Officer Ben Wilkinson said afterwards: "This was the first Groundhop weekend that I've done in full and it was a fantastic experience. The weather turned up for us and to have an average crowd of over 650 across all seven games was amazing, and I'm told that this includes the 2nd and 3rd highest ever GroundhopUK crowds! [at Droylsden and Glossop respectively]. Everyone seemed to really enjoy the football and the facilties on offer across all the grounds and I believe the bars, pie huts and merch stands did a roaring trade all weekend.
"A big thank you has to go to all of the hard-working volunteers at each and every one of the clubs who pulled out all of the stops to create a brilliant atmosphere, including the away sides who agreed to travel to play at unusual times - without this sacrifice the event could simply not go ahead. I hope all of the clubs enjoyed being a part of a great event in the non-league calendar and that all of the travelling groundhoppers leave with a good impression of what the clubs in the Counties are about."
League Director Martin Fallon is already looking ahead to next year: "It has been a hugely enjoyable weekend and from a League perspective it has been our most popular groundhop to date in terms of attendance. We had people attending from across the UK, with the most travelled coming from Germany and Norway to visit our clubs! We twice set a NWCFL Groundhop record over the weekend, with 830 at Glossop North End and 1184 at Droylsden. The total attendance across the seven games was 4,700, whilst the total takes us over the 20,000 mark across the with an incredible average of 451 per game since the first event in 2017.
"I'd like to personally thank every club that hosted this year and I hope that they benefitted tremendously. I would also like to thank the away clubs, who give up their usual 3.00pm Saturday game to allow the groundhop to go ahead. As always thanks to GroundhopUK for their organisation of the event, and finally thanks to everyone who attended the games this weekend. I hope you have made some fond memories!
"The aim as always is to cover every club in the league and we have now visited 45 clubs. It's definitely getting more challenging but we have identified seven clubs that we can do in 2026, and we look forward to announcing the clubs involved in the summer. It might take us until then to get over it!"
Jonothan Gains, General Manager at Stockport Town, said the following after their game: "For a number of seasons, we have always been interested in participating in the NWCFL Groundhop weekend and to find out that our local derby game against Cheadle Town was chosen for this seasons GroundHop was a great achievement for Stockport Town Football Club.
"To see so many people, from different areas of the UK attend the game was brilliant to see, and whilst the added benefit of income from the increased crowd was very welcome, it was equally important for people to witness the matchday experience at Stockport Sports Village and hopefully we can see them back at SSV very soon."
Nigel Barlow, Secretary of Droylsden, also gave us his thoughts: "It was wonderful to host the last game of the Groundhopper weekend. The Butchers Arms has had its biggest crowd of the season so far and we feel that both teams put on an entertaining game for the spectators. The atmosphere was fantastic in the ground and I hope that for those new to Droylsden, they will have liked what they have seen and make a return visit, where they will be more than welcome."
Dan Bates, Director of Communications at Glossop North End, gives an insight into the financial impact of the weekend: "I'm sure we can all agree that a top night was had by all on Saturday evening, as we welcomed a fantastic crowd of 830 to the Asgard Engineering Stadium for what was a great advert for the league and step 5 football in the North West. Two well supported sides, along with a healthy ground hopping contingent made for a great atmosphere under the lights.
"Like almost all outfits in the NWCFL, GNE is a largely voluntary organisation that relies on the efforts of the few people who make the club what it is, whilst the night took a lot of putting together, the revenue generated from the event certainly helps the cashflow situation in the short term as the season draws to a close. We'd like to thank everyone who came down on the night and we hope to see you all again soon."
Stockport Georgians Secretary Jeff Owen shared a similar sentiment: "For Stockport Georgians it was another first and we were honoured and delighted to be selected for the Groundhop 2025. A fantastic experience, it's days like Saturday that make football special.
The impact for the club and community is huge, a welcome financial boost which will help to continue our development as a club and for our community, a day to enjoy and see how far we have come in recent years and what we can achieve. Overall I thought it was a fantastic advert for the North West Counties and I hope we have made some new friends we can welcome to Cromley Road."
