Another new team for Newbury Sunday League, as Aldbourne Royals make it nine
Newbury Sunday League has another new team.
Aldbourne Royals Football Club will enter the division, taking the total number of clubs to nine.
The summer saw the league drop to as few as five sides, but it now appears to be gaining momentum once again.
Organised football in Aldbourne can be traced back to 1887, when Aldbourne Football Club was founded.
Aldbourne Royals are a continuation of this heritage, with that date emblazoned on their badge.
Football in the village has been non-existent in recent years however, with no side playing there for over a decade.
Aldbourne Recreation Centre signed a lease with the council in 2019 to refurbish Palmer’s Field, with the aim to make it multi-use facility complete with a pavilion.
These plans appear to have disappeared since the pandemic, but the formation of the new club to play there was unanimously approved in an Aldbourne Parish Council meeting on 11 September 2024.
The club is backed by The Crown pub in the centre of the village.
“There’s been interest within the village in bringing the football team back,” said league chairman Bill Fry.
“They were quite a prevalent Saturday side, but there hasn’t been football there for ten or twelve years.
“Over the course of a decade their facilities have been taken away, so they need to improve them going forwards.
“The pitch is there, and they’ve received a grant for new goalposts which should be upgraded by the end of the season.
“People in the village are keen and we’re keen to have them
“They understand that they need to be playing catch up, and the other clubs are happy to play some evening games to accommodate that.
“They chose our league rather than Swindon’s.
“They played a couple of our teams in friendlies and they were pleased with it, the games weren't violent.
“We’re still keen to reach out to new clubs, some Saturday sides thinking about putting a Sunday team together.”
Fry also confirmed plans for an altered cup schedule, with the Vic French Cup and Lambourn Cup both switching to a home and away league format, starting in the new year.
The Knockout Cup will begin this Sunday, with the side eliminated in the first round dropping into the Jim Wild Memorial Shield.
Last Sunday’s fixtures saw a ruthless display from NWX, who smashed Frilsham 11-1 to maintain their unbeaten run at the top.
Philip Coates got a hat-trick, Harry Murtagh and Paul Hirst got two each, while Alfie Davis-Ellard, Jamie Wallin, Ben Wright and Callum Yates also scored.
Kingsclere kept in touch with their rivals at the top of the league, beating Plough on the Green 5-1 at home.
Three points separate the top two, with NWX boasting just two more goals advantage, should the sides finish level on points.
Third place Diamond are still applying pressure. They won 4-0 away to The Crickets AFC at Henwick with Mark Lightbody, Journey Waters, Tom Young and Jack Blackmon all scoring in what could have been a closer contest, had it not been for some mistakes by the home side.
Denzel Uvetie’s goal wasn’t enough, as AFC Aldermaston lost 3-1 at home to Thatcham Tornadoes, meaning the visitors move up to fourth place, leading a four-team battle.
