Fernie Fields Sportsground, Talavera Way, Moulton Park, Northampton NN3 7BD
Kick Off: 7:45pm
Tuesday 29th October 2013
ChromaSport & Trophies United Counties League Premier Division
Northampton Sileby Rangers v AFC Rushden & Diamonds
AFC Rushden & Diamonds make their third scheduled midweek / evening away trip of the league season on Tuesday evening, when they make the short trip to Northampton to face Northampton Sileby Rangers in the ChromaSport & Trophies United Counties League Premier Division (Kick Off 7:45pm).
Details of admission prices and club facilities will be added here when provided by the host club. Last season there were limited arrangements for Diamonds fans due to a prior booking of the Sileby clubhouse – whether this will be the case again this season will be confirmed once advised. See below for parking advice.
Details of any issues with respect to the weather / pitch conditions etc will be here or on Twitter (@AFCRD).
Our Opponents
Northampton Sileby Rangers FC was formed in 1968 as the works team of the Sileby Engineering Company, and after a period as a Sunday team joined the Northampton Town league before winning promotion to the UCL Division One in 1993. For a while they were known as Vanaid. Although they have won the UCL1 title several times, this is their debut season in the UCL Premier Division.
The team that won the UCL Division 1 last season has been completely dismantled, with manager Glen Botterill also having departed. New manager Scott Goodwin was with Long Buckby for a short period, and he has assembled a new squad which he has tuned for Step 5 football after a difficult start to the campaign.
The Rangers club website is here, but their Twitter feed does not appear especially active. They play in red and black.
The Diamonds recorded a narrow victory at Fernie Fields last season – report here, but recorded a 4-0 victory at the Dog and Duck at the start of this season while the Rangers were still in a rebuilding phase, and since then their form has improved considerably.
Getting There
For directions for the 9 mile trip from the Dog and Duck to Fernie Fields Sportsground, Talavera Way, Moulton Park, Northampton NN3 7BD see here. Those using a SatNav to find the ground should note that the postcode relates to a local estate some distance from the car park entrance, so it is better to check the route on a map – such as here – or use the following directions from the A45 – take the A43 exit to the ring road/Kettering/Corby (Lumbertubs Way). Go straight over first roundabout to a large roundabout with traffic lights and take A5076 Talavera Way exit signposted to Market Harborough, Moulton Park and Kingsthorpe. The Entrance to the ground is a quarter of a mile on the left – here. There is a car park at the ground as shown on that link.
Last season Rangers posted information for travelling fans on their website here, and this may still be appropriate this season.
Note that the Google Maps picture was taken before recent ground improvements which have included covered standing and seated areas as well as extensive landscaping. Note also that the Sileby club website quotes a different postcode which no longer seems local to the ground on most maps.
Any fans who plan to park away from the ground should bear in mind that Talavera Way is a Ring Road, not designed for pedestrians, and as a pedestrian they should consider accessing the ground via Moulton Way and Fernie Field Road.
With the game being an evening kick-off, using Public Transport is not really an option, but those who can arrange a lift home after the game could reach the ground earlier in the evening using a bus from Northampton (Bus 2 takes you to Boothville, Lumbertubs which is a short walk from the ground), or Kettering (Bus 38 or 39 to Boothville).
Other Info
A summary set of profiles for the Diamonds Players and Management is here. Individual player profiles are here, with player and match stats available here.
Player and Match Sponsorship options are detailed in the Commercial Brochure as detailed here.
The fixture list is here, and latest fixture news is here, and specific match status information here, along with the next planned fixture for the various AFC Rushden & Diamonds teams. Don’t forget you can get a regular Diamonds news bulletin delivered to your inbox, including details of all the forthcoming fixtures by signing up to the Club Newsletter – you will see a sign-up box on the right-hand side of the site homepage – just under the EA Sports Logo.
For details of the history of AFC Rushden & Diamonds see here.
There are details on how to become a member of AFC R&D here, as well as news on Season Tickets, Multiple Game Tickets and related prices here.
The club depends upon volunteer support from its fanbase. If you would like to join the group who help either on matchdays or behind the scenes see here.
A full directory of UCL clubs, including links to websites, ground details (with a map pinpointing all the UCL grounds), along with club links including Twitter details plus some general UCL links is here.
The UCL Handbook, along with links to competition rules is here.
