Week ending 16th November by Mason Noryon

It was a top-of-the-table clash in Everards Brewery Division Two, and it was Community Football Academy who came out on top, defeating Brookside Athletic 4-2 thanks to goals from Jaseem Khamkar (2), Liam Taylor and Jack Wormleighton, Karl Duncan and Chay Stanley for Brookside, Community now the last remaining LSL side to be unbeaten so far this season. Brookside actually dropped to third, after Whetstone Athletic kept up their own promotion push with a 5-2 win at Magna 73 Reserves, Lewis Johnson, Jacob Makepeace, Ryan Richmond, and from the bench, Brad Howarth and Lewis Ingram for Whetstone, Nick Millington and Mason Brown for Magna. Whetstone sneak ahead of Brookside into second on goal difference, albeit having played a game more than Brookside. Glen Villa are the only team vaguely in touch with the leaders, four points behind Whetstone and Brookside, just about staying in contact after a 1-0 win at Rothley Imperial, George Rawlings scoring in the first half.


Div2 provides the last remaining unbeaten side, and also the last remaining winless side in Leicester United, whose painful campaign continued this weekend with an 8-0 thumping at Friar Lane & Epworth Reserves. Gary Warren smashed six goals for the hosts to push for a recall to the first team, Orlando Berridge and Ethan Carter scored the other goals. Leicester United are now halfway through their League campaign, still pointless, and with a goal difference of minus 67 after 12 matches, four points behind Barrow Reserves who did not play this weekend. There was a turn-up at Barlestone, where visitors Loughborough FC defeated Hinckley Borough 2-1. An OG gave Luffs the lead before Pele Molyneaux equalised to leave it 1-1 at half-time. Neither side could break the deadlock until 90+7, when sub David Amole scored the winner to give Luffs the points. The other game in Div2 saw Leicester Nirvana Reserves beat Highfield Rangers Reserves 1-0, Charvin Ambhire for Nirvana in the first half. 


To Everards Brewery Division One, and the top three all won to remain clear of the chasing pack. Lutterworth Athletic Reserves are still top, having won 1-0 at Loughborough Dynamo, Barnes Gladman scoring the only goal of the game on the half-hour. They are six points clear of Loughborough Students Development, though the Students have a superior goal difference and have two games in hand. Tom Butler, Mwita Mgoyo and Adam Wallis gave the Students a 3-0 win at Mountsorrel Amateurs on Saturday to keep them hunting for the Div1 title. Hinckley LRFC Development are third, behind Loughborough Students on goal difference having played a game more, though they had to dig deep for a 3-2 win at Birstall Unites Reserves, Jordan Small (2) and Tom Brody for Road, Ashley Jordan and Alfie Underwood for Birstall.


It's Birstall who are now propping up the Div1 table, after both of the morning's bottom two sides picked up points. Dunton & Broughton United drew 1-1 at Ingles Development, Isaac Hart for Dunton, Harrison Holland for Ingles Devs, whilst Sutton Bonington, who had been propping up the table, escaped the relegation zone after beating Holwell Reserves 4-1 at the Stute in a basement battle six-pointer. Jordan Crosland scored a hat-trick and Jack Tormey scored SB's other goal, Kai Biggs-Finney providing a late consolation for Holwell. Dunton remain in the relegation zone, two points behind both Holwell and Sutton, with two points covering the bottom four in Div1.


In the Div1 mid-table spots, Saffron Dynamo Development defeat Kirby Muxloe Reserves 2-1, Ewan Guiney and sub Blake Mackness for Saffron, Kane Brown for Kirby. Heather St John Reserves caught St Patricks cold with a 3-1 win at the Emerald Centre, George Ludlam (2) and Freddie Beniston for Heather, Rossa O'Donovan for Pats, and finally, there was a Soar Valley derby at Riverside Park. A few years ago, the idea that Barrow Town would be in the same division as Sileby Town Reserves would have been almost unthinkable. But we do live in strange times, and that was exactly what the derby consisted of this weekend, which was a battling game and free-flowing in the first half, as Barrow took a 3-2 lead. The second period was much tighter and tougher, and it was Sileby who scored the only goal of the half to earn a point. Barrow's scorers were Joshua Allen (2) and Michael Joy, Isaac Hetterley (2) and Harry Bradley for Sileby.  


That's it for this week. Normal service is slightly disrupted next week as it's the second round of the Everards Tiger League Cup on Saturday, which cuts across the fixture lists for all three divisions. As such, Ramble Round the Cup will focus on the eight ties in the last 16, and with six of them pitting Premier Division sides against lower-league opposition, the question will be as to how many shocks next weekend will throw up. Those ties include last year's winners Aylestone Park Reserves enter the competition and begin their defence at home to Div2 leaders Community Football Academy. The all-Premier tie sees Hathern host Anstey Town, and the all-Div1 tie has Loughborough Dynamo at home to Sutton Bonington. Ramble Round the Divisions looks at the matches across the three divisions, which includes a nearly-full programme in Div1, and also the Div2 basement battle, as Barrow Town Reserves host Leicester United, a Barrow side with only three wins in 18 months against a team whose record for 24-25 reads P14, L14. We'll be back on Monday night next week. See you then.