Isthmian League
Harlow is in West Essex and borders with Hertfordshire. It is conveniently situated for London, only 40 miles from Cambridge and has good transport networks to neighbouring towns. With a population of approximately 80,000 people, it is a thriving, busy town, with a variety of shops, businesses and recreational facilities.Harlow was built as a new town in 1947 and designed by Sir Frederick Gibberd. He designed it around separate neighbourhoods each of which included a health centre, local shops, schools and community facilities and all surrounded by green wedges.
Harlow continues to develop to cater for the growing local community with new housing, the development of the Town Centre and constant improvements to education and the environment, all of which make Harlow the perfect place in which to study, live, work and play!
I first saw Harlow Town play in the old Athenian League back in the early 1970s. Between then and moving away from the town in 1994, I was a regular visitor to the Sportcentre. Monday night fixtures became a ritual - it was either that or Coronation Street and Wetherfield didn't stand a chance against the Owls !
The highlights for me during this period saw both Southend United and Leicester City (Second Division Champions that season with Gary Lineker up front) humbled in FA Cup replays at the Sportcentre in 1980. Apologies to Dave Bond and Stewart Henry respectively for these reminders.
Harlow Town have mutated from being Owls and are now Hawks. At long last they now have a new stadium at Barrows Farm. Having endured many years shared with Athletics facilities, it really is a boost to the club to have a 'proper' football stadium.
The new stadium is situated on the edge of town at the Pinnacles industrial area and would take about 25 minutes to walk to from Harlow Town railway station. I was very impressed with what I saw and I think all concerned with the club can be very pleased with the place. It has been a long time coming but worth the wait. A very modern looking 400 seater stand is situated along one side, containing function rooms overlooking the pitch. This also houses the administrative block, bar and dressing rooms. There will be some envious glances from visiting clubs in the Isthmian League Division One North and higher up the pyramid. On the opposite side there is covered terracing for 500 spectators, which will provide decent shelter this winter. There is nothing of any substance behind the goals but a reasonable view is offered from these areas. However, should Harlow Town progress in line with their aspirations, there is scope for further development on a decent scale (Stevenage Borough is a good comparable example).
A young Tottenham Hotspur side played some slick football and I hope the crowd enjoyed the display from some possible stars of the future.
Marc Salmon has remained loyal to the club and is deserving of the tribute offered by this testimonial. I now look forward to the Phil Tuson/Graeme Auger testimonial! Seriously though, Phil and Graeme (and others) have also been incredibly loyal to the club and looking at the new place I guess they will be particularly proud to see how far the club have now come. They will have memories of some very difficult times not least 1992-93, when Harlow had to sit the season out when financial difficulty threatened the club's existence. (no need for AFC Harlow Town then - Ed)
The Sportcentre
Attendance: 935
Admission: £10
Programme: A rather hefty £3.50 (a bit naughty this considering the admission price - yes I know it was a testimonial but if you want to encourage people to return ..... Premiership programmes are usually £3 with one or two (Aston Villa for example) at £2.50)
Tea: 50p
Coffee: 60p
Down Memory Lane - Harlow Town's record attendance
This Harlow Town report has brought back memories of the historic FA Cup run of 1980. The record books show that for the Leicester City replay at The Sportcentre, the official attendance was 9,723. However, not wishing to spoil any of this, there are a handful of us who know different.
It was already a fine achievement for Harlow to have drawn at Filbert Street in the first match and I along with many others had gone for some pre-match refreshment at the nearest pub to the ground - The Willow Beauty. We had gone there straight from work and being young and foolish (as opposed to older and foolish) decided to guzzle the strongest beer available. This happened to be Abbot Ale !
During the match some of our party decided that it would be a good idea to have more beer. After a very short debate the consensus was that someone would have to return to the pub. One of our party foolishly volunteered and within seconds Tony Wade had been lifted over the fence. It was some time later that he reappeared complaining that he had been charged admission again. We were grateful for his efforts, it was his round which is probably why he volunteered and we duly thanked him. I understand that at sporting events in the United States, refreshments are delivered direct to the spectators in their seats. Ditto for us on the muddy Sportcentre slopes that evening.
What is the point of this rambling you ask ? Well surely the official attendance should actually be recorded as 9,722 - there was only one Tony Wade even if he did pay twice for that historic match !
Going but never to be forgotten - The Sportcentre, scene of the those magnificent FA Cup victories in 1980. Where were you when Neil Armstrong walked on the moon ? When John F Kennedy was assassinated ?? and when Tony Wade was (for a thirst quenching reason) hoisted out of the ground ???
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The Leicester City view by Fox Fan
What a night that was, a long journey back home. I recall a few "incidents" with Spurs supporters before/during/after the game. I was only 16 at the time, years not stone, and all the memories of Leatherhead were flooding through my mind. We came back to beat them of course but it wasn't to be the same story against the mighty Harlow Town.Some years later when I moved down to London and worked for Customs I met the mum of the lad who scored the only goal that night, she worked in Custom House. She delighted in telling me her story and was obviously very proud, bless her ! I don't think that Alan Smith was playing up front though, a bit too early for him. It was Jock Wallace's second season in charge and our forward line would likely have been Alan Young with the boy Lyneacre, as Mike Channon would later pronounce his surname, or possibly Martin Henderson. We won the second division title at Brisbane Road when I don't know how many thousands of fans travelled from the heart shaped county, and beyond, to East London. Larry May scored the only goal of the game to clinch a 1-0 win and the above mentioned Henderson left the pitch wearing a single boot and his support. Heady days.
Am still travelling to support my team with my boys who are now 12 & 8, it is a two and a half hour commute each way on a good day but if your team is really in your blood then you never lose that feeling.Foxy
