Background

I’m delighted that summer seems to be coming closer and closer to a reality. Those cold nights and slippy pavements seem like a distant memory, but their legacy has left behind a bit of a headache for a lot of Scottish football clubs. Due to postponements in the winter months, sides are playing an extraordinary game of catch up, with some schedules surpassing the ridiculous. Stoneyburn Juniors are one of these sides, and at the time of writing have played 6 games in the past 2 weeks, with 8 still to play in a short time window. I suppose this mental run of fixtures can be viewed from two sides. Playing consecutive 90 minutes like this cannot be great on the body, particularly at this level of football where the sport plays second fiddle to full-time commitments. However, from a more optimistic viewpoint, momentum can be built very quickly with a few wins on the bounce. Furthermore, the next game is never far away to fix any wrongs from the match before. How Stoneyburn cope will be for all to see when viewing the final league table.

The town of Stoneyburn lies in the belly of West Lothian. Like most towns and villages in the county, it is renowned for its coal industry. When researching for this blog, I came across a document online named ‘Stoneyburn Stories’. It is good reading, detailing individual short stories and experiences of the people of Stoneyburn, including some of the miners themselves when deep in the pits. It really gives you an insight into the working-class mindset of those who built this place from the ground, and the continued gratitude for those who still walk its streets. Even though the pits are long gone and Stoneyburn is now largely a commuter village for the larger Scottish economies, the old architecture, miners housing and memorials play a consistent reminder of times gone by.

Where there is bustling coal industry, there is football. It was seen as important for communities to represent themselves on the pitch, battling against other local towns and villages in competitive sporting action. Thus, the original club were formed in 1928 to suffice this need. Despite their young age, they had a good degree of success, winning the Midlothian Junior League twice in the 1930s. Most notably though, they reached the semi-finals of the Scottish Junior Cup in 1950. Although they lost to Blantyre Vics after a replay, it was a tremendous achievement to reach that stage of the competition. However, despite having crowds as high as 12,000 descend onto Beechwood Park for the big cup matches, the club struggled financially and folded 8 years after their Junior Cup semi-final appearance.

It would take until 1983 for the newly re-birthed Stoneyburn to join the SJFA – bringing pyramid football back to the village after competing in the amateur ranks for a bit. Success since then has been limited, but exciting times look to be coming. Currently, the side sit in the East of Scotland Third Division after joining the mass exodus from the junior leagues to the senior pyramid. They have finished 6^th and 8^th respectively during their time at this level. Currently, the club find themselves in familiar territory – 6^th place. However, with so many games to play, their fortunes could be wildly different depending on the results. They sit 15 points behind 3^rd placed Harthill Royal, but with 4 games in hand over the West Lothian-North Lanarkshire border club, they could put significant pressure on them in the race for the 3^rd promotion spot. After a 1-0 victory over division new-boys Linton Hotspur just two days ago, the hard work has only just begun for The Fulshie. I’m looking forward to seeing how they get on.

Facilities

Beechwood Park lies within a housing/industrial estate on the edge of the village, but once you’ve escaped the grey houses and entered the ground, your surroundings suddenly become one full of wide open, green spaces. Looking ahead from the entrance lies the open fields and humble hills of the West Lothian countryside, while to each side of the goals are spacious grass areas. The space tells the story of a junior club who had huge numbers of supporters come and see them in the past.

A single, cowshed covering sits just to the right of the dugouts, and has clearly been there for some time. No complaints though, it does the job and was home to a few supporters taking cover from the dropping temperatures during the evening. Usually at old-school junior grounds like this, it is often a concrete jungle with rustic, untidy parts falling apart due to wear and tear. However, Stoneyburn’s terracing has been covered in 3G AstroTurf. It’s a small but welcomed difference, particularly on the feet. The younger supporters in the ground also seemed to appreciate it while they rolled around on it. In terms of other buildings, Beechwood Park has all the basic amenities you’d need. The pavilion served up a good selection of food and drink, served by volunteers who served with a smile and friendly patter.

A further structure behind the goals stands out to me. Looking fresh, a newly built 3G nine-a-side stands proudly. Replacing an aged and unsafe fives pitch, the new facility will not only provide an excellent training facility for Stoneyburn’s range of present and future squads, it is also being built to support the further village community. When finished, the club plan to rent the pitch out rent-free to community groups in Stoneyburn, with hopes to boost mental health in the village through the means of physical activity. It is a superb initiative by the club, and I’m sure it will be more than welcomed by many in the community.

Atmosphere

A good number of supporters from both sides arrived for this semi-local derby (123 in total), the majority of which crowded around the raised viewpoint of the pavilion. They were in fine encouragement voice and engaged in friendly patter throughout. I enjoyed seeing a decent number of young supporters in attendance, kicking a ball about around the periphery of the ground. It is important for them to see their local team in action, knowing there is a viable pathway into competitive football. Overall, great to see.

Quality of the Match

In the late evening sunshine, the game kicked off with an eager expectation from the home support. They’d won by a single goal just 2 days before and the hopes were that the home side could continue their momentum for a late promotion push. On appearance, The Fulshie seem young in age, and so perhaps their fresh(er) legs could carry this hope into a reality.

The game was a slow burner, with both ‘keeper dealing with nothing more than long range efforts. The first real opportunity came half an hour in, with a looping cross from Stoneyburn’s right heading to the back post. With the Pumpherston stopper flapping, the header could only bash against the post from a tight angle.

Both defences held strong in first half, demonstrated perfectly when Stoneyburn’s No.11 did very well to beat his man on the left and send a ball to the back post. The home side’s No.7’s connected excellently to volley the ball goalward only for it to be blocked by the chasing Pumpherston defender. That action more or less concluded an uneventful first forty-five.

Half Time: Stoneyburn 0-0 Pumpherston

As the sides came out for the second half, the picturesque hill in the distance had disappeared, engulfed by a blanket of fog. Thankfully, the game continued as normal, even with vision slightly impaired for the supporters who resorted to a forty-five minute game of Chinese whispers to find out what was happening on the pitch.

Elements of the first half continued to the second. The tempo appeared slow, with both defences standing tall to deny any real goalscoring opportunities. That was until the 50-minute mark, when some excellent work down the left by Josh Cameron opened an opportunity to cut the ball back. He did so expertly, leaving Baley Ferris with the easiest job in the world of tapping the ball in from a yard. Finally, a breakthrough.

The remainder of the match played out with rare openings for both sides. The expected Pumpherston storm was humbled by the Stoneyburn back four, who were excellent throughout the game. Their ability to deny these opportunities allowed the home attackers to consistently put their opponents under pressure. Eventually, it paid off. After a Fulshie corner was cleared, an excellent cross field ball found the feet of Aidan Gibb. Using one touch to get the ball out of his feet, the other was used to rifle a strike cross-goal into the far corner. An excellent finish. The goal sealed Stoneyburn’s deserved victory.

Full Time: Stoneyburn 2-0 Pumpherston

Stoneyburn’s momentum continues, and deservedly so. They had to wait for their clear openings, but they took them extremely well when they arrived. Although this young Fulshie side were good going forward, I was particularly impressed with centre-back Joshua Sharpe. He managed his defence well and when called upon, he was stood the test against a visually more experienced striker. A good performance.

Pricing

I’ll keep the beating the drum for the Scottish lower leagues. £6 entry and very reasonably priced food and drink for 90 minutes of (usually) entertaining action is ridiculously good value. I spent a tenner for entry, a chicken and haggis pie (unbelievably good by the way) and a tea. There’s nobody in the world that can convince me this is a bad thing. If you haven’t jumped on this bandwagon yet, get yourself on it.

Final Score

Stoneyburn is a class place to come and watch football. It is a typically hardworking place, where local football is so obviously ingrained into the community. What the village gives to the team, the team gives to the village. It means something in places like this, where the club are fighting to improve and move up the leagues. Beechwood Park is a classic wee junior ground with plenty to offer, and I’m certain if you take the time to see it for yourself you won’t regret it. I’ll be back.

• – Connor