St. Neots Town FC

St. Neots Town 5 Newport Pagnell Town 1 - United Counties League, Premier Division

St. Neots is the largest town in the county of Cambridgeshire, having 28,000 residents. It is located in the South West corner of Cambridgeshire, immediately adjacent to Bedfordshire. It owes its rapid expansion and prosperity to its strategic positions on the main London to Edinburgh line, the River Great Ouse and on the major A1 and A428 roads. High volume traffic problems have been improved greatly since the completion of the St. Neots bypass. Whilst the road and rail links are of great benefit to the Town, it is undoubtedly the River Great Ouse which draws the majority of visitors to the town. The Riverside Park is therefore a popular location for residents and visitors alike, offering picturesque scenery, boating, fishing, picknicking and pleasant walks across the park's many bridges. 

Market Square

This was a convenient midweek jaunt after work and we travelled via London Kings Cross to St Neots station. Rowley Park is only a few minutes walk from the station and can be seen from the platform. However, before venturing to the ground, we had a stroll around this pleasant market town. This was not the first time this Pieman had been to St Neots to see a match. Back in 1985, I witnessed a friendly match between St Neots Town and Tottenham Hotspur at the former Shortsands ground. That centrally located ground is now covered in houses. We took advantage of a 40% discount offer at an Indian restaurant and very good the meal was too.

The match was very one-sided with Newport Pagnell Town suffering a 5-1 defeat. It was good to experience that non-league treat of tea in mugs on this occasion.

The Pieman's earlier vist to Shortsands (October 1985)

The Pieman's subsequent visit to 'new' Rowley Park