Landlords versus Tenants
Both Sunderland West End and Chester-Le-Street United, currently call the Ford Hub Complex home.
I have visited the complex before but neglected to do a blog review at the time. So, with both of today’s teams calling the ground home, it was a perfect opportunity to rectify that prior neglect.
With Stoke City playing at Sunderland in the FA Cup, I toyed with the idea of heading there. However, my completionist side preferred the idea of blogging about a ground I haven’t yet reviewed.
So, West End it is and one of only three games in both of the Northern Leagues’ divisions to survive the weather.
Stoke would be playing just three miles away, on the northern side of the River Wear. Close enough to hear the roar of the Stokies celebrating a rare FA Cup win? Well, not quite but I like to imagine so.
This weekend, I was supposed to be revisiting North Shields for their FA Vase game with West Didsbury and Chorlton. The current wintery cold snap put paid to that, with the Darren Persson pitch being frozen over.
A 09:15 pitch inspection confirmed what we had already suspected and Plan B was put into operation.
The good news was that I now wouldn’t have to leave until nearly 13:00 pm!
So, let’s see how I got on at the Ford Hub Complex…
Sunderland West End – The Journey
After a leisurely morning sat at home, I eventually made my way to the bus station to catch the number 35 Sunderland bus. It arrived on time and we left Hetton at 12:49.
The day was sunny but crisply cold and the old Fjällräven parka (pro-tip, shop around!) was out once more to keep me warm. Despite the outrageous price, that coat has been one of my better investments.
After trundling through the little towns and villages between Hetton and the River Wear, we arrived at my stop-off point, Chester Road in Sunderland. By now it was 13:35, leaving ten minutes or so for my walk to the connection on Hylton Road.
I walked up the connecting roads, which were rows of back-to-back terraces near to Sunderland Royal Hospital. The sort of surroundings where you suspect even the dogs might be tooled up.
I arrived at the Willow Pond pub and the bus stop was located right outside it. After a short wait, the number 11 bus arrived at 13:47.
You Just Never Know Who…
Ten minutes later, I left the bus at Phoenix Road – St. Lukes Road just before 14:00 and another gentleman got off heading in the same direction.
I asked him if he was heading to the match and we got talking. It turned out he was a scout for a Premier League team (I won’t say who unless it was confidential) and he too should have been heading to North Shields to watch one of their players.
It will be interesting to see if I run into him again next week for the rearranged game.
The final walk down Keelman’s Lane to the Ford Hub Complex was a little treacherous and I almost slipped a few times along the way. A good reminder to myself and others, that it isn’t just the pitch that is taken into consideration when postponing games.
Before entering the Ford Hub Complex, let’s take a look at the South Hylton, a western suburb of Sunderland.
South Hylton
South Hylton is a suburb to the west of Sunderland city centre and lies on the south bank of the River Wear.
In the past, the area has been known as both Hylton Ferry or Low Ford, with its current name coming into use in the late 18th century.
Hylton extends to the north of the river and has a castle but our focus is on the immediate area of South Hylton.
The area has been inhabited since the Mesolithic Period between 9600 – 4000 BC. Archaeologists have fished Iron Age boats and Bronze Age swords from the nearby River Wear. Roman coins have also been found in the area.
South Hylton Pasture is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and is one of the few lowland hay meadows remaining in Britain.
The Tyne & Wear Metro has a terminus in South Hylton, making it convenient to get around the area.
Sunderland West End – Ford Hub Complex
Getting In
The Ford Hub Complex is exactly how it sounds, a complex of 3g all-weather pitches.
It is the home of both Sunderland West End and today’s ‘away’ team, Chester-Le-Street United.
On the two pitches adjacent to the main pitch, other games were already underway when I arrived and the car park was pretty full.
You can either enter the ‘canteen’ area inside the building or head for the turnstile built into the mesh fence that surrounds the main pitch, where pin badges were also available.
Following my previous visit, I have already managed to acquire a badge, so I went straight inside for my circuit of the pitch.
The Ford Hub is twisted at an angle from southwest to northeast and the entrance is on the southwest. For ease, we will call this the south end.
Time to take a walk around the ground.
West Side
Starting to the left is the west side, which is blocked off to spectators and is where the technical dugouts are located on either side of the halfway line.
A plethora of goalposts are lined up along the fence and are presumably used for training and 5-a-side games etc. Four of the eight floodlights are also on this side.
Beyond the fence, is the occasional rattle of the Metro trains passing by and beyond that, lies the River Wear.
North End
The north end of the ground backs onto the first of two other 3g pitches, where a game was ongoing.
Aside from that, it is just a flat, standing area.
East Side
The east side backs onto the car park and has a fence and a fenced-off walkway between it and the pitch.
This walkway leads to the other pitches and prevents access to the main pitch.
There are also two of the temporary-style covered stands favoured by clubs these days.
Both are identical to each other and hold up to fifty spectators.
The other four floodlights are on the east side of the ground and the rest of this side. The rest is made up of flat standing.
South End
The south end contains the entrance and the main building for the players’ dressing rooms and a refreshment room for spectators.
Inside the fence, there is more flat space.
Sunderland West End – Ford Hub Complex Gallery
Sunderland West End Tidbits
West End were originally founded in the late nineteenth century and formed part of the inaugural Wearside League.
They finished bottom in their first two seasons and departed the league for a number of years.
They returned in 1900/01 and finished third. The following year they were just one point behind the league winners, Sunderland Rovers.
The biggest game in West End’s history occurred on December 10th 1904, when they were soundly thrashed 9-0 by Bradford City in the FA Cup 6th Qualifying Round.
They played their final season in the Wearside League in 1929/30, finishing second-bottom.
In 2011, Houghton Town (formerly Sunderland South) changed their name to Sunderland West End.
They thus became the first team of that name to play Wearside League football under that name since the original West End, eighty-one years previously.
After finishing runners-up in the 2018/19 season, they were promoted to the Northern League Division Two, where they have remained since.
The club is currently jointly managed by Steve Cockrill and Stephen Patton.
Chester-Le-Street United Tidbits
As a club only formed in 2020, amidst the chaos of the Covid-19 pandemic and shortened seasons, there isn’t a lot of things to say about CLS United, yet.
They initially played in the Wearside League and were admitted into the Northern League Division Two ahead of the 2022/23 season.
After initially playing their home matches at Ford Hub, they moved to the Riverside, part of the Durham County Cricket Club complex, the club moved to the Ford Hub.
This move back to the Hub was forced on them due to issues with the facilities at Riverside.
Hopefully, that can be sorted at some point, allowing the club to return to its home town.
The team is made up almost entirely of teenagers from the Park View Academy, which probably explains why our scouting friend was here.
They are managed by Michael Nelson, with John Gamble temporarily in charge due to a suspension.
Sunderland West End – Pre-Game View of the Ford Hub Complex
Sunderland West End v Chester-Le-Street United – The Game
Form
Coming into today’s game Sunderland West End sat in twelfth place, with the visitors in eighth.
From twenty-nine games, West End have won ten, drawn five and lost fourteen. They have scored fifty-seven goals while conceding seventy-seven.
The visitors have also played twenty-nine games, winning sixteen, drawing two and losing eleven. They have managed to score thirty-eight times, conceding twenty-eight.
Last time out West End beat United’s neighbours, Chester-Le-Street Town 3-1, drawing the three games previous to that.
Chester-Le-Street are also unbeaten since their 2-3 reverse at home to table-topping Horden CW on November 30th.
In the local derby against CLS Town on January 4th, United won 3-0, laying down an impressive milestone marker for their recent uptick in form.
With all this info to consider, I was envisaging a game with goals and a slender away victory.
Pre-match prediction:
Sunderland West End 2 Chester-Le-Street United 3
Kick-Off
Summary
This was a game of two halves, with the home side much the better in the first forty-five minutes.
Without being outstanding, they passed the ball around very nicely at times and the visitors were struggling to get the ball at times.
Within six minutes, West End took the lead via the league’s second-highest goalscorer, Craig Linsel.
From a conceded corner, Sunderland worked the ball to the back post where an unmarked Linsel fired the hosts ahead in the Ford Hub derby game.
Unfortunately, this was at a time when I was moving to a different vantage point, so I didn’t get a video of the goal.
The first half continued with Sunderland dominating possession but not turning it into further goals.
This isn’t to say it was one-way traffic and United had a couple of chances of their own, but there is no doubt they would have been relieved to hear the halftime whistle and get a chance to reorganise.
Half-time Sunderland West End 1 Chester-Le-Street United 3
During halftime, I went for a very brief warm in the restroom.
There was quite a queue for snacks and refreshments and I was neither thirsty nor hungry so it wasn’t worth queueing.
I vaguely remember having pie and peas on our last visit here and I think they were decent, though that’s from memory only.
Second Half
The second half saw the play completely turn around and United dominated even more than West End had in the first half.
It took until the hour mark for the equaliser to come via Stephen Siyanbola.
Fast forward to 04:30 if you just want to see the goal.
West End had a good chance to retake the lead but fine goalkeeping by James Hughes kept the teams level.
A head of pressure built up and it started to look inevitable that West End would concede again.
The goal eventually came in the 78th minute via Siyanbola, who grabbed his second of the game.
A mix-up left Siyanbola with a relatively simple finish but I only caught the tail end of it in the following video, unfortunately.
It now started to look like one-way traffic with West End heads starting to drop.
The third goal came in the 86th minute via substitute, Nathan Conroy.
Again, poor Sunderland defending gifted United the chance and they took full advantage.
What’s That Coming Over the Hill, is it Alan Hansen?
The last few minutes played out with West End huffing and puffing and they almost got the goal to bring my 2-3 match prediction to fruition.
In what was most definitely the move of the match, centre-back, Ethan Thompson intercepted a loose pass and brilliantly strode forward with the ball at his feet.
Reminiscent of prime Alan Hansen, he sailed by two men to bypass the midfield, before playing a superbly timed pass between the defenders to leave Daley Clarke one-on-one with the ‘keeper, Hughes.
What a shame that Clarke dragged his shot wide, as that would have been one of the best goals I’ve seen in a while at this level.
All in all, this was a deserved win for United but Sunderland West End made them work for it in the first three quarters of the game.
CLS are now undefeated in six games and will look to cement a position in the end-of-season playoffs.
For West End, it’s looking increasingly like a mid-table finish.
You can read a full Match Report here, courtesy of the Chester-Le-Street United website.
Full-time – Sunderland West End Club 1 Chester-Le-Street United 3
Attendance – 110
Entrance Fee – £5.00
Programme – Digital only
Sunderland West End v Chester-Le-Street United – Interview
In the absence of match highlights, I will instead leave this post-game interview with temporary CLS United manager, John Gamble.
Whose burger was it?!
League Table After Today’s Game
Up Next
Next up for West End is a trip to Thornaby‘s Teesdale Park on January 17th.
A return to the Ford Hub Complex sees them take on FC Hartlepool on the 25th before kicking off February (1st) with a trip to Dr Pit Park, home of Bedlington Terriers.
CLS United end January by also travelling to Teesdale Park on the 25th and kick off the new month with a home tie against FC Hartlepool on the 1st.
In a remarkably similar set of fixtures for the two sides, United will also travel to Bedlington Terriers on the 8th.
Sunderland West End Thoughts
3g cages are not anyones idea of an atmospheric ground but they do have a place in football.
After all, of the three games that were played in the Northern League this weekend, all three were on artificial surfaces, at Billingham Synthonia (Stockton), Darlington Town and here at the Ford Hub.
The most surprising thing for me was that there weren’t more people here. Admittedly, Sunderland were at home but even so, I expected more non-league fans to attend with their own team’s fixtures cancelled.
Maybe, that’s because people just don’t like 3g cages, or maybe it just seemed better to stay warm indoors?
It would certainly help if an effort was made to give the place a little more character. Maybe some red and white banners over the green mesh fence would help?
Having said that, I’m not sure how much jurisdiction the club have on the facilities, as the complex isn’t owned by the club. I can’t see there being any issues with a few decorative items being put on the fences, though.
As with most hubs like this, it feels a little sterile, with the ‘clubhouse’ feeling more like a works canteen, and nothing relating to the two clubs who call it home.
None of this is Sunderland West End or Chester-Le-Street United’s fault and they make the best of what they have. As is usual with the Northern League, striking up conversations with strangers is easy and everything is well-maintained and modern.
The Hub is also perfect for the community, with people able to rent it out and host matches for kids and adults alike, whatever the weather.
There wasn’t a printed programme, although a digital version and a team sheet were available.
Club Crest
You may have noticed the strange ‘Acropolis-type’ building on the Sunderland West End crest.
This has nothing to do with the historical Greek landmark in Athens but is a representation of the Penshaw Monument to the west of Sunderland.
This is Sunderland’s major landmark, let’s call it the Mackem equivalent of Newcastle’s Angel of the North.
It sits on a hill three miles to the west of the Ford Hub Complex.
A friend of Hoppers Guide was also at the Hub on Saturday and luckily for us, he not only had his camera with him but he also managed to get a fantastic shot of the Penshaw Monument without the required lens to do so. Magic, I tell thee!
Take a bow Kelv!
3g Concerns
It always concerns me to see players come off the field covered in those rubber pellets that are placed on 3g surfaces.
Ever since I read an article about them being potentially carcinogenic, I have cringed when I see them spraying up on players and sliding about on them.
You can read that same article, here and I found another regarding the banning of 3g pitches in the Netherlands, relating to these very same health concerns.
You can read more about that, here.
I am no scientist and my thoughts on it are neutral until facts are known but if there is a significant chance that it could be harmful, then surely we should be finding out for certain before building more of these places.
South Hylton – After the Game
Following the final whistle, I made my way (very carefully) up the icy road back to the bus stop at the top of the hill.
I went back home via a different route and caught the 17:05 #10 bus to Sunderland Interchange, arriving at 17:20.
With Stoke having won 2-1 at the Stadium of Light, I wasn’t broadcasting my accent to strangers. 😂
I sat quietly for ten minutes until the X6 to Peterlee pulled in.
This took us down the coastal road through Seaham and I got off at Dalton Park Shopping Centre at 17:55.
From here, it was less than five minutes before the #65 bus to Durham arrived and I was in Hetton and through the front door by 18:20.
Another successful hop in the books, up yours, winter!
Next Up for Hoppers Guide
Following this weekend’s postponement of North Shields FA Vase game, it was immediately rearranged and announced for the following Saturday.
We have already visited the Daren Persson Stadium for Hopper Tales #72 but I am attempting to attend a game in each round of this season’s FA Vase and North Shields is by far the most convenient game to continue with that.
Hopefully, the weather will improve enough to allow the game to go ahead as planned, this time.
However, that won’t be our only game next weekend! A rare double-game weekend for Hoppers Guide.
I’m delighted to say we will be heading back to Glasgow to finally take in a game at Ibrox Stadium.
Even Mrs Hopper is dusting off the cobwebs and will be coming out of her self-imposed retirement!
I’m looking forward to the weekend already…
Onto the next!
It’s funny how the 3G pitch instantly makes these kind of grounds massively less interesting in my opinion.
They go from football grounds to the kind of places you may hire out to play with friends.
Absolutely not a reflection on the Hopper Tales reports btw!