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More Than Just a Scorecard: Discovering the 6th Ferrying Group's Team Roster
As I hinted in last week's article, the influx of artifacts into the collection has been nothing short of overwhelming over the course of the last few months. The three uniforms (yes, there are two others that arrived previously and in addition to the WWII Coast Guard set) have yet to be fully documented and researched but they were on display at our public event last month. Less conspicuously unveiled and shown at the Armed Forces Recognition display were a handful of "new" World War II military baseball scorecards.
Aside from baseball's fluidity in its continual change from batter-to-batter and inning-to-inning, teams are in a constant state of alteration as managers and general managers work tirelessly to field a roster of players that can match up well against their opponents on any given day. For the casual observer, a team manager merely drafts line-up cards, gives direction to the players and batters throughout the game as he maneuvers his team like chess-master, making substitutions and pitching changes to keep his players best aligned against his opponent. An outstanding manager not only addresses the needs of the present game but how his team will be matched up against his future opponents in the next week and even the next month. Major Leagues (and, to some extent, minor leagues) have been well documented as to the roster changes and game line-ups affording researches with an easy tool to follow a player's professional career. The same cannot be said about the game within the armed forces.
Roster management must have been a bit of a nightmare for military team managers during WWII as the needs of the military superseded the needs of a base or command team. At any given moment, a player could be transferred away to fill a need without notice to the team manager. Tracking players on these service teams' rosters is a monumental task. Apart from the occasional box score contained within a base or command newspaper or the Sporting News or other civilian news source, rosters largely no longer exist for wartime baseball teams, leaving present-day researchers to piece them together.
Baseball scorecard collectors are off the mainstream of baseball memorabilia collectors though it seems that more people are discovering these historically affordable pieces of baseball history. A scorecard offers a snapshot in time with that day's roster alignment for the two opposing teams. If a major or minor league game scorecard lacks a date, a researcher is able to use the rosters to reveal the approximate or even the precise date on which the game was played. Another draw for collectors is the aesthetics and artwork that is commonly present, especially with cards from the Golden Era of the game. Apart from the functional aspect (keeping score) the illustrations and photography that can be found adorning the covers and pages of these pieces can be bright and colorful while offering a window into the past.
With the influx of professional players into the armed forces and onto service team baseball rosters during WWII and the audiences that the teams played to and the overall purpose for many of the games (fund-raising), it became a necessity for organizers to produce and print scorecards for the attendees. In most instances, the venues for service games were relatively small which would limit the production of these pieces further reducing the chances of surviving copies.
Though I tried to land this 6th Ferrying Group vs the San Diego Padres scorecard from 1944, I was beaten (source: eBay image).
When a scorecard dating from June 26, 1944 for a fund-raiser (All-Pacific Recreation Fund) game hosted by the Pacific Coast League's San Diego Padres pitted against the U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF) 6th Ferrying Group of the Air Transportation Command (ATC), I was excited at the prospect of gaining some insight into the service leagues of Southern California. To date, I have been limited to piecing together rosters from scant story details in the Sporting News that are merely snippets of game narratives regarding the 6th Ferrying Group or any other team that played in their league, which drove me to pursue the online auction listing for the scorecard. Sadly, I was outbid and lost the auction.
Days later, another (different) 6th Ferrying Group scorecard was listed by the same seller. This version was from a game played between the ATC team and the San Bernardino All Stars and played at Perris Hill Park which was, no doubt, the home field of the All Stars (the ball park still stands and is the home field for the California State University, at San Bernardino baseball team and has been renamed Fiscalini Field). I quickly placed another sniped bid only to lose out a second time. Despite my discouragement, I ended up receiving the scorecard (albeit one in well-loved condition) as part of another item from the seller of the previous two scorecards.
Though it is a little damaged and worn, this scorecard is an invaluable piece of history. Perris Hill Ball Park still remains and today, serves as Cal State University, San Bernardino's baseball stadium and has been renamed to Fiscalini Field.
I spent little time carefully removing the card from the package before I opened the the folded single sheet, moving directly to the rosters. Seeing the 6th Ferrying Group's list of players, I quickly noted the men who had major league experience and began to work through the other names in search of professional ball-playing experience. Prior to owning this scorecard, the only 6th Ferrying Group team members that were discoverable were Chuck Stevens, Nanny Fernandez, Max West, Walter Loos, Harry Danning and Red Ruffing. Ten new names (seven with prior pro experience and one who went on to play professionally after the war). filled out the roster and opened the door to new research.
The 6th Ferrying group was a dominate team in Southern California with six former major leaguers filling the roster.
The San Bernardino All Stars roster.
A legend by the time World War II began, "Red" Ruffing enlisted into the Army Air Forces and was assigned to the 6th Ferrying Group and served on the unit ball team.
6th Ferrying Group Roster (major leaguers in bold):
Name Position Former Team
Art Lilly 2B Hollywood Stars
Chuck Stevens 1B Stl. Browns
Nanny Fernandez SS Boston Braves
Max West CF Boston Braves
Harry Danning CF NY Giants
Ed Nulty LF Montreal Royals
Swede Jensen RF San Diego Padres
Walter Loos 3B Cincinnati
Red Ruffing P NY Yankees
Hub Kittle P Oakland Oaks
Ollie Olsen P San Diego padres
Roy Pitter P Newark Bears
Willie Werbowski P Semi-pro
Woody Bell OF San Antonio Missions
Ike Wise LF Semi-pro
Chas. Mowrer LF Semi-pro
The 6th Ferrying Group team roster is a goldmine but the discovery isn't limited to these 16 men. The San Bernardino All Stars is nearly impossible to locate the commands from which the roster was constructed, leaving plenty of opportunity for research. Following a quick baseball search, I was successful in identifying eight of the players on the roster of which two played in the major leagues prior to their wartime service.
San Bernardino All Stars(major leaguers in bold):
Don Rosselli 2B
Norman De Weese LF
Art Shoap 1B LA Angels
Frank Kerr C
Don Lang 3B Cincinnati
George Wiedemann RF
H. Munoz SS
Carl Sepulveda CF
Ed Chandler P Pocatello Cardinals
Walter Ripley P Boston Red Sox
Chas. Harris P
Simon Martinez P Oakland
Bill Molyneaux OF Louisville Colonels
Lefty Watson OF
Doug Slamer LF
Clyde List C Brainerd Blues
Bill Sarni C LA Angels
In addition to researching the names on both rosters, pursuing a box score the amount of money that the was raised from the game would be a fitting punctuation to place upon this scorecard discovery.
Antique Baseball Scorecards – justcollecting.com
Collectible Baseball Programs and Scorecards – collectorsweekly.com
Baseball Programs and Scorecards – Jeff Figler, Collectors Journal
Posted in Ephemera and Other Items, Programs, Score Books
Tags: 6th Ferrying Group, Chuck Stevens, Harry Danning, Max West, Nanny Fernandez, Red Ruffing, Service Team Baseball Southern California, USAAF Baseball, Walter Loos
Always Prepared: Landing a WWII U.S. Coast Guard Baseball Uniform
The Chevrons and Diamonds Collection got its start with the acquisition of a wartime baseball flannel uniform in 2008 and since that time, the on-field togs from the game have been at the core of what we curate. Often colorful and eye-catching, the vintage wool flannel jerseys attract more visitors to our public exhibitions than anything else in our collection.
The artifact that truly catapulted this endeavor a decade ago was the Inquisition of a 1943-vintage Marine Corps baseball uniform. The gray wool flannel, accented with red wool athletic felt lettering and the red rayon soutache stirred me to research and to investigate what else may be available. Throughout the past ten years, we have documented every uniform that we have encountered (some of that effort has resulted in articles and additions to the online uniform archive) regardless of our success in our attempts to acquire them. The resulting documentation is an invaluable resource for subsequent uniform analysis in dating uniforms along with providing data with which to gauge market trends.
Two Coast Guard players, Doyle Lade and Jimmie Cooper of St. Augustine Coast Guards discuss the game with an officer. Lade pitched in 12 professional seasons – five with the Chicago Cubs (Chevrons and Diamonds Collection).
During a public display event in 2018, as guests enjoyed our selection of vintage jerseys and uniforms highlighting teams from the Army, Navy, Marines and Army Air Forces, two of the most frequent constant questions asked by our visitors were, "why isn't the Coast Guard represented" or "what, no Coast Guard?" Our staff's constant refrain to those inquiries was that in the many years spent researching and acquiring artifacts, we had yet to encounter a single baseball uniform item from that branch. The absence of one of these uniforms from the market continued well into 2019 when, not just one, but two vintage Coast Guard baseball pieces came to market on the same day in early June.
The U.S. Coast Guard baseball militaria listings depicted two vastly different uniforms. The first one appeared to be a home white wool flannel uniform set consisting of jersey and trousers was considerably discolored likely due to heavy use and oxidation. The auction listing photos showed that both pieces were trimmed in what appeared to be a Kelly-green thin line of soutache. The jersey is adorned with color-matched athletic felt lettering and numerals. One might question the color scheme due to the USCG's traditional blue and white, however it was not unusual during WWII as textiles were in high demand for the war-effort limiting material availability.
The second listing had a more conventionally styled uniform set. The lightweight white cotton jersey was trimmed with a thin line of navy blue soutache with color-matched small, athletic felt block lettering spelling out C O A S T G U A R D across the chest. On the back of the jersey is a single, large color-matched numeral. Unusual but not unprecedented, instead of matching the jersey, the accompanying trousers while constructed using the same base material were solid navy blue. Adorning the outseam of the trousers is a 3/4-inch band of white rayon soutache, contrasting the 1/8-inch navy blue soutache on the jersey's button placket and sleeves.
The U.S.C.G. jersey has green athletic felt numerals matching the lettering and the thin soutache around the collar and sleeve cuffs. The elastic in the trouser cuffs appears to have deteriorated and the green soutache aligns with that of the jersey (images sourced from eBay)
While both uniforms lacked provenance or documentation, only the white and blue set could be dated due to the presence of a manufacturer's tag. Sewn into the jersey's collar was the familiar GoldSmith Preferred Products tag that dates it between 1940 and 1945. Starting in 1946, the GoldSmith company began to transition toward the MacGregor brand, the name obtained from the prestigious sporting goods company, Crawford McGregor & Canby Co. which Goldsmith acquired in 1936. The other set bore no tags, leaving the approximate age to be determined purely by the pattern design and features of the uniform.
This beautiful 1941-45 U.S. Coast Guard jersey was one of only two that have come to market in a decade (Chevrons and Diamonds Collection).
When we acquire artifacts through purchases, we consider a large array of factors before we commit our limited financial resources to a transaction. Aside from analyzing the artifact itself, we perform due diligence with the seller in order to avoid difficulties or challenges, especially surrounding valuation, and subsequent negotiations.
Online auctions held on the most popular platform are a veritable minefield, rife with overused terminology and phrases incorporated into listings to justify inflated prices. Commonly appearing are two mutually synonymous words: rare and scarce, completely devoid of validity in their application and quite often paired with any number of amplifying adjectives. Often, multiple listings of the rare or scarce item are common and readily available on the same auction site.
This tale of two uniforms is one of extremes within the realm of valuation as the listing prices were opposites in terms of pricing. The white and blue cotton uniform was the most realistically priced. Unfortunately. The white and green set, listed by a different seller, was nearly ten times the cost at almost $1,000.00.
A single thin navy blue line of soutache frames the jersey's collar and placket. Small block-athletic felt lettering is arched across the chest.
On the sleeve edge is the thin navy blue soutache.
This GoldSmith uniform tag was used through 1945. The following year, GoldSmith began to add MacGregor to their sports uniform labels.
(Chevrons and Diamonds Collection)
For obvious reasons, we turned our attention entirely towards the white and blue uniform as it aligned best with our collection and our budget. After completing the transaction, we were left with the hope that the uniform could complete the coast-to-coast transit in time for our planned public exhibition. Priority shipping ensured that we received the parcel with time to spare for proper cleaning and preparation for the show.
Our 2019 Armed Forces Recognition Day public showing of the Chevrons and Diamonds collection (Chevrons and Diamonds Collection).
The 2019 Chevrons and Diamonds exhibition was a resounding success. With the U.S. Coast Guard uniform on display, we had each service branch represented at the military event.
The jerseys to the right of the Coast Guard are: Bolling Field (U.S.A.A.C), Goose Bay Air Base (USAF), 28th Supply Squadron (USAF) and the 8th Army, AFFE (Army Forces Far East).
Perhaps the oldest flannel in the collection, this Bolling Field road grey jersey dates from 1939-1941.
With four Marine Corps uniforms/jerseys, this old sailor clearly needs to step up for his own branch of service. The Navy is clearly under represented.
Along with the other baseball militaria artifacts, the Coast Guard jersey was prominently displayed and several USCG veterans were not only surprised to discover wartime baseball but that the Coast Guard fielded teams. With countless veterans and their families visiting the exhibit asking questions and taking photographs, it was clear that the exhibit was a resounding success.
Posted in My Collection, Uniforms, WWII
Tags: Doyle Lade, MacGregor Goldsmith, US Coast Guard Baseball Uniform, Vintage GoldSmith Baseball Jersey, WWII, WWII Coast Guard Baseball
A Lifetime Collection of Images: Star Baseball Player, Sam Chapman, the Tiburon Terror and Wartime Naval Aviator (part II)
(Note: this is the second of a two-part story. See part I of A Lifetime Collection of Images: Star Baseball Player, Sam Chapman, the Tiburon Terror and Wartime Naval Aviator)
Despite playing in the All-Star Game and appearing as a Norfolk Naval Training Station player, Chapman had already transferred from the Norfolk base to U.S. Naval Reserve Aviation Base (Anacostia), Washington, D.C. on June 30th to commence pre-flight training. Unlike the Navy Pre-Flight Schools at the colleges, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, University of Iowa, University of Georgia and St. Mary's College, Moraga, California), Anacostia's program was more traditionally focused rather than to have a strong emphasis on sports and competition as part of the physical conditioning as with the college programs. Chapman reported for training and was reduced from a chief athletic specialist (a chief petty officer – CSpA) down to the rank of seaman second class (Sea2/c). In six months' time, Chapman went from Sea2/c (when he enlisted) to chief boatswain's mate (CBM) to CSpA and back to Sea2/c however his naval career was about to change and baseball would remain a part of his time in the Navy.
February 4, 1943: Sam Chapman is winning his wings at the world's largest naval air station here. Chapman, who served as a chief specialist in athletics at the Norfolk, Virginia training station, applied for flight training and received his preliminary instruction at the Anacostia Reserve Aviation Base. He is receiving advanced instruction as a torpedo bomber.
Chapman's preliminary flight training lasted from July through September of 1942 after successful completion, was transferred to the Navy's largest naval air station at Corpus Christi, Texas to participate in advanced flight instruction and to train as a torpedo dive bomber. Through the remainder of 1942, Naval Aviation Cadet Chapman went through the rigors of combat flight tactics and other facets of naval aviation such as the intricacies of navigation, carrier take-off and landing and targeting enemy ships.
Recognize him, sports fans? He is Sam Chapman, former Philadelphia Athletics outfielder and one-time All-America halfback at the University of California, who this week entered flight training at Naval Reserve Aviation Base, Washington. Chapman, 26, is the son of Charles Edward Chapman of California. If Sam passes his flight training, he will become and ensign in the U.S. Naval Reserve or a second lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. June 25, 1942
After months of preliminary flight training, Chapman received his commission (as an ensign) and earned the naval aviators' wings of gold on February 26, 1943. Ensign Chapman's aviation path progressed as he moved on to advanced pilot training and torpedo dive bombing school, remaining at NATC Corpus Christi. While perfecting his skills as a flyer, the Tiburon Terror's glove and bat were employed by the NATC team. As was the case for fellow major league naval aviator Ted Williams, upon Chapman's graduation from advanced training, he was assigned to instruct new aviation cadets at the Nava instead of serving in a combat theater.
March 1, 1943: Navy wings and an ensign's commission in the U.S. Naval Reserve are awarded to Sam Chapman (right), former center fielder with the Philadelphia Athletics, in graduation ceremonies at the Naval Air Training Center, Corpus Christi, Texas. Presenting the designation is Rear Admiral A. E. Montgomery, (left), USN, Commandant of the NATC, Chapman, who specializes in flying torpedo bombers, has been assigned to instructor's duty here.
By April of 1944, (now) Lieutenant (junior grade) Chapman was teaching cadets how to fly and playing for the Naval Air Advanced Training Command (NAATC) team at Naval Air Auxiliary Station (NAAS) Waldron Field. Joining him on the roster and competing in the Air Center League was another former major leaguer (Boston Braves) and a graduate of Navy Pre-Flight Training, University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill), John Franklin "Johnny" Sain.
The eight team-Air Center League consisted of squads from the NAS Corpus Christi ("Main Station"), Waldron Field, Kingsville Field, Chase Field, Rodd Field, Cabiniss Field, Cuddihy Field and Ward Island Naval Air Training Center, all of which are from the surrounding area. During the 1944 season, the Air Center League featured (former and future major league) ballplayers:
Main Station:
Ezra 'Pat' McGlothin (Elizabethton, Appalachian League)- RHP
Joe Coleman (Philadelphia, AL) – RHP, CF, RF
Cabaniss Field:
Ernie Koy (Philadelphia, NL) – CF
Waldron Field:
Johnny Sain (Boston, NL) – RHP
Sam Chapman (Philadelphia, AL) – OF
Cuddihy Field:
Ralph Kiner (Toronto, IL) – OF
Frank C. Lane, former vice president in charge of Cincinnati Red farm teams, made an offer of $7,500 to Chapman in 1937 while the young ballplayer was at the University of California. Lane, a Navy lieutenant commander in charge of athletics for the Corpus Christi, Texas-area Naval Air Stations (which comprised the Naval Air Training Command), including Waldron Field. As a matter of irony, despite rejecting the offer to play for him in 1937, Chapman was now playing baseball for Lane for the meager wages of a junior naval officer while playing for Waldron.
Remember the man on the right? Bedecked in unfamiliar toggery, Sammy Chapman, right, issued last minute instructions to John Franklin Sain, Jr., as he prepares to take off at Corpus Christi, Texas. Chapman, great University of California halfback and later star center fielder with the Athletics, is now a Navy flying instructor with the rank of lieutenant, junior grade. Sain formerly pitched for the Boston Braves.
Chapman met and married Mary Josephine (Frey), formerly of Dallas, during his time instructing Naval Aviation cadets at Corpus Christi. Serving as his best man, Lieutenant Robert D. Gibson, a veteran dive bomber pilot (VB-10 aboard the USS Enterprise) who was awarded the Navy Cross for his heroism in landing direct hits on a Japanese heavy cruiser and a transport vessel.
3 October 1944: Introducing LT and Mrs. Sam Chapman.
October 8, 1944 – Former baseball player marries. LT (jg) Sam Chapman, Naval Flyer and former baseball player with the Philadelphia Athletics, looks on as his best man, LT Robert D. Gibson, of Unionville, MO, greets his bride following the Chapman wedding at the Navy Chapel at Waldron Field, Texas. The bride is the former Mary Jo Frye, daughter of Mrs. Vivian G. Frey, of Corpus Christi, Texas (second from right). Chapman was an All America back at the University of California. He batted .338 in his last season with the Athletics.
Following the Japanese unconditional surrender, many of those who volunteered early in the War began to be discharged immediately. Navy Secretary Forrestal and Major League Baseball Commissioner Happy Chandler were pushing for assembling a major league all-star team to send on a 90-day tour of the remote installations across the Pacific. Despite this push, the Navy leadership declined the notion. Instead, the Navy decided to pull their own star players from around the glove and assemble them in the Hawaiian Islands for a Navy National League versus American League All Star championship series. Ted Williams, serving as a flight instructor in Florida was ordered to Oahu for the games. Due to Chapman's early enlistment shortly after the December 7, 1941 attack and his length of time in in the Navy, he was released from service and made his way back to the Athletics starting in his first game on September 16th against the Cleveland Indians, going one for four – as he singled off Steve Gromek in the bottom of the first inning. Gromek pitched a five-hit shutout against the A's limiting Buddy Rosar and George Kell (three-for-four) to account for the remaining four hits. Philadelphia finished in an all-too-familiar position (dead last) in the American League that year.
Pre-war (1938-41) major league stats with the Philadelphia Athletics.
With just a handful of major league games under his belt during the tail end of the 1945 season, Chapman decided to go barnstorming with a team a team assembled by Earle Mack (the son of Philadelphia Athletics' owner and manager, Connie Mack) that included Bert Shepard, (an amputee who lost his leg due to an anti-aircraft round penetrating his P-38 Lighting fighter aircraft over Germany. His leg was amputated below the knee in a Nazi Prisoner of War camp), Bobo Newsom, Frankie Hayes, Ed Lopat, Steve Gromek, Red Kress, Jim Bucher, Buddy Rosar, Jack Early and Dave Keefe. The team started on October 4, 1945 at Rochester, Minnesota and then barnstormed their way to Billings, Montana. After the barnstorming tour, Chapman returned to California, settling in Greenbrae, California, just south of his childhood home of Tiburon.
Sam Chapman's post-War (1945-41) stats
Sam Chapman resumed his major league career with the Athletics in 1946. He would play for the A's into the 1951 season as his production saw some diminished output over resulting in a trade with the Cleveland Indians. At the end of the season, Sam called it quits on his major league career opting to play for the Oakland Oaks of the Pacific Coast league allowing him to be home with his young and growing family. In the three seasons Chapman suited up for Oakland (1952-54), he played for managers Mel Ott, Augie Galan and Chuck Dressen respectively and most of the roster was filled by players who were either major league veterans or would go on to play in the big leagues. Sam saw an uptick in his offensive production as he averaged.270 with while sustaining .336 on-base and .429 slugging percentages while tallying an OPS of .765 while totaling 49 home runs (he finished his career with 229 , including his 180 in the big leagues), but his baseball career came to a close at the end of the 1954 season, his last with the Oaks.
August 15, 1946: Sam Chapman, Lou Knerr, Pete Suder: Chapman, accounted for three home runs and a single. Suder, who also homered, get together with winning pitcher Knerr in the locker room for the victory celebration after defeating the Red Sox, 5-3 at Shibe Park today.
May 11, 1951: Veteran Philadelphia Athletics outfielder, Sam Chapman was traded to the Cleveland Indians today for outfielder Allie Clark and reserve infielder Lou "Chuck" Klein.
Armed with and education from the University of California (Berkeley), Chapman set aside his spikes and glove and and traded them for the tools of the construction trade, building homes, managing his own plumbing and HVAC company before ultimately serving as an inspector for the Bay Area Pollution Control District (Bay Area Air Quality Management District) before retiring. His prowess on the sporting field was never forgotten as his career accomplishments began to be recognized. In 1984, the former halfback was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. Joining Willie McCovey as the pair of Bay Area baseball players, Sam was elected to another sports hall of fame in 1987. Though he would never be considered for enshrinement into Cooperstown, being honored in 1999 by having his name and likeness added to the Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame, joining legends of both original Philadelphia Major League organizations; the Phillies and Athletics. Samuel Blake Chapman passed away on December 22, 2006 at the age of 90.
February 25, 1952: Sammy Chapman, outfielder under contract to the Cleveland Indians, sizes up a piece of lumber being used by him in the construction of a house, in Mill Valley (California). The one-time Athletics star now owned by Cleveland, says he's through with big league ball/ He's traded in his bat and glove for saw and hammer and likes the new occupation of building contractor. Business is good.
The images of Chapman's life from his youth and throughout his baseball and naval aviation careers were part of the auction group. While I would contend with the seller regarding the condition of the prints as most are well-worn, water-damaged or creased, I wasn't too disappointed by what arrived. In addition, since they were part of a defunct newspaper's archive, several of the images had surface-markings (art-pen and paint) to prepare them for half-toning and pressed onto newsprint. A few photos in the 25-image collection were lower-quality wire photos and yet the content of these images are fantastic additions.
Sam Chapman served as an air quality inspector in his later years following the end of his baseball career.
Sam Chapman, former top athlete, dies at 90 – By Dave Albee (Marin Independent Journal), December 26, 2006
Sam Chapman: 1916-2006 / Marin star was 5-sport letterman – By Dwight Chapin (SF Chronicle) December 30, 2006
Posted in Ephemera and Other Items, Individual/Personal History, Vintage Baseball Photos, WWII
Tags: 1942 Service Team All Stars, Anacostia Naval Air Station, Bay Area Baseball Players, Bob Feller, Chief Athletic Specialist, Connie Mack, Mickey Cochrane, Naval Aviator, Navy Athletic Instructor, Navy Baseball Players, Navy Pre-flight, Philadelphia Athletics, Sam Chapman, University of California Golden Bears, World War II Baseball, WWII, WWII Navy Baseball
A Lifetime Collection of Images: Star Baseball Player, Sam Chapman, the Tiburon Terror and Wartime Naval Aviator (part I)
The search for vintage photographs is one that is predominantly accomplished with varied, dynamic keywords that more often than not, seldom yield windfalls of images. Occasionally locating an auction listing of an individual print is the norm and yet, competition for that one photograph can drive the price beyond what (I think) it is worth and preclude any chance at an acquisition. There are some moments when being the recipient of the big windfall does happen and this group of photographs underscores the need for patience, experience and knowledge with a measure of risk-taking mixed in.
Shown at its original listing size, this image shows at least two military-related photos contained within the group.. Those two visible images were enough to convince me to bid and then anticipate the unseen photos (source: eBay image).
Military baseball photographs are quite uncommon with original, vintage prints of known major or minor leaguers taken during their time in the armed forces next-to-non-existent. When I saw a group that was listed at (online) auction, I was floored by the description and the lone accompanying image (showing a selection of a group of photos). Based on what was visible, this group had the potential to be that windfall that I imagined I would one day find. Photo collection relating to baseball great Sam Chapman," the description read. The next few sentences gave me heart palpitations, "Photos date from the very late 1930's through the 1950's with most being from the 1940's. Some show him as a member of the US armed forces during WWII," the listing continued. As if I still required confirmation, my decision to set snipe-bid was confirmed when I read, "Most are baseball related. Photos range in size from 6″ x 8″ to 8 1/2″ x 11 1/2″ – Conditions vary from VG to EX-MT with many EX. Most have caption sheets and some have newspaper edit markings." In the years since I delved into military baseball history, Sam Chapman's name has been squarely on my radar screen, in particular due to my inadvertently focus on several players who, at some point in their professional careers, were on the Philadelphia Athletics' roster.
Admittedly, prior to delving into baseball militaria, I only heard the name "Sam Chapman" in relation to baseball history as part of discussion of difficult on-field feats such as unassisted triple plays, no-hitters and perfect games or hitting for the cycle (a batter hits a single, a double, a triple, and a home run in the same game). The 23-year-old Philadelphia Athletics outfielder, Sam Chapman became the 115th player to accomplish the feat when he faced the St. Louis Browns on May 5, 1939.
The 1941 Philadelphia Athletics finished dead last in the American League, 37 games behind the first place (and eventual World Series Champs) Yankees, dropping 90 games out of their 154-game season. Despite the A's poor showing for the season, their young center-fielder, Sam Chapman had a fantastic year at the plate. Chapman's .322 batting average ranked seventh in the American League behind Barney McCoskey (.324), teammate Dick Siebert (.334), Jeff Heath (.340), Joe DiMaggio (.357), Cecil Travis (.359) and Ted Williams' incredible .406. The turnaround from the 1940 season was very noticeable as he cut his strikeouts in half while raising his average nearly 50 points. Chapman ranked fifth in slugging percentage, seventh in runs batted in and 7th in hits. In a season that saw two of the greatest offensive displays in the history of the game (Ted Williams' .400 and Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak), Chapman's season doesn't stand out but it was the best of his career.
Though he excelled at football, Sam Chapman passed on a contract with the Washington Redskins after being drafted 24th overall. This image was not part of the group of auctioned photos (ninth pick in the third round) in the 1938 NFL draft (image source: Calbears.com).
Taken in 1924 when Sam Chapman, Tiburon's gift to the American League, was a kid of 8. That's Sam, the little guy on the left. Others in the group, from left to right, are Sam's older brother, Charley (who died two years ago); his mother, an older sister, Marjorie and a younger sister, Rose. – Jan. 21, 1938
Samuel Blake Chapman, a native Californian by birth, was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. A hotbed for baseball talent, the region was the epicenter of the Pacific Coast League with four teams that were anchored by the winningest franchise in the history of the league. Home to the Oaks (Oakland) two teams, the Seals and Mission Reds called Seals Stadium home and 86 miles east was home to the Solons (Sacramento). Some of the game's greatest players, managers and pioneers hailed from the region with names such as Tony Lazzeri, Frank Crosetti, the DiMaggio Brothers, Joe Cronin, Lefty Gomez, Harry Heilmann, Frank Chance, High Pockets Kelly, Lefty O'Doul, Ernie Lombardi, Tony Freitas and Charlie Graham cast a long shadow of influence over the area youth. "My favorite team was the old San Francisco Seals," Chapman recalled of his youth experiences. "Lefty O'Doul, Earl Averill, a few others like that were my favorites. I used to take two ferryboats across the San Francisco Bay and a long streetcar ride to get to the ballpark to watch the Seals play. I didn't even know they played ball back East."
Yet, Chapman excelled in four sports in addition to baseball (football, baseball, basketball, soccer, and track). His athletic prowess at Mill Valley, California's Tamalpais High School led to receiving a scholarship to attend school and compete on the field for the University of California Bears where he excelled in Football. As a three-year (1935-37) starter playing on both offense and defense, the halfback worked his way into being selected as a 1937 consensus All American at his position which was not overlooked by professional scouts. Though the National Football League's 1938 amateur player draft (held on December 12, 1937 in Chicago) bore no resemblance to the present-day spectacle, it wasn't lost on Chapman being selected by the Washington Redskins who happened to defeat the Chicago Bears to capture the NFL Championship on that same day. Perhaps Chapman took notice of the Redskins' backfield that was stocked with talent (Sammy Baugh and Cliff Battles became a force for Washington that season) which could have resulted in the Tiburon Terror with more bench-time rather than carrying the ball had he signed to play football. Nineteen days after being drafted by the Redskins, Chapman was starting in the 1938 Rose Bowl and contributing the Golden Bears' 13-0 dominance over the Crimson Tide of Alabama (which was, coincidentally, Paul "Bear" Bryant's second season as an assistant coach).
May 22, 1938: Chapman wins praise of major league managers (Joe) McCarthy, (Joe) Cronin and (Gabby) Street.
Chapman's decision to decline to sign a contract avoiding a professional football career might have been surprising to many but for him, there was only one professional sports career path: baseball. Unbeknownst to Chapman, his defensive and batting prowess at Cal Berkeley was being observed by, perhaps the greatest ballplayer in baseball's history, 51-year-old Tyrus Raymond "Ty" Cobb. The "Georgia Peach," at the time, was residing in a Spanish Villa (on Spencer Lane in Atherton) close to the Stanford University campus and often took in amateur and professional baseball games in the Bay Area. Having played a role in San Francisco Seals' 20-year-old star outfielder, Joe DiMaggio's contract negotiations (with the Yankees) in 1935, Cobb invested time in observing and recognizing major league talent potential in the region. Though Chapman was unaware, Ty Cobb had been observing the University of California baseball team and took note of their star infielder. Chapman's Cal teammates mentioned having observed the "Peach's" presence after the fact but Sam never imagined that he was the one being scouted.
April 9, 1940 – Atlanta, GA: Sam Chapman was out by inches in the first exhibition game here today between the Phillies and Athletics. Gus Buhr, Phillies first sacker, has his foot on the bag as he takes a neat peg from the outfield. The A's won, 6-1.
Working with his former A's manager, Cobb wired Mack that he, "couldn't go wrong on this kid," encouraging the 75-year-old owner to sign Chapman for $8,500 per year (Joe DiMaggio's Cobb-negotiated contract three years prior had been for $5,000). For the next three seasons, Chapman developed into a very good ballplayer with the A's improving in the field and at the plate. War was raging in Europe and the Far East and the United States was slowly beginning to rebuild its long-ignored military force. President Roosevelt enacted the United States' first peacetime draft with the stroke of his pen on September 16, 1940 resulting in Sam Chapman joining thousands of other men of age in registering a month later.
Sam's father, 66-year-old Charles was working as a postmaster for the U.S. Postal Service while his ball-playing, 23-year-old son was out-earning him by nearly a four-to-one ratio. The 1940 census shows that though he was playing major league baseball in Philadelphia, his home of record was with his parents in Sausalito, California.
January 23, 1942: Chapman Joins Feller. Chapman and Feller leave their barracks for a tour of inspection of the Naval Training Station here after Chapman reported for duty today. Both are Chief Specialists in the Physical Fitness Program.
Leading up to World War II, former heavyweight champion boxer-turned naval officer, Gene Tunney (a WWI USMC veteran) was charged with establishing a physical fitness program for the Navy. The result of Tunney's efforts was the creation of the Navy Athletics Specialist Program and the establishment of a new enlisted rating. Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, it became apparent to Chapman that he would be drafted and so, enlisted into the Navy on December 29, 1941 in San Francisco, under the V6 program (the classification for General Service and Specialists). Following basic and athletic instructor training, Chapman joined fellow major leaguer Bob Feller at Norfolk Naval Training Station and was promptly assigned to Bosun Bodie's Bluejackets roster in the early stages of service team baseball play.
Examining the ball are (left to right): Sam Chapman, Bob Feller, Fred Hutchinson and Ace Parker, April 1942.
The Norfolk team was a force to be reckoned with having a formidable pitching trio. Feller headed up the pitching staff that included Maxie Wilson, a former Phillies prospect who last pitched for the Portsmouth Cubs (class "B" Piedmont League) and the Detroit fire-baller, Fred Hutchinson who at just 20 years of age was a rising star for the Tigers before he joined the Navy for the war. Chapman was an offensive leader for the Bluejackets as he fueled victories with his bat and glove.
Charged with assembling a service team of all stars, Lieutenant Mickey Cochrane pulled players from bases as far away as Panama (Canal Zone) to field a team that would take on the winner of the 1942 Major League All Stars. Joining fellow Norfolk Bluejackets players Feller, Hutchinson and (former Pittsburgh Pirates) catcher, Vinnie Smith and Sam Chapman. (Note: Vinnie Smith had a challenge getting his paperwork in order ahead of the Service All Star Game. With two men stationed at Norfolk named Vincent A. Smith, Great Lakes manager, Mickey Cochrane's request for the former Pirates catcher resulted in mix-up with Vincent Addison Smith receiving orders to travel from Norfolk to Great Lakes. Though the young sailor was willing to play in the game despite not being in possession of the skills nor experience, the Navy managed to cut through the confusion in time to provide proper orders for Vincent Ambrose Smith to travel).
July 3, 1942 – Service All-Stars at the Great Lakes Training Station – Here are stars whose names appear on the roster pf the Service All-Stars at Great Lakes Training Station. Left to right: Emmett Mueller, Philadelphia-infielder; Morrie Arnovich, N.Y. Giants-outfielder; Mickey Harris, Boston Red Sox-pitcher; John Sturm, Yankees-infielder; John Grodzicki, St. Louis Cardinals-Pitcher; Cecil Travis, Washington-outfielder; Ken Silvestri, Yankees-catcher; Pat Mullin, Detroit-outfielder; Lieutenant George Earnshaw, coach; Fred Hutchinson, Detroit-pitcher; Vincent Smith, Pittsburgh-catcher; Bob Feller, Cleveland-pitcher; Sam Chapman, Athletics-infielder.
Ahead of the July 7 match-up between the winner of the Major League Baseball All Star Game and the Service Team All Stars, a series of games on successive days were scheduled and played by the Navy and Army players leading up to the fund-raising charity game in Cleveland. The Great Lakes Bluejackets team, managed by Lieutenant Cochrane was bolstered by the additional Navy players (Bob Feller, Sam Chapman and Vincent Smith) affording the Norfolk men to the time to acclimate to the Great Lakes men.
Great Lakes' pitcher John Grodzicki and Norfolk's Bob Feller collaborated in shutting out the Sutherland Paper semi-pro team at Kalamazoo, Michigan on July 3. Feller gave up three singles in the last five innings but the former Cardinal hurler who yielded five safeties, received credit for the win. Sam Chapman, formerly of the Athletics, hit a two-run home-run in the seventh frame.
On Independence Day, the augmented Great Lakes team was taking on the Fort Custer Reception team at Briggs Stadium in Detroit, shutting out the Army squad, 5-0. In the contest, Great Lakes manager and former Detroit Tiger, Mickey Cochrane struck out swinging in his pinch-hit return to his former home-field. Pitching for the Great Lakes team, Fred Hutchinson was locked in a scoreless duel with the Army's Mickey Harris. The Navy scored in the sixth breaking the scoreless tie and tallied four more in the seventh with Frankie Pytlak's two-run shot followed by Benny McCoy's two-RBI-double.
Following the July Fourth game, the augmented Great Lakes Bluejackets faced an all-star team of former American Leaguers. For the Bluejackets, Army players Pat Mullin and Cecil Travis (both formerly of the Washington Senators) powered in some runs in the 8-2 win for the Navy, each hitting a triple (Travis plated three runs with his). Sam Chapman crushed a 400-foot home-run in the July 5th contest as Russell Meers surrendered just six hits and two unearned runs.
On July 6 at the Polo Grounds in New York, the National League hosted the American league for the friendly annual match-up. However, Tommy Henrich, Ted Williams and Bob Johnson were anything but, each notching a hit against the Nationals. Joe DiMaggio tallied two hits and two RBIs scoring a run as he led the American's offense. Lou Boudreau and Rudy York each cracked solo home-runs as Pitchers Spud Chandler and Al Benton allowed a combined six hits and one run in the 3-1 victory and securing a trip to Cleveland to face the Service All Stars.
Chapman was tagged by Cochrane to play center-field, though not as a starter. The game, played at Cleveland's Municipal Stadium on July 7, 1942, saw the Service All Stars dominated by the American Leaguers. Chapman was overlooked as a starter by Coach Cochrane who went with a former Detroit Tiger center-fielder with only 58 games of major league experience. Pat Mullin went 0-3 against the American League starters until he was lifted late in the game in favor of Sam Chapman (who went hitless in his only at-bat) as the American Leaguers shut down the service members, 5-0.
Continue on to Part II


"Picturesque account of the Aymonier-Delaporte mission to Angkor in the 1870s"
Note: Filoz's book is titled "Cambodge et Siam", since the Angkor area was then under the authority of the Kingdom of Siam.
Auguste Filoz (1832-?) was a French Navy officer who took part in the famous "Mission du Mékong" (Mekong Mission) and became a member of the "Société des Orientalistes" (Orientalist Society) after his journey through South-East-Asia.


Bill Wiley/Bob Nelson/Bill Allan/Bill Geis/Bob Hudson.
By Dorothy Wiley and Gunvor Nelson.
This film of five California painters, sculptors and filmmakers is a personal look at the lives of these close friends at home with their families, at work in the studio, teaching, fishing, drawing together, at parties, openings, etc. The sound is a collage of comments and music by the artists mixed with impressions by friends and acquaintances.
"I hate the idea of the film and I never want to see it."


The 203 North Wabash Building is one of only two office buildings designed by Rapp and Rapp, renowned architects best known for movie theaters like the Chicago, Uptown, Palace, and Oriental Theater. The 203 North Wabash Building is a 23-story building with two stories of penthouse structures. Several floors and an additional penthouse structure were added during the conversion from an office building to a hotel in 2013-2014. The facades are primarily clad with brick and include ornamental terra cotta features, terra cotta parapet walls, terra cotta mock balconies, and terra cotta ornamentation. Substantial brick rebuilding and replacement of numerous pieces of the terra cotta extruded terra cotta or glass fiber reinforced concrete (GFRC) took place during the façade rehabilitation portion of the conversion from the office building to hotel.
Klein & Hoffman's involvement consisted of the investigation of the facade conditions and design of the temporary stabilization systems for potentially hazardous conditions, preparation of reports that included repair recommendations and cost estimates, followed up by the preparation of repair documents and specifications, and continued through construction.


I know it probably sounds obvious but it certainly warrants making a post about the importance of finding a creative composition whenever you've got a camera in your hands. Of course, if you're simply looking to take a photograph of a receipt or the storefront of a nearby restaurant for recall purposes, you could probably get away with ignoring the creative component of the composition. However, if your goal is to express yourself to others with your photography, there are few better ways to do so than by conveying it in a way that makes the viewer do a double take and actually start thinking about your photo.
One of the absolute greatest compliments someone could ever pay to me is by saying, "You know, I don't think I've ever seen X, Y or Z taken this way." Now, so much of finding a creative composition comes with the frame of mind that you're in while you're with your camera. It also helps to not force the situation if your muse just decided to pound back some shots at the local pub. Sometimes, all it takes is experimenting with a different focal length or an unusual vantage point, like a few inches off the ground. Hey, try shooting in the rain or in the dead of night with a flashlight. Do things differently. If you keep photographing the same way, odds are that you'll end up with the same photos. Always be open to changing things up.
I took this photo in White Pocket, within the Vermilion Cliffs in Arizona. My good friend, Chris Lazzery, was gracious enough to jump from one ridge to the other for this photo but because of the exertion (and because he had his own shooting to do), I only had two chances to get the photo. I used my Sony A7 and my beloved Canon 15mm Fisheye Funkbuster lens. If there is one lens that can so radically change how you see the scene in front of you, it is a Fisheye. I had my Really Right Stuff TQC-14 travel tripod as low down as I could while tilting the camera upward, giving me this really funky distortion in the brain rock. I set the camera to high burst mode and basically prayed that one of the frames had Chris in mid-air, full extension. Stylization was a basic treatment using Analog Efex Pro 2, part of the Nik Collection by Google.
Sure does, Brian… and what a great setting for it!


Commonwealth Fund Q and A with Professor Adam Elshaug on combating overuse and under use in health care.
A Commonwealth Fund Q and A with HSRAANZ member Adam Elshaug, Ph.D., Professor of Health Policy at the University of Sydney and a 2010–11 Commonwealth Fund Harkness Fellow in Health Care Policy and Practice, about health care overuse and underuse and what might be done to address the problem. Adam Elshaug recently co-authored several articles in a special issue of the Lancet devoted to the subject.
The NHMRC wants to strengthen the capacity and research excellence of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health researchers and is encouraging applicants to apply to NHMRC schemes.
The Minister for Aged Care, Ken Wyatt, AM, MP, has launched "Increasing Choice in Home Care" , which gives consumers more choice in home care services – such as personal care, nursing and social support – to suit their individual needs.
In this HSRAANZ Webinar Dr Anthony Smith , Associate Professor and Director of the University of Queensland's Centre for Online Health reviewed the successes and failures of telehealth use for patients in remote locations. You can view a recording of the Webinar here.
Health Ministers from various OECD countries have endorsed plans for a major programme of work on patient reported indicators of health system performance. Patient Reported Experience Measures (PREMs) and Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) seem set to become the new currency for comparative performance assessment, but they may have an even more important role in clinical care.
The four accredited AHRTCs have formed an Alliance and a recent communique described discussions with the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing in relation to the MRFF and opportunities for the AHRTCs to undertake prioritised research through their partners that align with MRFF priorities. The Association's President Jon Karnon recently met with Professor Steve Wesselingh (head of the SA Academic Health Science and Translation Centre) to get an update on progress and to emphasise and discuss the Association's potential role in promoting and supporting the conduct of high quality health services research as part of the MRFF.
Transferring research evidence into the policy making process is the focus of the latest issue of Public Health Research & Practice (PHRP), which includes papers on a new model of collaborative research, frameworks for translating research evidence and an interview with former Federal health minister Nicola Roxon.


Man, I love Dividend Growth Investing. Just the other day with my last FRIP Buy (Flexible Reinvestment Program) of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (TEVA), made my entire holding of TEVA grow organically. What I mean by organically is that my portfolio dividend income built my TEVA holding from nothing. Normally when I make a buy like my last two buys of CVS and QCOM, I would buy about $1,200 worth of shares each time.
However, my portfolio and the dividend that came out of it bought $1,204.15 worth of shares of TEVA. That is 36 shares of TEVA that my portfolio bought organically. Want to hear the best part? The best part is now these 36 shares of TEVA will now start producing dividend every year as well. It will now produce $48.96 a year of extra income. As you just read, the snowball effect is in full effect right here.
Why am I buying TEVA?
As you see above, TEVA is very much undervalued right now. I plan to add more at this level using FRIP to buy more shares.
Do you like TEVA at these prices? What have you been buying with your divided money?
Interesting choice with TEVA. Discount drugs are definitely going to continue to grow over the years. Just curious if you considered other drug makers like PFE when making the decision? Or was it all Teva, all day?
Congrats on the purchase. You just highlighted why I love dividend growth investing!
Hi Bert! I would love to own PFE as well, but I find the stock fair valued to overvalued. I think TEVA is way undervalued. That is why I choose TEVA. Thanks for stopping by!


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← How useful is education in Africa?
The Global Cost of Violence →
From rebellion to electoral violence
Posted on August 8, 2014 by Andrea Colombo
Promoting democratisation and elections has been at the core of peace-building missions in post-conflict societies since the end of the Cold War. Recent examples are Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq and Libya, just to name a few. Democratisation has been considered as a key factor for supporting the governments' accountability and legitimacy, which ultimately fosters social trust and make violence relapse less likely. Nonetheless, elections failed to be implemented properly in a vast majority of post-conflict countries in Africa. A recent study by Bishop and Hoeffler (2014) reveals that during the 1975-2011 period, 80% of African polls were spoiled by violence, bribery, intimidation or inequitable government interference (Figure 1).
Figure 1 – Electoral Malpractices in Africa from 1975 to 2011
Understanding the causes of electoral misconducts is all the more important to prevent its adverse economic consequences, the destruction of social capital, a weakening of the State's capacity and its devastating effects on the living conditions of civilians.
In a new working paper, Olivia D'Aoust, Olivier Sterck and Andrea Colombo discuss the origins of the electoral violence that spoiled the 2010 elections in Burundi. Burundi is a small landlocked country located in the Great Lakes region in sub-Saharan Africa and it is ranked 178th out of 187 countries according to the Human Development Index. Its GDP per capita was USD 267 in 2013 (The World Bank).
The history of Burundi has been characterised by deeply anchored cleavages between its two major ethnic groups, the Hutu and the Tutsi. Ethnic rivalries constituted the ground for tensions and ethnic massacres that culminated in the 1993 civil war between the Tutsi-led army and Hutu rebel groups. After the Arusha peace agreement was signed in 2000, two rebels groups remained active on the ground: the CNDD-FDD and the Palipehutu-FNL. In 2004, the CNDD-FDD laid down its weapons. One year later, its leader, Pierre Nkurunziza, won the elections. Burundi then became the battleground for the two rival Hutu rebel groups. During four years, the new Hutu government fought against the Palipehutu-FNL, which finally demobilised in 2009, putting an official end to the civil war. The first post-civil war elections were organised a few months later in May 2010.
The pre-electoral climate was spoiled by numerous violent episodes, claims of intimidation and suspicions of fraud. The aim of our study is to understand whether the ex-combatants played a role in triggering electoral violence. We also assess whether electoral violence had any socio-economic, ethnic or political grounds.
We show that episodes of electoral violence in 2010 were channelled through enmities between Hutu rebels, eventually bursting during the electoral competition. The local distribution of Hutu demobilised soldiers, based on their affiliation during the civil war, was indeed a prominent determinant of violence: the more a municipality was polarised (through the presence of two opposing groups of ex-combatants), the more likely electoral violence occurred. Figure 2 displays the number of events predicted by the distribution of ex-soldiers as a function of the number of groups of similar size in each municipality. It predicts a five-fold increase in electoral violence between the lowest- and highest-polarised municipalities.
Figure 2. Predicted number of events as a function of projected number of groups of the same size
We also show that municipalities that had been heavily exposed during the 1993-2009 civil war were more prone to violence in 2010. On the contrary, the Hutu-Tutsi rivalry was not a good predictor of electoral malpractices. As a matter of fact, the demobilised soldiers' polarisation effect was stronger in municipalities where the Hutu were the majority. Political competition did not matter either when tensions between ex-rebel groups were accounted for. The key for tackling electoral malpractices in Burundi may then reside in the role played by demobilised soldiers within the political arena during the campaigning process.
Policy-wise, our research urges for a democratisation process to be tailor-made on the basis of a country's specific political and historical contexts. Elections, even if combined with demobilisation programmes, are not sufficient for establishing sustainable peace in post-conflict societies like Burundi. Policies facilitating the transition from rebellion to political competition, within a sounder institutional framework, should be enhanced.
Burundi's 2015 elections are fast approaching and the incumbent president does not seem to be willing to conform to the constitutional requirement of ceding the term of office (BBC news). Burundi's internal stability will thus be challenged, once again.
This entry was posted in Institutions and Growth and tagged Burundi, civil war, Conflict, Development, Electoral violence, Institutions, rebellion. Bookmark the permalink.
One Response to From rebellion to electoral violence
John Murphy says:
How has greater access to information, such as Internet access affected the likelihood of electoral misconduct? Does the lack of access to electric power contribute also?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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TLFG: 29 August - 3 September 2017
Greetings one and all and welcome back to a TLFG that's firing on all cylinders again.
My apologies for not getting the time to write a full blog last week as I was just too busy. I was particularly disappointed as there were so many great games to tell you about and I doubt the match maps were enough to highlight what a great selection there were. I hope you had a good time anyway.
Subscribe to The London Football Guide
On Bank Holiday Monday it was possible to take in three games - I know some of you made it to two but did anyone get the hat-trick?
The week ahead sees the first international break of the season which means there are no Premier League or Championship games. Unusually all our local League One and Two sides are playing away too and England haven't got their World Cup qualifier until next week.
The most high profile match of the week will be this charity game at QPR
Which means, that aside from an unappealing midweek EFL Trophy game, the biggest football event of the week in London will be the 'Game 4 Grenfell' at Loftus Road.
Most readers will remember the terrible events of the Grenfell Tower fire back in June and how it affected many people in west London including myself as it stands exactly a mile from where I live. My wife has become involved with things since then and gave a speech in the aftermath in the shadow of what's left of the building.
QPR are the local club and swung into action immediately co-ordinating collections and all other kinds of welfare activities in the days and weeks since the tragedy.
On Saturday, two teams of ex-pros and celebrities managed by Les Ferdinand and Alan Shearer will do their bit to raise funds for the survivors and hopefully provide some good entertainment for the crowd too.
There's also set to be some other non-football entertainment with former Girls Aloud star 'Cheryl' making her big comeback after maternity leave - gasp!
Personally I'm not usually a fan of celebrity or even legends matches but given this is on my doorstep and for a cause I strongly support, I'll probably get down there.
If I don't then it will be all about the FA Cup as the competition reaches the first qualifying round stage on Saturday. It starts to get quite serious at this point with clubs from the seventh tier like my beloved Harrow Borough entering the fray. They made it all the way to the First Round proper and a glorious thrashing at the hands of League One side Northampton Town last year - somehow I doubt that will be repeated as they've landed a stinker of a trip to Enfield Town who will be incredibly tough to beat.
There's now less than six weeks to go until this year's Non-League Day
It's also worth noting that our local sides have all got off to a flyer in the National League, currently filling five of the top eight spots. The top three are all at home on Saturday so that might be something to investigate too.
Whatever you do, don't think for one moment that because the Premier League is having a few days off that there 'is no football on' which I hear all too often. Go out and explore the lower leagues, you might find a club on your doorstep you never knew existed and they're actually much better than you could possibly have imagined.
All of which leads me to my final point which is that Non-League Day is now just over a month away. One of the reasons I have been so busy of late is my preparations for it.
With meetings at organisations like Kick It Out, Prostate Cancer UK and the Premier League - it's been a hectic few weeks.
This year's event is on Saturday 7 October during the next international break so if you can't check out a non-league game this weekend, please try and get to one then.
Anyway, that's it from me - have a great week and keep me updated on which matches you get to.
There are over 60 matches in the London area over the next seven days as the Premier League and EFL take a break.
The main action takes place in the National League and there are also a number of FA Cup ties, plus some matches in the ninth and 10th tiers.
As always, please make sure you check with clubs before you travel just in case a game has been called off or venue has been changed. Also, please let me know if anything is wrong or missing.
Details on all of this week's games can be found on the following match maps. If you've never used them before, please note that when there is more than one match at a specific ground you'll only be able to see individual match pins if you zoom right in. If you don't, the pins obscure each other and you might miss them. To avoid this, you can also scroll down the list of games on the drop down menu at the top of the map page to make sure you get all the information. Games are listed from top to bottom in date order so Monday's games (yellow pin) will appear first and Sunday's (orange pin) last. Games are also ranked in terms of status so the higher the division, the higher up the list they will appear on each day.
The Non-League Club Directory is back for 2017-2018
It should also be noted that the top four levels are for fully professional teams. Level 5 has a mixture of professional and semi-professional teams, while Levels 6-10 will see most players paid but it will vary from no more than travel expenses at the bottom, right up to several hundred pounds a week at the top.
Tuesday fixtures - green pin
Wednesday fixtures - magenta pin
Saturday fixtures - blue pin
Sunday fixtures - orange pin
Tuesday 29 August
Barnet v AFC Wimbledon @8pm - the only match in London this week between two sides from 'the 92' is this one in the much maligned EFL Trophy. This competition used to be purely for clubs in League One and League Two but from last season it was decided to include a few U23 sides from the Premier League and Championship too. The move was rejected by fans of most clubs with absolutely abysmal attendances as a result. Some clubs, especially AFC Wimbledon, have been particularly clear about their distaste for the changes and actively discourage fans not to attend games, particularly ones against academy sides. Although this is a far more genuine tie and a derby, don't expect much of a crowd. Tickets are £10 if you do decide to go
If you want to see a more traditional way of developing young players then there are three games across the city during the course of the day. Not only this but the home clubs are all using their main stadiums rather than training grounds. Crystal Palace (1pm), Millwall (2pm) and Watford (7pm) are all throwing their doors open so you could quite easily see a couple of matches on Tuesday. Please make sure you double check the venue and kick-off time before you travel as these can change at quite short notice for games at this level
Combined Counties League Premier Division
Hanworth Villa v Colliers Wood United @730pm - two of the top six meet at Rectory Meadow on Tuesday. Bar one season, Hanworth seem to have been permanently stationed in the CCL's top five ever since I started this blog. A solid side who enjoy the odd good cup run, they finished third under former Fulham and QPR player Rufus Brevett last term. The visitors haven't been as impressive in recent years but have started well this time and should be capable of at least a draw
West Essex v Basildon United @745pm - the hosts only made their debut at this level last season and have begun this campaign with three wins and a draw to sit fourth in the table. Basildon have won all four of their games and arrive knowing a win could bring them level on points with leaders Takeley
Wednesday 30 August
Sporting Bengal United v Sawbridgeworth Town @745pm - there's not a huge amount on Wednesday but conceivably, at the time of writing, the hosts could make it into the top five with a win here
Saturday 2 September
Game 4 Grenfell @3pm
The most high profile game of the week will take place at QPR's Loftus Road Stadium where two teams of ex-pros and celebrities will do their bit to entertain the crowd and raise money for the survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire which which took place back in June less than a mile from the ground. Tickets are £15 for adults and £5 concessions
Dagenham & Redbridge v Gateshead @3pm - the Daggers have got off to a good start and lie second after seven games. The Tynesiders have begun well too and are just two points behind in sixth
Leyton Orient v Guiseley @3pm - the O's have responded pretty well to relegation from the EFL and are locked on level points with east London rivals Dagenham in third. Guiseley miraculously escaped relegation last season and are struggling again
Sutton United v Maidenhead United @3pm - all of London's National League sides have made a great start and currently fill five of the top eight spots. However, it's Sutton who currently lead the way after going unbeaten in their first seven matches. Maidenhead have just come up from the NLS and in Dave Tarpey they have one of the hottest striking talents in non-league football spearheading their attack (Update: Dave Tarpey signed for Barnet on transfer deadline day)
Hampton & Richmond Borough v Dartford @3pm - after reaching the play-offs last season, both sides will probably be a little disappointed with how they've begun this time around. Although the Darts are in the top six again, they're already six points behind the leaders who they would've expected to challenge. It's worse for the hosts though who have only won twice so far and a bad set of results on Saturday could see them drop into the relegation zone or be left just above it
FA Cup First Qualifying Round - at this stage the surviving clubs from the eighth, ninth and 10th tiers are joined in the draw by all the clubs from the seventh tier. The winners of each tie receive £3,000 in prize money.
Enfield Town v Harrow Borough @3pm - the cup draw has thrown up some great derbies and other interesting ties with this one of great personal interest to me. After being reprieved from relegation over the summer, Harrow have come flying out of the blocks and were top of the Bostik League with maximum points after four games. Sadly that run came to a spectacular end on Monday when they lost at local rivals Hendon 6-0. The Towners are a bigger club than Harrow and are usually among the play-off contenders and although they are four points behind in the league, they're starting to warm up with two wins on the trot and should start as favorites
Hendon v Wingate & Finchley @3pm - elsewhere in north London we have this derby. Not only do these sides come from neighbouring areas but they're also currently fifth and sixth in the Bostik League. As we've already heard, Hendon thrashed Harrow on Monday while Wingate went to Staines and won 5-0 - impressive form from both
Haringey Borough v Hitchin Town @3pm - if you're looking for a potential cupset then Coles Park on White Hart Lane could be the place to be. Haringey came close to promotion last season and are up in the top four of the Bostik North again. Hitchin play a level above in the Evo-Stik Southern Premier and made the play-offs as well but they haven't started brilliantly and could be vulnerable
Clapton v Needham Market @3pm - if the Clapton Ultras end their boycott of matches at the Old Spotted Dog then this could be a great game to go to. Having seen off Norwich United in the last round, the East End club face a Needham Market side who've been far from their best in the Bostik Premier and could be there for the taking
Banstead Athletic v Glebe @3pm - two of our lowest ranked teams that are left in the competition do battle at Merland Rise. Both enjoyed promotions last season but they've found the step up in their respective leagues pretty tough going so this cup match should be a good distraction and will guarantee a ninth-tier team in the next round
Balham v Bedfont Sports @3pm - after only joining the CCL last season, Balham got promoted at the first attempt and have made a steady start at the higer level. The visitors are unbeaten in five and could go top with a win
Wembley v Oxhey Jets @3pm - these two have both made solid starts and come into the game in the top seven. A win for Oxhey could send them to the top
Sunday 3 September
FA Cup First Qualifying Round
Romford v AFC Hornchurch @3pm - round off your week with a trip to Thurrock for this Essex derby in the FA Cup.With the Urchins living up to their billing as favorites to win the Bostik North, local rivals Romford are averaging a point a game and are down in 17th. The visitors should start as clear favourites but this is the FA Cup and it could be anyone's - a potential cracker
If you're going to see a game, whether you're a local or a visitor, please let me know what you've been up to. If you're interested in reviewing a ground in the London area for this blog then get in touch. I also very much welcome photos of your football travels.
Got any questions about visiting London? Don't hesitate to ask - be they football or more general travel/touristy queries. I do not charge for this advice like some other sites so don't hold back!
Posted by James Doe at 00:37 0 comments
TLFG: 21-28 August 2017
This week, with the Bank Holiday at the end, is one of the biggest in the football calendar and is literally bursting with matches.
Sadly I'm completely out of time and I've only been able to put the match maps together.
On the Bank Holiday itself, there are derbies galore and it's possible to see three games in the day thanks to 1130am kick-offs in the Combined Counties League, loads of others at 3pm and a 745pm match at Barkingside.
Railway improvement work could have a serious impact on your journey to football this month
I will try and flesh things out a bit more over the next day or two but in the meantime have a good look through the maps and I'm sorry I couldn't do more. Today alone I've had to squeeze in this, a seven-mile run, it's my wedding anniversary and I'm off to work shortly until getting on for 1am.
There are well over 100 matches in the London area over the next seven days with all our major football leagues in action.
There are also some FA Cup ties, some of which are yet to be confirmed so check back as the week progresses.
Monday fixtures - yellow pin
Friday fixtures - black pin
Bank Holiday Monday fixtures - grey pin
Well I think that's it - everyone is finally underway.
The Premier League, EFL, National League, the FA Cup and all the other leagues TLFG covers have all seen their first games played.
The opening weekend of the Premier League saw some truly sensational games with Arsenal pipping Leicester 4-3, Watford coming from behind to controversially draw 3-3 with Liverpool and, most notably, champions Chelsea losing 3-2 at home to Burnley.
In last week's piece I said the Clarets could make it tough for Chelsea but I didn't realise just how tough!
Elsewhere, Spurs started well with a win at Newcastle while there were disappointingly comfortable defeats for Crystal Palace and West Ham.
I'm pleased to report that the two sides I follow had good weeks.
QPR followed up their impressive win over Reading with a 1-0 EFL Cup victory over Northampton and a 1-1 draw against a highly rated Sheffield Wednesday side at Hillsborough.
Whilst Harrow Borough, who were reprieved from relegation by problems at Worcester City, began their Bostik League campaign with a 2-1 win over Harlow Town.
Sadly I missed out on experiencing these fine performances as I had booked tickets months ago to spend the day at the London Stadium watching the World Athletics Championships instead.
Despite football being my passion, I haven't played it for years and actually spend the rest of my spare time running.
Whether it's a Saturday morning parkrun, a track session at my local club, running a half marathon or just pounding the streets to keep off the calories - it keeps me busy.
I'm actually a registered amateur athlete with England Athletics so going to the World Championships was something I was always likely to do.
Having been operational for five years, it was still only my first visit to the stadium and I was interested to see what it was like and why West Ham's fans hated it so much.
It was effectively sold out on Saturday morning and the atmosphere was pretty decent as the British women charged round the track in 4x100m relay. The sightlines from where I was sat in the upper tier were also good so I was a bit surprised that it was so unpopular. However, football is very different to athletics and the track does get in the way and for fans used to the closeness of Upton Park it must be very hard to get used to. I'll just have to make another visit to see for myself.
Thousands turn out for the World Athletics Championships at the London Stadium
In other news, Spurs put their second home game of the season against Burnley on general sale earlier this week.
I put a post about it on TLFG's Facebook page and it received huge interest.
Given the vastness of Wembley, I would think every game will go to general sale this season. Even the Chelsea game on Sunday has some availability provided you registered with the club before 1 July.
With most of my Saturdays taken up with work and many tickets available for only £20, I could well find myself at Wembley for the odd Sunday game over the next few months.
There are over 100 matches in the London area over the next seven days with all our major football leagues in action.
Coming out on Wednesday, the Non-League Club Directory is back for 2017-2018
Monday 14 August*
Wealdstone v Havant & Waterlooville @745pm - the Stones narrowly missed out on a play-off place last season and on Monday they welcome the newly promoted Hawks who won the Ryman League title back in April
Bostik League North Division
Haringey Borough v Barking @745pm - the hosts did really well to make the play-offs last season and got the new season off to a great start on Saturday with a win at Norwich United. Barking came into this campaign as Essex Senior League champions but came unstuck at home to Waltham Abbey in their first game
Bostik League South Division
Carshalton Athletic v Hastings United @745pm - the Robins were just pipped to a play-off place by Hastings last season so there's a little bit of unfinished business here
Barkingside v West Essex @745pm - it might be early days in the ESL but this is a top-six clash and a win for either will see them go at least joint top
Sporting Club Thamesmead v FC Elmstead @745pm - like the game above, this is also a top-six clash that will put the winner top
*There are also a number of U23 games in the Professional Development League but, at the time of writing, all are taking place at club training grounds so it is unclear whether the public will be admitted
Brentford v Bristol City @745pm - the Bees have got off to a shaky start with defeats in their first two league games. However, they are unbeaten in six against the Robins so that run could end
Millwall v Ipswich Town @745pm - the Lions picked up their first point of the season against Bolton on Saturday. The Tractor Boys are next up and although suffering some very poor results in pre-season have won their first two and are looking good
Bromley v Leyton Orient @745pm - we've got a derby to look forward to at Hayes Lane of Tuesday as the Lilywhites welcome the recently relegated O's. After losing at Sutton on the opening day, Leyton Orient have won their next two while unbeaten Bromley are only a point behind
Dagenham & Redbridge v Ebbsfleet United @745pm - there's also a big game with a derby feel to it north of the river where two of the favourites for promotion go head-to-head at Victoria Road
Bostik League Premier Division
Hendon v Enfield Town @745pm - there's a north London derby at Silver Jubilee Park on Tuesday. Neither team made a great start on Saturday so they'll both be going after their first win
Corinthian Casuals v Greenwich Borough @745pm - both these sides made the play-offs last season where CC's beat big-spending Greenwich 4-3 in south-east London in the semis. Boro will no doubt want to get some early revenge
FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round Replays
Erith Town v Rochester United @745pm - after drawing 1-1 at Rochester with 10 men, the initial replay was postponed so now they have to try again with the winners travelling to Whyteleafe in the next round
Waltham Forest v FC Romania @745pm - inclement weather also delayed this replay. The visitors are among the favourites to win the Essex Senior League this season and have already won all three games played, scoring 13 in the process
Grays Athletic v AFC Hornchurch @745pm - Grays play their first competitive game at Parkside, the new ground they share with Aveley. Title contenders and Essex neighbours Hornchurch provide the opposition
Hackney Wick v Sporting Bengal United @745pm - it's a case of Hackney versus Tower Hamlets in Newham on Wednesday with this East End derby at Clapton's ground
Combined Counties League Division 1
FC Deportivo Galicia v Kensington Borough @745pm - two recent graduates of the Middlesex County League are now both in the CCL1 and groundsharing at the two Bedfont clubs which means they play right next to each other next to Heathrow airport, sadly nowhere near where either of them come from
Spartan South Midlands League Division 1
Southall v Hatfield Town @745pm - having finally been signed off by all the relevant authorities, Southall begin life at the brand new SkyEx Stadium which they share with Hayes & Yeading United. UPDATE (15/08/17): Match moved to Hillingdon Borough
Friday 18 August
Chelsea v Derby County @705pm - the Blues' U23 side play the first home game of their PL2 campaign at Stamford Bridge. At just £5 for adults, matches like this provide a great opportunity to see a game at one of the city's top stadiums at a fraction of the normal cost. However, tickets must be bought by 4pm on the day of the game - you will not be able to pay on the gate
FA Cup Preliminary Round
AC London v Egham Town @745pm - the hosts have created a lot of headlines over the last couple of weeks. Set up following the London riots of 2011 by a teenager, AC London are not only now a well established semi-pro club but they are also in the FA Cup for the first time. After a fixture clash with Whyteleafe, who they groundshare with, they had to forfeit home advantage in the opening round but still beat Crawley Down Gatwick. Next up they take on the Sarnies who play two levels above them and made the Evo-Stik League Division 1 Central play-offs last season - it will be quite some achievement if they win again
Saturday 19 August
Fulham v Sheffield Wednesday @3pm - strangely there's no Premier League football in London on Saturday so this represents your next best option. Both these sides made the play-offs last season but came unstuck at the semi-final stage and will want to do well again
Queens Park Rangers v Hull City @3pm - QPR came perilously close to relegation to League One last season but managed to stay up and have started this season much better than expected. Hull fought hard but lost their place in the Premier League back in May and are expected to do well
Charlton Athletic v Northampton Town @3pm - the only other EFL game in the capital on Saturday is this one at The Valley. The Addicks will start as favourites especially when you consider the Cobblers have only managed two wins over them since 1964!
Boreham Wood v Aldershot Town @3pm - the Wood have started well enough but not as well as the Shots who have won their opening three and are already two points clear at the top. That could change following midweek results but if they do win again, then they could be well worth a watch
Bromley v Hartlepool United @3pm - it's a huge week for Bromley who host recently relegated former EFL stalwarts Leyton Orient and Hartlepool in back-to-back games. Whereas the O's have started well, the club from County Durham are winless and down in 20th place
Wealdstone v Chelmsford City @3pm - the Stones start the week against the Ryman League champions and end it against one of the favourites for the NLS title. Chelmsford are living up to their billing so far with a 100% record from their first three games
Dulwich Hamlet v Billericay Town @3pm - the standout game of the week in the Bostik League sees the two pre-season favourites meet at Champion Hill. If you've somehow missed it, Dulwich have become the biggest club in the league in terms of support (averaging 1,317 last season) as good marketing and community engagement has seen them grown rapidly in recent years. However, in recent months Billericay have been taken over by a rich benefactor who is rumoured to be spending over £30,000 a week on wages for the likes of former Premier League players Paul Konchesky, Jamie O'Hara and Jermaine Pennant. Despite the two clubs' strong squads, neither managed a win on the opening day with Billericay somehow contriving to lose at home to Kingstonian who are without a ground of their own after leaving Kingsmeadow in April
FA Cup Preliminary Round - at this stage of the competition, clubs from the eighth tier join the draw alongside the sides from the ninth and tenth tier who survived the opening round. Winners of each tie receive £1,925 prize money. Listed below are a few of the many ties taking place in London this weekend
AFC Hornchurch v Brentwood Town @3pm - the Urchins welcome Brentwood for an Essex derby between two Bostik League North sides
Chertsey Town v Horsham @3pm - the Curfews welcome Bostik League Horsham to Alwyns Lane as they look to cause an upset
Clapton v Norwich United @3pm - there's a similar ninth versus eighth tier game at the Old Spotted Dog where a great atmosphere could usually be guaranteed. However, the club's ultras began another boycott on Saturday and without them, the ground is usually close to empty. Check their Twitter feed during the week to see whether or not they'll be back
Colliers Wood United v Shoreham @3pm - the Wood welcome the Southern Combination champions to the Wibbandune for what should be a testing tie
Croydon v Faversham Town @3pm - the Trams face a tough game against Bostik League Faversham who top the South Division at the time of writing
Sunday 20 August
Tottenham Hotspur v Chelsea @4pm - Spurs begin life at Wembley Stadium with this humdinger of a derby against the Blues. These two finished second and first in the Premier League last season but it was Spurs who made a much better start this weekend, winning 2-0 at Newcastle while Chelsea lost 3-2 at home to Burnley. Tickets are still on 'restricted general sale' for this match - which means you can get a ticket if you had registered with Tottenham before the 1 July
Cray Wanderers v Sevenoaks Town @3pm - thanks to several local sides groundsharing, there are three further FA Cup ties on Sunday. Bostik League side Cray, who play at Bromley's ground, welcome SCEFL side Sevenoaks and should therefore start as favourites
Erith & Belvedere v Cray Valley PM @3pm - there's a south-east London derby at Park View Road where the recently relegated hosts will look to claim the scalp of their higher ranked neighbours
Southall v Hadley @3pm - west Londoners Southall play only their second game at the newly opened SkyEx Community Stadium and face Hadley from the division above (UPDATE: 18/08/17 - Match moved to Saturday 19 August, 3pm at Hillingdon Borough)
TLFG: 7-13 August 2017
It's nearly here. The final countdown has begun - by the end of the week, the football season will be fully underway at every level which TLFG covers.
The weekend just gone saw the EFL and FA Cup get going. This week sees the Premier League, Premier League 2, and sides in the seventh and eighth tiers finally join the party.
Once again I've missed out on seeing live football but this week it was a conscious choice - it was either go to a game or write this blog. Such is my devotion to you, dear readers, that I opted for the latter.
It was a tough decision as QPR gave one of their best performances for a while against a highly rated Reading side. Two Conor Washington goals got the crowd roaring within earshot of my flat and saw off Jaap Stam's side with relative ease as a high energy pressing game won the day for the hosts.
I also passed up the chance to join German TLFG reader Christoph for the Tottenham game against Juventus at Wembley which kicked off at 530pm - but then so did most people as only 26,251 turned up for a game which, although attractive, was significantly overpriced when it first went on sale.
In fact, the last two Non-League Finals Days drew significantly higher crowds to Wembley which is a little bit of a worry - I'm sure it will be a different story when Chelsea head there for Spurs' first home game later this month. Although, it should be noted that the Blues have only been given 3,000 tickets!
In other news, the capital is currently playing host to the World Athletics Championships over at the London Stadium. I've not been to see a West Ham game there yet but I do have tickets for the athletics on Saturday so will have to see what it's like.
Also this week, I'd like to draw your attention to the huge engineering project which has begun at Waterloo station over the weekend. From now until 28 August, roughly half of the UK's busiest station will be closed meaning a huge reduction in trains and the temporary closure of some suburban stations.
This will definitely affect people going to watch AFC Wimbledon as Norbiton station will be closed throughout the works. Brentford and fans travelling to Fulham via Putney might notice a difference too.
At non-league level many sides will be affected with Corinthian Casuals and Chessington & Hook United seeing the branch line they both play on closed.
If you're heading out of London - Bournemouth, Portsmouth and Southampton are the league clubs most likely to be affected whilst trips to Aldershot Town, Eastleigh and Woking could be difficult too.
Things are likely to be worse for midweek games as more people are likely to be travelling so please make sure you plan ahead and use an alternative transport option where possible.
There are over 80 matches in and around the London area over the next seven days with all our major football leagues in action.
There are also some EFL Cup games and FA Cup replays, some of which are yet to be confirmed so check back as the week progresses.
Now in it's 131st year, the Nationwide Football Annual is back for 2017-2018
Monday 7 August
FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round Replay
Tower Hamlets v FC Broxbourne Borough @745pm - get your week underway with some cup football in Mile End. These two fought out a 1-1 draw in the original tie on Saturday
Barking v Clapton @745pm - two east London neighbours play a match in honour of teenage Barking player Joshua Bwalya who was murdered last Tuesday by a masked gang
Tuesday 8 August
EFL Cup First Round
AFC Wimbledon v Brentford @745pm - probably the match of the round from a London perspective is this derby at Kingsmeadow. If you do fancy going, please be aware that because of engineering work Norbiton station, which serves the ground, is closed and trains to Kingston will take longer than usual and could be heavily overcrowded so leave in good time
Millwall v Stevenage @745pm - with Stevenage coming from just outside London, the Lions effectively have a derby to look forward to as well
Queens Park Rangers v Northampton Town @745pm - QPR's record in the early rounds of this competition over recent years has been pretty poor and the Cobblers could well win if the hosts make a lot of changes
Boreham Wood v Dagenham & Redbridge @745pm - the Wood picked up a very useful point at AFC Fylde on the opening day of the season and next welcome title contenders and local rivals Dagenham. The Daggers started their campaign with a 2-1 win over Barrow
Leyton Orient v Solihull Moors @745pm - the O's began life among the non-league ranks with a disappointing 2-0 reverse at Sutton on Saturday. The bright spot from my point of view was the enormous 3,000+ crowd which turned out to watch it. The east London club will hope to get back on track against Solihull whose first game was postponed following safety concerns over their stadium
Welling United v Chelmsford City @745pm - the pick of the games in this division, the Wings welcome the bookies' title favourites Chelmsford to Park View Road. Welling travelled all the way down to Truro on Saturday only to lose 3-2 while City flexed their muscles with a 2-0 win over Gloucester
Hampton & Richmond Borough v Oxford City @745pm - in the night's other game, Hampton and Richmond go after their first win of the season as they look to at least make the play-offs again. This could also be affected by the railway works with trains to Hampton likely to be busy
CB Hounslow United v Rusthall @745pm - the hosts play the first FA Cup match at their new stadium near Heathrow - be part of it!
Wadham Lodge v Framlingham Town @745pm - the hosts failed to beat FA Cup debutants Framlingham on Saturday despite having an extra man for the final 30 minutes
Meridian VP v Bridon Ropes @745pm - way down in the 10th tier we've got a groundshare derby to enjoy. These two play a stone's throw from The Valley down in south-east London
Pre-season friendlies
AFC Hornchurch v West Ham United XI @730pm - with the Bostik League yet to get started, the Urchins have arranged a warm-up against a Hammers' development side
Thurrock v Colchester United U23 @745pm - the other notable friendly of the night takes place a short drive to the south where newly promoted Thurrock complete their preparations before returning to seventh-tier football
Wednesday 9 August
Erith Town v Rochester United @745pm - after fighting out a 1-1 draw on Saturday, Erith welcome SCEFL rivals Rochester to Oakwood
Waltham Forest v FC Romania @745pm - a last-minute goal saw Forest earn a replay against their Essex Senior League rivals on Saturday
Arsenal v Leicester City @745pm - the new Premier League season kicks-off on Friday night with this match at the Emirates between the FA Cup holders and the 2015/16 Premier League winners. The Gunners have been inconsistent in pre-season but ended it on Sunday by beating Chelsea on penalties to claim the FA Community Shield for the 15th time. The Foxes never came close to retaining their title last season and have only won two of their seven friendlies this summer but they'll probably be fired up for this one
Fulham v Middlesbrough @2pm - with tickets for the Arsenal match above almost impossible to get without membership or a lot of money, you could enjoy a PL2 double instead. If you don't know, this competition features the best U23 sides in the country in a league format. On Friday, you can start the day at Fulham's Motspur Park training ground for this one and then make your way, train disruption permitting, over to east London for...
West Ham United v Everton @7pm - the Hammers' youngsters entertain their counterparts from Goodison Park at Dagenham & Redbridge's ground in what looks like a fine game on paper
Chelsea v Burnley @3pm - the Blues begin the defence of their title with what should be a comfortable enough home win. However, the Clarets have proved to be a bit of a thorn in Chelsea's side in recent years, drawing two of the four games the sides have played since 2015
Watford v Liverpool @1230pm - earlier in the day, the Hornets face a tough opener against Jurgen Klopp's Reds. New boss Marco Silva takes charge of his first competitive game at Vicarage Road but with only two wins in 10 against the Anfield club, he knows it will be an achievement to get anything
Crystal Palace v Huddersfield Town @3pm - in the day's other top-flight game, the Eagles face a visit from Premier League new boys Huddersfield. The Terriers haven't played at the top level since the '70s so will want to make the most of the experience
Brentford v Nottingham Forest @3pm - the Bees narrowly lost at promoted Sheffield United on Saturday and will hope to pick up their first points against Forest who saw off Millwall in another closely contested game on Friday
Millwall v Bolton Wanderers @3pm - the Lions' first home game back in the Championship is against a side who they came up with. The Trotters enjoyed a ding-dong battle with Leeds on Sunday but ultimately lost 3-2
AFC Wimbledon v Shrewsbury Town @3pm - neither side are expected to pull up many trees this season but both will hope to comfortably avoid the drop. The Dons picked up an impressive point at Scunthorpe while the Shrews saw off Northampton on a decent opening day for both
Barnet v Luton Town @3pm - effectively a derby, this game has become even more interesting after looking at Saturday's results. The Bees did really well to come back from 2-0 down to draw at big spending Forest Green while the Hatters showed why they're being tipped to win the division by thrashing Yeovil 8-2!
Leyton Orient v Maidstone United @3pm - two of the best supported clubs in this division meet at Brisbane Road on Saturday for what is also pretty much a derby. The last time they played was way back in 1990 when the Stones were enjoying their brief stint in the Football League. They met in the League Cup over two legs and the O's won 6-3 on aggregate
Dulwich Hamlet v Staines Town @3pm - nothing really stands out in the National League South so the focus next moves to the seventh tier where the Hamlet start the season in the newly named Bostik League as title favourites. After several years of falling short in the play-offs, the pressure is really on boss Gavin Rose to deliver. However, huge investment at Billericay which has brought the likes of Paul Konchesky, Jamie O'Hara and Jermaine Pennant to the Essex club should ensure they don't have it all their own way
AFC Hornchurch v Soham Town Rangers @3pm - in the division below Dulwich, the Urchins are set to spearhead the Greater London area challenge for the North Division title. Soham aren't fancied to do much so really must be beaten
Aveley v Bowers & Pitsea @3pm - its's a huge day for the Millers who play the first competitive game at their impressive new Parkside stadium. Fellow Essex club B&P make the short trip from Basildon to help them mark the occasion
Greenwich Borough v Whyteleafe @3pm - in the parallel South Division, Boro are tipped to be champions. Having spent a tidy sum on players since new owners took over, they will be expecting promotion after falling just short last season
Evo-Stik League Division 1 East
Hayes & Yeading United v Aylesbury @3pm - after suffering another very disappointing relegation, former fifth-tier side H&YU will be starting life at level eight for the first time I can remember. Hopefully they'll be able to play this game at their new stadium but it keeps failing safety inspections so this game could well get moved to somewhere else
Hadley v Harpenden Town @3pm - I've picked this one as if Saturday's results are anything to go by, this could produce a cricket score. Hadley won 9-1 at Langford in the FA Cup while Harpenden got stuffed 5-1 at Southall who play in the division below! It could be a long afternoon for the visitors - it'll probably finish goalless now


74643 Jalandhar Amritsar Dmu train from Jalandhar to Amritsar runs on daily basis, covering 79 kms in 1 hour & 50 minutes, running at a speed of 52.09 km/hr, making 10 stoppages of 19 minutes in total.
Returning train number 74644. Jalandhar Amritsar Juc Asr Dmu commences from Amritsar Jn at 17:10 and reaches Jalandhar City at 19:00. It runs on daily.