The Costa del Hounslow

November 2018

I have a soft spot for this one.

Technically it’s not great. The focus is on Scotty’s gleaming puffa jacket rather than the real star, Greg,’s grizzled razor cut. I could have done better job on the framing. Not exactly hi res, though I have an A4 print by my desk which seems fine to me.

But for me, This is the heart and soul of non league football.

The Balham boys (in maroon) are slogging out a match in a biblical downpour. They have just pinged a pass unerringly to the Hounslow #7. But this picture isn’t about them. It’s about the management and, particularly, Greg (Club founder, Chairman, Director of Football and First Team Manager).

They say there’s no such thing as bad weather - only inappropriate clothing. His clothing was always the same, rain or shine - and rarely appropriate to the weather. He doesn’t care about the rain. Indeed, he probably doesn’t notice it, except in so far as it affects play. He’s leaning forward on one leg; pointing to the pitch; totally absorbed.

This was his spare time for more than 20 years: evenings at training sessions or matches and weekends at matches. Over this time his club grew from a single U10s team to more than 20 teams covering all age groups. The First Team is now playing at level 9 of the 14 layer FA pyramid.

(Taken with an entry level Canon 1400D and a now sadly defunct EF 24-105mm lens. The lens was 2nd hand from London Street Cameras in Reading, where I had consoled myself on the way back from a bruising mediation session during my divorce. Crudely processed in Microsoft Photos.)