Tomorrow we welcome Peterborough Lions for their fourth visit to London Road for this Counties 2 Midlands East (South). This is the final league match before Christmas, and marks the half-way point in the season. Peterborough Lions are currently ninth in the league, having lost narrowly 27-30 at home to Northampton Casuals last weekend. Stockwood Park are six places and twenty-one points ahead of them, after winning 52-10 away to Huntingdon last Saturday . The clubs first met in September 2006, in Midlands 4 East (South), when Peterborough Lions won 15-14 at home. The clubs have met eleven times in all, with Stockwood Park winning seven, and Lions 4.
Since we first met, The Lions rose to level 4 in the national league, before discovering that you cannot buy loyalty, when almost the whole of their playing squad disappeared on the back of relegation. We should have played Peterborough Lions on one other occasion; in February 2008, Peterborough Lions were unable to raise a side to travel to London Road, and Stockwood Park was awarded a walk-over; under the rules at the time, there was no adjustment for either club in points for or against. At the end of the season Stockwood Park was left ruing that the seemingly innocuous walk-over against Peterborough Lions when we were relegated, having the same points difference as Long Buckby, but having scored fewer points than the Northamptonshire club over the course of the season.
Tomorrow is Sponsors’ Day at Stockwood Park’s, providing an opportunity to thank our sponsors for their generous support for the club. There will be a buffet available from 13.00, and I hope to see many of you at the Park. For those who cannot make it, I will take this opportunity to wish you a very happy Christmas, and look forward to seeing you in January. For those who can make it, I have been asked to let you know that it is also Christmas Jumper Day at the club, so please don your finest festive pullover for the afternoon.
Hopefully we will round off 2025 with another fine performance and another win.