MATCH PREVIEW: Chippenham Town vs Hornchurch | National League South | Saturday 26th April 2025

Harry Minton previews the final match of 2024/25

It is Chippenham’s final game of the 24/25 season, and we end it in front of our own supporters at the Thornbury Surfacing Stadium against Hornchurch!

Last time out

Last time out the Bluebird’s travelled to Somerset on Easter Monday in the A4 Derby to face Bath City. It was a real cagey first half with no real opportunities of note falling for either side. We sadly lost Alex Bray to a horrific injury in the first half, our number eleven had to be stretchered off. All best wishes go to Alex right now of course, hopefully we see him back in a Chippenham Town shirt very soon. Chippenham Town will provide news on Alex as and when we receive further information.

It was the Romans who had the first chance of the second half, the substitute Elliott Frear testing Will Henry into a good save from about twelve yards out. 

After that chance for the hosts though, it was the visitors who put all the pressure on Bath. A good opportunity fell for the Wiltshire outfit after good link up play between Tom Mehew and Caine Bradbury, the latter seeing his strike well saved by Harvey Wiles-Richards. 

Chippenham were really knocking on the door and this time it was a long throw-in that came into the box from Luke Haines. Matt McClure was the target but it was too far over his head, the ball came to Leone Gravata however who had a brilliant header towards goal. Unfortunately for Leone and Chippenham though, it was also brilliantly headed off the line by Alex Fisher for Bath City. The boys in blue were certainly coming closer to that elusive goal. 

Soon enough, Chippenham would have their breakthrough in the derby at Twerton Park. A lovely move between Bradbury, Gravata and Parsons as the latter finished off a very well worked counter-attack, we had caught the Romans napping and on a day where they hadn’t created much themselves, it looked we were on track to secure a massive derby victory away from home!

Former Bluebird Brad Ash tried to level the scoring against his former club after weaving past two Chippenham players, though a good stop from Henry prevented Ash from making it two goals against his former side this season. As he did score back in the reverse fixture at the Thornbury Surfacing Stadium. The Bluebirds held on for a huge three points. Victory at Twerton Park for the first time since December 2022 as Chippenham made it two wins from two over the Easter Weekend, backing up a 2-0 win at home against Weston-Super-Mare on Good Friday!

Our visitors, Hornchurch, also known as the Urchins, are deeply rooted in history and have had quite a few reformations of their team between when they were first founded to the present day. The first club was founded in October of 1881, and became one of the founding members of the Essex Football Association in 1882. In the 1882/1883 season, the Urchins entered the FA Cup for the first time, losing at home to Great Marlow by two goals to nil in the first round. However, sadly by the start of the 1885/1886 campaign, the club was already bankrupt with a debt of £22. The club ended up folding that season. 

It would take until 1923 for a new team to be created in the Hornchurch area, but this time the club was known by the name of Upminster Wanderers. Between the years of 1923-1959, the club fluctuated between leagues such as the Romford, Spartan and Delphian League. Eventually finishing runners up in the Delphian League in 1959, culminating in a first promotion to the Athenian League for the Urchins!

A quiet period entailed for the newly renamed Hornchurch as of 1961, though they did move from the Athenian League to the Isthmian League in 1975 which was a big step for the Urchins at the time. Hornchurch’s most memorable season to date was no doubt in 2003/2004. This is when they made the FA Cup first round proper for the first time since reforming. They knocked out third division side Darlington 2-0 before narrowly bowing out by a single goal to nil against Tranmere Rovers in the second round, who ended up making it all the way to the quarter finals that season before losing to eventual runners up Millwall 2-1 after a replay. It had another good story to it this season, as at the end of the Isthmian Premier Division campaign, Hornchurch finished in fifth and therefore qualified for the newly formed Conference South. 

The Urchins’ time in the sixth tier however did not last long at all, as financial issues were mounting off the pitch, once again another club folded at the end of the 2004/2005 season. 

Thankfully, it didn’t take as long this time for the club to be reformed, as they were formed again in 2005 and were placed in the Essex Senior League, three levels below the Conference South. 

A lot of hard work has been put into Hornchurch FC over the last twenty years and in recent times it has seen the club be rewarded. Fans will fondly look back on the 2020/2021 FA Trophy season, which started all the way back in the Third Qualifying round with a 3-1 win away at Bowers and Pitsea. They then defeated the likes of Wingate and Finchley, Tonbridge Angels, Dulwich Hamlet, King’s Lynn Town on penalties, Maidstone United in an enthralling 5-4 affair, Darlington and former FA Cup winners Notts County in the semi finals after a penalty shootout following a very entertaining 3-3 draw. The Urchins achieved this while being a seventh tier side, and they would meet 6th tier outfit Hereford in the final at Wembley. Luke Haines was in the Hereford side as was Tom Owen-Evans, and it was the latter who opened the scoring early on in front of 6,000 supporters at the home of English football. However, a late and spirited second half comeback from Hornchurch saw them score three goals in the last fifteen minutes of the game through Charlie Ruff, Liam Nash and Ellis Brown to win the Urchins’ first ever FA Trophy title. This was also the first time the FA Trophy was won by a seventh-tier side. Those Hornchurch players had created incredible history!

Little did the club know that they would produce even more history just a few years later. Last season, they had a fantastic campaign as they absolutely stormed to the Isthmian League Premier Division title, after a couple heart-breaking playoff seasons, this time Hornchurch were promoted to the National League South, finishing with bang on 100 points, a very good season indeed for the Urchins! And that is where Hornchurch of course currently play their football, and it’s certainly been a great first season in the sixth tier for them. They currently sit in tenth position which is brilliant, and the foundations are certainly there for Hornchurch to possibly kick on again next season and have another good year in the National League South.

Head to Head

Believe it or not this is the first time ever that this fixture will be played out in history at the Thornbury Surfacing Stadium. The only other time this has happened before was earlier on in the season back at the Hornchurch Stadium. A first half full of chances for both sides, with Bradbury and Gravata forcing great saves out of West Ham loanee Mason Terry in goal. Hornchurch also thundered a strike off the crossbar before taking the lead through Ryan Scott just after the half hour mark from a simple header from a set piece. 

The Bluebirds were back level right at the start of the second half though after Luke Spokes went on a marauding run from centre midfield before unleashing a beautiful strike that nestled in the bottom corner. Another great goal to add to Spokes’ collection of goals in a Chippenham shirt. 

The rest of that game Gary Horgan’s boys were well on top, but Terry had the game of his life making a countless number of brilliant stops. You really did start to wonder if it wasn’t to be Chippenham’s day, and they would have to settle for a point while being by far the better side over the course of the ninety minutes. That was until a corner was floated in by Gravata, and his cross found an unmarked Aaron Amadi-Holloway who had a simple tap-in to win all three points for our boys in blue. They had come from behind on a blustery December afternoon to win a game away in East London!

Key Player

The biggest threat to look out for from Hornchurch in this game is no doubt Darren McQueen. The forward player is the Urchins’ top scorer this season with thirteen league goals to his name and he also has a further three goals in all competitions as well. The Chippenham backline will definitely be hoping to keep him quiet on Saturday

History of the final day

The last time our Bluebirds won a home game on the final day was all the way back at the end of our first season in the sixth tier in 2017/2018. A 1-0 victory at the Thornbury Surfacing Stadium at the hands of Welling United thanks to Andy Sandell’s first half strike securing the victory. Mark Collier’s side also had to play the last fifteen minutes of that game with ten men after Jon Beeden was given his marching orders.

Get yourselves to Thornbury Surfacing Stadium for the 3pm kick off versus Hornchurch. It will be your last chance to see the Bluebirds in action until next season. We want a buoyant crowd for the final game of the season, with the end of season awards also being presented in the Bluebirds Bar from 6pm.

Hopefully we can end our season on a high. COME ON YOU BLUEBIRDS!!!