ARSON AT FORD MEADOW

Picture courtesy of @Bucksfire

A fire broke out at the former home of Buckingham Town (which had stood empty and had gradually become derelict since The Robins moved out in 2011) yesterday evening at around 10pm. Around fifty firefighters tackled the blaze at the pavilion which has been confirmed as arson for which four people have been arrested earlier today by Thames Valley Police.

Ford Meadow was purchased by the University of Buckingham in 2013 who had plans to restore the football pitch and to provide new facilities for sports like basketball in other areas of the ground. 

Buckingham Town played at Winslow United's ground for the 2011/12 season before moving to Manor Fields in Milton Keynes at the beginning of the 2012/13 season. The Manor Fields ground was also being used by Bletchley Town up until the end of 2013 but The Gladiators have not been playing since.

They are currently in sixteenth place of the United Counties League Division One but have been on a long run without a league win stretching back to Saturday 25th October when they beat Bourne Town 1-0 at Manor Fields. Since then they have gained one point from a total of thirty-three on offer with a 2-2 draw at home to Irchester Town on Wednesday 10th December.

They have recently made eight new signings to freshen things up so a turn of fortune could be around the corner maybe? The signings include the dual registration of AFC Dunstable striker Jermaine Hall. They travel to Blackstones (15th place just above them) on Saturday and then host Woodford United (12th place) at home next Wednesday evening.

It's not been ideal for the The Robins playing 15 miles away from their spiritual home so hopefully they will get some luck soon. 

The other club in the town are Buckingham Athletic who play at Stratford Fields. They are members of the Spartan South Midlands League Division One and are currently in seventeenth place. They lost 8-1 at Bedford last Saturday and host London Lions this weekend.