‘I don’t want to be seen squinnying, but at the moment there seems no end to it’ – Moneyfields continue to clock up the miles as they wait to return home
Moneyfields boss Glenn Turnbull has admitted a constant diet of away trips is taking its toll.
Due to the redevelopment of their former Dover Road ground, Moneys have been forced to play their first eight league and cup games of 2022/23 away from home.
That run includes three trips to the Salisbury area and midweek treks to the New Forest and Bournemouth. In all, Moneys have clocked up over 600 miles on the road in the first five weeks of the new season.
As it stands, the club’s next five fixtures are also away - starting with Tuesday’s Wessex Premier trip to the Isle of Wight to face Cowes Sports.
Moneys bid to avoid a fifth successive league and cup loss against a Cowes side fresh from a 7-2 weekend thrashing at Fareham Town.
Next Saturday Moneys travel down the M27 to face Stoneham before the longest trip of the league season, a 180-mile round trip to Portland United, on September 17.
The following weekend, Moneys start their FA Vase adventure with an 80-mile plus round trip to Whitchurch United.
In addition to playing away from Portsea Island, Moneys are also training off it too - they are currently at Bridgemary School in Gosport, their fourth training venue in a matter of months.
They have previously used two different University of Portsmouth venues and Leigh Park.
‘I don’t want to be seen squinnying, but at the moment there seems no end to it,’ declared Turnbull.
‘I can’t wait to sit down on a Saturday morning, watch Soccer AM with a cup of tea, and then wander over to the ground.
‘That feels a mile off at the moment.’
Last midweek, Turnbull wore his Moneys tracksuit to work so he could set off for New Milton in the Wessex League Cup early.
‘We left at 4, got back home at midnight. Then at Bemerton on Saturday we left at 11, got back at 7.30pm - you feel you’re just continuously on the go.
‘At the moment I’ve got two sets of kit in my house, Barto (coach Paul Barton) has bibs and cones and Joe Noakes (assistant manager) has three bags of balls. It would be unfair for one person to have everything at their house.
‘I don’t want to make excuses, and I know it’s first world problems and all that, but it’s just something you could do without.’
At present, Moneys’ first home game at the John Jenkins Stadium is scheduled to be the Portsea Island derby with US Portsmouth on Saturday, October 8.
Moneyfields’ reserves have only had one home Hampshire Premier League so far, and that was played at Petersfield School.
Portsmouth Women and Moneyfields Women will also use the JJS once the two artificial pitches are laid and the facilities declared open.
Those two teams are currently playing FA Women’s National League home fixtures at Hawks’ Westleigh Park and Baffins’ PMC Stadium respectively.