Gornal’s hopes are hit in final Garden Walk outing

Eight hundred spectators attended Garden Walk, which Gornal have called home since 1950, as they lost 3-1 against Tipton Town.

Chairman Craig Coburn felt that it was a “fitting tribute” regardless of the result, as he shared his excitement for the future at their new stadium Burton Road, which is just one-mile down the road.

Coburn said: “Result aside, which was obviously unfortunate, the occasion itself was a really fitting tribute to Garden Walk.

“Having 800 people there and people who previously played for the club, or had been volunteers or ex-committee members.

“We had groundhoppers from all over the place, including from Bristol and even Holland.

“It was a perfect tribute to Garden Walk.

“There’s a lot of history at Garden Walk. We close one chapter and now we open another at Burton Road, which is an exciting time for the club to grow.”

Gornal hold a slender one-point lead at the West Midlands (Regional) League summit heading into their final fixture at Dudley Athletic.

Second-placed Pelsall Villa Colts boast a game in hand, as they close the season with back-to-back fixtures against Bustleholme.

“We head to Dudley Athletic needing to win to keep that title race alive,” Coburn continued.

“We’re neck and neck with Pelsall at the moment so it’s really tight at the top.

“The team have done fantastic to get this far so we’re proud of what they’ve achieved anyway.”