It's cup final time at Corinthian Casuals' ground in Tolworth this Sunday as Marble Hill take on AFC Pagliacco in the West Fulham League's Margaret Grey Cup final (11am).

This will be a fascinating Division One (Marble Hill FC) versus Division Two (AFC Pagliaccio) contest and should be a fast open game with hopefully plenty of goals.

Marble Hill has had a mixed season winning just 6 league games from 21 during the campaign.

By contrast FC Pagliaccio in their first season in the WFFL is currently third in Division Two with 8 wins and 3 draws from their 18 games.

 

Marble Hill FC was formed in 1979, has never won anything in the WFFL in that time however the “Marbles” feel that they can overcome the team from the lower league and pick up their first silverware.

AFC Pagliaccio was formed at the beginning of the 1999-2000 season and after several unremarkable seasons at the beginning of the 2007-08 season the club secured the sponsorship of “Il Pagliaccio Restaurant” on Wandsworth Bridge Road.

Having held their traditional end of season bash on Champions League night at the football friendly restaurant, the owner was convinced over a few too many shots of Limoncello to sponsor the side. This included the naming rights…and AFC Pagliaccio (a.k.a. Paggs) was born!

Paggs entered the West Fulham Football League Second Division in season 2008-09 and after a poor start, having made a few key additions to the squad turned their season around to mount a push for promotion and cup success. The peak was a comprehensive 4-1 defeat of higher league opposition in the semi-final.

The cup run was achieved in the face of unprecedented adversity as Paggs took to the field in Round 2 with only 9 men and ran out 4-1 winners and played for a half with 9 men at the quarterfinal stage to edge a nail biting game 4-3.

But be sure that Paggs will play with at least 11 men in today’s final.

As anyone who runs a Sunday League side will tell you there are always some interesting reasons as to why someone can't play, usually to pretend they aren't hung over!

But the Paggs boys don't do anything by halves and our highlights have to be Tom Byng's withdrawal due to a freak injury sustained during the perennial children's favourite 40/40 a couple of seasons back only to be outdone this season by Stef Kelly's Saturday night roller disco fiasco.

The team is drawn from across London and the Home Counties but also from further abroad with a strong Peruvian contingent of Armando Risi, Tony Matellini and Romeo Canseco who add a bit of South American exuberance to the basic Anglo-Saxon skills of the rest of the squad.

Indeed the sun never sets on the Paggs Empire thanks to the retro perma-headbanded Kiwi, Steve-O, last year's player of the season.

The day jobs of the players are just as varied with the squad featuring teachers, recruiters, doctors, lawyers, actors, property developers and actuaries and even a part-time rock star/ auditor/ treasurer, Chris Smith, whose band, “The Dodo Fightback” recently played at the famous 100 Club on Oxford St.

The Paggs squad is a true blend of youth and experience with many players in their early to mid twenties and others who are in their early-mid thirties.

Many of the senior players such as Simon Byng, Chris Smith, Tom Byng, Alex Sciannaca, Ben Roberton, Armando Risi, Max Camplin and Tom Quirk have been with the club for up to six or seven seasons and have now brought in some of younger players to do their running for them.

Sadly this has not worked out as planned as those in their thirties still end up doing the running for the young ones! Pre-season 2009-2010 starts on Monday.