Cheltenham Civil Service kicked off the new Cheltenham Football League season with a thumping 4-0 win over Tewkesbury Town in Division One, writes Rob Morrison.

With the two teams above them promoted to the Glos Northern Senior League last season, Service manager Steve Holend and his assistant Paul McCauley will be looking to be in contention for top spot come May.

They carried on where they had left off in midweek when they beat Tewkesbury in a cup game 3-0. This time Stu Midwinter grabbed a hat-trick, adding to his goal in midweek, and another from James Hall saw them run out 4-0 winners.

Dowty Dynamos claimed the Senior Charities Cup last season and missed out on taking the Division Two title on goal difference and on Saturday they opened their account against Bishop’s Cleeve III who started last season as one of the front-runners before fading after Christmas.

With both teams looking to get off to a positive start the 2-2 draw means an early point on the board.

Andoversford pipped Dowty to the Division Two title last season and played a familiar face on Saturday as they travelled to Whaddon Rec to face Kev Taylor’s Whaddon United.

Whaddon were just two points behind Andoversford last season and went into the game keen to show they will once again be competitive. At the full-time whistle Andoversfiord showed why they were champions last season, winning 5-1 to make an impressive return to the top division.

After a 6-0 defeat in the cup in midweek, Newton – another promoted team – bounced back well, beating RSG 1-0.

In the two remaining games in the division, Upton Town beat Shurdington Rovers 2-0 while Worcester Olympic drew 2-2 with Kings in their return to the Cheltenham League.

There were just three league matches in Division Three with FC Barometrics Reserves, relegated last season, hosting The Beeches, a familiar name to followers of the league but joining again this season after a number of years away.

An impressive run to the Charities Cup semi-final was the highlight of last season for Barometrics as their poor league form saw them relegated from the top division. Their poor league form continued as they went down 2-0.

Of the six teams in action, only Prestbury Rovers played in Division Two last season although a ninth-place finish is something they will be looking to improve on this term. They travelled to promoted Andoversford Reserves and came away with maximum points after a 2-0 win.

In the final game, Gala Wilton Reserves hosted Hanley Swan. The Worcester-based team were promoted last season and they went home with three points after a 3-2 win.

St Paul’s swept all before them last season, winning the treble in their inaugural season and boasting an unbeaten record since their formation, a record few if any teams in the country could match.

They were in the stand out game in Division Three which saw a replay of last season’s Minor Charities Cup final – on that occasion St Paul’s beat Cheltenham Civil Service III 2-0.

Both teams won their midweek cup matches and after putting seven past Charlton Rovers III, and with home advantage, St Paul’s would be going into the match high in confidence against a Service team that won their league last season under the stewardship of rookie manager Scott Edginton. Despite this, St Paul’s were unable to take maximum points after the teams shared four goals to take a point each.

After seeing their first team fold and withdraw from Division One during the close season, Leckhampton Rovers will be hoping their surviving team can start to make progress through the leagues. They hosted Dowty Dynamos Reserves and got off to a winning start, taking all three points following a 2-1 victory.

Windyridge Rovers were runners-up in Division Four last season and kicked-off their 2017-18 season by putting 10 past Cheltenham United in the cup on Wednesday night, including four goals from David Keylock.

They were looking to start their league campaign in similar style when they hosted Falcons Reserves and duly delivered with a 4-0 win.

Elsewhere AFC Renegades hosted Charlton Rovers III. Renegades scored an impressive 154 goals last season and pushed St Paul’s all the way. They showed they will be a force again this term after seeing off Rovers with a 4-0 win.

There was a full league programme in Division Four with two new teams making their Cheltenham League debuts.

Bishop’s Cleeve Development travelled to Malvern Vale Firsts looking to bounce back from a midweek 4-2 cup defeat. Unfortunately for them it was not to be as they were beaten 6-0 – not the introduction to league action that they were hoping for.

It was a happy weekend for Prestbury Rovers. With their first team winning in Division Two their reserves followed suit with a 2-0 win against Andoversford III.

Woodmancote United also went down 4-2 in the cup and they kicked off their league campaign at home to Smiths Athletic Reserves. They found their induction into the league just as tough, losing 6-2 to a team who are looking to bounce back from relegation last season.

There were also wins for Cheltenham Saracens III, 3-0 over Charlton Rovers III; Fintan Reserves who beat Malvern Vale Academy 2-1, and Gala Wilton III who beat Winchcombe Town Reserves 3-2.

The league suffered a further blow when in midweek Newlands Athletic withdrew before kicking a ball.

After struggling to fulfill fixtures at the end of last season, the team unfortunately called it a day during the week to leave Division Two one team short. Fixture secretary John Hunt had no sooner finished finalising the teams’ fixtures for the season when he was called into action again, much earlier than he would have expected or indeed wanted.