Scottish Double Header - Part 2 Dunfermline

After a busy & long day & night in Glasgow and Motherwell the day before we decided to meet in reception for 9.15am for our departure to Edinburgh on the Saturday morning. A decent nights sleep was had and all was going well, shower, packing and a quick bit of tv until the fire alarm went off in the hotel just before 9am. Confusion and extremely poor organisation had me standing at the back of the hotel waiting in the cold along with another 40 or so guests to be told what was happening. Within 5 minutes the fire brigade had arrived and another 5 minutes after this we were allowed back into the hotel...god only knows where the fire was or what had happened as no-one explained anything....oh well no real harm done.

We left the hotel and walked via Gregg's to Queen Street, bought the train tickets to Edinburgh and boarded the 9.45am for the 45 minute journey. Now as I said in Part 1, my plan was to head back from Edinburgh to Livingston for their game vs Greenock Morton while my companion was going to Tynecastle. I've never been to Livingston and I don't want to offend anyone locals but having mapped and then mapped Livingston again there seems to be nothing there apart from the football ground and an outlet centre..well and 2 Wetherspoon pubs that nearly lured me in. Being a new town and a new'ish ground I was really fighting my reasons for being stuck there when I managed to get wifi on the train and via BBC Sport found that Dunfermline Athletic were at home to Cowdenbeath. A local derby and only 30 mins on the train from Waverley to Dunfermline Town station....decision made I was now going to Dunfermline!

This meant I could have several hours in Edinburgh ticking off more pubs from Beer Guide. We disembarked at Haymarket and walked the 15 mins down Dalry Road to Tynecastle so Mick could get he's match ticket aswell as a programme for me. From here we went to Diggers as the first of the pubs in the guide and the nearest to Tynecastle. Being so close this place apparently gets absolutely packed to bursting on a match day so 11.15 am was a good call. Cracking pub with a really good range of memorabilia on the walls including that great image of Dave Mackay (Hearts legend) grabbing Billy Bremner by the throat during a Spurs-Leeds game in the 70s. Another pint of creamy Scottish ale was sunk and we headed off in search of the next pub.

This was Thomson's a small 1 bar pub on Morrison Street heading towards the castle. We arrived just before noon and had to wait until noon as it wasn't open for service until then. Another new pub and another new ale was ticked off. A very friendly bar maid who was expressing her disgust that her pub had been omitted from the 2013 version of the guide and they had not been informed, we humoured her as of course we didn't know why they were not in the new guide.

From here we walked in an almost straight line to the Blue Blazer on the corner of Bread Street & Spittal Street. This is a cracking little pub with some great ales on, I had a pint of  Eden Breweries Seggie Porter as it was the first dark beer I had seen that morning and it was superb, this is a pub that I will be coming back to.  By now I only had an hour before the 13.48 to Dunfermline so we headed towards Waverley and past the Bow Bar which we would come back to in the evening. Right by the station was the Doric Arch so we popped in for one. Despite not being in the guide the pub was pleasant enough but was very empty.

I walked down to Waverley and having arranged to meet Mick in the Halfway House just up the Flesh Market steps at around 17.40 I boarded the train for the 30 minute journey to Dunfermline Town station. A short walk across the park and through a lovely residential area brought me to the corner of the ground. East End Park sits slap bang on the main road to Cowdenbeath and looms above everything close to it and opposite houses.

The ticket office was in the corner of the ground between the main stand and the Norrie McCathie stand named after one of the Pars most famous players. £16.00 bought me a seat in the main stand. I went into the club shop to see if they had a fridge magnet as requested by Mick, they didn't but I did get a programme. Once inside the ground I was met with sight of 2 identical sides one behind each goal. The home end is already mentioned named after a Pars Legend. The away end had a smattering of Cowdenbeath fans but nowhere as many as I expected them to bring.

It was cold in the ground as the wind came in at either end and the start of the match had me huddling in my coat with my hands in my pockets as I really started to feel the cold, being tired obviously wasn't helping.

The game was slow to get started but it was the hosts with all of the chances and they deservedly took the lead on 28 minutes through Joe Cardle. Then a strange incident happened, a challenge with a Pars players saw Cowdenbeath Player Manager Colin Cameron collide in the middle of the park with the referee, while this looked harmless this enough this incident was to play a major part later in the game. With the hosts 1-0 up Cowdenbeath pushed on and tried to get their equaliser before half time but it just wouldn't come. So 1-0 at half time it was.

I moved from one side of the Main Stand to the other as I was so cold and I wanted more bodies around me, this did the trick as I instantly warmed up. The 2nd half started a whole 35 minutes late as the referee had gone off injured at half time due to he's collision with Cameron during the 1st half. One of the assistant referee's had taken the whistle but after numerous announcements for a qualified referee or linesman to take over a chap in a Dunfermline tracksuit emerged and the game finally started.

I wanted to get the 17.15 train so with the start of the 2nd half starting so late I left the ground with just under 20 minutes to go and the score still at 1-0 to the Pars. I made the train and once I was sat on my way back to Edinburgh I saw there had been 2 further goals & the hosts had triumphed 3-0. Of the 70 minutes I saw I'd say this was a fair result and. Though my visit to Dunfermline had been brief it was extremely enjoyable but I had 2 more pubs to tick off my list back in the capital.

I arrived back just before 17.45 and made my way to The Halfway House just mid way up the Fleshmarket Steps, a lovely atmospheric pub that resembles someones living room. My companion arrived from Tynecastle a few minutes after me and a pint later we were making the 10 minute walk to the Bow Bar on West Bow, this was the last pub of the day for us and what an absolute cracker it is. A huge choice of Whiskies and a really good selection of ales had me trying another new beer from a Scottish Brewery.

With the time being nearly 7pm, we went back to Waverley station and caught the bus to the airport.

A quick pint in the 'spoons airside was had while the queue was forming waiting for the plane that was around half an hour late. The plan landed at Gatwick just 10 minutes later than scheduled and after a dash to the station I managed to get my connection from East Croydon that got me home just around 11.30pm.

I was absolutely knackered but a great 2 days in Scotland, 2 decent games of football with plenty of drama, 2 new grounds and the added bonus of 13 new pubs.

Til the next time....

Scottish Double Header - Part 1 Motherwell

After a conversation a few weeks previously with a like minded chap at Dulwich who collects the Scottish grounds I booked myself a flight to Glasgow on Friday 26th October with a return the following night from Edinburgh.

On the Friday I was to take in Motherwell vs. Hibernian in the SPL for one of their Friday night games with a Saturday game the following day before flying back from Edinburgh.

My flight was booked with Easyjet for the 8.50 from Stansted to Glasgow International. The day before the wife had kindly decided to take the Friday off so that she could drive me to Stansted and thus save me an hour in bed.

We departed home just after 6.40am and after hitting a bit of traffic at the Blackwall Tunnel I pulled up outside the set down point at Stansted at 7.50am giving me enough time for my flight.
An on time flight had me leaving the plane at around 10am and into Paisley town centre for 20 past.

I had 3 pubs on my list to tick off in Paisley but unfortunately I didn't manage to do any. After a quick wander round town I arrived at the Wee Howff only to find it still closed, I then wandered around to the Bull Inn but was greeted with a large scaffold board outside the front of the pub that was well and truly sealed off to the public. My last choice was the Last Post, Wetherspoons back by Gilmour Street station but as it was only 10.45 by now they were not serving alcohol until 11am. With this I decided to head into Glasgow, so I went across the road and boarded the train into Central Station.

I was a tad disappointed as I left Central Station and walked across to the Horseshoe Bar on Drury Street, I had been in Scotland well over an hour and hadn't achieved anything yet! However the Horseshoe changed all of that. I had a very good pint, watched a bit of Sky Sports News and admired the decorative tiles (picture below). Pub number 1 ticked off.
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My hotel was a few minutes walk on Ingram Street so I stopped off on route at The Counting House which is a huge ex bank on the corner of St George Square that is now home to a Wetherspoons. The beer festival was one so from a choice of 16 pumps I choose a Lithuanian beer that was new to me which I supped while sitting and fiddling with the internet making full use of their free wifi.

I checked into the hotel and decided that the rest of my day on my own would involve ticking off more pubs in the area from the beer guide. My next port of call was The Blackfriars followed by The Babbity Bowster both of which are close to each other in the Merchant City area. The Babbity Bowster is possibly one of the finest pubs I have ever visited, it's an absoulete gem and well worth a trip if you are in that side of Glasgow. From here I went back to Buchanan St and boarded the clock work orange round to the West of the city at Hillhead.

Out the station and down Byers Road brought me to Tennants (number 4 on my list) where I had the choice 12 ales...love these pubs with a load of choice. After a decent pint I made my way to the last pub in the area being The Three Judges just at the bottom of Byers Road just on Dumbarton Road. Another good selection of ales had me choosing my 5th new beer of the day from this cracking little corner pub.

By this time it was almost 4.45pm and the text had come through to say that my football companion had arrived into Glasgow and was on the bus towards the hotel so I hastily made my way back onto the clock work orange round to the hotel. A local friend of my companion had also meet us after finishing work and the 3 of us made our way to the Blane Valley on Glassford St for a couple of pre match pints.

An hour later and we were on the train from Argyle Street to Motherwell for tonights football encounter. The friend left us a few stops before Hamilton and we continued on our own before disembarking at Airbles for the short walk to Fir Park.

Ground number 313 for me tonight. Fir Park is a tidy ground and there looked to be a fair crowd gathering for the match. A programme was obtained, we wandered around the club shop and then paid our £18.00 entrance into the stand opposite the Main Stand ready for the game.

Both teams were coming off the back of away defeats in the league. Motherwell losing the previous Sunday at Hearts while Hibs had been beaten by the odd goal in 5 at Ross County on the Saturday.

Both teams started well and it was the home side with Michael Higdon leading the line that nearly took the lead only for the final touch to let them down. Slowly Hibs came into the game with Leigh Griffiths and David Wotherspoon looking particuley menacing in the final third. On 28 minutes Hibs took the lead when Wotherspoon picked the ball up 20 odd yards from goal and drilled a cracking shot past ex Charlton 'keeper Randolph in the well net. The score remained like this to half time with Hibs shading the first half but not offering to run away with it!

The rain held off but it was blinking cold sat in the stand opposite the Min Stand as the wind seemed to whip in from the pitch, the hands and fingers going bluer and bluer...how I wished I had brought my gloves.

The 2nd half played out much the same as the first with both teams creating chances but Motherwell just not doing enough to bring an equaliser. Then a long raking ball was played for Griffiths to chase, he outpaced Fraser Kerr who was having a torid time at the heart of the 'Well defence and while he was going away from goal Randolph came out and made a stupid challenge that he really didn't need to make and the ref gave a penalty. Up stepped Griffiths and drilled the ball low to Randolph's left and into the net...2-0 on 64 mins.

Motherwell soon had an excellent chance to halve their deficit when James McPake was penalised for climbing all over Higdon. Up stepped Higdon and he cannoned the ball off the top of the bar and straight into the crowd behind! The groans and moans around me were getting louder and louder, then minutes later the 3rd penalty was awarded this time for Hibs when Wotherspoon was tripped just inside the box (however having now seen this on sky replays, it clearly was outside the box...another soft decision by Stevie O'Reilly who to be honest wasn't having he's best game). Griffiths stepped up again and beat Randolph with a near copycat penalty..3-0 and there as to now only be 1 winner.

The game was halted while the referee left the pitch and was replaced by one of the assistants. As the game wore on and the home fans started to leave in their droves a 4th goal was had as Handling tapped in from a couple of yards to round off a thoroughly convincing 2nd half performance. The 1500 Hibs fans celebrated as they should having seen their team smash Motherwell at Fir Park.

Myself and my companion made our way into the cold night air and off in search of the only 'spoons in town, up near the station. A wrong turn and half an hour walk later we arrived into the relative solitude of The Brandon Works. A couple of pints from the beer festival menu and it was time for the last train back to Glasgow. We wandered down to Trongate and had a pint in Maggie Mays before arriving back at the hotel for a pint in the bar before turning in for the night.

Tomorrow we were off to Edinburgh and I as planning on going to Livingston for their game with Greennock Morton while Mick was going to Tynecastle for the match with Ross County...there was however to be a last minute change for one of us....part 2 to follow shortly.....

A busy couple of weeks....

has seen me take in 3 games, 1 new ground and a beer festival!

With Dulwich Hamlet out of the FA Cup Saturday 29th September was left free enabling me to pick a game at a new ground. After some deliberation I decided the game would be St Albans City vs. Arlesey Town in the FA Cup and this would also allow me to take in the St Albans beer festival on the same day...double result!

I left home just after 10am and after changing at London Blackfrairs I disembarked at St Albans station bang on 11am. A short walk into town brought me to the Alban Arena where the 17th St Albans Beer Festival had been running since the Wednesday. Free entry was obtained due to me being a member of Camra, my first use of my membership and it saved me £4.00. The hall was relatively empty which gave me a chance to study the programme and seek out the beers I wanted to sample more than others. After sampling 9 new beers from a mix of breweries including Alecraft, Tring & Blue Monkey. I was asked to do a brief interview for the new series of The Apprentice that they were filming on the day as one of the tasks they had was to brew, market and sell a real ale. Their effort was called A Bitter This and was brewed with using a Terry's Chocolate orange, different but not bad at all.

As the clock approached 14.20 I made my way to Clarence Park for the match.

A 10 minute walk later and I was at the home of St Albans City FC. The ground sits right next to a park is hemmed in on 1 side by the railway but it's a very pleasant setting with an interesting main stand and open terracing at the 2 ends.



Having seen Arlesey beat Dulwich in the FA Trophy the week before I knew what to expect and with them sitting one place below St Albans in the table the game promised to be entertaining.A bright but slightly chilly day had brought the St Albans fans out in large numbers and the game started with the hosts pushing for an early goal. That goal duly arrived on 18 minutes courtesy of David Ujah who stabbed the ball home following a ball into the box. Arlsesy then went up the other end and when the diminutive Drew Roberts was tripped in the box he got up and dispatched the penalty home on 22 minutes. The score remained this way until half time.

The second period started slowly but with some St Albans pressure and a good move saw the ball fed back for Shields to fire in a shot on goal which required a good save from Nathan Abbey in the Arlesey goal.
The visitors were then awarded a free kick about 30 yards out as Roberts was again fouled but he put his free kick just over the bar.
The evergreen Barry Hayles was replaced as the hosts tried to break the Arlesey defence down and regain the lead. However a few moments after the change Arlesey made a swift break and a ball forward found Roberts on the edge of the area in space, this allowed him to send a low cross past the keeper for Dillon at the far post and duly smashed the ball into the roof of the net to give Arlesey the lead.

As the game wore on the hosts pushed for an equaliser but it just wouldn't come enabling Arlesey to hang on for the win and a place in the next round.

A decent game played at a good pace in a cracking venue, why Clarence Park has eluded me for so long god only knows. From the ground I walked back to the Alban Arena for another few new beers before boarding the 7pm train back to London. After sampling a total of 14 new beers I arrived back home for 8pm and another good day watching non league football.

Saturday 6th October saw Dulwich back to league action and hosting the current league leaders Folkestone Invicta. A cagey first half saw both team leave the pitch locked at 0-0 but Erhun Oztumer scored a screamer on 54 minutes to put 'Hamlet in the lead then he grabbed he's 2nd on 76 minutes when Delo in the Folkestone goal brought down Nyren Clunis for a soft penalty, duly dispatched with aplomb by the small Turkish forward. This was Folkestone first league defeat of the season and was a good 3 points for Dulwich to bring a run of 3 defeats to an end.

Tuesday 9th October and my last game of the of a 10 day period saw me arrive at King Georges Field for Corithian Casuals v Dulwich Hamlet. A halve of many chances saw another incredible miss from a Casuals player as the half ended when faced with an open goal after good work down the right saw the ball squirm after and off the pitch. 0-0 at HT. Dulwich continued the 2nd half the same way but just couldn't force a goal, a superb save from the Casuals keeper when he clawed the ball away when it was almost in the net kept the game goalless, this was until the 82nd minute when the ball was header over Dulwich's makeshift keeper, a young lad drafted in last minute from Tottenham's youth team and into the net for the only goal of the game.
A disappointing defeat when it should have been 3 points but a draw would of been okay as well.

I trudged back to South East London to prepare myself for Saturday's visit to Maidstone Untied for my first game at their new stadium.

Til the next time....

FA Cup duty with the ‘Hamlet

Saturday 22^nd September and the sun was shining as I left my house just after 10am for the short journey into London Kings Cross ready for the 11.23 train to Peterborough with Arlesey being my destination.

Dulwich Hamlet had been drawn away to Arlesey Town of the Evo Stick Southern Premier, in the 2nd Qualifying Round of the FA Cup. This was to be the first competitive match between the 2 clubs and with the hosts currently sitting just outside a play off position after a start of won 5, drawn 1 and lost 2 this was going to be a tough game.

7 of us boarded the 11.23 for the 36 minute journey up the tracks to just north of Hitchin. The route to the ground from the station would see us visit all 4 pubs in the village & by 12.05 we were inside the first one The Old Oak. A large Greene King owned pub with the usual selection on draught from which a swift decent pint of Old Speckled Hen was had before the short walk to the renamed Vicar’s Inn (formerly the Vicar’s Inn, then the Steam Engine) . This is the only pub in the village that features in the Great British Beer Guide & has done for the last few years. A very homely little pub that rather disappointingly only had 2 real ales on draught. We all opted for a pint of Cornish Buccaneer from The Wooden Hand Brewery in Cornwall.

Just after 1pm we were on our way again and this time the destination was The White Horse, a good 10 minutes walk from the Vicar’s Inn and more into the village. Another large Greene King chain pub again with the usual fare but they had a guest beer on which was Farriers Best from The Coach House Brewery, a beer I had sampled before but still a nice pint. After watching 20 minutes of the live game on Sky in the back bar it was onto pub number 4. By this time the peloton of 3 were catching us up as they had left the Vicar’s and had by passed the White Horse. Pub number 4 was The True Briton a free house nestled just off Hitchin Road in a residential area.

The pub was okay but very quiet, the pub’s dog was more friendly than the barman but the Brain’s IPA pint was good and the pork scratchings were even better. Within 10 minutes the peloton were upon us after a quick phone call to check our whereabouts and our numbers had swelled. Arlesey Town’s aptly named Armadillo stadium was just a stroll away and we were inside their smart looking clubhouse by 2.30pm.

As well as Dulwich’s first visit to Arlesey Town it was also mine. A very tidy new ground with 2 open terraces, one behind each goal, a half length covered stand complete with seats on the Main Stand side, with a long covered terrace opposite behind the dug outs and oddly half of this terrace also had blue seats installed but no completed, not sure it was meant to be left like this!

Looking down the Arlesey team sheet it showed at least 6 ex Luton Town and league players one of them Sol Davis who played over 300 leagues games for the Hatters & Swindon Town before drifting into non league football. They also had Nathan Abbey in goal another ex Hatter who is assistant manager to he’s brother Zema.

The hosts started the game in control but were soon out muscled in the centre of the park by Vernon Francis and Peter Adeniyi. The Hamlet had a couple of half chances but only 1 produced a save from Abbey. Then on 43 minutes the crowd of just over 150 witnessed one of the worst open goal misses they will ever see. After a corner for Dulwich the ball was punted up to the half way line where Drew Roberts was waiting with a defender glued to him, as the ball dropped said defender slipped and Roberts went away with the ball, Lewis Gonsalves was beaten leaving Roberts with just our youth team keeper to beat which he did with ease by rounding him on the edge of the box only to then smash the ball with he’s right boot onto the bar and out of play….absolute classic miss which left the match goalless as the players trudged off for half time.

A quick bottle of Abbot Ale Special reserve was had in the bar while catching up on the league half times.

The 2^nd half started with the hosts back in control and they should of taken the lead when Roberts crashed a free kick onto the bar midway through the half. A spate of booking for Dulwich followed but no real chances were fashioned. As the game moved into stoppage team and both teams looked like they would do it all over again on Tuesday at Champion Hill, Dulwich conceded a needless free kick just outside the 18 yard box. As the ball was repelled by the defence it fell nicely to Roberts who cut in from the right and unleashed a rocket in the top corner to all but hand victory to Arlesey. Another 4 or 5 minutes was played and it was all Dulwich pressure, a free kick was crossed in but everyone missed it then the best chance of the match fell to Kevin James who was just over 6 yards out with only the keeper to beat but he miscued he’s shot and I caught it in the crowd…less than a minute later and the referee blew he’s whistle signaling that Dulwich were out of their 2^nd cup competition in a week both away defeats!

The ground quickly emptied of Dulwich fans and after bagging a crafty lift from a good natured local 5 of us were back in pub one The Old Oak. 2 pints later we boarded the 18.24 back to Kings Cross ending our adventure to Hertfordshire.

Ground number 310 for me today and as Dulwich have no game next Saturday I will be heading off to another new ground and possibly more adventures…

Til the next time….

Bank Holiday non league double

After visiting another league ground on Saturday 25th August I decided that on bank holiday Monday I would tick 2 local non-league grounds off of my list.

Coventry City v Bury @ The Ricoh Arena was ground number 307 leaving me 16 league grounds to do, however with the list of non-league venues in the UK almost endless so is my list!

All games in the Sussex County league had been scheduled to kick off at 11.00am so I chose the local derby between East Grinstead Town and Lingfield at the GAC Stadium, East Grinstead. Having left home in the car at 09.30am I had a very clear run through to East Grinstead arriving at the ground an hour before kick off giving me plenty of time to bag a programme and get some snaps of the ground.

The GAC Stadium is a tidy ground with a very nice raised covered seating area which acts as the main stand down one side with the cleverly placed clear perspex dugouts down at pitch level allowing for the game to be perfectly viewed from the seats. To the left of this stand is a covered bank of concrete terracing, with uncovered concrete standing behind both goals and along the opposite side running he length of the pitch.

The game was a barnstormer with Lingfield running out 2-1 winners in a match that boasted 3 penalty's (2 conversions and 1 missed), a comical goal in the home teams favour after a horrendous error by Rob O’Hara in the away goal and the appearance of ex Premier league player Jamie Lawrence who as well as running a successful soccer school now turns out for Lingfield. Dixie Dean in the Lingfield hot seat obviously is doing something right as last season he had ex Premier league players Ian Pearce (Blackburn) and Nicky Forster (ex Reading and current Dover Athletic Manager) turning out for him.

I watched the game with Mishi a follow Dulwich Hamlet fan and part time ground hopper though as mentioned in a previous blog he'll swear blind he isn't a ground hopper...yeah right that's why he's visited over 600 odd grounds here and abroad and takes pictures at each of them!

With Dulwich Hamlet playing away at Crawley Down Gatwick as they are now known at 3pm just down he road I was torn between watching the Hamlet in a top of the table clash against heading towards home and taking in Crockenhill's game at a Kent League venue that has eluded me for some time mainly because it's a bit of a trek and not an easy one at that from the nearest train station in Swanley. Besides I went to Crawley Down in September 2011 for a fixture against Folkestone Invicta in their first season at the Ryman League Div 1 South level.

My journey back up the A22 and then onto the M25 was painless and I arrived at Asda's in Swanley to grab some lunch just after 2pm.

After scoffing my lunch in the car I headed off to Wested Meadow, which should only of been a 10 minute journey but I got lost twice. The first time I went towards the ground but decided I was going the wrong way only then to realise I had actually been going in the right direction in the first place and the ground was just further along the lane and on the left as I went straight past it before putting the anchors on sharpest.

Having parked up across the road as the car park was rammed I made my way into the ground. As I said earlier this ground has eluded me for a few years so today I was ready for the local derby with newly promoted Crown Alexandra. A team from Dartford who until this summer had been playing in the league below and even though they finished 8th last season they were promoted to the top tier of the Kent Invicta League.  

I have heard this ground described as idyllic in the past but to be honest today it just looks run down. A very old main stand with wooden seats sits in the middle of terracing either side along the side as you enter & this is the only shelter and seating in the ground. To the right of the main stand is one goal with no standing this is pretty much the same on the opposite side to the main stand. There is a small overgrown terrace that has clearly seen better days behind the other goal.

Both teams were sitting in middle table coming into this match but Crown started the much brighter and should have been ahead with the chances they had before Ryan Golding scored he's 6th goal of the season for the hosts. Crockenhill had one of the most annoying players playing in centre midfield that I think I have seen in a blinking long time, even though he was a very skilful player he was just a little sh*t that constantly took pleasure in complaining to the ref, winding up the opposing players and the small bands of supporters (more like friends) that had travelled to the game.

With the hosts leading at half time I retreated to the clubhouse that from the outside resembled more of an Anderson air raid shelter than a football teams clubhouse. Inside however the walls are adorned newspaper cuttings, photos and history of Crockenhill FC. The ceiling is covered with scarves and pennants from various league and non-league teams from around the country, very impressive this is to. I was particularly proud to see a Dulwich Hamlet scarf up there.

Back to the action and the 2nd half brought much of the same with Crown being the better footballing side but not taking their chances and being punished by a superbly taken free kick from just outside the 18 yard box for 2-0 to the hosts. Crockenhill could of added a 3rd as the game drew to a close but the effort whistled narrowly over the bar with the Crown keeper beaten all ends up.

In terms of chances taken 2-0 was certainly a fair result and I had seen another 5 goals in 2 games at 2 new grounds on the same day, I do like it when the local leagues use common sense and stagger their games on a bank holiday.   

After today's additions my list sits at 309 grounds in total and will remain at this number until at least the 8th September as I off to New York for a friends wedding though I will be watching the New York Yankees play the Toronto Blue Jays at the new Yankee stadium on Wednesday.

Til the next time....

Two league grounds weekend......Blackpool

So after spending the day before watching Crewe Alexandra destroy Hartlepool at Gresty Road today I was off to take another new league ground in at the revamped Bloomfield Road where Blackpool would be entertaining Morecambe.

Before the wife and I left Great Sankey and her family behind we went for a morning out to Knutsford, where Karen's Cousin and Husband used to have their coffee / sandwich shop for 12 years before selling it a few months back. After wandering round Knutsford for an hour or so we headed back to the house to collect our stuff and head off for the 3pm kick off at Bloomfield Road.

The drive took an hour and after spending 10 minutes looking for a parking space in the car park adjacent to the ground I headed off to get tickets for the match. I called the club on the Thursday to order 2 tickets but was told by the chap on the phone that they had only sold 3,000 tickets so that buying a ticket on the day would not be a problem. Apart from a lengthy queue getting a pair of tickets was easy and by 14.50 we were heading into the ground. I just had time to stop and take a photo of the statue of Blackpool legend Jimmy Armfield which proudly sits on 1 corner of the ground.

I had been to the ground when on a family holiday as a child but it was out of season and I only took photos of the outside. I was also in Blackpool on a short holiday back in 93 and on that occasion they were playing Wolves on a Friday night in a pre season friendly but having spent the day in a pub with a group of Wolves fans I declined their offer of going to the game with them, meaning I still hadn't ticked this one off!

Bloomfield Road has been dramatically developed in recent years and now comprises of a hotel at one end of the ground with 3 sides wrapped around into one with the stand opposite the main stand being the only temporary stand remaining, this is the home to the away fans normally being halved to also accommodate home supporters.

The new stands all look really good and are most defiantly an improvement on the old stands but I do love nostalgia.

Morecambe being 2 leagues lower than last seasons Championship play off losing finalists started with a full strength 11 as you would expect against better opposition with Ian Holloway also putting out a full strength 11 with only the injured Kevin Phillips absent. This meant that the dangerous Gary Fletcher Taylor and Mattie Phillips alongside influential midfield talisman Barry Ferguson would look to punish their lower league opponents.

A crowd of over 6,000 had now arrived as Blackpool took the game to Morecambe in the early exchanges with Taylor-Fletcher prodding and probing. Then on 6 minutes the outcome of the game swung in favour of the visiting side as Lewis Alessandra received the ball from outside the 18 yard box and drove a low hard shot to the right of Gilks who though got down well could not prevent the ball entering the net to the delight of the 800 or so travelling Shrimps fans who went hysterical. With Morecambe in command on the scoreboard they then started to soak up and out muscle a surprisingly inept home side even with the vastly talented Thomas Ince on the right wing driving forward as often as he could. Surely this boy will soon be going onto great things he really does have the footballing world at he's feet.

The Morecambe fans were in great voice the home supporters were very quiet as the fist half ended and their team trudged off to surely be given a talking to but the ever amusing Ollie. Whatever he said obviously had an effect as from the kick off they went at the visitors attempting to get a goal back to kick on for a victory, this goal however never came and on 56  minutes from a breakaway Andrew Fleming dummied keeper Matt Gilks from Andrew Wright's through ball and slotted home to extend the Shrimpers advantage and really put the pressure of Ollies boys.

With the withdrawal of GTF and introduction of Barkhuizen Blackpool pushed again to get themselves back into the game but were almost punished again when ex Fleetwood man Richard Brodie who had been introduced as a substitute went one on one with Gilks in a very similar position to one that Fleming had been in to make it 2-0 only on this occasion to have he's effort saved.

From this moment on the Tangarines laid siege on the Morecambe goal and from a double corner pulled one back through Alex Baptiste on 77 minutes. Mattie Phillips then hit the post from outside the box after a great run by Ince who was growing and growing in confidence as the visitors defence struggled to contain him. corner after corner was launched into the Morecambe box with Ian Evatt now playing as an additional striker but still the equaliser would not come.

The 4th official held up the board indicating 5 minutes additional time as Ince drove into the box only to be tripped by a Morecambe defender but the referee waved away the protests. Then after a superb run beating 4 Morecambe players Ince once again drove into the box from the left and was blatantly tripped so blatant that most of the players stopped dead while all of the Blackpool players screamed at the ref.....same result as a few minutes previous....no penalty...absolute stonewall it there ever was one!

Barely a minute later the final whistle was blown and the hosts were out of the Capital One cup at the first hurdle. An enjoyable cup tier played at a decent pace with the visitors rightly leaving victorious.

Back to the car and within half an hour we were well on our back south down the M6. Two new league grounds ticked off in two days, two very enjoyable cup games producing 8 goals and very different results. We passed the Olympic Stadium as the closing ceremony for the London 2012 Olympics was in full swing arriving home just before 10.30 pm to catch the last 90 minutes on the TV.

Next Saturday sees the start of the Ryman League season with Dulwich hosting Ramsgate at Champion Hill, the following Saturday I have booked train tickets to Coventry to watch the sky blues host Bury in League 1 and my first visit to the Ricoh.

Til the next time....

Two league grounds in 2 days....Crewe Alex

Saturday 11th August the Capital One cup started in Round 1 and the draw threw up the perfect chance to do 2 new league grounds...well actually 'old' grounds.

My decision was Crewe Alexandra vs. Hartlepool United on the Saturday followed by Blackpool vs. Morecambe on the Sunday and with my wife's cousin living in Great Sankey near Warrington we had our bed for the night sorted.

Me and the wife left home at 10am for the drive to Crewe, which I anticipated, would take around 3 hours. After stopping for lunch at Corley Services I pulled up near Crewe station at 1.45pm and said goodbye to the wife who then took the car up to Warrington to spend sometime with her cousin.

I walked over to the Express to catch the 2nd half of Rangers first game in Div 3.  A disappointing 2-2 draw is not the ideal start to life in the lowest tier of Scottish football, but it's a long season so we will see how this pans out.

I had been to both Gresty and Bloomfield Roads as a kid on a summer holiday but had never seen games at either ground so today was the first tick of these two that had eluded me since childhood. Being excited to visit The Alexandra Stadium I queued to get my ticket for the main stand, all tickets were priced at £15.00 for adults so after a look in the club shop I headed inside the ground. 

Now I know the ground has had a complete overall since I as last here (same as Bloomfield Road) but I really like Gresty Road. The Air Products Main Stand is a whopper and dominates the local landscape as well as holding half of the grounds capacity. Small stands running the length of the pitch behind each goal and the brilliant named Ice Cream Van stand is opposite and houses the away fans. There were 2 blocks of 'Monkey Hangers' in attendance and in bright sunshine the game started. 

Crewe's young team took League 2 by storm last season but they had to earn promotion by way of a play-off final victory at Wembley over Cheltenham Town. Hartlepool however sent the previous season in League 1 and this would be the first of at least 3 meetings between the 2 sides this season.

The pace and skilful passing from the home side started to show and within 7 minutes they had the first goal of the game as AJ Leitch-Smith lifted the ball into the roof of the net beyond Flinders in the 'Pool goal. On 13 Minutes it was 2-0 as Mathias Pogba teed up Max Clayton and as Crewe swept forward the 3rd and 4th goals arrived before half time courtesy of Pogba and Clayton. Byron Moore was dominating the game down the right wing and even though Hartlepool had various chances in front of goal through the big target man Steve Howard they left the field well and truly beaten with another 45 minutes still to play.

The 2nd period started with Hartlepool still trying to force a goal to kick-start a comeback but it just would not come. Their manager Neale Cooper was obviously not impressed, as he made no substitutions meaning that all 11 starting plays saw out the full 90 minutes. A few minutes from the end of the game Crewe got their well deserved 5th when Pogba swept home at the far post. 5-0 as the whistle blew and a great result for the first competitive game of the new season, albeit the first round of the Capital One Cup.

On the way back to the station I came across the Crewe Alexandra programme shop which I had walked straight past on the way to the ground...WOW...as I only had 20 minutes to my train departed I had a quick look round and purchased a few £1.00 bundles.

The Virgin train from London arrived promptly to carry me the 18 minute journey to Warrington Bank Quay, from where I was collected by my wife and her cousin and taken off to see family in the area before settling in for the evening. 

The following day I will be off to another Capital One cup game up at the revamped Bloomfield Road, Blackpool.

Til the next time....