30/07/16 Review: Stone Dominoes vs Abbey Hulton United

Stone Dominoes 3-2 Abbey Hulton United (Pre-season Friendly)

Wellbeing Park

Yesterday marked the 50th Anniversary of the England National Team's greatest footballing achievement and that was enough of an excuse for me to find a game, not that I need one! With the luxury of an early finish from work, my original plan of a first trip to Eccleshall's Pershall Park had fallen after their match against Leek County School Old Boys was cancelled. This left me with two options; a risky dash down to Willenhall to try and catch Sporting Khalsa vs Punjab United or a safer bet of seeking out a more local ground in Wellbeing Park.

Within the boundaries of Yarnfield Village

Even with a 2:30pm kick-off for this one, I was confident that with the ground being a mere 20 minute drive away from work, this would be a banker on a day like today. I arrived in good time and was instantly impressed at the facility I had just entered. With immaculate fenced small pitches to one side and the entrance to the ground to the other, the sun was blazing down and it was time to seek out some food. I passed through the olive wooden turnstile unopposed, which meant that I was in for my second free match in 3 days- having visited another 5-goal game at Seddon Street on Thursday.

Lovely day for it

On the left there was a smart and fairly modernised Cafe and on the right were pitches galore, including Pitch 2 which had some of the players for this afternoon's game warming up. Without delay, I headed straight for the Cafe with the hope of another intimate moment with a Wright's Meat and Potato pie! For just short of 4 quid I was able to seal the deal and also pick up a can of Carling too, what more could one ask for? Inside the Cafe was a small selection of people here for the game, a large choice of historical items and a couple of boxes of football boots for sale- just £5 per pair! I sat in the conservatory-style area and made light work of the pastry goodness, before heading out to see whereabouts the actual stadium was within Wellbeing Park.

Where is everyone?

I certainly wasn't expecting masses of spectators for this one, with today's Staffordshire County Senior League opponents Abbey Hulton United likely to travel lightly. Even so, I was struggling at this point to find anybody who may know where the match was being played. I had hoped it would be in the main stadium, but when I spoke to the knowledgeable chap on the Cafe's till he said that Dominoes played on one of the standard pitches and it was in fact Old Alleynians who used the stadium. Before this trip I didn't realise how far down the ladder Stone Dominoes Football Club was, having read the glorious story of how in 2003-2004 they made it to the FA Vase 5th Round. They had since resigned from the North West Counties League and had a couple of years out of the game before making a comeback last season in the Staffs County League. They also signed comedy actor (and Sealand international footballer!) Ralf Little in 2008, apparently.

Pitch 2 was the location of today's game

Despite the game not being played on the main stadium's pitch I asked the man if I could visit it for groundhopping reasons, to which he very kindly opened up the gates and showed me around. With all knowledge of the ground, he was telling me about how Stoke City Ladies had just left the ground to move into the currently vacant Northwood Stadium, which was previously home to now defunct Norton United. He was also telling me a bit more about Dominoes having over 30 teams of various ages and classes. It seems that there is a very good set-up here and with plans to work on the changing rooms, it'll hopefully remain a nice facility for years to come.

Basic, but I'm sure it does the job for Stone Old Alleynians

Just before the game kicked-off, I saw the referee and his officials getting a pre-match photo off of a woman who I assume knew them. Following this, the players slowly but surely emerged from the dressing rooms and headed out to the pitch ready to do battle. Having not known at the time that Abbey Hulton are actually in the division above the Dominoes, I probably wouldn't have thought the game would be a close encounter. At this level, the games I've seen have tended to be filled in with plenty of goals and therefore I'd set my pre-match prediction at 7-4 to Stone. Within 5 minutes of play, my expectations had so far been met as the first sloppy goal came. The Dominoes left-winger played in a good pass, which was initially mis-controlled by the striker who did then regain his composure before shooting the ball past a goalie, who I can only best describe as a cross between Brock Lesnar and Father Christmas, into the goal to put the Reds ahead. Dominoes 1-0 Abbey.

Saint Brock was even kitted out in Man United keeper shorts

Abbey Hulton pressed after letting the opener in and the attacking right-back, who was sporting the nickname of "Killer", was a bright spark in the early exchanges. It was all Stone in the attacking department though for now, and they could have doubled the lead on more than one occasion. The big man in goal for Abbey Hulton seemed like he could do with a hand, so I offered him salvation after a chance flew wide by fetching the ball for him. He was delighted- so much so that when the ball next went wide and I had moved from behind the goal, he screamed out "aww, you fucking bastard!" I hope he was shouting at the ball and not me.

Black clouds, stay away

On the half an hour mark the inevitable second goal came. The number 8 for Dominoes had a dig from range and it made it's way into the goal. Dominoes 2-0 Abbey. This wasn't to be the last goal of the half either, and the number 8 for Abbey Hulton United this time responded to his number-sake. Showing skill and pace, he danced through the midfield and into the box, before prodding home AHU's first of the afternoon. Dominoes 2-1 Abbey. And as if that wasn't enough, I was to be treated to the fourth goal of the game just two minutes later. The Stone Dom's player made himself some space near the goal-line and despite 5 Hulton defenders being placed in the box, it was the number 10 for Dominoes who was picked out and he calmly popped the goal in from the edge of the area- a nice finish. Dominoes 3-1 Abbey. With the game slipping away from Abbey Hulton, it was time to pull out the ultimate defensive weapon. Dominoes broke away again, this time with number 9 pulling away, and as he approached the goal and lined up a shot, the chasing defender blurted out the sound of a turkey gobbling. The noise obviously worked, as the Stone striker lost his composure and placed his effort wide of the target. And that was half-time.

The Dominoes were standing firm so far

With the sun still just about shining through the cloudy skies, I treated myself to another can and took up a different spot for the second-half. It must be said at this stage that standing in between the two dugouts provided me with much hilarity and insight into life as a manager at this step in the Football system. With Stone's manager resorting to cigs to keep the stress levels down, he asked one of his subs at the top of the second 45 if he was about ready to come on. The lad continued his low-key warm-up as he replied with "gimmie about 4 months."

Who'd be a non-league football manager?

As the temperature on the field was rising, so was the heat on the bench too. After a ball went astray the Hulton defender told the Stone manager to grab a spare. After taking what was apparently deemed as too long to fetch it, the players and subs alike began to argue over the ball-smuggling, time-wasting techniques of the Stone bench and at one point it seemed likely to get tasty. Thankfully, the Stokie foul-language subsided and the anger was calmed down. For the final half an hour Abbey Hulton were pretty dominant and after a couple of half-chances missed they won a corner. This delightful little set-piece was glided in and met by a United head which went straight into the Dominoes goal. Dominoes 3-2 Abbey.

Game on!

Abbey Hulton looked to get the equaliser and went close again straight from kick-off. The until now unmentioned ref for today's match was pretty woeful, and without going into much detail I would like to summarise his game with a description given by one side's manager. "The ref wants a fucking pole shoving up his fucking arse!"- fair description in my eyes.

Don't quit your day job, lad

Both sides ended the game with many chances, and Abbey Hulton even hit the bar, but ultimately the game would finish 3-2 to Stone. A truly confusing moment came at the end of the game which I would genuinely appreciate anyone readying to clarify to me. Around the 80th minute I saw the ref produce a red card to someone, not sure who, and then I missed what happened after from afar. A minute or so later I had a count up and it still appeared that 22 players were on the pitch, so whether the red card was rescinded or the only other thing I can think of is that he allowed a sub to be made instead of dropping a side to ten men? Either way it was an odd end to a poor performance from the man in black, who will always be remembered by me for a final moment of comedy in stoppage time. As AHU had a corner at the death, the ref stood outside the box and just as the kick was taken, he shouted out "I'm watchiiiiiiiiiing!" like some madman psychopath.

Full-time, 3-2

Upon the ref's whistle I departed the ground straight away in an attempt to beat the post-match traffic that was bound to arise from the dozen or so spectators. I left Wellbeing Park and that was it, ground number 38 visited and it is one that I may visit again to see Stone Old Alleynians on the "big pitch". Next up for me will be a trip to Essex next weekend.

28/07/16 Review: Middlewich Town vs Stockport Town

Middlewich Town 1-4 Stockport Town (Pre-season Friendly)

Seddon Street

Goodness me, I could get used to having midweek evening's off. With my work schedule having me on day shifts over much of July and the some of August, I was able to head to my seventh friendly match in sixteen days of pre-season perfection. Tonight was a trip to Cheshire Football League One side Middlewich Town's friendly against Stockport Town.

Up the Witches

Leaving Stafford at 5:45pm should have allowed for arrival at Seddon Street by around 6:30pm, but as we all know the M6 had it's own plans. With stop start traffic being reported around Keele and Sandbach, I decided to jump off the motorway at Stoke, jump back on after Keele, back off again at Sandbach and then head through the sleepy villages to hopefully avoid the delays. I'd like to think that this worked, as I only hit traffic for around 15 minutes and made it at the almighty close-shave time of 6:58pm- just in time for a 7pm kick-off!

All ground hoppers have been there

After all the rush of parking up and rushing into the tiny little ground, I only realised when I made it to pitchside that I had not paid. Upon scouting around and assuming that the game's kick-off time had been pushed back, I found out that tonight's game was free entry- a Pint of Football first! After coughing up £15 to see Burton vs QPR on Tuesday, a free game was a sight for sore eyes and I was thrilled to be here and awaiting my first time watching a Level 12 side. Tonight they were facing a side from the league above, Stockport Town, and I think that the traffic may well have caused them to be late arriving at Seddon Street- either that, or the game was delayed whilst they waited for me to arrive.

The Lions were on the prowl

The ground itself was easily the most basic I'd visited to date, taking the title firmly from Alsager Town's Wood Park Stadium which I visited last season in August. Despite this, I was still pleased to see the basic seated stand with over 50 spaces upon a raised deck overlooking the pitch. At the opposite side was a "bus shelter" style stand which housed three garden chairs, perhaps the Chairman's Suite? The pitch looked pretty well surfaced and it was surrounded by white posts with red bars connecting them. With on-site parking, I risked going for my initial wander in shorts and tee, knowing that my hoodie was only a few meters away should the Cheshire air turn a bit nippy.

I never realised Freddie Eastwood was a Witches player

Next stop was, surprise surprise, the bar. Having entered what seemed to be the back side of the ground I was under the initial impression that there was no bar- taking me back to the gutting feeling experienced at Brocton last year- but then when I furthered my quest down to the dressing room and toilet area, I found a group of lads sat on benches slurping a nice cold pint. Relief! I popped in to grab a quick one and discovered further relief or being able to take it out with me to the seating area in a plastic cup.

Nice little bar

After a poor first effort by the bar staff to pour a Foster's into a plastic, I enjoyed a friendly chatter with her as she got it right second time round. I jokingly said to her that it was pre-season for the bar staff as much as it was for the players, a joke that went down adequately at best. By the time I headed back out it was 7:15pm and it was just about time for the game to get underway. The youthful Witches team headed out first and Stockport Town followed within a minute or so.

Let's do it!

With the linos and ref joining the field finally it was time to get cracking, but not before one lad could shout out to the linesman "how long til half time?" to which the chap looked at his watch, smiled, and then shouted out "about 20 minutes." You could tell already that it was going to be a different type of night to Tuesday. I am always interested in how much, if anything, the players at this level get paid and whether it is still classed as part-time football or just a bridge between semi-pro and pub football. Apparently I wasn't the only one thinking this, as one lad said to his mate "how much is he on?", which was met by a potentially truthful response of "about 4 quid a week".

The Middlewich Ultras

Having played for a pub team in Stoke called "Princess FC" a couple of years ago, I can sympathise with a group of guys who are following a side labelled as the Witches. On the pitch the game was afoot, and it was actually a decent start, with the underdogs taking the Lions by the scruff of the neck. Having predicted a 3-2 classic with Stockport going home winners, Middlewich looked decent to start with and in particular the left-winger seemed to be a pretty solid part of the home side. Within the first quarter of an hour, it was in fact he who opened the game's scoring. Finding time and space in the box, he coolly slotted home a fairly simple move from the home team to give them an early breakthrough. Middlewich 1-0 Stockport. The tone was set by this point and because the sleeping Lions hadn't woken up yet, Middlewich almost worked a bit of witchcraft in the box again to try to add a second. This time it wasn't to be.

A view from t'other side

The final let-off for Stockport early on was around the 23rd minute when Middlewich thought they'd scored again. The well curved set-piece from the reds was headed in, but the linesman's raised flag denied them what would prove to be a vital second goal. After this, Stockport came to life and started to forge a few chances themselves. As the Middlewich fan behind me asked around whether the game was a friendly, another young fan was shouting "2-0, 2-0" despite the second been given offside, and on the pitch Stockport almost grabbed an equaliser. The Lions' number 10 hit a good solid strike into the keeper's reach and he palmed it wide to make a nice save. Following this, the winger for Stockport then turned on the pace and glided past Middlewich's left-back, before squaring the ball to an onrushing striker for Stockport and inevitably a goal for the away side. Middlewich 1-1 Stockport. With no more goals to come in the opening half, the main action appeared to be for the fans who were acting as ball-boys. With balls being hit into every surrounding bush, chaos descended around Seddon Street as the ref spent half of his time signalling for another ball. Within these comedy scenes, two teenagers entered the stand and started chatting about the thrills of being a Middlewich loyal. The conclusion of this chat was when the lad nearest me said "that could be you in a couple of years" after seeing a home team's winger making some good moves on the right.

Meanwhile, round at the posh end

Half-time was a chance to grab another pint and pick up my hoodie from the car. It certainly wasn't cold, but it wasn't as warm as the Summer's evening matches I'd been used to last season. Still, it wasn't raining, which in England is always a bonus! Knowing that the game was running behind, the second 45 seemed to get going fairly quickly and the pace of the game matched it. Within a few minutes of the restart, a Stockport striker guided a header on to the bar and was denied a goal. The goal did come soon enough though, and it was a result of a corner. It was flown in from the right and misjudged by the stumbling keeper, which led to a scramble in the 6-yard box before eventually falling nicely for number 6 who popped it into the net. Middlewich 1-2 Stockport. With scrappy play and fouls aplenty unfolding, I could've quite easily been watching any proper non-league clash at this point. Stockport seemed to contain the quality to see out the win, and in fact they would go on to do more than that. With another unfortunate moment for the keeper, Stockport's right-back took a 30-yard potluck dig on 70 minutes that somehow ended up crawling in despite the keeper's efforts to keep it out. Middlewich 1-3 Stockport. The subs came on for the final 20 minutes, and a pocket-size winger wearing an oversized shirt almost gave the home side another chance to cheer when he won a penalty from a direct run into the box. Unfortunately, Middlewich's number 8 soared the effort well over and somebody instantly shouted out "Is that Raheem Stirling?", and that was that.

Any smaller shirts for this lad?

At 3-1 down, the Witches went forth once more and were able to add a final goal. The right-back who'd grabbed the long-range third was on hand this time from close range to finish off after yet another scramble in the box. He showed composure and a good touch to set himself up and slotted home yet again. Middlewich 1-4 Stockport. A couple more subs came on to complete the game, and even one sub who'd come off earlier popped back on as a striker. I haven't come across rolling subs since I played at Under 15 level!

With no more action, it was time to depart

Having seen it all in the past couple of weeks I know time is running out before I go back to evening shifts and the hunt for regular football becomes a struggle, so I know that I'll be doing all that I can to get a few more games in. Look out for my final handful of friendly games, and in the meantime cheers to Seddon Park for providing a bit of fun, a lot of scrap, a few goals and a couple of pints! Good night!

26/07/16 Review: Burton Albion vs Queens Park Rangers

Burton Albion 1-1 Queens Park Rangers (Pre-season Friendly)

The Pirelli Stadium

Tuesday evening has come around again, which meant another opportunity for Pint of Football to jump in the car and head off to tonight's location- Championship newcomers and rapid high-risers, Burton Albion. Not to be confused with the League match that these two sides will play against each other in two month's time, this was labelled as a friendly match and it would be to determine the holder of the 127 year old "Bass Charity Vase".

The Pirelli Stadium, home of tonight's encounter

With a choice of visiting a new ground or heading to my local stomping ground, Moss Rose, I played it safe and left work in Stafford knowing that I'd easily have time to travel across Staffordshire to the mighty Burton-on-Trent. Making it with time to spare, I parked up on the side of the A5121 along with a few other fans, both home and away. As I walked to the stadium, I passed a lady with two children wearing QPR shirts and carrying lots of food underarm- talk about coolest Mum ever bringing the lads out to a fairly lengthy away day.

Almost 2,000 turned out for this one

The Brewers had been enjoying a great pre-season so far, and their last game at home was an impressive 3-0 crushing of Stoke City. QPR had meanwhile been out on tour in Holland, before coming home and playing out draws with Northampton Town and Wycombe Wanderers. With strong line-ups likely to be named and new signings in the squads for this one, I had made one of my rare correct pre-match predictions and expected a 1-1 draw. After attempting to check out a packed Club Shop, I moved on to purchase my ticket and looked forward to taking my seat right by the touchlines.

Club Shop Merch is going down a storm 

With a mild downpour of rain briefly falling upon East Staffordshire, I headed straight into the ground's South West Snack Bar and thought I'd give the Carling a try, seems as how I was going to be taking a seat in the Carling Stand for this one.

Keeping out of the rain, don't blame em

I also purchased a programme beforehand, which is where I first came across the friendly-nature of folk that I would be enjoying the company of this evening. With a glowing smile, the young lad said to me "Programme is £1.50, or you can have one for free if you give me that pint!" to which I quickly passed him my money, grabbed a programme and slapped him on the head with it. A nice sight to see at a game, as opposed to the sometimes begrudging staff who are not exactly giving the customer service application to the job like this chap. Without delay in supping my pint, I was soon enough heading out to my seat and thankfully the rain had passed very very quickly. With a very nice seat, central and about half a dozen rows up from the front, I took my seat and pulled out my packed lunch box, just in time to enjoy a pre-match butty.

And there was a bit of warming-up on display too

The two men to my left, who became more and more vocal throughout the evening, were quietly discussing the Brewers chances of their first ever season at this level. Considering they were a Conference side back in 2009, the side had certainly been enjoying great success in the new stadium, which they moved to from Eton Park back in 2005. With an eye for an upset and a tough manager in Nigel Clough, the chaps beside me were right to describe the yellows as being "just like Iceland, no premadonnas in our squad."

Nope, I certainly can't spot any either

Having had a cheap pint and a friendly experience of the people so far, this was my kind of ground so far. This theme continued throughout, as the announcer got the ground clapping frantically as they were asked to welcome back former manager Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink. The Dutchman must've been happy at the positive reception, considering he was pick-pocketed from the club last season and this was his first return to the ground since December. In a fairly odd contrast, I then lay my eyes upon the club mascot for Burton, who looked from afar like a man who had been beaten up. Very odd, I cannot imagine who would do this at such a nice ground!

Billy the Brewer, or Billy the Bruiser?

Premier League referee Jon Moss stepped out to get the match started, and it was up and running at last. Burton Albion was actually the first team that I ever watched play football, and it was the game that made me fall in love with Macclesfield Town in a League Two fixture. The 2-1 win that day was a moment I'll never forget, and neither was the same fixture the season after, as it was the match that sent Macc out of the League in 2012. With one of my greatest footballing memories, and certainly my most upsetting, both coming in the two Burton games I'd seen so far, this game hadn't started in the most exciting of fashions. I'd seen Will Grigg fire blanks against Macc last Wednesday for Wigan, so tonight it was time to see if his fellow Northern Irelander, Conor Washington, could do any better for the Hoops. The main highlight from the opening 15 minutes was watching a very animated Jimmy Floyd trying to spark his team into life from the touchline. The standout player in the early proceedings was 23-year old new signing Jackson Irvine, who was sat in the heart of Burton's midfield and bossing it. My neighbour was chatting about him with his mate and I overheard him say, "he's played for some good clubs... Ross County!"

JFH, an Albion favourite

Another player who is well known for being a midfield general is QPR's Karl Henry, and the Stoke and Wolves man was certainly not treating this game as a friendly. With hard tackles, intimidation tactics and many fouls on display, he may have had to be reminded that no points were available in this one. Alas, it was his side that were being frustrated by the home side, and debutant Lloyd Dyer fired the first cannon on the 20th minute. His charge from left-back led to a self-made chance which was well met by Alex Smithies in the Hoops goal. Chances were few and far between, with the tension of two well-matched teams subduing the amount of shots created. And it was not until the 35th minute when a goal came. A corner was forged by QPR against the run of play, and with the target of Nedum Onuoha to aim for there was always a chance of problems for Burton in the box. Surely enough, Onuoha's header connected and it eventually bobbled in off an unfortunately placed defender for Burton, which silenced the crowd temporarily. Burton 0-1 QPR. Knowing that they didn't really deserve the lead, QPR ended the first-half stronger and almost doubled the lead at a crucial moment. Washington played a clever squared ball, which was shortly given back to him and he crashed his strike past the keeper and on to the crossbar.

Half-time, 0-1

I thought I'd check out the upstairs bar at the break, and in hindsight I am unsure as to whether I was actually allowed in there. Firstly, I entered the bar as the only person not suited up, but in my usual attire of shorts. Secondly, I seemed to be surrounded by people belonging to tables as though they were V.I.P's. Thirdly, I passed many of the stadium's private Boxes and a large table of what appeared to be free tea and biscuits. Either way, I had come this far unopposed and decided to queue at the bar anyway. Amongst a line of people trying to grab a beer, I decided to queue-up behind the man who was asking about wine and prosecco. Yup, 11 minutes into the 15 minute half-time I finally got served and was in a position where I had to quickly get my drink on.

Can I sit with you folks?

Amazingly, I made it back to my seat after missing only 50 seconds. Luckily I didn't miss too much more because the second-half started fairly explosively. Having had the best shot of the first-half, it was again Lloyd Dyer who flew forward and made another chance for himself with a rippling shot. My mates to my left were enjoying his first run-out, and one of them actually gasped "cor blimey!" at his most recent hit. Jimmy Floyd was back out of his seat and giving personal trainer like calls to his players, trying once more to get his lads going against a pushy Burton eleven. On 55 minutes I finally caught a first glimpse of his opposite number, Clough, as he finally burst out on to the technical area to give somebody at the opposite side of the field a bollocking! Classic.

Burton are pushing for that all-important equaliser

One minute later, and Burton had another chance. Stuart Beavon it was this time, as he ran into the box and after a bit of pinballing in the box around Chris O'Grady, the poacher stuck out a leg and got enough on his strike for it to head into the back of the net and level up the score. Burton 1-1 QPR. With a draw now on the cards, I began to wonder if the Vase would be split at the result of a draw, or if indeed the excitement of extra time or penalties could keep the evening swinging. On the hour-mark of the match, Hasselbaink decided to bring on about 46 substitutes, well that's how it looked anyway.

It was only actually 4 subs

The good-guy nature of the announcer continued from earlier as he welcomed one departing QPR player off the pitch, who was also a former Brewer. The fans responded to this by singing out Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink's name as a sign of appreciation to their former main man, and he reciprocated the gesture with a big wave and smile. A nice touch. Back on the pitch there was only one more noted chance, and it was for Burton again. Lee Williamson, another debutant, hit a half-volley from a good way out and Smithies could only dive alongside the ball is it only just zipped wide. Following more substitutions, some questionably unfriendly fouls and the odd half-chance, the whistle blew and the match was over. The announcer swiftly came on the mic to clarify the outcome of the Bass Charity Vase. He announced that there would be no more play for the evening and as the holders, Burton would remain the champions of the Vase. Despite the anti-climactic end, I remained to watch the Albion captain lift what looked like the world's heaviest trophy.

A big old trophy it was!

And that was that. Having expected and seen a tightly contested, fairly competitive game, I was off back to my car and of course ready to make the journey home again. After visiting Nantwich's Weaver Stadium on Saturday, I had now visited two new grounds within four days, and that is certainly enough for me for now! A great stadium is the Pirelli, but I shall no doubt be returning to the rustic roots of non-league shoddiness when I make a visit to a new ground on Thursday night. Where that will be, I don't know yet, but either way I hope you'll check it out.

Cheers Burton, you friendly little ground!

23/07/16 Review: Nantwich Town vs Macclesfield Town

Nantwich Town 0-3 Macclesfield Town (Pre-season Friendly)

The Weaver Stadium

Another day and another away day as my annual leave from work came to a close, which meant that I had time for a third match in a week watching the Silkmen's pre-season adventures that had so far taken me to a victory over Leek Town at Harrison Park, before a mid-week visit to Moss Rose to see a far from boring 0-0 draw against a strong Wigan Athletic side. Between that visit and my trip to the Weaver Stadium, I had been to Flamborough Head and Harrogate to visit family- and unfortunately not to visit more grounds!

Back to Stoke, via my 35th ground- the stunning Weaver Stadium

Waking up in Harrogate, I began my two hour journey to Nantwich on what for many was the first day of the Summer Holidays. Luckily, my journey was fine and I made it to the out-of-town ground by about half past 1. My friend Will, who had travelled from Flamborough, was not as lucky and managed to hit every bit of traffic possible. His supposed 3 hour journey took just under 5, meaning he arrived with minutes to spare before the game- no pre-match pint for him!

I was riding solo in the clubhouse today

The £4m Weaver Stadium, constructed in 2007, is a top notch ground that still looks in pristine condition. With the 300 seater Baker Wynne and Wilson Stand being the main area for fans, which faces opposite the Whitby Morrison Stand that is for standing fans. As the clubhouse was in the seated stand, that was my preferred placement for the afternoon and upon entry that was my first pit-stop. Before entering, I had a peek into the club shop to see if there was any cheap merch I could grab a hold of. I swiftly asked the shop assistant if they sold scarves, to which she replied "Yes, of course. In winter!" Makes sense.

At this level, the Club Store is usually nothing more than a shed

And with that, I picked up a programme and had a read with a pint. Amongst the misspelling of names of Macc players and even the odd mention of departed players, there was some good reading material in there too.

Macc were raring to go in this one

The Silkmen had beaten Leek Town 3-1, drew 0-0 with the Latics and lost 0-2 at Buxton so far, whereas Evo-Stik Premier side Nantwich Town had some tough games so far. A couple of decent draws, 0-0 with Curzon Ashton and 3-3 with AFC Fylde, came for the Dabbers before a 0-4 defeat at the hands of Crewe Alex earlier in the week. With a fairly rotated eleven picked for Macc, this was a chance for a couple of trial players to show their worth to Askey. Number 16 for the Silkmen was Canadian winger Emmett O'Connor and a couple more non-contract players were starting too as some of the usual faces were given a rest. Newly appointed captain Andy Halls was moved from right-back into the heart of the midfield too as the teams prepared to take to the field.

And a lovely afternoon for it, too

I had experienced some odd announcer howlers so far this season and today's was equally as humorous. After announcing David Fitzpatrick, twice, as "David F F Patrick" and Kingsley James as James Kingsley, giggles were spread across the Macclesfield bench as other names were misread. With smiles all-round, the referee got the match going and the Dabbers seemed decently organised and in a position to be able to give the Silkmen a good game. The chances weren't exactly coming thick and fast, and the trialist playing up front for Macc seemed to be struggling to find his feet. I didn't quite catch the lad's name, but against Leek and Wigan he'd come off the bench and looked pacey but lacking in other qualities. From the start of this game, he was hoping to prove his worth as the most attacking player. With 20 minutes gone, Macc only had the one chance to take the lead- and they were unlucky not to take it. Chris Holroyd slotted a tight-angled shot past the keeper, only for it to hit the post and bounce directly into the floored keeper's grasp. A fair portion of the fans around me thought it had gone in, and we all looked around at each other wondering how it hadn't. The goalmouth action remained limited and Nantwich remained unable to test new Silkmen keeper Craig Ross, despite Josh Gordon's run through on goal which was met by the onrushing number 1.

No sign of fireworks in today's showing so far

The half-time beer was, for the second time in a row, a time to reflect on a goalless half of football as Will and I discussed our thoughts. We both agreed that more of our key first team players should be brought on to try and keep the momentum going and ensure that a poor display isn't endured this close to the start of the new season. Surely enough, Askey must've agreed as John McCombe and Kingsley James both entered the field. One trialist had made way, but the promising looking O'Connor had remained on for a second 45. The opening third of the second-half was more promising, Macc had pressed well and a goal seemed to be on the way. Surely enough, the goal came on the hour mark and it was a first for new boy Kingsley James, who slotted home a low-hit first-time drive from the 20-yard mark to wake the game up. Nantwich 0-1 Macc. And after an hour, that's exactly what happened. Nantwich brought on a few subs to try and reduce the amount of tired legs on the field. The young Silkmen centre-back playing alongside McCombe until this point, had moved over to right-back and he was tested much more by the Dabbers winger in the final 20. At the other end, a Sideshow Bob lookalike entered the fray in goal for Nantwich and he was on the pitch just in time to concede a supreme goal. O'Connor, who had played well so far, created a goal for himself which was nothing short of magic. His run was dazzling, he tricked and turned all in his path and then placed an audacious chip over the keeper's 'fro into the net. Nantwich 0-2 Macc. All 200 fans appreciated the goal, and none more so than an old fan sitting the row in front of us. He shouted to Askey, "you better sign him up!"

Game over with 15 minutes left

These thoughts will have been in the mind of everyone else soon after, as O'Connor doubled his luck. Nantwich overstretched themselves going forward and when the left-back slipped a pass into the path of the opposition striker, Sampson turned well and ran the ball into the danger zone before sliding in O'Connor. With the keeper rushing out to tighten up the angle, the winger danced past his outstretched glove before tapping in a goal that could well earn him a contract at Moss Rose this season. Nantwich 0-3 Macc. The second-half had been much better viewing and 3 goals in the last half an hour proved to be the difference for the Silkmen. We left the ground shortly after the whistle to head into Nantwich town in search of a beer garden on this scorching afternoon. The Weaver Stadium is surely one I'll visit again, as a real luxury ground to see.