No-brainer, my book telling the remarkable life story of former Middlesbrough defender Bill Gates and of his indomitable widow’s Head Safe Football charity, is published on Thursday by Haythorp.
Today’s blog was going to have a lot more about it, and the formal launch at Boro’s Riverside Stadium on May 7, but like pretty much everything else has become waterlogged. More of all that in the coming days (and do please order a copy.)
In the meantime, blog reader Andy Lister spots the wonderful cartoon above in this week’s Private Eye magazine. (which, since the cause is a good one, probably won’t mind it being filched.)
It mightn’t quite be getting the message across in the way that either Judith Gates or the book envisaged, but it’s getting across, nonetheless.
*Four more Ebac Northern League matches off tonight, and by no means only North-East England that’s treading water.
It’s possible we’ve mentioned Truro City’s problems before. Tony Jones in Newcastle offers an update – and they’ve got worse.
While their own ground is being redeveloped, the Cornish club has been playing National League South home games across the Tamar at Plymouth Parkway or up the M5 at Taunton – until their grounds, too, become almost permanently waterlogged.
Since rules dictate that ground sharing clubs must play at a stadium at the same grading category, City are now playing home games on the artificial surface at Gloucester, a 400-mile round trip away, and this week – hoping not to emulate the unfortunate Dr Foster – the part-timers have four home games there.
You read that correctly.
On Monday they lost 2-1 to Torquay, tonight they played a gripping goalless draw with Eastbourne – “Matchday 33 of 46” says the club website , on Thursday evening they face Yeovil and then Maidstone head that way on Saturday.
Crazy isn’t it? Yet isn’t it crazier yet that the benighted FA can allow clubs at ENL level to ignore the rule book and play “home” games on opponents’ turf while at step 2 fans and players must travel 400 miles to find a place with the requisite number of netties?
Shots in the dark….Aldershot fans at the Ford Hub
*Yesterday’s blog noted the 58 crowd at the Ford Hub in Sunderland – very much Ford popular these days – for Tuesday’s ENL second division match between BoldonCA and Newcastle University.
Quite a few of the 58 would have been pass holders, we’d supposed, and quite a few more hangers-on. A further six or so, reports Harvey Harris, had no intention of being there in the first place.
They were Aldershot fans – long Shots – up for the Gateshead match which had been on yesterday morning but which simply couldn’t withstand the torrents that fell on Tyneside. What else was there to do? The guys – great lads – were also spotted by blog reader John White, from Durham.
Harvey also reports that Boldon CA, pretty much up the oxters on their home ground, have now arranged to play their remaining five “home” games at the Hub.
Nigel Pugh was there for last Saturday’s match between Washington and Ryton and Crawcrook Albion, reckons rental costs around £150 a game. heard that one of the assistant refs had agreed to meet a bemused spectator in the car park afterwards to explain a disputed first goal.
Nigel’s impressed. “You don’t get that ithe Premier League, either, that’s for sure.”
*Not the sort to be swamped by such things – “it shows it can happen to Football League clubs, too” – Sunderland fanzine editor sends details of the club’s final month of 1971-72 (above), including three in the first four days (which, presumably was Easter.)
April exhausted, they then played a friendly at Hartlepool on May 1. Paul’s impressed. “Pep Guardiola would be in tears” he says – maybe so, but what of West Auckland’s April a decade ago.
Following good Cup and Vase runs, West – with thanks to former club secretary Dave Bussey for the information – played in 2014 on April 5, 7, 8, 9, 12, 14, 16, 19, 21, 23, 26 , 28 and 29 with the small matter of a derby at Bishops as their last game on May 2.
Has any team ever played more games in a calendar month?
*The epic 1954 FA Amateur Cup final between Bishop Auckland and Crook Town – twice replayed, watched by almost 200,000 people – will be remembered at a 50th anniversary event at Bishops’ Heritage Park ground (DL14 9AE) on Thursday evening (April 11) from 5pm.
Organised by the Durham Amateur Football Trust, it will feature a talk, slideshow, photographic exhibition and entertainment from the Stanhope Silver Band and Jack Drum Arts.
At 7pm there’s an under-12s match between the Bishop and Crook teams. Admission’s free, all are welcome – and so, of course, would be donations.
Grass Routes 