AWAY DAYS

 PERSONAL VIEWS OF OUR RECENT MATCHES

Setting off for Bradford Park Avenue on the back of an encouraging performance against Barrow I had an air of confidence and actually put us down for an away win on my predictions. I seldom do that out of superstition but for some reason I thought we would win this one. After 75 minutes however when Ashy hit the post I really thought we were destined to get our first goalless draw in 44 games but Ashy’s wonder strike 5 minutes later (O.K. bit of a fluke) got us a well deserved and much needed win to put the smiles on everyone’s faces. It really is a strange game football, with quarter of an hour to go I was getting restless along with a number of the other sizeable following but what a difference a goal can make and what a pleasure to see the way the lads celebrated the win with the fans at the end of the game. They really looked delighted.

It was a fairly conventional trip to Bradford for me, setting off at 11and stopping for lunch in Haworth on the way at the Bronte Chippie. The Brontes seem to have a monopoly in Haworth as every shop was either a Bronte Chippie, Bronte Apothecary, Bronte Hardware or Bronte Chemist and it seemed to be a license to add at least £1 to the normal price of everything!

I hoped we would be able to find the site of the old BPA ground that housed league football for many years and I was not disappointed we found it but couldn’t really get access to take any photo’s and some of the activity going on in the surrounding area made us decide not to hang around for long so we headed straight on to the new ground.

We actually played at the old ground on 21 occasions and won only 3 times. The last time we played there was on March 27 1967 when we drew 0-0.

The Horsfall Stadium (ground 123 for me) is really a running track and is very neat and tidy but I personally don’t like pitches that are miles from the fans, it doesn’t do anything for the atmosphere and the very open nature of what in effect was a one sided ground did nothing to enhance the match.

On arrival I was greeted by Richard Griffiths who following a recent car accident was hobbling a bit.. Some may remember Richard as the secretary of Southport for a short spell before he moved to Bradford where he also had a stint as secretary. Nice to see him again and the memories came flooding back about the many away trips we used to do together in the seventies. It was £7 to get in and the programme which was very good cost just £1.30 and featured a Avenue Legends article on Jim Fryatt. I liked the Electric Avenue by Eddy Grant as the team came out at the start of the match and at half time. There was also a very interesting character who seemed to have a chant all of his own, it made me laugh anyhow, the only trouble was it seemed to be the Southport fans joining in with him at times!

The crowd of 393 was Bradford’s highest of the season which now means that in all the away games we have played only Worksop have failed to have the highest of the season when we visited.

So it was on to Lancaster and having recently packed the daughter off to uni in Lancaster it gave us chance to take a few of the “essential” things she didn’t take with her when she first went like telly, video, kitchen sink etc!

I’ve been to the Giant Axe on several occasions and remember the aforementioned Richard Griffiths once getting attacked as we walked round at half time in our first non-league season. I had a golfing umbrella with me that I had won at Bingo the Saturday before at Scarborough (there wasn’t that much to do over the weekend and we had lost 1-0!) that came in very useful when fending off the marauding horde of Dolly Blues determined to make a name for themselves! It’s funny what you remember when you think about it isn’t it?

£6 to get in and we got the youngest daughter in for free as they were operating a kids free scheme and the one at holiday camp, sorry university, had been given a ticket via the students union. The KFF scheme is a good idea but to have a group of screaming kids in front of you for half a match is not my idea of fun!  The terracing behind one of the goals was new since I last went and was a vast improvement to the flat area that used to be there.  The result and performance was a disappointment to another excellent away following which gave Lancaster their highest gate of the season by 363.

Next stop for me will be Altrincham. I may have to miss the Barrow game on 4 November due to work commitments so if anyone doing an Away Days piece for this game let me know as a sub may be needed.

Rob Urwin