AWAY DAYS

(A PERSONAL VIEW OF RECENT GAMES)

Didn’t we have a lovely time the day we went to.. Whitby! 

Getting up at 7.30am on a Saturday is not really my idea of fun but Martin had decided to make a day of it so it was an early start to meet him in Preston at 9.

We had a lovely journey up. Beautiful weather, idyllic scenery but no grounds to photograph, there really is a dearth of football grounds on this journey.

We arrived in Whitby at around 12 and had a wander around what is a lovely town. As it was Whitby you just have to sample the fish and chips so we did and very nice they were too!

A quick walk down the jetty proved lively as it was so windy but it sure did blow the cobwebs away.

We got to the ground at 2.40, in plenty of time to take the customary photographs as it was another new ground for me (number 127)

It was a rather small and a little dishevelled ground and the pitch was as bumpy as you could get but the locals were very friendly and I think a bit surprised that we had taken so many people, my rough count was 81 but I must admit there were a few faces I have not seen before who were among the Sandgrounder contingent many of whom were making the most of it and having the weekend away.

As for the game, well, if it had ended 5-9 that would have been a fair reflection of the number of clear cut chances the teams made.

It was a great display and a thoroughly enjoyable game. I just wish some of the fans who had taken to having a go at certain players at Vauxhall had been there to see such a good all round performance.

No time to get carried away mind you as it has to be said Whitby’s defending was very poor and I think has to rank as the worst we have seen all season but we did take full advantage for once which was great to see.

I think the wag in the crowd who shouted to the hapless keeper “I’m a goalkeeper get me out of here” summed up everyone’s views. It certainly made the referee’s assistant, the Whitby fans and the Sandgrounder fans laugh and brought ironic applause from the ‘keeper himself He really did have a ‘mare!

I got chatting to a Whitby fan at half-time and asked if it was there regular keeper, his response was yes but after today maybe not! Expletives deleted!

Coming back was lively to say the least as we ran in to blizzards on the A59 just before Skipton and it was quite treacherous for a while but thankfully it cleared as we got closer to Preston and made it back safely at 8o’clock.

It’s funny how quick a journey seems when you have won isn’t it?

I was laughing at 6-0-6 when they who think they have a divine right to win everything, namely Man U fans were saying how poor their defence was. If only they had been at the Turnbull Ground!

I didn’t attend the Gainsborough game due to work commitments but I would like to thank everybody who kept me updated throughout the night via various communication media.

A full Away Days from the Runcorn game will appear in the next edition.