Saturday 31st July
Bristol Rovers v Swindon Town Dammit, I’ve got sunburn. It’s itching like hell, and what do I have to show for it? The dullest 2-all draw in the history of football, and am £9 lighter for the experience. I suppose you can’t blame the players for saving themselves for the Racecourse – it was going on 25-degrees out there, and that isn’t nice to play in. Perhaps for the fair players, used only to freezing conditions in mid-December at horrid places up north, we should move all summer friendlies to the evening. It would make sense, and might make them run a bit when they’re cold. Something lacking in today’s performance. The plus sides first: An absolutely outstanding goal from Brian Howard. Belted from the corner of the penalty area, next to the Town fans, right into the back of the net. He’s having an excellent start. The downsides: Just about everything else. Junior Agogo gave Jerel the right run around, and forced the penalty for Rovers. It was so blatant not a single one us fans quibbled. It’s been a long time since I’ve watched a game on a terrace – I wouldn’t want to be there in the howling winds of the winter, though. The less said about this rubbish the better. Although I did hear Saints lost today … roll on Tuesday. Tuesday 3rd August
Swindon Town v Southampton You have got to wonder how some referees get away with being in the job they are in. By comparison we’ve seen some prats at the County Ground before; the standard of refereeing in Division Three, League One or whatever, isn’t good. Tonight the ref seemed to, for the most part, be favouring the Saints. Okay, perhaps we were being a bit physical with them. That’s football. But, missing the handball for the Southampton winner was pretty unforgivable. If he didn’t see it, then the linesman should have flagged for it. Did he? Like hell. Everyone in the Nationwide with a good view shouted for it, and I bet a few outside the ground who couldn’t see it probably did too. Oh well, I suppose in the grand scheme it doesn’t really matter. Only that you know we are going to get some bozo like that later in the season, mark my words. As for the game: no Jerel Ifil. He was out injured and a doubt for Saturday. That could cause problems, since Gurney will have to switch to centre back. The other worry is that Matty Heywood and Andy Nicholas are both out injured too, leaving us short at the back. Tonight we got the “I’ll never play them together again” (said Kingy last term) combination of Reeves and Viveash. Perhaps, as my footballing partner in crime pointed out, I get on Reeves’ back a little too much at times, and in fairness he did do okay tonight. Viveash almost got caught for pace, though, a few times. Football is surely as much about the game as it is the social experience – and it was good to get back together with my mate, who wishes to be known here as Maureen. Bizarre since he’s a bloke. Mind you, Marion was playing for Saints tonight. Going to games on your own isn’t a bad thing at all, but it’s much more of a fun occasion to go with your mates. Wycombe was a particular solo ‘highlight’ for me last time. I’d been out drinking the night before, and was pretty green around the edges the next morning. Thankfully I hadn’t drunk anywhere near enough to put me over the limit, but I’d have some bottom-of-the-barrel Stella. You KNOW what that does to you. I had to position myself near enough to run to the bogs, should the call of nature fall on Buckinghamshire. Thankfully not, and I got to see a good game. Plans are now afoot for Wrexham on Saturday. At first, we’d though about not going because it’s just so far away. Until we looked on a map and realised it wasn’t quite that bad. So in the car, up the M5 and that rubbish ‘nothing’ motorway to Shrewsbury, and up a bit more. This is the bit of the season where life as a fan it gets expensive. Away days aren’t just the expense of £16 (yes, much less than at Swindon) to get in, but the cost of the petrol and food along the way. You can feel seriously light after a day out following the team. No top footballing totty tonight, and I’ll be steering clear on Saturday. Before I know it, I might find myself banged up with some Welsh girl being told male voice choirs are a good idea. No thanks. See you Saturday!
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