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A first visit to Kenilworth Road was a joyous occasion. It happened to be the 67th, and last, game of an epic campaign which had seen a run to the semi-finals of the League Cup; decent runs in the FA Cup and Auto Windscreens and most importantly of course, promotion, The win at Saltergate 5 days previously has secured Tier 2 football for the forthcoming season. So it was a carnival atmosphere. But there was still something to play for. We went into the game level with top of the table Bury leading by a goal difference of 4. A win down at Luton, coupled with Bury failing to secure maximum points, would leave us holding the silverware. Bury, in decent form and unbeaten for 4 games, were facing Millwall at Gigg Lane so a Shakers victory was on the cards. Luton on the other hand were 3rd in the table and were assured of a play-off spot. As it turned out they finished 3rd, but went down to Crewe, who had finished 6th yet gained promotion, beating Brentford in the Wembley final.

A carnival atmosphere it was as the Oak Road End was packed to capacity with the travelling County fans. Nearly 10,000 were at the game, which couldn’t have been far from a full house at Kenilworth Road. The team that we had seen all season, (and I had been privileged to see 64 of the 67 games, missing only the trips to Wycombe; Brentford and Bournemouth), was on parade. Looking at the line up one can only marvel not only at the consistency, but also the fitness levels which had allowed Mike Flynn to miss only 1 game of the 67; Paul Jones & Sean Connelly (2); and Tom Bennett (5). Another 3, (Alun Armstrong; Lee Todd and Jim Gannon), had played 55 or more and Kieron Durkan and Chris Marsden more than 50. Eight of the players on view had been more or less permanent fixtures. It had been an incredible season. 67 games; 35 victories; 17 draws and just 15 defeats.

The last of the 67 ended as a draw. Kevin Cooper gave County the lead from the spot very early in the game, and hopes were raised of a Championship. News began to filter through, (transistor radio in those days – well before the advent of Twitter and Flash Scores!), that Bury were leading Millwall, and when Luton equalised 7 minutes before the break there was an acceptance that it was going to be the runners-up spot. No matter. It was a time to celebrate the annus mirabilis. Half time arrived and then there was an unseemly scrum as County officials walked around to the Oak Road End and proceeded to chuck into the crowd the ‘remaindered’ stuff from the Club Shop. It was all in good spirit though as desperate grabs were made for all sort of tat 🤣 🤣

The game petered out as the second half proceeded, and the news that Bury had gone 2 ahead finalised matters. Driving away from the ground there was a huge feeling of satisfaction. A season which had started poorly, (not a single league win until the 7th game and only two draws as well) had ended with promotion to the 2nd tier. From years where derby games had mainly featured Rochdale we knew that 1997/98 would see us competing at the same level as Manchester City – and oh what joy that first meeting was to bring just over six months later!!

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Memories of trips to Kenilworth Road

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THE GAMES

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Where the date is in bold click for highlights of the game

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	Date	Venue	Ground	Competition		F	A	Att:
Tue	15/10/96	h	Edgeley Park	Nationwide Football League – Division 2 (Tier 3)	D	1	1	5,352
Sat	03/05/97	a	Kenilworth Road	Nationwide Football League – Division 2 (Tier 3)	D	1	1	9,623
Sat	05/10/02	h	Edgeley Park	Nationwide Football League – Division 2 (Tier 3)	L	2	3	5,932
Sat	26/04/03	a	Kenilworth Road	Nationwide Football League – Division 2 (Tier 3)	D	1	1	6,010
Sat	16/08/03	h	Edgeley Park	Nationwide Football League – Division 2 (Tier 3)	L	1	2	4,566
Sat	17/01/04	a	Kenilworth Road	Nationwide Football League – Division 2 (Tier 3)	D	2	2	5,920
Sat	18/09/04	h	Edgeley Park	Coca-Cola Football League – League 1 (Tier 3)	L	1	3	5,128
Sat	15/01/05	a	Kenilworth Road	Coca-Cola Football League – League 1 (Tier 3)	L	0	3	6,603
Fri	02/09/11	h	Edgeley Park	Blue Square Bet Premier (Tier 5)	D	1	1	3,389
Tues	10/01/12	a	Kenilworth Road	Blue Square Bet Premier (Tier 5)	L	0	1	5,588
Sat	02/03/13	h	Edgeley Park	Blue Square Bet Premier (Tier 5)	L	0	1	4,074

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