57 years, 850 away games, and 180 different grounds. It’s hard to believe that a Club which was an ever- present member of the Football League for 106 years from 1905 – 2011, (following an earlier 4 year spell), could rise so high in my time following them and then fall so low. The nine seasons, (and counting at the time of writing), in non-league have led to 55 new grounds.

But before we lost our league status I had seen them on 125 arenas. 3 of them were at non-league teams in the FA Cup, but there were a number of Clubs who had moved locations. Amongst them were Huddersfield; Northampton; Wigan; Darlington; Scunthorpe; Hull; Chester; Chesterfield; Bolton; Rotherham; Stoke; Shrewsbury; Brighton; Bristol Rovers; Oxford United; Southampton; Colchester; MK Dons; and of course the two iterations of Wembley. It just shows how the football landscape has changed in that time.

By the time our demise came, I had seen County at 89 of the 92 clubs in the league, (but not all on their current grounds), at that time. The three missing were Chelsea; Newcastle and Arsenal, (although I have managed a trip to the Emirates as part of a business ‘jolly’!).

Looking back though the records to 1963 I’ve catalogued all the grounds that we have played at, and under My Rules find that there have been County visits to 15 other grounds, but not with me in tandem. Some of them were far too early to be realistically included, (Park Avenue Bradford and the original Den at Millwall where we last played in 1966); one where I was away at University, (Marston Road the home of Stafford Rangers in 1974); and six in the period since 2017 when ill-health has precluded long distance trips, (York Road, Maidenhead; Meadow Park, Boreham Wood; Gander Green Lane, Sutton United; Crabble Ground, Dover Athletic; Hayes Lane, Bromley; & Meadowbank, Dorking Wanderers).

That leaves 6 which for some reason or another I unaccountably missed. These are:

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SOMERTON PARK (NEWPORT COUNTY)

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I’d started travelling to a lot of away games in the late 70’s. I’d put off a trip to Newport two or three times, and with Newport being a Division higher for much of the 80’s the opportunity had never presented itself, That was until August Bank Holiday Monday 1987 but the the prospect of fighting my way down through the holidaying traffic held no real attraction and I opted for missing it. I contented myself with the thought that there would always be another time.Sadly not. Newport were relegated at the end of the season and went out of business two thirds of the way through their first Conference campaign. The phoenix Club fought its way through the leagues, despite having to play initially at Moreton in the Marsh and then Gloucester City. They eventually returned to their home town and our paths crossed again in the Conference, firstly at the Newport Stadium and then at Rodney Parade.

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WHEATSHEAF PARK (STAINES TOWN)

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We’d been held to a draw at EP by Staines in November 2007. The replay was scheduled for a Monday evening; Jeff and I made the trip, but as we got further down the M40 the rain which had been falling steadily for most of the trip became monsoon like. Pulling up outside Wheatsheaf Park about 45 minutes before kick-off, the lights were glistening. The rain had stopped by then, but it wasn’t long before the radio told us that the game had been postponed. It was re-arranged for 72 hours later. For reasons outlined in my piece on the Bescot Stadium. I couldn’t make it. and had to watch it on TV instead. Another one missed!

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GLOBE ARENA (MORECAMBE)

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I had sufficient latitude in organising my working times but this one was set in stone, and commenced 90 minutes before the action kicked off 66 miles away from where I was sat in Oldham! If we’d managed to sort thing in 30 minutes I would have made a last minute dash up the M61 and M6. No chance. By the time Jake Simpson had gone for an early bath after 8 minutes the acrimonious meeting was just drawing to a close. I dashed out, turned on the radio, heard about the dismissal, and then heard Phil Jevons convert the penalty. Jevons, (later of course to become a firm favourite at EP), went on to claim a hat-trick as we went down 5-0. A game to miss undoubtedly, but as a ‘groundhopper’ a disappointment.

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BARTON STADIUM (WINSFORD UNITED)

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In the 2011/12 season, as a non-league club, My Rules determine the Cheshire Cup as qualifying. We went to the Barton Stadium Winsford on Tuesday 21st February 2012. I sadly couldn’t. My role as DOF at New Charter Housing Trust meant that the majority of February was taken up with Board meetings to address the budget for the forthcoming year, and while I always tried to get them organised for ‘non-match’ days I didn’t manage it this time. Good job too – we lost 4-1!!

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PARK ROAD (CHEADLE TOWN)

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I must have seen any number of pre-season friendlies at Park Road. It’s a traditional pre-season venue, and used as a valuable fund raiser for the home club as it always attracts a decent crowd, being no more than a couple of miles from EP. We played them in a Cheshire Cup game on 1st November 2017, (and won 8-1). Just a week out of hospital and under strict instructions to confine myself to barracks for 5 weeks to avoid infection a visit that evening was simply off the agenda.

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HURST CROSS (ASHTON UNITED)

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I suspect that most football fans have a ‘second team’ and the Robins are mine. I watch them as a matter of course when I can’t get to County, and have done for 40+ years since I played cricket at Ashton CC and my friends at Rayner Lane took me along. Stalybridge Celtic’s Bower Fold is 200 yards from my front door but Hurst Cross, (about a mile and half away), is as good as visible from my front window. So, despite having seen County friendlies there on a number of occasions, I was really looking forward to County’s competitive game there in the National League North on Tuesday 18th December 2018. My wife Julie had undergone an operation the previous day and was due to be discharged on the morning of the game. I was at Wythenshawe Hospital ready to pick her up but things got delayed. I got home at around 6.15, and the floodlights over at Hurst Cross were shining brightly – a glance out of the window told me that. But it simply wasn’t right to go, despite Mark and his girlfriend, Lauren, offering to sit-in. I listened to the action unfold. A 6-0 away win. The biggest away victory since a 7-1 thumping of Bradford in September 1965. I wondered whether I’d see the like of that. But there wasn’t long to wait as the score was repeated at the Deva Stadium only 4 months later.

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May 2020