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The highlighted game was one played not at the International Stadium, but a place of many previous visits – the Victoria Ground Hartlepool. Gateshead played at the International Stadium, which by mid-season of 2012/13 was completely impassable; unplayable and more resembling the Grimpen Mire beloved of Arthur Conan Doyle in the Hound of the Baskervilles. It was a crucial game in what looked likely to be an unsuccessful battle against the drop into regional football.

The Heed had been nomads since the turn of the year. Home games taking place at Bootham Crescent; Brunton Park; York Street, (yes a home game at Boston, 151 miles from Gateshead and necessitating a 3 and a half hour drive – each way!!!), The Riverside and half a dozen fixtures at the Victoria Ground. Somewhat implausibly, given these travails, Gateshead came into the fixture just above the dreaded relegation line, having staggeringly thumped Luton at Carlisle the previous week

Fixtures elsewhere were also interesting. .A win for County and defeat for Tamworth at Ebbsfleet would give the Hatters more than hope going into the game at Aggborough four days later. Lincoln weren’t out of it either but their last game was at Hyde who had packed up their bucket and spades weeks before safe in the knowledge of their survival. It dragged more than a few County fans out. 685 was the gate, with at least two thirds of them, sporting the blue and white, tucked into the new Rink End.

The Heed took a lead, and things were more than grim as news filtered through that Tamworth were ahead down near the south coast. As the game went into injury time an Ebbsfleet equaliser down at Stonebridge Road gave no more than scant hope. We were still down and the awful prospect of 6th tier football just a decade or so after playing in the Championship was about to become a reality.

That was until the ball ended up in the Gateshead area, and Adnan Cirak struck home an equaliser. A Kalezic signing purportedly, (although strong rumour had it that he was a fixture in McKnight’s contact book), this was about his only meaningful contribution in a County shirt. Ecstasy reigned for a minute or so. But the realists still knew that it was long odds. The local derby the following year wasn’t going to be Macclesfield or Hyde but rather Stalybridge. And of course so it proved.

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Memories of the International Stadium

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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	06/12/11	h	Edgeley Park	Blue Square Bet Premier (Tier 5)	L	0	1	2,366
Sat	07/01/12	a	International Stadium	Blue Square Bet Premier (Tier 5)	L	0	2	846
Fri	24/08/12	h	Edgeley Park	Blue Square Bet Premier (Tier 5)	L	1	2	3,213
Tues	16/04/13	a	Victoria Ground Hartlepool	Blue Square Bet Premier (Tier 5)	D	1	1	685

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