Diar y of a GROUND HOPPER
IT’S FA Cup weekend and Hoppers are getting excited. Planning reaches fever pitch as the World’s-Best-CupCompetition-Despite-the-FA-Doing-Their-Best-to-Screw -Things-Up gets underway. After a disappointing tie at Easington Colliery on Saturday, I am eager to get back in the saddle tonight.
I have been to Mill Lane – home of Northern Counties East League side Pickering – before but it was many years ago. Notts County played a couple of friendlies as part of deal that took the Short brothers (not the short brothers) from the North Yorkshire club to Meadow Lane.
After a showery day on the Yorkshire Moors, I head into this market town. I spy a sign for a chippy on the main road. I cannot resist. Waddling like a true porker, I return to the ground and pay £5 to get in. Tonight’s programme is a photocopied four-pager for 20p. Fortunately, there’s a NCEL book on sale for £3 with £1 going to each selling club. It is a truly excellent publication.
Fans enter the ground in one corner. Behind this close goal, there’s a covered stand leading to the clubhouse. Inside, one can find Pikes [sic] Pantry. The pies seem to be going down a treat. There’s a cricket pitch down one side of the football pitch and a small seated stand behind the far goal. To complete the scene, the other touchline houses a larger stand of seats with standing allowed below it. There’s a decent crowd building up. It has certainly changed since my last visit!
The Saturday fixture between these two sides was an entertaining affair by all accounts. Ryhope went two up, the Pikes had a man sent off but then managed to pull the two goals back. This can only mean one thing: a lack of goals and incident tonight.
I take my place on the terrace behind the goal. I fear I am correct about my prediction when the first half produces just a single effort, deservedly scored by the visitors. The only real entertainment comes from a mouth home fan who constantly shouts at the match officials even though their performance is near perfect. He makes himself look extremely foolish by shouting at the linesman for not raising his flag a few times, even though the player concerned was nowhere near the ball and it never reached him anyway.
Thankfully Mr. Shouty Ignorant is absent in the second half – probably recalled to his nursing home for medication – and we settle down to a cracking second 45 minutes. By the end of normal time, Pickering are level through a hotly disputed penalty. At least two Ryhope players escape a red card after dishing out some terrible abuse to the referee. Where’s this clampdown we’ve been promised?
Extra-time draws to an end with the sides level at 3-3 and Sunderland’s manager in the stands for saying something unkind to the linesman. Quite possibly the worst penalty shoot-out I’ve ever seen sees Pickering through to the next round and £1,500 better off.