Nicktor and I headed over to the Rec tonight to watch Aldershot replay East Thurrock United (Essex) in the Buildbase FA Trophy. This should not be confused with the FA Cup. In fact it was created in order for non-league clubs, who are unlikely to ever advance far in the FA Cup, to compete in a national competition, culminating in a final at Wembley.
Anyway, last Saturday we drew at their ground and tonight was the replay. The winner will meet Braintree next Saturday.
It was also an opportunity for Nicktor and me to chat about Bill, remembering his crazy ways and missing him. Both of us were half expecting him to walk through the door of the pub – there was an empty chair at the table for him. (In fact, possibly the best part of the night was the fact that Charlie couldn’t complain about us chanting “Oooo it’s a corner” as he usually does because we said it was “for Bill.”)
So, after the pub we wandered down to the ground heading for the North Stand. The Slab and the whole southern side of the ground was closed because they weren’t expecting much of a turnout. And they were so right. The announcer didn’t even bother to count them. While a bit annoying, it did mean I could stand in a part of the ground I’d never been in before.
The empty south side
It also meant I could see the telegraph pole. Charlie pointed it out, saying it was possibly the only ground with a telegraph pole on the edge of the pitch. It’s an odd claim to fame.
The game started at a good clip, Aldershot dominating, the result looking in the bag. Unfortunately one of the Shot’s players disagreed with a win and brought down a Thurrock player. Being the last defender, the tackle was deemed to be a bit cynical. Our player was immediately sent off and we were down to ten men for the rest of the game.
The teams come out
It was always going to be tough from then on but it was made even tougher when the free kick given as a result of the sending off, produced a goal for them. It was then a case of tit for tat. They would score then we’d fight back and score in turn. 1-1, 2-2, 3-3 and finally it was full time. Because it was a cup game, there had to be a result so we headed into extra time.
Charlie said it was to our advantage because the Thurrock players (a league lower than us) are part timers and would start going down with cramp. One of their players did but he was replaced. Then, after 108 minutes of play, Thurrock scored making it 3-4.
We then tried…and tried and tried. But trying just wasn’t enough and they went home the winners. In front of us a party of Thurrock fans (there was no segregation because there were so few and nothing to get violent about) were utterly overjoyed. We just walked back to the car.
As I said to Nicktor, the game was definitely a celebration of Bill, given the fact that we lost. Smiling, he agreed.
They didn’t even bother printing new tickets…
What a shame you lost and I have seen so maney empty seats I couldn’t see the pole. Still it was a good night out and it helped Nicktor to talk about Bill.
Love mum xxxx