Goals for glory

Tonight we went to Aldershot to see them play Dagenham & Redbridge. While the day had been glorious, the night was to prove wet and cold.

Nicktor managed to leave work at a reasonable hour and picked me up from home at 6:45. We headed for the Victoria for dinner. He was a bit dismayed and confused when I ordered ham, egg and chips without the chips but otherwise, the beer was good and we chatted about whatever we normally chat about pre-kick-off.

There was a little talk about what the lack of carbs is doing for my health and well being and he told me about a travel show where some comedian went to a Marrakech that Nicktor didn’t recognise (apart from the tanneries) but otherwise it was all the normal pre-football stuff.

There was one odd thing. Ordinarily we have a beer when we order dinner then we have a second pint just after the meal. For reasons known only to him, Nicktor decided to buy the second pint just before our food arrived which meant we were finished far too early. Of course Nicktor graciously blamed my feet making it necessary for us to leave the pub early in order to get to the ground on time.

We arrived at the ground ridiculously early. And the rain started as we were about to take our places on the Slab. We decided that the North Stand shelter looked pretty good so we decided to move there. Happily ensconced undercover we then spotted Charlie on the Slab but failed to attract his attention. The thing is Charlie doesn’t own a mobile phone (he is about 230 after all) so we had to wave, shout and jump about. The only thing we attracted were stares from those around us. Charlie remained unmoved.

The rain having stopped (for a bit) we walked back to the Slab and took up our places next to the Elderly Statesman. I mean Charlie, of course who became the subject of much conjecture. Apparently the last time he had fun was in 1963. He started coming to watch Aldershot in 1967 when he told his dad he wanted to come to the game with him. We all equated the two events as being synonymous.

The game eventually started (like the rain) and the Mighty (Tonight) Shots set a cracking pace with deliberate and beautiful passing, frightening the socks off the visitors. After a brief stop for them to replace their socks, the game continued as it had started and meant to go on. Then we scored.

Celebrations, cheering, whistling, shouting, it all started going off as the players ran around like joyous but headless chickens. But then, after what had felt like an eternity of consideration, the linesman signalled offside and the goal was disallowed.

Everyone was stunned…except for the linesman who was still deciding how long to leave his flag up. The game returned to the centre circle and recommenced.

(It’s important to note that the player was in fact offside so the linesman’s decision was a correct one however there really should be a time limit on how long before he can react. Personally I reckon half an hour is far too long.)

Then, 17 minutes into the game and right in front of us, a superb cross from Bernard Mensah on the wing saw Shamir Fenelon slot the ball into the net. The pass was perfection, the result a delight. Once more the crowd went crazy and the celebrations started. A few of us more wary types kept our eyes glued to the linesman to make sure he wasn’t going to suddenly raise his flag. It didn’t happen and the goal stood.

Then, a little while later, Mensah scored one himself after another superb pass, this time from the eventual man of the match, Nick Arnold.

The players went in at halftime with the score at 2-0. The Shots had played out of their skins. Nicktor was worried that they’d need their skins for the second half or they could easily just give the game away.

The second half started and the Dagenham and Redbridge side had had a change of heart when it came to tactics. Rather than let the game come to them and sit back while the Shots pummelled them, they decided to try and score a goal…which they did. As Nicktor said, at 2-0 it’s looking good but when that becomes 2-1 early in the second half, it’s bum clenching time. As the guy standing next to Nicktor said, this was far too much information.

Nicktor soon managed to release his cheeks from their death grip when Matt McClure, a late substitution, scored from 35 yards with a screaming kick. Actually I’m not sure that the kick did scream because it was up the other end of the pitch but I like to think of it being somewhat audible. The East Bank were certainly audible.

And so the score remained at 3-1. And we all left the ground a little happier knowing the Shots were slightly Mighty once more. Well, apart from the 100 or so visiting fans who were an equal amount of miserable.

Here’s the view from the Slab with a little bit of Nicktor singing “C’mon the Shots.”

Sadly there was no goal but it does give a feeling of what it’s generally like.