The football season is just about over in England but there are still odd games remaining, usually where one of the sides has ran up a fixture backlog due to extensive cup runs or trouble with their pitch. Jen and I were heading over to Manchester for a gig and so we broke our journey by calling in at the final game of the season in the West Yorkshire League Premier Division.
We were doing pretty well for gigs. Two nights ago we’d gone up to Newcastle to meet up with Paul to see Michael Monroe. He’s the former frontman from Hanoi Rocks, a band that Paul and I first saw over forty years ago. This one was in the Newcastle University Student Union and was very little different to the Hanoi Rocks performances that we saw in the mid-eighties. At one point he came down off the stage and ended up jumping onto the bar. Monroe is a couple of years older than us but I doubt I’d be able to clamber around with such ease.
The next night, Jen and I saw The Snuts at Middlesbrough Town Hall. We’ve seen them a couple of times before including their gig at the same venue three years ago when it seemed likely that they might be the next big thing. I’m not sure that they’ve progressed as much as I’d expected but there was a decent youngish crowd, most of whom appeared word perfect on all the songs. It was a good show, with it all over in an hour and without an encore. That’s as it should be. Play your best stuff for sixty minutes and then clear off.
The Saturday afternoon game was between Littletown and Wyke Wanderers at Beck Lane, Heckmondwike. I suspect that Littletown were the cause of the fixture pile up as they’d won three trophies, including the league. They posed behind their cups before kick-off.
The crowd of around one hundred and twenty was likely bigger than Littletown’s usual attendance as it was boosted by at least forty groundhoppers. We are easily spotted, with cameras, notebooks and backpacks, although I can often pass for a normal person simply by taking Jen along.
Littletown missed an opportunity to cash in on the groundhopper influx as it was free admission. They probably dipped out on catering profits too as we only paid a couple of quid in total for two coffees and a bag of crisps.
There weren’t any seats anywhere, other than the camping chairs that people had brought themselves. There was a covered standing area, although it just had a dirt floor. As there wasn’t any prospect of rain, Jen and I were content to lean on the rail behind one of the goals.
Not a great deal went on in the opening half-hour. It all got interesting though when some handbags led to two red cards. What made it notable was that both of the players sent off were from Littletown. A Wanderers player picked up a yellow for his part in it all and I imagine that he couldn’t stop smirking at how it all played out.
The two man advantage was enough for Wanderers to take the lead before the break when a corner from the left was volleyed home.
Littletown regrouped after the restart and defended deep for most of the second half. As full-time approached, they threw off the shackles and pushed forward, putting one chance just wide of the post and then hitting the bar in added time.
Wanderers held on for the single goal victory, but with three trophies to parade it was still Littletown’s afternoon.
Tags: Heckmondwike, Michael Monroe, The Snuts
Trail of the Lion King 
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