merse
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Post by merse on Jun 6, 2009 13:40:58 GMT
 That is indeed a wonderful site and I've already included it in my "favourites" file. One of the names mentioned on there, Jack Swindells; actually became a Torquay United player in the early sixties for a season or two under Eric Webber. Assuming we get a Saturday fixture up there wouldn't it be an idea for us old farts to make a weekend of it and do a tour of the town and it's numerous old sites relating to the birth and early history of the Football League heritage of this little town?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 6, 2009 17:04:32 GMT
...and a massive (£250k+) windfall from the Brett Ormerod sell-on clause. The Ormerod windfall doesn't sound too much from the perspective of a Football League club but I guess the money came at a stage (2001/02) - with the club in the Northern Premier - when it was a sufficiently large amount for them to really make it work to their advantage. For us it would probably have been gobbled up paying the bills. It must have been money well-spent. Although you have to have basic minimum ground criteria, I think these should not be set too high. Let Stanley enjoy their season (or four) in the sun - they will find their level eventually. Why force them to have a stadium that they will never fill and can't afford? Fair comment about a pretty emotive issue at various levels of football these days. hem.passagen.se/accringtonstanley/ - That is indeed a wonderful site and I've already included it in my "favourites" file. Assuming we get a Saturday fixture up there wouldn't it be an idea for us old farts to make a weekend of it and do a tour of the town and it's numerous old sites relating to the birth and early history of the Football League heritage of this little town? Yes, a cracking site and one of several Jon has unearthed over the last few months (a Jon's Links thread perhaps?). It includes a mention of the day Accrington fielded an all-Scottish side in 1955. I'd certainly be game for the Accie Heritage Trail. Jon's link contains a map to give us plenty of starting points (joining us, Aus?):  The whole map hasn't transferred across - the current ground is off-map to the north - but Peel Park (4) is there and the picture below is pretty much what I remember when I visited one Sunday morning over twenty-five years ago:  |
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merse
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Post by merse on Jun 7, 2009 15:47:32 GMT
Assuming we get a Saturday fixture up there wouldn't it be an idea for us old farts to make a weekend of it and do a tour of the town and it's numerous old sites relating to the birth and early history of the Football League heritage of this little town? I'd certainly be game for the Accie Heritage Trail. This has captured my imagination.....................so much so that I've been researching the area from Darwin to Nelson (only about 15 miles) along the route of the M65 and within that corridor sit the homes of some pretty historic football clubs. Starting in Darwen, there is a convenient Travelodge overlooking the Anchor Ground which has only just been vacated through the winding up of Darwen F.C. after it being their home for 139 years but after their tenure of the Football League from 1891-1899 during which time they played at Barley Bank the ground that staged the first ever football match under electric floodlighting ~ v Blackburn Rovers on October 28th 1878! Just a mile away is Blackburn Rovers' historic Ewood Park where they have played since 1890. Less than the distance from Plainmoor to Newton Abbot Station are located the various sites of the football clubs of Accrington which we have already talked about and just five miles further along the A679 is Turf Moor home of Burnley F.C. since 1883. This leaves just the site of Seedhill the home of Nelson F.C. who played in the Football League from 1921 as founder members of Division 3 North until being voted out and replaced by Chester in 1931. Although Seedhill was closed to enable construction of the M65 motorway in 1981 the site of the ground remains and there are now plans underfoot to return the club to that historic venue by building a completely new ground there. |
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davethegull
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Post by davethegull on Jun 7, 2009 16:27:30 GMT
You know what? Sometimes this site blows me away. The passion for football demonstrated by our posters is amazing.
While i don't agree with some people some of the time......cough! I absolutely admire the depth of analysis of footie related topics.
Isn't that what makes this forum so interesting? Great stuff.
Right, that's the end of me being nice.
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jj
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Post by jj on Jun 7, 2009 17:47:51 GMT
I would'nt mind Hereford away as our first fixture.Has anyone reading this "dit" been there, the ground is a little unusal I hear.I also beleive it's called Edgar Street?  |
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Rob
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Post by Rob on Jun 7, 2009 19:28:08 GMT
I would'nt mind Hereford away as our first fixture.Has anyone reading this "dit" been there, the ground is a little unusal I hear.I also beleive it's called Edgar Street? There's a cattle market there and the away end resembles a bull ring/was once a bull ring. It's deceptively bloody miles away, but I enjoyed my only trip there. Buckle was in midfield with Trollope that day. Nice weather. No idea what the score was or what year, but I think we drew. |
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Post by witneygull on Jun 7, 2009 19:29:49 GMT
Hereford, with it's bombsite carpark and brutalist concrete stand...no thanks!
Rotherham away, given that August is probably the least grim time to go to the arse-end of Sheffield!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 7, 2009 21:19:12 GMT
This has captured my imagination.....................so much so that I've been researching the area from Darwen to Nelson (only about 15 miles) along the route of the M65 and within that corridor sit the homes of some pretty historic football clubs. The Ashdown hotel in Preston isn't a bad place to stay either - with plenty of early Football League associations in the vicinity. The Homes of England thread mentions Leamington Street where Rovers played in the early days of the League. There's also Hole-i'th'-Wall, home of Blackburn Olympic (FA Cup winners 1883) - buried under the Catholic 6th form college apparently - and Pikes Lane where Bolton Wanderers played until 1895. A rich mix indeed. |
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merse
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Post by merse on Jun 8, 2009 2:48:10 GMT
Right under my nose and waiting to be read properly the latest issue of "Groundtastic" tells me also that England have in their time used the fabulous Queens Park venue in Barons Court, West London which still looks pretty much today as it did then I would imagine; whilst on the subject of old "London" venues, "Groundtastic" mistakenly uses a map of London Welsh's Old Deer Park (not "Old Dear's Park" as it is colloquially known!) which sits right next door to the London Scottish home at Richmond Athletic Ground [/i] So we have other venues to visit in Blackburn eh then Barty? Better arrange to stay over on Saturday evening too and use Sunday morning to visit the National Football Museum at Deepdale. On the subject of Deepdale, who remembers that marvelous old frieze along the back wall of the old Pavilion featuring some of the legendary old North End heroes...................and did Mark Lawrenson paint himself onto it? I notice they didn't include John Beck and that fat oaf Raynor! ;D The only "stand" I've ever sat in that had a ceiling too if I remember correctly. Oh, and England did (aluding to your question the other day) play an away game at Goodison Park when it was thought imprudent to take the England side to Belfast during then troubles and the Northern Irish F.A. hired the Everton Ground to stage their home fixture.....................a real home from home in fact; given all the "Paddies" who live around the old stadium!
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tufc01
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Post by tufc01 on Jun 11, 2009 13:33:29 GMT
For me it's got to be either Grimsby or Darlington AWAY. Reason: Mistakenly booked our summer holiday  , earlier this year, to arrive home late on Friday 14th August, expecting the first game to be the following day. It was supposed to be the perfect tonic to cure end of holiday blues, looking forward to a home match playing league football once more. It could still happen as long as our first game is AWAY, to a team where we were not planning to go to anyway. |
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, earlier this year, to arrive home late on Friday 14th August, expecting the first game to be the following day. It was supposed to be the perfect tonic to cure end of holiday blues, looking forward to a home match playing league football once more.