About Me

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Hammersmith, London, United Kingdom
I'm a director of Maidenhead United Football Club. For ten seasons one of my roles at the club was to produce the match programme. The aim of this blog was to write football related articles for publication in the match programme. In particular I like to write about the representation of football in popular culture, specifically music, film/TV and literature. I also write about matches I attend which generally feature Maidenhead United.

Monday 3 January 2011

Unholy Saints

Maidenhead paid for their good fortune on New Years Day with some good saves, bad officiating and a lack of killer instinct in front of goal leading to another winning opportunity being passed up.  Add in some hefty challenges from St. Albans and you have a frustrating afternoon.
This was a shame as a trip to Clarence Park is usually one to be relished.  The swift journey north on the train sped past Hendon's old Claremont Road ground with its impressive floodlight pylons.  This led to reminiscences of a time when trips to Hendon and St. Albans which came with Isthmian Premier Division status were a mere pipedream for the Magpies.  Now Hendon subsist in a groundshare whilst St. Albans nervously await the outcome of an FA financial enquiry which may cost vital points in their battle against relegation.
They retain one player of quality in goalkeeper Paul Bastock and his two first half saves from Alex Wall certainly had a key influence on the result.  The Saints goal came within a minute of centre back Marcus Rose being replaced for United which may have had something to do with Inih Effiong breaking the offside trap to score.  From then on there was plenty of goalmouth incident with St. Albans' overly physical determination to win at home for the first time this season leaving its mark on Ashley Smith amongst others and reflecting manager Steve Castle's career as a bustling midfielder.

3 comments:

Lenny Baryea said...

"Now Hendon subsist in a groundshare whilst St. Albans nervously await the outcome of an FA financial enquiry which may cost vital points in their battle against relegation"

Adds fuel to the fire re my belief that "Things Have Never Been Better" by D:Ream should be played as the teams run out at York Road!

"reflecting manager Steve Castle's career as a bustling centre forward"

Pretty sure that Steve Castle was a midfielder

Steve said...

The D:Ream track was actually called: "Things Can Only Get Better" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aj4wcuo9Mgo&feature=related
As I finished my programme notes for the New Year's Day: "the club enters the second decade of the 21st century in at least as rude health as it entered the first so heres hoping for all the ups of the noughties without the downs!" of course we haven't got a huge tax liability piling up as in 2001 so I probably should have said in better health.
I guess your run out music would be something doomy and gloomy along the lines of Hurt by Johnny Cash. You are right about Steve Castle I think I got confused by his heading prowess at set pieces when I saw him play for Plymouth once.

Lenny Baryea said...

No, as aforementioned I think we should run out to D:Ream (and as for the name of the track, I’m well aware of it’s actual title but will always refer to it as “Things Have Never Been Better” due to the alternate words that have previously been sung on the terraces at York Road)

Failing that, Tiffany’s ‘I Think We’re Alone Now’ (alternate words – “I think we‘re at home now; there doesn’t seem to be anyone around”).

Or maybe ‘Black & White Town’ by Doves, which often used to get an airing on the Anchor jukebox post-match.