Post by NoCanariesAllowed (Ipswich'02) on Nov 26, 2006 19:46:12 GMT -1
NCA's Less-than-ideal Day Out to Derby Thread
A detailed account of Saturday's fun at Pride Park (with diversions via Long Eaton...)
Hello Foxes from England's most geographically-challenged football fan, NoCanariesAllowed!
So, yes, another joyous Saturday with my second team Leicester "Get Your Arse Here Now, Mandaric" City. Having spent last Saturday watching Preston winning 1-0 in what I think was a game of football (although it might've been a glorified 90mins freezing-my-arse-for-nothing session), I didn't have particularly high hopes for this trip, but hey, anything can happen in a derby, especially a Derby derby, so...
Things were going wrong before the weekend even started - In slightly cheeky fashion I booked £10.00 train tickets (or foot-long wobbleboards provided by Qjump) on a railcard which I didn't yet have in the hope that because I ordered one a week ago, it might just arrive in time for Saturday. Wrong. In fear of the worst (i.e. getting kicked off the train for not having a railcard), this left me needing to spend an additional £15.20 then scrambling for the FastTicket machine at Rugby station with very little time before the train to Birmingham New Street arrived.
For anyone who hasn't been on the trains recently, for feck's sake, don't try travelling between the West and East Midlands if you're in a hurry. Extensive maintenance works left us going from Rugby to New Street to change trains, only to come 30 miles back on ourselves then end up travelling through Leicester (right past the uni, ironically enough under the Welford Road bridge which I said I'd throw myself off on the way to the University on Monday if Ipswich lost to Norwich last weekend and Leicester lost to Derby this weekend). This unscheduled tour round Ratcliffe Power Station and Long Eaton took 2 hours... If the train had stopped in Leicester, I could've bloody driven to the station in 40mins rather than pissing around going to the jewel of the Midlands that is Beeeerrrrmingham...
Anyway, got to Derby in the end. Thanks to Leicester Lass for that tip about The Navigation - navigated my way there eventually(!), enjoying a bit of pre-match atmosphere. I was knocked out the way at one stage by someone who I had mistaken for a blue alcoholic dwarf, but it turned out to be Bernie on his way to the bar. So I wasn't mistaken then. (Lol!) No hard feelings - Bernie treated me to a spectacular display as he got back from the bogs, stared right at me pumping his fists and screamed "THE CONQUEROR RETURNS!!!!!!!!" I shall treasure that moment for many years to come...
Off to Pride Park then - makes a change that I didn't get searched or have some git nick the lid off my drink. Think it was because I got there a bit earlier at 2:00. Once I got in I was a little put off by an itv news guy walking right past me and then pointing a camera roughly in my direction, but whether I got on the box or not, I've no idea. After a jolly 20 mins whacking inflatable sheep around (as opposed to Derby fans who just enjoy 'whacking' sheep), we got into the game. Trouble was it seemed Leicester thought they were still at the Walkers losing to Preston because nothing had changed. Derby were the only ones creating the chances; the only time I remember Leicester testing the keeper in that half was that shot from gold-knows-how-far-out from gold-knows-who (I've never liked sitting in one of the ends because I can see sod all when we're attacking the other end...)
Then comes the second half and Derby go and score, Jon "good enough for the Premiership my arse" Stead knocking in. On comes Jeans Porter (crap joke, I know) and suddenly the game looks like it might take a turn. Couple of opportunities. I like most Leicester fans thought we'd equalised late on only to see the flag up on the left-hand side for that most terrible footballing offence, the invisible fuck-all. Ceefax reliably informed me later that Hammond's strike "was ruled out for Carl Bassindale's handball". Quite an achievement, considering Carl Bassindale was one of the officials... seems not even the BBC had a clue what happened there. I've seen the replays since and no, I'm not sure quite what Stearman used to control the ball, but regardless of that, Bywater produced a body-check worthy of the Detroit Redwings half a second later, so it should've been at least a penalty...
Having watched Stephen Hughes present himself as the answer to England Rugby Union's problems with a conversion over Derby's bar just before the final whistle, I headed back to the station only to discover the wonderful news that my train towards Banbury was running late. I had planned to wait in the station coffee shop, but they decided to close nice and early, so balls to that, I was left sitting in the cold for half an hour. Reminds me of Leicester vs Preston... Thankfully it wasn't running late enough for me to miss the change at Coventry, though I did have to endure another 2 hour magical mystery tour of Nottinghamshire before getting anywhere near home... Added to that, I checked the Championship scores to find that my first team Ipswich had done exactly what they did at Burnley two weeks ago and threw away a point at Barnsley by conceding in the 90th minute to lose 1-0...
So there you have it. NCA's Less-than-ideal day out to Derby. Still, anything's better than that wonderful day in September when we got lost in West Brom's ethnic district trying to find a pub we passed an hour earlier...
A few grauitous photos to close (click to see enlarged version)
Me sat next to Leicester's favourite madman at The Navigation...
Pride Park, or the national headquarters of the British Woollen Buggery Society.
One of the inflatables getting whacked around. It was later spotted with a suspicious puncture in the bins outside a local brothel.
Missed our last chance of the match. Right peeps, let's all go home...
A detailed account of Saturday's fun at Pride Park (with diversions via Long Eaton...)
Hello Foxes from England's most geographically-challenged football fan, NoCanariesAllowed!
So, yes, another joyous Saturday with my second team Leicester "Get Your Arse Here Now, Mandaric" City. Having spent last Saturday watching Preston winning 1-0 in what I think was a game of football (although it might've been a glorified 90mins freezing-my-arse-for-nothing session), I didn't have particularly high hopes for this trip, but hey, anything can happen in a derby, especially a Derby derby, so...
Things were going wrong before the weekend even started - In slightly cheeky fashion I booked £10.00 train tickets (or foot-long wobbleboards provided by Qjump) on a railcard which I didn't yet have in the hope that because I ordered one a week ago, it might just arrive in time for Saturday. Wrong. In fear of the worst (i.e. getting kicked off the train for not having a railcard), this left me needing to spend an additional £15.20 then scrambling for the FastTicket machine at Rugby station with very little time before the train to Birmingham New Street arrived.
For anyone who hasn't been on the trains recently, for feck's sake, don't try travelling between the West and East Midlands if you're in a hurry. Extensive maintenance works left us going from Rugby to New Street to change trains, only to come 30 miles back on ourselves then end up travelling through Leicester (right past the uni, ironically enough under the Welford Road bridge which I said I'd throw myself off on the way to the University on Monday if Ipswich lost to Norwich last weekend and Leicester lost to Derby this weekend). This unscheduled tour round Ratcliffe Power Station and Long Eaton took 2 hours... If the train had stopped in Leicester, I could've bloody driven to the station in 40mins rather than pissing around going to the jewel of the Midlands that is Beeeerrrrmingham...
Anyway, got to Derby in the end. Thanks to Leicester Lass for that tip about The Navigation - navigated my way there eventually(!), enjoying a bit of pre-match atmosphere. I was knocked out the way at one stage by someone who I had mistaken for a blue alcoholic dwarf, but it turned out to be Bernie on his way to the bar. So I wasn't mistaken then. (Lol!) No hard feelings - Bernie treated me to a spectacular display as he got back from the bogs, stared right at me pumping his fists and screamed "THE CONQUEROR RETURNS!!!!!!!!" I shall treasure that moment for many years to come...
Off to Pride Park then - makes a change that I didn't get searched or have some git nick the lid off my drink. Think it was because I got there a bit earlier at 2:00. Once I got in I was a little put off by an itv news guy walking right past me and then pointing a camera roughly in my direction, but whether I got on the box or not, I've no idea. After a jolly 20 mins whacking inflatable sheep around (as opposed to Derby fans who just enjoy 'whacking' sheep), we got into the game. Trouble was it seemed Leicester thought they were still at the Walkers losing to Preston because nothing had changed. Derby were the only ones creating the chances; the only time I remember Leicester testing the keeper in that half was that shot from gold-knows-how-far-out from gold-knows-who (I've never liked sitting in one of the ends because I can see sod all when we're attacking the other end...)
Then comes the second half and Derby go and score, Jon "good enough for the Premiership my arse" Stead knocking in. On comes Jeans Porter (crap joke, I know) and suddenly the game looks like it might take a turn. Couple of opportunities. I like most Leicester fans thought we'd equalised late on only to see the flag up on the left-hand side for that most terrible footballing offence, the invisible fuck-all. Ceefax reliably informed me later that Hammond's strike "was ruled out for Carl Bassindale's handball". Quite an achievement, considering Carl Bassindale was one of the officials... seems not even the BBC had a clue what happened there. I've seen the replays since and no, I'm not sure quite what Stearman used to control the ball, but regardless of that, Bywater produced a body-check worthy of the Detroit Redwings half a second later, so it should've been at least a penalty...
Having watched Stephen Hughes present himself as the answer to England Rugby Union's problems with a conversion over Derby's bar just before the final whistle, I headed back to the station only to discover the wonderful news that my train towards Banbury was running late. I had planned to wait in the station coffee shop, but they decided to close nice and early, so balls to that, I was left sitting in the cold for half an hour. Reminds me of Leicester vs Preston... Thankfully it wasn't running late enough for me to miss the change at Coventry, though I did have to endure another 2 hour magical mystery tour of Nottinghamshire before getting anywhere near home... Added to that, I checked the Championship scores to find that my first team Ipswich had done exactly what they did at Burnley two weeks ago and threw away a point at Barnsley by conceding in the 90th minute to lose 1-0...
So there you have it. NCA's Less-than-ideal day out to Derby. Still, anything's better than that wonderful day in September when we got lost in West Brom's ethnic district trying to find a pub we passed an hour earlier...
A few grauitous photos to close (click to see enlarged version)
Me sat next to Leicester's favourite madman at The Navigation...
Pride Park, or the national headquarters of the British Woollen Buggery Society.
One of the inflatables getting whacked around. It was later spotted with a suspicious puncture in the bins outside a local brothel.
Missed our last chance of the match. Right peeps, let's all go home...
;D ;D
