Wednesday 14 February 2024
NEXT HOME GAME: Swindon – Saturday 24 February, 3pm
NEXT AWAY GAME: Tranmere – Saturday 17 February, 3pm
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Dear County fans, Stopfordians, decent Crewe supporters (not the morons who smashed up the seats and toilets last night), and anyone else from The Football Family joining us today, a very warm welcome to your Valentine’s Day edition of The Scarf My Father Wore.
Roses are red… violets are blue… I’ll let you finish off your own version of that rhyme today. If you’re still pissed off after last night, you’ve got “poo” or “loo” or “Crewe”. If you’re still feeling happy and positive generally speaking, “we’re still top of League Two” rounds off the poem quite nicely. We might have to win at Prenton Park on Saturday to stay in pole position, however. Mansfield seem to have a real appetite for this League Two title, as Harrogate’s goalkeeper will testify, picking the ball out the back of the net nine times last night.
Sandy McGregor and Stuart Price from The Railwaymen join us today, taking a look back at last night’s game in SK3. (If you can stomach it.)
Today’s edition is sponsored by Westfield Minibuses and Tate Plastering Services. A big thank you to both.
Westfield Minibuses is a family-run business based on Stanley Street in Portwood, close to the town centre. Call 0161 483 4088 or email quotes@westfield-minibuses.co.uk with any minibus enquiries you might have.
Give Gary a call on 07902 186564 or email gs.tate76@hotmail.co.uk if you’ve got any plastering work that needs doing at the moment.
Finally, I’m currently walking every street in Stockport to raise money for mental health charity Mentell. If you’d like to make a donation to help me reach my target, please click here.
Total distance so far: 97.67 miles
Total steps so far: 160,432
Total raised so far: £1,521
Total completed streets so far: 156 (Click here for the full list, which includes reports and photos from every day of the walk.)
Further information on the walk can be found by clicking here.
Des Junior
✍️ Tuesday’s match in one word
Sandy: Car-crash.
Stuart: Complete.
🤔 Pre-match thoughts
Sandy: Thought we would have more than enough to see off Crewe. Repeat of the away performance would do nicely.
Stuart: I was fairly confident as the day went on, we’re up where we are on merit. When the teams came out though, I lost quite a bit of that confidence. We had another injury setback, and County’s team was full of big name players.
🧐 Post-match thoughts
Sandy: Angry. I don’t like anyone other than us winning at Edgeley Park. But CREWE FFS!
Stuart: As comprehensive a performance I've seen from a Crewe team in years. I don't necessarily think County were that bad, I just thought every single Crewe player was excellent.
🔵 Verdict on County
Sandy: Dire. I thought we let ourselves be bullied all over the pitch. Not convinced Challinor got the team selection or substitutions right.
Stuart: Fine, but nothing more. You'll almost certainly go up, but I believe the Championship is the aim for the chairman. If that's the case he's going to have to dip his hand in his pocket, yet again, as that team won't compete with the top end of League One.
🔴 Verdict on Crewe
Sandy: They came with a plan. It worked. They looked hungrier and grew in confidence. Definitely deserved the win.
Stuart: Absolutely superb. We were tipped to struggle, but we’re 3rd, and since the turn of the year we've gone to Barrow, Mansfield and County and picked up nine points. This wasn’t a fluke; this is a team that's all together and believing they can achieve something special.
🎩 Top Hatter
Sandy: Powell was our only player who seemed to cause them problems.
Stuart: If I had to pick I'd say Olaofe looked a handful for our defenders at times.
🚂 Top Railwayman
Sandy: My brief says “no comment”.
Stuart: You could pick any of the starting XI and I'd give you an argument for why they were MotM. If I had to pick, even though he played just over an hour, I'd say Matus Holicek. It felt like a real coming-of-age for the latest academy product.
👂 Atmosphere
Sandy: Boisterous on the Pop Side next to the away fans. Crewe fans were giving it big with their limited selection of unoriginal songs. Very much as you'd expect. Didn't hear the Cheadle End. It always seems louder when we’re winning rather than when the team are needing a lift.
Stuart: I live abroad, so it was iFollow for me. But from what I heard it was all Alex for the 90 minutes. Maybe a smaller allocation under a roof has a positive effect for away fans, in that it sounds much better than the end you haven't got a roof for.
🙏 Hopes for the rest of the season
Sandy: Win at Tranmere on Saturday is the first thing. Title is still on but we need to put last night's performance behind us pretty quickly.
Stuart: Promotion!
😀 Best part of the day
Sandy: The Armoury before the game. Got in early.
Stuart: The final whistle. The scenes between players, coaches and fans says it all about this group. It's a testament that loan players who have gone back to their parent clubs are posting that they're watching the game at home.
😡 Worst part of the day
Sandy: Watching the ground empty before the final whistle as the fans raised the white flag.
Stuart: The silliness in County’s goal. Completely unnecessary, but again, these things happen when you rely on playing your own academy products.
The British Library receives a copy of every single book published in the UK. In the same fashion, Des Junior believes a detailed record of every County game should be preserved for the history books. So here’s the full story of our 3-1 defeat at home to Crewe Alexandra on Tuesday 13 February 2024, as told from his County-related WhatsApp groups…
11.21pm: I’ve just eaten six pancakes. County can fuck off.
Keep Westfield Minibuses in mind when you’re planning your next away day
There’s a local trip to Tranmere for County fans on Saturday, but there’s a fair bit of travelling to do after that.
During this season’s run-in, there’s some lengthy journeys to the likes of Colchester, Crawley, Forest Green and Sutton. Sod the stress of the railways – allow Westfield to glide you down the motorways instead.
Booking a minibus with Westfield ensures hassle-free transportation for your entire group, allowing everyone to relax and enjoy the journey together. With ample space, comfort, and convenience, a Westfield minibus guarantees seamless logistics and fosters a sense of camaraderie, making your trip truly unforgettable.
Visit westfield-minibuses.co.uk to get a quick quote.
Today’s sponsor: Tate Plastering Services
Now we’re a good few weeks into 2024, you might be starting to think about jobs around the house that need doing.
If you’ve got any plastering jobs that need taking care of, give Gary a call on 07902 186564 or email gs.tate76@hotmail.co.uk.
A Valentine’s Eve date with Crewe
Photo of the day
Gresty Road, Crewe
Ah well, things could be worse…
Today in SK
🎬 Cinema
Two films at The Savoy Cinema (SK4) today. All Of Us Strangers (15) at 6pm, followed by The Notebook (12A) at 8.30pm. Click here for tickets.
🍺 Food and drink
The Nelson Tavern (SK1) have a great range of offers throughout the week, including £4.50 for drinks off the Doubles Bar, a comprehensive range of shots for £2, and 3 for £6 on Jägerbombs. Open till 11pm.
Enjoy a delicious meal at The Dog & Partridge (SK2). You’ll also receive 20% off your bill. Just mention the discount at the till when paying!
❓ Quiz nights
Enigma (SK1). 8pm.
Flying Coach (SK7). 9pm. (Chicken wings available for just 25p before the quiz!)
Random County fan of the day #45 – Frank!
One final thing before you go… if you’re looking for a Valentine’s Day gift this month, how about a painting, or a cake, or a bottle of gin, or anything else from our fantastic sponsors!
🎨 Art & Gifts: Kate O’Brien Art
💈 Barber: STUDIO26 Haircare
🪟 Blinds & Shutters: Bauhaus Blinds & Shutters
📚 Bookkeeping: Eleven Accounts Services Ltd
🍰 Cake Maker: Claire Green Bespoke Cakes and Catering
🧽 Car Valeting: Rub A Dubz Detailing Ltd
🧼 Carpet Cleaning: Pro Clean Carpet Services
🏠 Carpets & Flooring: Kingsway Carpets & Rugs Ltd
🐈⬛ Cat Sitting: The Crazy Cat Ladies Cheshire
📓 Celebrant: Elliot Dodd – Independent Celebrant
👶 Child Health: The Sleep Nanny
🤹♀️ Children’s Entertainment: Stockport Hero Hire
🧹 Cleaning: Beespoke Cleaning
🚙 Coatings: Colourtone Ltd
🦮 Dog Training: Paws High Peak Dog Training
🚘 Driving School: CFN School of Motoring
💷 Financial Services: The Mortgage Mill
🔥 Fire Protection: Radial Fire And Security Limited
🍸 Gin: Hatters Gin
🛁 Grout Refresh & Recolour: GroutGleam Stockport
💇♀️ Hairdressing: C West Hairstylist
🛠 Home Improvements: Menzies Develop & Build
💻 IT Services: Bridge Computer Services
🪚 Joinery: SAW Contracts Ltd
👨🍳 Kitchen Appliances: SW Appliances
🔑 Locksmith: APL Locksmiths Ltd
🚐 Minibus Hire: Westfield Minibuses
🧤 Oven Cleaning: That Oven Girl
🖌 Painter & Decorator: BGM Decorators
🧱 Plasterer: Tate Plastering Services
🚰 Plumber: GTG Gary the Gasman
📕 Publishing: Victor Publishing
🛖 Roofing: ADM Roofing Services Ltd
☀️ Solar Panels: Malbern Solar Ltd
⚽️ Sports Coaching: UK Sports Coaching Ltd
🖊 Tattooist: Heatons Tattoo Club
🪵 Timber Supplies: Portwood Timber Division of Illingworth Ingham (Manchester) Ltd
☀️ Travel Agent: PTF Travel Ltd
👨💻 Web Design: SITEZO
⚖️ Weight Loss: Slimming World Reddish & Bredbury with Shlean
🪟 Window Cleaner: R ‘N’ B Window Cleaning
🏋️♀️ Women’s Fitness: Sophie Pavey Fitness
🧘♀️ Yoga: Greenshoots Yoga