Dressing for the Arctic, a Big Breakfast at Katy’s Kitchen, and dismal organisation… it’s Hartlepool away!
Three tales from County fans lucky enough to witness our biggest ever victory at Victoria Park
Thursday 8 December 2022
Dear County fans, Stopfordians and anyone else joining us today, a very warm welcome to your Thursday edition of The Scarf My Father Wore. We’re looking back at Saturday’s trip to Hartlepool today, with ratings of 7/10, 8/10 and 9/10 from our away day reporters. Hartlepool’s that bleak even a 5-0 win doesn’t warrant a 10/10!
We’ve still got loads of prizes to give away over the next few days. Up for grabs tonight is a set of four County coasters from Glove and Whistle.
To give all subscribers a fair chance, each winner will be chosen by a random number generator, which you can watch live on Twitter (@countyscarf).
Finally, today’s edition is sponsored by The Site Supply Company. A big thank you to Steve Cree. Check out hivis.net if you need any workwear or high visibility clothing, and get 10% off all orders with the code TSMFW.
Des Junior
🎶 “We go to all the away matches, by bus, by train, by car. And we get so pissed before the game, we don’t know where we are.” 🎶
A lyric from a classic County song gave Des Junior a little bit of inspiration for this regular feature - why have one away day review when you can have three! So for every single away game County play (well, unless it’s like Plymouth on a Tuesday night), The Scarf My Father Wore will be sending three intrepid reporters out into the unknown to share their tales from motorways and train stations across the country.
A trip to Hartlepool isn’t for the faint-hearted, so Ian Brown made sure he had a healthy breakfast and whacked on loads of layers before heading for the north-east on the Fingerpost Flyer.
Up: 5am. I like a relaxed run at it!
Breakfast: Apple, Weetabix with blueberries, toast and coffee.
Before: Usual routine for an away day: eat, do stuff on laptop and ensure it’s fully charged, make sandwiches, ablute, dress for the Arctic (no need to explain why!).
Clobber: Standard away day wear akin to and probably made up of more layers than Amundsen and Scott would feel the need for. Definitely not dressing to be seen.
Outbound: It was entirely uneventful until reaching the outskirts of Hartlepool, when it became apparent the cops were not where they said they’d be. They eventually arrived and ‘escorted’ the coach to a spot a couple of miles from the ground. Not requiring alcohol I walked the two miles cursing every millimetre of the trip.
Pre-match: Tested the facilities, bought pie and chips (big mistake), used Twitter to get details of both teams for the blog article.
Destination: Had I wanted a drink the area they dropped us in looked OK for that purpose. I am sure that Hartlepool is an absolute north-eastern gem, but it’s just too bloody cold!
Visitors: The away end is absolutely ideal, a low roof making for great acoustics thus maximum supportive noise and a fantastic atmosphere. (I think the rest of the ground were asleep or feigning to be). Catering was basic, and the gents need an upgrade.
Us: There in good numbers (just shy of 700), supportive throughout and didn’t hear any negative stuff at all which is really rare on a County away day. Kudos to the young lads immediately behind the goal – loud and spot on with their support.
Them: Quiet as lambs before and during the game, and back at home before the final whistle!
Game: I’m taking notes throughout the game for the blog, as well as trying to sort some crowd photos to add a bit of colour, now that pitchside images are a no-no.
Post-match: I had a crisis as my phone email had frozen so I had to contact Andrew Machin to send him my photos by messenger, so he could then email them back to me so I could use them. Thankfully Andrew did the biz and I could use my crowd images in the article.
Inbound: Uneventful. I did my usual bit of transferring the notes onto the laptop for publication.
After: Finished the article, added the images, published and publicised it.
Bed: 9.30pm. I was whacked!
TOTAL: £52
Away Day Rating: 7/10
After a Big Breakfast at Katy’s Kitchen, Rob Quinlan headed for Hartlepool on the train, via a couple of changes at Oxford Road and Thornaby.
Up: 6.20am, although my alarm wasn't set till 7am.
Before: Had a cup of tea and brushed my teeth.
Breakfast: The Big Breakfast at Katy's Kitchen. I got a lift off some non-County mates as they were going near the station.
Clobber: A black T-shirt, green hoodie, coat, walking trousers and work boots. I was expecting it to be cold!
Outbound: First train was on time, second train was late and got later! It got to Thornaby after the connection for Hartlepool. There was a mad dash, but luckily the guard realised and held the train, thus saving me, and quite a few others from spending an hour in Thornaby (equivalent to two and a half years’ hard labour).
Pre-match: Went to the tiny real ale bar on the station, a great little place.
Destination: Seems quite a small town. It’s got a marina, but it’s still a grim shithole! Can I say shithole?
Visitors: Standard all-seater with pinch points which makes leaving a chore. No hassle from the stewards that I heard of.
Us: County fans in excellent voice as always and bouncier than a Tigger-off at a Winnie the Pooh convention!
Them: Noisier than I remembered, for about five minutes, but they got a lot quieter as the game progressed.
First: Joined in with a lot of the chants and generally behaved like an 8-year-old high on Haribo.
Half: Food and drink queues were too long and it was raining.
Second: Returned to the bedlam that was the bouncy part of the away end. My knees are still in recovery.
Post-match: Back to the tiny real ale bar, via Morrisons for a meal deal and two bottles of beer.
Inbound: First train was going to London so I needed to change at York. Shared a carriage with Millwall and Sunderland fans. There was a bit of a sing-off - Millwall lost! The other two trains were busier and as interesting as Saturday night trains can be. Went to the Malt ‘N’ Hops off the final train and then got the last bus home.
Bed: Just after midnight.
Train: £54.55
Bus: £2.60
Ticket: £20
Beer: £31
Food: £10
TOTAL: £118.15
Away Day Rating: 9/10. Game was great! Even though we didn't play that well, we probably deserved to win by five. Hartlepool were pretty bad, worst I've seen this season. Could have been 10, but we didn't do the ‘Go to Burnley’ chant.
Edward Keane got a lift to Hartlepool with matchday companions Sandy and Gary.
Up: 7.30am.
Breakfast: Toast and strawberry swirls - one of those unique pastries you only ever find in cheap convenience shops.
Before: Showered, washed, watched TV, few chores.
Clobber: Jeans, T-shirt, jumper, Doc Martens, cagoule.
Outbound: Quick, uneventful, delightful company with Sandy and our driver Gary.
Pre-match: Went to Camerons Brewery Tap. Sadly they no longer do the delicious pies and chutney they did last time we played at Hartlepool.
Destination: Dull, cold, in need of investment. The town’s lacking a real centre or soul.
Visitors: Dismal organisation. Arrived at 2.30pm - only got sat down with a pie by 3pm. Cramped. Good atmosphere as usual by the 700ish County fans.
Us: Excellent as usual.
Them: The ones to our right gave a good go, even at 2-0 down, but minus points for so many of them leaving at 3, 4, and 5-0.
First: Watched the game and ate my pie.
Half: Had a piss.
Second: Watched the game and sang.
Post-match: Straight to the car and home.
After: Had some grub, watched a bit of telly.
Bed: Fell asleep on the sofa, but woke up and actually climbed into bed about 2.30am.
Petrol: £10
Ticket: £20
Food: About £4 for a pie and a lemonade
TOTAL: £34
Away Day Rating: 8/10
So there you have it folks, three tales from Hartlepool away, and it’s a victory for… THE TRAIN!
If you’re going to Rochdale on Saturday and you’d like to share your tales from our trip to Spotland, drop us a message.
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The 12 Days of (County) Christmas!
For today’s festive memory, we’re going back to December 2007 as County thrashed Wycombe 6-0 at Edgeley Park, with Adam Proudlock netting a hat-trick. Enjoy the video!
We’ve got a great prize as part of our December giveaway today - a set of four County coasters!
Glove and Whistle have exclusive designs of both former and current players which make a unique gift for County fans. Each coaster is 9cm x 9cm with a hardboard backing so perfect for your brew! They are made locally by a small family firm who themselves have watched County during the times when Rodger Wylde used to run onto the pitch with his sponge!
Website: gloveandwhistle.com
Make sure you subscribe to The Scarf My Father Wore to be in with a chance of winning!
Click here for further details, as well as the full range of items in our Christmas Gift Guide.
The only Christmas gift guide you need this year
17 sleeps to go! The Scarf My Father Wore have curated a beautiful Christmas gift guide this year, from independent businesses across the UK. Check the guide each day, with new items constantly being added. And don’t forget, we’re giving away every single item in our December prize giveaway, you just have to be a subscriber to win!
Matt Walker ‘eats’ the World Cup
🇮🇷 No 14 - Iran (Kish Restaurant) 🇮🇷
“I visited Iran 22 years ago, a real travel highlight, and picked up this Esteghlal shirt. A lovely Persian breakfast of cheese, walnuts, eggs, honey, olives, sausage and flatbread was the highlight here. We were forced to stream, but enjoyed relaying Iran's goals against Wales to the friendly staff.”
One of my favourite football books is Matt Walker’s Europe United, in which the author and Fulham fan spends a whole season taking in a game in all 55 UEFA countries. Well he’s back with another fun challenge, to experience Qatar 2022 in restaurants and bars across London which represent all 32 competing nations. Matt has kindly allowed me to use his photos and I’ll bring you one each day, giving you a tasty flavour of the World Cup, in more ways than one.