“I’d certainly rather be playing a team like Charlton than somebody we’ve never heard of”
County fans in Stockport town centre give their reaction to the FA Cup draw
Cashy the groundsman calls me most mornings on his way to work. I’d like to say we discuss current affairs and world news but more often than not the conversation turns to that little old football club from SK3. The morning after an FA Cup draw, that’s certainly the case.
I spoke to Cashy yesterday. “I just cannot believe some County fans think that’s a shit draw,” he said. “It blows my mind. We weren’t anywhere near Charlton away in the FA Cup five years ago. But now we’re in the second round.”
He’s definitely got a point. It’s a London trip, with a decent allocation, at an old Premier League ground. But there’s a lot of County fans who don’t seem excited for a trip to The Valley. I’ve got to admit the draw didn’t do anything for me at first, but I am starting to warm to the idea. Hopefully we can take a decent turnout to south London, despite the cost of living crisis, and the fact that Avanti West Coast don’t let you buy train tickets these days until approximately three seconds before your journey.
I’m still sitting on the fence a little bit regarding the draw, so I thought I’d take my camera and notepad into Stockport yesterday, and chat to various County fans to gauge their opinion on what will be only our second ever FA Cup trip to Charlton.
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Des Junior
Ian Butterworth is well known to a whole generation of fans who used to travel to away games on the County Juniors coaches. Sadly, the coaches haven’t been in operation since County dropped into non-league, but there is the possibility of a return now we’re back in the Football League. I grabbed a couple of minutes with Ian while he was waiting for his wife to come out of the pound shop.
Charlton away. Good or bad?
Bad. I wanted Buxton, either home or away.
What’s your favourite FA Cup game?
Probably Bolton at Edgeley Park last season. Although the Liverpool game is up there as well, when we drew 1-1 at Anfield in 1965. My dad drove us to Liverpool, and I can still remember the atmosphere that day. Loads of older County fans still talk about that game.
Will you travel to Charlton?
Not too sure yet. I’ll decide nearer the time.
Mike, 73, is retired. We met outside Boots, where he had a bit of shopping to do, before heading to Underbank for a pint.
What’s your opinion on the draw?
I think it’s a good draw. It’s a nice stadium and we’ve got nothing to lose have we? I think we can beat anybody on our day so we just need to go down there and express ourselves. I’d certainly rather be playing a team like Charlton than somebody we’ve never heard of, which we might win but there’s no glory in it. At least we’re not playing in the FA Trophy anymore, let’s just be grateful for that.
Have you been to Charlton before?
I’ve been a few times. The best was in 1997-98 when we won 3-1 in Division One. My lad was mascot that day. He lives in Sheffield now, so he was hoping for Wednesday away. Maybe we can go there in round three!
Best FA Cup game?
I’ll always say QPR. That was a fantastic day. Andy Preece had such a small gap to aim for, but he couldn’t have hit that volley any sweeter. I still watch that goal back to this day.
Dave Martine works as a security guard at Stockport Market, “dealing with all the scrotes and scallies”. We had a chat while he was having a cigarette break. He’s currently on a 12-month ban from Edgeley Park, for an incident with the controversial security team brought in for home games, but as he’s able to travel away, he’ll be in the County end at The Valley.
Any chance of an upset?
It’s a tough game but I think we’ll give a good account of ourselves. I think the squad is just starting to gel now. We had the individual players doing alright, but they weren’t gelling as a team. We’re starting to look pretty good now though.
Thoughts on the draw?
I think it’s a good draw. They’re a former Premier League team, with a massive ground, and it’s somewhere we’ve not been for over a decade. I’m looking forward to it, I just need to sort my time off from work. We should take over 1,000 down there, maybe 1,500.
What’s your favourite FA Cup moment?
Probably the one when I went on the pitch at the Bolton game and lifted the FA Cup live on the BBC. That’ll never be done again. I got a one-game ban for that. What a night that was though. To come back and win it like that was phenomenal. It was like the old days when we used to regularly turn City over.
Ross goes to most County away games on a coach. We met while he was walking through Merseyway on his day off.
Will you be going to The Valley?
Yeah, I’ll definitely be going. I usually go on the Hatters On Wheels bus from Wetherspoons. So it’ll be that or one of the other coaches. I’m not too bothered about the draw either way, but I think it will be an entertaining game.
What’s your best memory from watching County in London?
I’d probably say the 3-0 win at QPR which kept us in Division One in 2000-01. That was a great day.
Les Isherwood has been supporting County for over 60 years. He says he’s a bit too old for long journeys now, but he’d love County to bring Charlton back to Edgeley Park for a replay. He doesn’t miss a home game, sitting in the Main Stand with his wife, his son, and three grandchildren. He was happy for me to join him on a bench in Mersey Square while waiting for his wife to finish buying cards in Card Factory.
What do you make of Charlton then?
To be honest I don’t know a lot about them. I know they were only playing a non-league team but I watched their highlights from the first round and they look a good outfit. If we want to reach the third round we’ll have to match their level, which I’m looking forward to in that respect.
How do you think County will do this season?
We had a bit of a dodgy start didn’t we but I think we were expecting great things too quickly. Dave Challinor has started to turn things round though and we’re looking a much stronger team. We’re not conceding goals and we’ve got players who are starting to find the net as well, so there’s nobody to fear in this division.
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Bunch of fives
County’s last 5️⃣ trips to London in the FA Cup
Barnet 1 County 0 (2018-19, second round)
Tottenham 4 County 0 (2000-01, fifth round)
West Ham 3 County 2 (1957-58, fourth round)
Walthamstow Avenue 2 County 1 (1952-53, third round)
Charlton 3 County 0 (1947-48, fourth round)
County’s last 5️⃣ trips to Charlton
Charlton 2 County 0 (2009-10, League One)
Charlton 4 County 3 (2007-08, League Cup second round)
Charlton 4 County 0 (1999-00, Division One)
Charlton 1 County 3 (1997-98, Division One)
Charlton 3 County 0 (1947-48, FA Cup fourth round)
5️⃣ Stockport pubs that are no longer
The Unity, A6
The White Lion, Stockport
The Greyhound, Edgeley
The Wembley, Adswood
The Fir Tree, Reddish