Sunday 12 November 2023
NEXT HOME GAME: Bolton – Tuesday 14 November, 7.30pm
NEXT AWAY GAME: Newport – Saturday 25 November, 3pm
Dear County fans, Stopfordians, and any Swindon supporters joining us today, a very warm welcome to The Scarf My Father Wore on Remembrance Sunday.
I was going to get in touch with Swindon fan Alex Taylor…
…for today’s match report, but I was scared he’d chuck his morning croissant at my head, so I’ve gone with the safer option of Rich Pullen, host of The Loathed Strangers Podcast. We’re also joined by our very own John K Bilsbury, who could actually throw his morning croissant at my head and I’d forgive him when he uses words like “tredecimal” to describe County victories.
Today’s edition is sponsored by BGM Decorators. A big thank you to Ben. If you’re thinking of having any decorating work done over the coming weeks or months, please see below for further details.
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: 46.68 miles
Total steps so far: 83,302
Total raised so far: £935
Total completed streets so far: 24 (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
Yesterday’s match in one word:
Rich – Familiar.
John – Tredecimal.
Pre-match thoughts:
Rich – I was hopeful that Town might stop County’s fine run (somebody must, right?) but then I remembered that you stuck five past Wrexham who can be just as defensively open as us. It was at that point I felt the pang of dread. It wasn’t as bad as that in the end but we opened up, again.
John – In a week where County featured on Football Focus and local TV news, and Dave
Challinor won another Manager of the Month award, I was convinced our winning run was coming to an end.
Post-match thoughts:
Rich – *Puffs cheeks* I’m trying desperately to acknowledge the positives, and, for many Town fans, there will be. However, the fact that week in, week out we are victims of the same old issues that have been clear for weeks/months is proving to be quite grating.
John – Our overall quality and strength in depth told in the end.
Verdict on Swindon:
Rich – It was a marked improvement from the Aldershot game but still not good enough, really. I should be more content considering our opposition, but we were masters of our own demise again with slack defending and reckless attacking which opened us up.
John – They were much better than a lot of our supporters were expecting and having gone ahead twice, they must have fancied the win.
Verdict on County:
Rich – I suspect that we caught County on a bad day. Opening exchanges were weirdly frantic and we seemed to get more tackles in during the first 15-20 minutes than the whole of the Aldershot game. That said, you still looked like scoring first. Challinor recognised this at half-time because County were way more measured and controlled large spells of the second half. I still felt like we could make it 3-3 but we cannot compete with a side who can make a triple-sub like County did.
John – We started off like a house on fire but once Swindon scored via a massive deflection and Sarce went off injured, we had to regroup. Nothing keeps us down for long at the moment, though.
Top Robin:
Rich – Dan Kemp – we’ll miss him when he inevitably leaves in January.
John – Their number 10, Dan Kemp, looks a player. I'm not surprised that Town fans are worried about MK Dons recalling him in January.
Top Hatter:
Rich – He wasn’t in your man of the match nominees list, but I really like Ryan Croasdale. Felt he controlled the game at times and was always calm in possession. Macauley Southam-Hales was undeniably busy and was worthy of acknowledgement.
John – Macauley Southam-Hales was steadfast in defence and his pace up the wing scared them to death. I held my breath when he shot up in the air after being clattered by their keeper for the penalty but he seems more robust this season and was up and running again soon enough.
Atmosphere:
Rich – It was one of our better days in terms of atmosphere. It’s been a little weird following Swindon recently and it felt like those in the ground wanted to show that we’re still supporting the side.
John – County's 770 were in good voice and it was good to hear that Odin Bailey now
has a song. Swindon's support became vocal when they went ahead but you would have been excused for thinking the last bus home was leaving once we scored our fourth. The view from my seat was decent, despite the usual quota of County fans who prefer to stand even when provided with a perfectly serviceable seat. Perhaps there's an epidemic of haemorrhoids in Edgeley, or something. I was allowed to keep the cap for my bottle of water for a change, which was nice.
Hopes for the rest of the season:
Rich – Who knows? We looked like play-offs material minimum between August and September, but it’s all gone wrong since. Town need to steady the ship, stop leaking goals and perhaps they can start looking upwards again. Until that happens, we’ll be looking downwards instead.
John – We could actually win this thing but despite 11 wins on the trot in the league, Wrexham and others are still close behind. Fingers crossed that Sarce's injury isn't too bad; he's been outstanding so far and despite our squad depth we'd miss him.
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 4-2 victory at Swindon Town on Saturday 11 November 2023, as told from his County-related WhatsApp groups…
3.10pm: Aldershot were 3-0 up at this stage last week. Not good enough. Challinor out.
3.34pm: Fuck. Massive deflection.
3.36pm: Far too much time and space there because we lost their runner from the throw-in and didn't get back or across to cover. If only our throws created such opportunities.
4.14pm: Penalty!
4.15pm: Collar scores.
4.17pm: Jesus, that sneaked it’s way in.
4.23pm: Bollocks. 2-1 to Swindon.
4.32pm: Get in! Wootton 2-2.
4.35pm: 3-2! What a strike from Bailey.
4.51pm: Camps makes it 4-2. Lovely through ball from Croasdale.
5.42pm: Just looking at the table, partly because it's a beautiful thing tonight, but also comparing one or two things with the rest of the league. Obviously we still have most wins, but we've now got the most goals, with 37 (Swindon and Nonce FC on 36) and only two teams have conceded fewer than us (18), which is Mansfield (13) and Barrow (15). Probably goes without saying our GD is the best in the division at +19, with Mansfield next best on +16.
10.56pm: Absolutely wankered but what a time to be part of this resurgence. We all deserve it after all those days.
Are you bothering with the Bolton game in the pizza car cup on Tuesday? Fancy doing the match report for us? Email thescarfmyfatherwore@substack.com.
Today’s sponsor: BGM Decorators
Don’t be like this random stranger Des Junior found on the internet. He thought he could decorate his living room himself. But now look at him, sat forlorn on his floor covered in a tin of Dulux. His wife’s left him, and his evenings are now occupied by microwave meals and old repeats of The Sweeney. You know what he should have done, don’t you? He should have called BGM Decorators.
BGM Decorators is a family business that has been in the trade since 1988. They’ve been built on hard work, honesty, and a high quality service that has consistently enhanced their reputation. They provide a painting and decorating service on a domestic and commercial basis across Stockport, Greater Manchester and Cheshire, as well as offering tenant turnover services and working alongside estate agencies and private landlords.
Click here for contact details.
Photo of the day
The County Ground, Swindon
Absolutely no place for scenes like this in football. Put your top back on, Beaumont Junior.
Today in SK
🍽 Food and drink
Sunday dinner at The Flying Coach (SK7). Served from 5pm.
🎶 Free jukebox
The Nelson Tavern (SK1). 3pm - 6pm.
⚽️ Live football
If you’re heading out to watch the football this afternoon, get yourself down to Bask (SK1). West Ham v Forest at 2pm, Chelsea v City at 4.30pm and then Leicester v Arsenal in the Women’s Super League at 6.45pm.
The Scarf My Father Wore works closely with venues on a daily basis to bring you the most comprehensive guide to all of the best offers and events taking place across the whole SK region. Click on the links below for full details of everything taking place in your area over the next few weeks.
SK1 / SK2 / SK3 / SK4 / SK5 / SK6 / SK7 / SK8 / SK9 / SK10 / SK11 / SK12 / SK13 / SK14 / SK15 / SK16 / SK17 / SK22 / SK23
DJ Des
After leading County to a 13th consecutive victory at Swindon yesterday, today’s song is dedicated to Dave Challinor.
Would you like DJ Des to play a song for your favourite County player, or a friend or family member? Email thescarfmyfatherwore@substack.com with your requests/shoutouts!
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That’s an impressive one pack💙🤣