The A-Z Groundhopper goes to… Chorley v Chester!
Des Junior heads back to Victory Park for the first time since County’s National League North title hopes seemed to be over in 2018-19
Tuesday 30 January 2024
NEXT HOME GAME: Harrogate – Saturday 3 February, 3pm
NEXT AWAY GAME: Grimsby – Saturday 10 February, 3pm
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Dear County fans, Stopfordians, and anyone else from The Football Family joining us today, a very warm welcome to your Tuesday edition of The Scarf My Father Wore.
This time last week I was on my way to Chorley for the first part of a new series on the website. Basically, I’ve come up with an A-Z list (along with the help of a number of readers and subscribers) of various things you’d expect to encounter on a typical away day. And I’m going to visit loads of football grounds, take photos of pies and pints, and give you my verdict. Sounds boring on paper but it should keep some of you entertained hopefully.
Today’s edition is sponsored by Colourtone. As always, a big thank you to Paul.
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: £1,037
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
Chorley 0 Chester 2
National League North
Tuesday 23 January 2024
AWAY FAN CHAT
A quick chat with Tom and John (plus some other Chester fan who sat down!) on the train home after the game.
Thoughts on the game?
Chester played well tonight. We look a lot better with two up front, but recently we’ve been playing with a lone striker due to injuries.
I was in the home end tonight and there were lots of anti-Chester songs from start to finish. Where does that rivalry come from?
We played at Chorley in 2010-11 and there was a load of trouble before, during and after the game. There’s always been bad blood since then.
Hopes for the rest of the season?
The title’s gone, so the aim has to be winning the play-offs. Hopefully we can finish third.
BANTER
If you have a look at the photo, you’ll see loads of Chorley fans looking towards the back of the stand, where a flare has just been let off. I don’t know what happened, but a young lad emerged from that throng of people with his face absolutely covered in the black remnants from the flare, before running to the toilets to wash it off. Absolutely gutted I didn’t grab a photo of him in time. He looked like an extra off Billy Elliot.
CLUB SHOP
It’s rumoured that Andrew Lloyd Webber’s inspiration for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat came from a visit to Chorley’s club shop.
DRINKS
Three Chorley fans enjoying a pint during the game (which I forgot you could do in the National League North).
EUPHORIA
I got tremendously excited when I stumbled across this, thinking Chorley conducted their post-match interviews through the door leading to the gents. It’s BT Sport though, innit? Obviously an old board. I’d have gone viral with something that tinpot as well.
FIRST HALF
Chester were 2-0 up by half-time, Tom Peers on target twice. By far the better team before the break.
GROUND
A proper Lancashire football ground this one, with a mish-mash of stands, adorned with names such as Frank Powell and Dave Prescott. The Brian Potter Stand wouldn’t look out of place at Chorley. I’m a big fan of watching football in a proper place like this.
HOME FAN CHAT
I grabbed a few seconds with Chorley fan Bernard before he headed for home. (It was absolutely freezing by this point.)
Thoughts on the game?
Not the best tonight, we didn’t really turn up.
Hopes for the rest of the season?
We should get in the play-offs hopefully. After that, it’s anyone’s guess.
How’s Andy Preece doing at Chorley?
I think he’s doing a good job. He’s well thought of round here.
INTERVAL
I shuddered as the Chorley announcer read out some of the half-time scores, which gave me awful County flashbacks hearing names such as Brackley Town and Rushall Olympic.
I also took a photo of a bin.
JOURNEY
Journey was fine. Chester to Warrington Bank Quay. Warrington Bank Quay to Preston. Preston to Chorley.
I was getting off at Preston anyway, so I wasn’t bothered, but it’s fair to say Avanti pissed off one or two of my fellow travellers (who were heading up to Glasgow) with the following announcement, just as we were pulling in: “Sorry everyone, this train to Glasgow Central has now been cancelled. Everyone off.” Maybe not those exact words used, but that was the gist of it.
No issues after the game for me either. I’ve been rather lucky on the trains recently…
KIOSK
A proper northern tea hut.
LOCAL AREA
Didn’t see much of it in the dark, but it seemed alright.
MOOCH
NUMBERS
An attendance of 1,231, including 303 from Chester. Not a bad gate for a cold Tuesday night in January. Both sets of supporters made a decent bit of noise.
OUTSIDE THE GROUND
A ground literally at the bottom of a cul-de-sac. I like the National League North, but I don’t miss County being in it, if that makes sense.
PUB CHAT
Now, when you’re planning on striking up conversation with a stranger in a pub, sometimes you have to spend a few minutes carefully choosing your target. But not when the guy stood next to you at the bar starts singing along to Billy Ocean while he’s waiting for his pint. I didn’t hesitate in sitting down with Mick (and his wife Joyce) for a quick chinwag in The Crown. They’ve been married for 53 years.
What’s it like living in Chorley?
Lovely. It’s a nice little town, with no airs and graces, and not a load of trouble or violence like you get these days in London and other big cities. There’s still a nice sense of community around here. We regularly come out for a drink and wherever we go in the town people know us.
Have you made any New Year’s resolutions this year?
Have I fuck!
What have you been up to today?
I’ll tell you what I’ve been up to today. You won’t believe it.
Mick gets out his phone and shows me a photo of a tree lying in his back garden.
I had to pull that bugger down today before the storm came in. It used to be vertical but it had started leaning so I had to pull it down because I didn’t know which way it was gonna go. It could have landed on those terraced houses behind us. It was bloody stressful I can tell you.
Have you always been into Billy Ocean?
I do like a bit of Billy Ocean. I’ve got quite an eclectic taste in music. I love doing karaoke in Chorley. “Sex on Fire” by Kings of Leon is one that I do. Ask people round here and they’ll tell you I’m not too bad.
QUEUES
Chorley fans queue up for a pre-match pint at the ground.
RANDOM
I ventured into the bar when I got to the ground and all of a sudden I found myself in their corporate bit, where this bloke was doing magic tricks.
SECOND HALF
Chorley huffed and puffed a bit more in the second half, creating a number of chances. But Chester were solid defensively to see the game out.
TICKET
Bought my match ticket online so I thought I’d grab a 50/50 ticket at the ground. Didn’t win.
Match ticket was £14, purchased online a few hours before the game, rather than the usual matchday price of £18. Not a bad discount.
URINALS
Fairly standard stuff. With a tiny window to look out of as well if you get bored while you’re having a pee.
VEGGIE
You normally get a decent pie when you’re watching football in Lancashire, so I was disappointed to find they’d already ran out well before half-time. These were lovely, though. A tray of seasoned fries for £3.20, with sachets of vegan mayo to go with it.
WEATHER
Grim all night. The January storms had already forced games to be called off at Altrincham (my first choice) and Southport (my second), and the wind hit me as soon as I got off the train in Chorley. Walking through the town centre, a strong gust was no match for this advertising board outside The White Bull.
X-RATED TOILETS
Before my trip to Chorley, I asked some of our readers to offer different suggestions for each letter of the alphabet. This was the unanimous choice for X, with readers anticipating some horrendous sights, which we’ve all seen at the football over the years. But the toilet on the home terrace at Victory Park is possibly the nicest I’ve ever come across at a football ground. Clean, two toilet rolls, and there’s even a little Sock Council sticker for decoration.
YELLOW
“What are you taking a photo of a bin for?” said a Chorley steward as I was snapping this on my phone. Genuinely.
“Because I’m about to put you in it,” I said. (I didn’t really.)
ZZZZZ
The most boring photo opportunity I could find on the night was some scaffolding, some discarded Vanarama boards and a load of de-icing salt.
Give your car a lick of paint
Granted, Stockport used to be a little rough around the edges. But the town’s getting a good old lick of paint these days, with fancy new offices, apartments, bars and restaurants springing up. You can’t be driving up and down the A6 in a tatty car with chipped paintwork, so give your car a nice lick of paint too. Colourtone is your go-to company for that. They’ve been servicing the automotive and industrial markets in Cheshire and Greater Manchester for decades, and carry an extensive range of car paint and industrial paints.
Visit colourtone.com for further details.
Photo of the day
Chally making back page headlines in January 2000 as Tranmere beat Bolton to clinch their place in the League Cup final at Wembley.
Today in SK
🍺 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.
Ignore the “beer police” and support your local pub in January. If you’re in Stockport today, pop into The Petersgate Tap (SK1) for a pint or two.
Lite bite meal deal at The Friary (SK3). Cod or haddock, served with chips, and a side of peas, curry or gravy. Plus tea or coffee. £9.95. Open till 7.30pm.
🎱 Free pool
The George & Dragon (SK7). 6pm - 9pm.
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
Random County fan of the day #30 – Tino!
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