The king has had his coronation, now let’s have the Harrogate summation…
Many pundits predicted they’d go down, but the longest-serving manager in the Football League has kept Harrogate up for a third time
Thursday 29 June 2023
NEXT HOME GAME: Huddersfield - Saturday 22 July, 3pm
NEXT AWAY GAME: Lincoln (in Spain!) - Friday 7 July, 4pm (Click here for our away day guide)
Dear County fans, Stopfordians, and any Harrogate supporters joining us today, a very warm welcome to your Thursday edition of The Scarf My Father Wore.
Oscar Taylor joins us today for a look back at Harrogate’s season.
Finally, a big thank you to Mark at Bridge Computer Services for sponsoring today’s edition.
Enjoy today’s issue.
Des Junior
Had King Charles invited you to his coronation celebrations, and insisted you brought him the best food you’d experienced inside a League Two ground this season, what would you have treated him to?
I don’t usually get food on an away day but I remember getting a burger at Walsall and it being pretty terrible. The best food I’ve had is the pie, mushy peas and gravy from our ground. I’m not sure Charles would be too keen on a northern amount of gravy but I’m sure he’d tuck in nonetheless.
Charles is now king of the UK. But who would you choose to be crowned king of Wetherby Road, and who would be locked up in the tower? You can pick anybody who’s had some sort of connection with the club this season.
Tom Eastman was the king of Wetherby Road this season although his crown has slipped after he rejected joining permanently in the summer as he didn’t want to move up north. He was a rock in our defence and as January signings go he’s as good as they get; he revolutionised our defence.
Locked in the tower is our CEO Sarah Barry. She’s been extremely unpopular since coming in and it’s easy to see why. She prioritises profit over fan experience and has no idea what it’s like to be your average football fan. There have been a lot of background problems at the club this year and nearly all of them link directly back to her.
Best moment of 2022-23?
Winning 3-2 at Newport in April to secure our place in League Two for another season, having gone behind after three minutes. It’s no secret that for a club our size, staying in the Football League is a massive achievement.
Honourable mention for the three matches in a row earlier that month where we went 2-0 down and came back to draw 2-2, including a point at Leyton Orient.
Worst moment of 2022-23?
Losing 3-1 at Crawley in March. We were a few points ahead of them at the time having picked up some decent results and the feeling among the fanbase was very much that a win there would leave us safe. Instead we went 3-0 down and finished the game with 10 men.
Funniest moment of 2022-23?
There were a few games where we got a result that was so undeserved it was hilarious. We won 1-0 at Carlisle without having a shot on target all game! I know Carlisle fans are fed up with us as we always nick a result against them. They thought promotion had got them away from us, only for the League Cup to pair us together again in August.
Four Four Two said you’d finish 24th. When Saturday Comes said you’d finish 22nd. You finished 19th. Discuss.
I don’t blame people for backing us to struggle. We’re a small club with not many big names but people don’t realise that the core of the club is so secure. We have the longest serving manager in the EFL, our captain Josh Falkingham has been with us years, and Simon Weaver insists on signing and playing players only if they fight for everything and work their socks off. This attitude allows us to punch above our weight a little. I expect everyone to back us to go down again this year but I think we can have enough to beat the drop again.
County 0 Harrogate 0 in September. Harrogate 1 County 3 in February. Thoughts?
Both games against County showed that you’re far superior. While we snatched a draw at Edgeley Park, you were by far the better team and should have won. At our place you were dominant again at a time when we were in terrible form.
Best and worst away days of 2022-23?
Newport was the best away day – a great result, a big moment for us, and I’m a fan of their throwback stadium style. Their fans weren’t the best but a half-time pint wasn’t too expensive for a football ground either.
The worst away day was Walsall – a big stadium but not in its best shape, they hardly had anyone there, and those that were there made no noise whatsoever. Being 3-0 down after 34 minutes didn’t help the experience.
After decades travelling around the world, Sir David Attenborough’s most recent BBC documentary covered Great Britain. Let’s imagine David and his crew have been filming Harrogate throughout the 2022-23 season. In that famous voice of his, how would he describe them?
“While there is no star man, the work ethic and attitude of the Harrogate men means they can compete against beasts of a much bigger size.”
With Wrexham up and MK Dons down, there’s a couple of teams coming into League Two who generally cause quite a lot of debate wherever they go. You’re on Moonpig.com buying a welcome card for both of them. What messages are going inside?
I would probably throw my card for MK Dons in the bin. The whole club is pretty pointless and meaningless and an example of why money taking over football is such a bad thing.
To Wrexham, I would say: “Welcome back to the Football League, and a warm welcome to all your new fans. However, to the real fans, just be aware that whatever happens, some of the soul of your club has been lost already and will only get further away the more you climb the leagues.”
Click on the links below to read the previous 2022-23 reviews we’ve published so far.
Barrow / Bradford / Carlisle / Colchester / Crawley / Crewe / Gillingham / Grimsby / Hartlepool / Leyton Orient / Mansfield / Newport / Northampton / Rochdale / Stevenage / Sutton / Swindon / Tranmere / Walsall / Wimbledon
Give Mark a call with any computer problems
If your computer is knackered, give Mark a call at Bridge Computer Services. Based in Romiley, the business provides computer workshop and callout services to residential and business customers across Stockport. Their callout and workshop engineers are trained to fix computers, laptops and servers on site (where possible) as well as setting up new computers and wireless networks, plus maintaining existing networks and removing viruses.
Visit bridgecomputerservices.co.uk for further details.
Today in SK
🍽 Food and drink 🍽
Taster Thursday at TRUNK (SK7). Three tapas dishes and a glass of sangria for £20 from 5pm.
🎶 Free jukebox 🎶
The Nelson Tavern (SK1). From 6.30pm.
🎱 Free pool 🎱
The George & Dragon (SK7). 6pm - 9pm.
🎶 Music 🎶
Thomas Turgoose, the actor from This is England, is at Bask (SK1) for a very special DJ set full of indie bangers. 7pm. Tickets £5.
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
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