The Star-Spangled Hatters
We’ve got another letter from America to share with you today
Wednesday 1 November 2023
NEXT HOME GAME: Worksop – Saturday 4 November, 3pm
NEXT AWAY GAME: Swindon – Saturday 11 November, 3pm
Dear County fans, Stopfordians, and anyone else joining us today, a very warm welcome to your Wednesday edition of The Scarf My Father Wore.
Announce a pre-season trip to New York or Las Vegas, Stotty! Our fanbase across the pond is continuing to grow. We’ve already published two articles written by Chicago-based Britton Barthold, firstly a piece on how Britton came to support County, and then the tale of his first ever trip to Edgeley Park. Today, Ryan from North Carolina shares his own County story with us. I’ve had a play around with my calculator this morning and if we uncover eight more County fans in America we get our own Netflix documentary. (Jesus, can you imagine the stick we’d get from Wrexham if that came off.)
Today’s edition is sponsored by Tate Plastering Services. A big thank you to Gary. Give him a call on 07902 186564 or email gs.tate76@hotmail.co.uk if you’ve got any plastering work that needs doing at the moment.
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: 38.66 miles
Total steps so far: 67,558
Total raised so far: £863
Total completed streets so far: 15 (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
The beautiful game as it was called and popularised by the late but great Pele is something that I never really got into, or cared about as much as other professional sports in America such as the NFL and MLB. For a long time me and my family found it boring and didn’t think it would ever catch on here in the USA compared to Europe and other continents around the world where football is a way of life for so many.
Fast forward to the present, and football has now become something special over here. The MLS broke attendance records this past season, more and more youngsters are beginning to play this wonderful sport, and USA national team members are playing at some of the top clubs and leagues in the world: Milan, Juventus, the Bundesliga etc. It truly is a great thing.
Due to the above, I became more and more enthused about watching not only the national team play but random club teams as well to better understand the rules, as well as appreciating all the nuances, good and bad, that get people so excited and hardcore about the respective clubs they support. But, on the flip side of that, I began to get frustrated that I couldn’t nail down a club that I could be fervent about myself. Of course a team in the Premier League would be the easiest, with tons of other fans over here to discuss the matches with, and games constantly on TV. I tried, I really did, but just couldn’t get past how commercialised the whole thing was and the fact that only a limited number of clubs ever have a chance of actually winning a trophy due to the insane amount of money being spent to do so.
Then kismet happened. My sister met a gentleman (now her fiance) who was from the outskirts of Manchester and you guessed it… a fervent supporter of Stockport County, along with his friends and family back in the UK. I talked to him about soccer (sorry, football!) and whenever he brought up County, I was honest and told him that I had no idea who he was talking about. He didn’t take offense, but rather just kept on showing me things on YouTube about the club, whilst relaying his own personal stories about going to Edgeley Park to see the boys in person. I was really excited the more and more I watched and heard things from him, so I said heck with it, let us watch and follow these boys together and that was all it took. This was back in 2017 and I’ve been a fan ever since.
Now on to the crux of this whole article: the start of a USA/Canada based supporters group. I’ve been planning on doing this for a couple of years now, but have finally taken the plunge and started a Twitter page, with some other things to follow – a Facebook page, WhatsApp group etc. I already know of some fans based in the USA and Canada, but wanted to have a focal point in order to find more, network, and potentially have future parties where we can watch County together. I’d also like to unearth other people who used to be like me, who are now are getting into football, and make this great club the one to follow for them! I’m very excited to do this, hopefully work closely with the club, and at some point plan a trip over to Edgeley Park.
County is a fantastic club from top to bottom; a proper club in every sense of the word. We don’t need the Premier League riches or to be as renowned as other clubs further up the pyramid. All we need is each other and to continue to support the club like we always have and great things will happen. A great community, with great friends who treat each other like family, which all other clubs should strive to emulate.
Thank you for reading this article today. Myself and some others hope to come over sooner rather than later and we have no doubt that we’ll be greeted with open arms. I for one might even shed a tear when walking into Edgeley Park to see the boys.
Stockport County: it’s not just a club, it's a way of life!
🇺🇸🇨🇦 Are you a County fan living in the USA or Canada? You can get in touch with Ryan by emailing stockportusa@hotmail.com. He’s also on Twitter – @USAHatters.
Today’s sponsor: Tate Plastering Services
We’ve got a brand new sponsor joining us for the first time today. At this time of year, a lot of people like to get a few bits and bobs done at home before having friends and family over for Christmas.
If you’ve got any plastering jobs that need taking care of, give Gary a call on 07902 186564 or email gs.tate76@hotmail.co.uk.
Photo of the day
Alexandra Park, Edgeley
How beautiful does Alexandra Park look at this time of year? If you look closely you can see the iconic Castle Street skyline in the distance.
Today in SK
🍟 Food and drink
Fancy a few midweek drinks tonight? The Nelson Tavern (SK1) have a great range of offers throughout the week, including a Doubles Bar for just £4.50, a comprehensive range of shots for £2, and 3 for £6 on Jägerbombs.
For those on a gluten-free diet, finding a nice portion of fish and chips to tuck into can be quite difficult. But on a Wednesday at Fishers of Cheshire (SK2), gluten-free meals are available. Open till 9.30pm.
Lunch deal at The Dog & Partridge (SK2). One course for £7 or two courses for £11. 12pm till 2pm.
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. 11.30am - 7.30pm.
Wine Wednesday at TRUNK (SK7) from 5pm. 50% off all bottles of wine from 7pm. Call 0161 222 9260 to book a table, and mention “The Scarf My Father Wore” to receive a 15% discount off the normal tapas menu.
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
Good & Bad
Our readers reflect on October.
👍 Good 👍
County at home. County away from home. Manchester Museum’s ‘Golden Mummies’ exhibition. Central Bay at the Lowry Outlet Mall for food and drink. Angela Rippon doing the splits on Strictly. Wootton’s return. County top of the league. Dave Challinor. Crewe away on a Tuesday night. The new film with De Niro and Di Caprio. Walking. Giving birth to a couple of beautiful little County babies!
👎 Bad 👎
The end of British summer time bringing dark afternoons. Tory bullshit, lies and deceit. Conflict in the Middle East. The whole world in general. Barry’s injury. The lack of choice of vegan food in the County Courtyard. The pound tanking against the euro again. The Golden Hind closing down. A4 bags.
We’ve got everything from Art & Gifts to Yoga
We might not have found a psychic from Poynton or a dominatrix from Davenport just yet, but we’ve pretty much got you covered for all other products and services you might need across Cheshire and Greater Manchester. Just take a look at this little lot…
Art & Gifts - Builder - Carpets & Flooring - Chartered Accountants - Cleaning - Coach Hire - Coatings - Dog Walking - Financial Services - Fire Protection - Football Prints - Gardening - Glazier - Ironing - IT Services - Kitchen Appliances - Locksmith - Osteopath - Painter & Decorator - Party & Event Services - Personal Trainer - Physiotherapist - Plasterer - Plumber - Recruitment - Removals - Security Equipment - Shoe Repairs - Sports Coaching - Timber Supplies - Tutor - Vintage Clothing - Web Design - Window Cleaner - Women’s Fitness - Workwear - Yoga
On a serious note, our sponsors help us to keep The Scarf My Father Wore completely free of charge for everyone (rather than paying for a subscription, like most Substack websites) so if you do enjoy our daily offerings, please support them whenever you can. Make a mental note to yourself that whenever you need a cleaner, or a plumber, or a solicitor (or if you are looking for a dominatrix, send me a private message as I know a cracking lady in Heaton Moor…), check out our own directory before you head over to Google or Yell.com. Loads of the businesses we work with are County fans, and we’ve often got great offers for our readers as well.
Click here to have a look at all the businesses in our directory.
Great shot of Alexandra Park, you really got a Central view of it.