“We’re probably the smallest club in the 92, and have the smallest fanbase too, so we’re doing remarkably well”
Ahead of County’s first ever Football League trip to Wetherby Road, we speak to Jordan Ford, who runs coaches for Harrogate fans on away days
Friday 10 February 2023
Dear County fans, Stopfordians, and any Harrogate fans joining us today, a very warm welcome to your Friday edition of The Scarf My Father Wore.
All roads lead to North Yorkshire tomorrow, for the first of three games against teams in League Two’s bottom five over the next 11 days. Despite climbing into the play-offs with victory over Tranmere last Saturday, I still think it’s a little premature to also say all roads lead to League One, but if we can beat Harrogate, Crawley and Rochdale - all winnable on paper - to be on at least 51 points by the end of February, we could certainly start looking at the possibility of third tier football next season. One step at a time, though; Harrogate won at Carlisle last week. Sulphurites fan Jordan Ford joins us today for a pre-match chat.
I’ve just finished writing the questions for our quiz night at Bask on Thursday 23 February. We’ve got a cracking quiz. We’ve got great prizes. We’ve got Paul Jones joining us for the evening. We’ve even got a little bit of stand-up comedy as well. All that for a fiver. Click here to join us.
Today’s edition is sponsored by The Marple Plumber Ltd, who have a fantastic offer for The Scarf My Father Wore readers, which could come in extremely handy at this time of year. They’re currently offering a full boiler check and service for just £65. Scroll down for further details, and if you have any boiler issues whatsoever, be sure to give Paul a call.
Have a great Friday, and enjoy today’s edition.
Des Junior
This is your third season in the Football League. How are you finding it compared to non-league?
Things have certainly changed for us over the last five seasons. After winning the National League North play-offs, to do the same in the National League just two years later was something none of our supporters could have dreamed of. After several successful seasons, as supporters we're getting used to not being the favourites each game. We understand our position, and survival in the EFL is a success in itself. We're probably the smallest club in the 92, and have the smallest fanbase too, so we’re doing remarkably well.
Harrogate’s last 10 seasons
2012-13: Conference North, 6th
2013-14: Conference North, 9th
2014-15: Conference North, 15th
2015-16: National League North, 4th (lost play-off semi)
2016-17: National League North, 11th
2017-18: National League North, 2nd (won play-offs)
2018-19: National League, 6th (lost play-off quarter)
2019-20: National League, 2nd (won play-offs)
2020-21: League Two, 17th
2021-22: League Two, 19th
One of your defenders is called Will Smith. Does he bounce round Wetherby Road wearing a suit and sunglasses?
Ha ha! I would say Will is one of the biggest assets at the club. He ruptured his ACL last April, and has been out since. He is, however, expected to be on the bench tomorrow.
Who have been your best players this season?
One of our most important players is our captain Josh Falkingham. He’s been with us throughout our journey up the leagues, and is as good as he has ever been. He's one of those players that the opposition hate, so I’m sure your fans won't agree. Alex Pattison is another great player, but you never know what you're going to get from him. Probably why he's still playing in League Two.
Not many clubs have a father and son as chairman and manager. What are Irving and Simon Weaver like?
We all know that if Simon's father wasn't the owner, he would have left years ago. But we also realise that without his father’s investment, we wouldn't be playing in the EFL. It's a difficult one, but one which I have come to accept.
No offence intended, but I’m sure supporters of Leeds or Huddersfield don’t lose too much sleep over Harrogate. Who would you say are your rivals?
We don't really have any to be honest. There is actually another club in the town - Harrogate Railway Athletic, who play in the Northern Counties East League (10th tier) - and until around 20 years ago, they were considered the bigger of the two clubs. You tend to find Railway fans aren't keen on Town fans as they’re jealous of our success. I would consider them as our main rivals, although a lot of our newer supporters will say it's York City.
Is Bettys Tea Rooms really as good as everybody makes out?
I've lived in Harrogate since birth, and in my 38 years living here, I have not visited once. It's more of a tourist thing, although they seem to like it. There's always massive queues outside. It's not for me though. I'd probably have to mortgage the house to buy a coffee.
What are your thoughts on Stockport County?
It's great to see County back in the Football League, and it really doesn't surprise me how well they're doing. A great club with a lot of history, and I’ve always enjoyed my trips over to Edgeley Park. Just disappointing that the Bungalow is no more…
Who’s going to come out on top in our first ever Football League meeting at Wetherby Road?
We've really picked up over the last couple of months, and I think we’ve had a great transfer window. County don't seem to have a great record against us either. 2-0 Town.
Get a full boiler check and service for £65
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Click here for contact details.
Here’s something you should definitely do in February
Buy tickets for The County Comedy Quiz at Bask!
The Scarf My Father Wore editor, Des Junior, absolutely loves a County quiz. He’s alright at compiling County quizzes as well. Rightly or wrongly, he also fancies himself as a bit of a comedian. On that note, The Scarf My Father Wore are delighted to team up with Bask to bring you The Comedy County Quiz. It’s a proper County quiz, with some fantastic prizes on offer, but our aim is to crack you up with some of the questions along the way.
We’ve also got special guest Paul Jones joining us. The former County defender, and Bolton Wanderers legend, will be speaking on the night, as well as handing out the prizes to the winners!
Click here for our full list of things you should definitely do in February!
On this day in 1996
There’s a Yorkshire flavour to Friday’s edition of The Scarf My Father Wore, so for today’s flashback, let’s stay in the region as we take you back to this very day in 1996. Richard Landon scored a 73rd minute winner as County beat Bradford 1-0 in front of 5,290 at Valley Parade, although we’d ultimately miss out on the Second Division play-offs on the final day of the season.
Also on this day in 1996… Chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov lost to IBM supercomputer Deep Blue for the first time.
Never mind Google or Yell.com, we’ve got you covered
STOP! That got your attention, didn’t it? Just a quick one… I’d hazard a guess that at some point in February, all of our readers will use Google or Yell.com at some point looking for a particular product or service. But before you do, please have a quick look at our own directory to see if we have what you’re looking for. A number of great businesses support The Scarf My Father Wore, allowing us to publish fresh content every day, so let’s send a few enquiries their way in return.
Click here to have a look at all the businesses in our directory.
Today in SK
🕺 As always, Bask is the place to be to start your weekend with a bang. DJ Gareth Brooks is on from 7pm till 2pm. Free entry.
🍻 Going out for a beer tonight? You can get two bottles of Budweiser for £6 at the Dog & Partridge (Buxton Road, Great Moor).
Photo of the day
Edgeley, North Dakota
I knew there was a Stockport in New York, and another in Ohio, but until I randomly stumbled across this the other day, I had absolutely no idea there was an Edgeley in North Dakota! (Can you imagine an American P3…) Even with a population of only 585, it’s classed as a city, and was actually named by a landowner who was born in our very own Edgeley. Well I never, as they say.