Football free Saturday

I went to Nottingham Forest v Ipswich Town.

Enjoyed it. Managed to have a look at Meadow Lane before, a ground which will be hosting non-league football if County don't sort themselves out, and Trent Bridge.

Forest cruised to a 2-0 win. Ipswich were awful, wouldn't look out of place in NL South. Forest fans were brilliant, where I was anyway. I was about three rows from the back of the Brian Clough Stand. There were spells when they gave the ball away a bit cheaply but there was barely a dissenting voice, and even the attempt for something clever, quite frequent, was applauded. A pleasant change, I went to Bristol Rovers the other week. Admittedly they were awful and looked doomed already, but they were so quick to jump on players' backs.

An easy walk to and from the train station too. If we end up playing County next season I shall be pleased.

Because it will mean we will have been promoted?

There was a Championship match some 100 miles closer to Bath than Forest last weekend which I was tempted to go to, but even the draw of the Lions couldn't drag me to Ashton Gate. Quite why it was played at 1.30 on a Sunday I'm not sure as it wasn't televised. Someone told me it was because Bristol Rugby had priority for the Saturday afternoon - surely that's not correct...

I went to that fixture last year - a dreary 0-0 draw.

Dreadful day. With no advanced warning, the train, full of drunken Millwall fans, didn’t stop at Bath Spa on the way home. It didn’t stop until Swindon. I finally got back just before 10pm. Hellish.

comrade powell wrote:There was a Championship match some 100 miles closer to Bath than Forest last weekend which I was tempted to go to, but even the draw of the Lions couldn't drag me to Ashton Gate. Quite why it was played at 1.30 on a Sunday I'm not sure as it wasn't televised. Someone told me it was because Bristol Rugby had priority for the Saturday afternoon - surely that's not correct...

(For anyone not aware comrade has supported Millwall for a VERY long time) Now? Armchair supporter.

Just about! I can't say the sanitised commercialism of Ashton Gate appeals, nor the likely prospect of Millwall losing last Sunday. Going to the Den is a different matter - a proper atmosphere and usually blood and thunder on the pitch (and off it). Managed to get there last season when our match at Hemel was called off and I was already in London. Beating Leeds several times there are my favourite non-City football memories.

Comrade Powell wrote:-

There was a Championship match some 100 miles closer to Bath than Forest last weekend which I was tempted to go to, but even the draw of the Lions couldn't drag me to Ashton Gate. Quite why it was played at 1.30 on a Sunday I'm not sure as it wasn't televised. Someone told me it was because Bristol Rugby had priority for the Saturday afternoon - surely that's not correct...

I thought that where Football and Rugby clubs groundshare Football League rules state the Football Club must have primacy of fixtures. That's what happens at Rodney Parade and it had to be agreed before the EFL would allow County to groundshare at RP.

There's a premiership side playing just over the bridge on 6 January.

It's a Sunday evening in a respectable neighbourhood so no noisy celebrations tonight please!

Well done County, especially the excellent Semenyo - he's one of our own!

Muted respectable celebrations as always.
Yes great performance from Antoine. Apparently a certain Lancashire club are interested in him.

He's too good for Klopp...

They do play in red but it's not them.

Ah, Old Trafford bound! They do need freshening up...