This match was on my radar as soon as the fixtures came out, seeing as it would be my first train away day of the season at a relatively easy-to-get-to new ground, with several highly recommended pubs in the town centre on the manageable walk between the station and the football club and vs a newly promoted side that I thought we had a decent chance of beating (bearing in mind their plastic pitch, I was hoping for Dorking-away-last-August vibes) ... and all that before our injury-hit, patched-up team's struggles in the first eight matches meant that it would be a potentially pivotal early season six-pointer (us 20th, them 23rd with a game in hand); as such, I had booked train tickets for me and Macleod (M) in mid-July, opting for a train due to get us in earlier than our usual '11-to-midday' arrival time because it was cheaper (£26 each) ... although that didn't stop Macleod (M) complaining about commenting on the early start in the run-up to Saturday
After putting the world to rights on the walk to the station and on "a pleasantly uneventful" (albeit slightly delayed) train journey via Reading and Birmingham New Street, our pre-match pub crawl went as follows: the Wetherspoons (the Globe Inn wasn't open; fake breakfast photo), the Old Bank House (as recommended by @hopwas2010), and the understandably well-renowned Tamworth Tap (photos with @hopwas2010)
Maidenhead United losing, I can handle (see the Rochdale post for recent evidence), but Maidenhead United losing whilst looking like they couldn't care less is unforgivable and not something I ever thought we'd see from an Alan Devonshire XI (when a limited Tamworth side scored their second goal, our bench – perhaps in solidarity with those on-pitch – barely moved a muscle ... I mean, kick a water bottle over or something!)
We weren't alone in walking out shortly after their embarrassingly easy third and long before TSS' 94th-minute consolation and the final whistle – I genuinely can't remember ever leaving a game so early
Our post-match pub crawl went as follows: the Sheriff of Tamworth (the fella from Thames Valley Police – yes, we have an officer following us about THESE DAYS, which is a complete waste of taxpayer cash – said it's the worst he's seen us play), Sir Robert Peel (someone mentioned, whilst sat in the garden, this was our most embarrassing defeat since losing to Maidenhead Town in 1974, which is hyperbole – we're P2, W2 vs Maidenhead Town – but indicative of how pitiful the performance was), and the King's Ditch (a Derby County fan asked whether Tamworth has a football club – I can only assume that he was, with some degree of success, taking the piss)
Rather like the players on Saturday (or so it seemed to me), I can't be bothered, TBH – it's a struggle for me to muster the effort to write much else ...
The trains were banjaxed at Reading, so heartfelt thanks to Macleod (P) for picking us up
Halifax at York Road next Saturday; "We go again" blah blah blah
"What we have given them [the supporters] is crap" Yep.
— ɢᴏ ᴍᴀᴅ ᴏʀ sᴛᴏᴘ ᴄᴀʀɪɴɢ (@gomadstopcaring) September 15, 2024
"At the moment we are painting over cracks" Papering might work better!
"The least our fans deserve is for us to put in a shift and run around" Yep.
"If we play like this, we're not gonna get any points" Yep. https://t.co/iV3aZv7Q4g
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