From three clean sheets on the bounce and seven points vs 2005/06 League One clubs Southend, Hartlepool and Oldham (good enough for 4th place in the five-game PPG form guide and 19th in the National League table), Maidenhead United had sadly performed its oft-repeated magic trick of segueing seamlessly into a bad run, with successive home defeats landing us back in the relegation zone and two – effectively three, thanks to our inferior goal difference – points from safety; as such, it was without much/ any hope of a positive result, but still looking forward to an away day – my first on the train since the lowlight that was Sutton in mid-November; my first with him since the draw at Taunton on 12th October – that I met with Macleod (M) for the walk to the station ahead of our first visit to the New Lawn (as mentioned on X, MUFC had played there in the FA Cup in October 2010, but the Macleods, Craig and I had been in Germany that weekend)
Our train – like many others at Maidenhead – was affected by an ongoing points failure at Slough, delayed just long enough for us to feel compelled to sprint across the platforms upon our belated arrival at Reading ... but the 09:59 to Cheltenham Spa had departed on time, and we missed it by a minute or so; to McDonald's for breakfast, where I got the table number wrong (I read 90 rather than 06) and the instore playlist serenaded us with Belinda Carlisle's ode to Charlee Adams – "We're being trolled," lamented Macleod (M), and it was hard to disagree with the sentiment
Ryan D.'s Robbie Williams fandom (he's already seen the Better Man film four times, including once in the cinema on his own) was my main takeaway from time spent on the 10:57 train as we passed the pub close to the station at Kemble (#IYKYK) and chatted with the drummer and lead singer from Prodigal, an alt-metal band, sat alongside us on their way to a rehearsal; the sun was out as we left the station at Stroud in the company of at least one FGR fan, who wished us well while bemoaning a recent defeat at Braintree (!)
Even though it was only a few minutes away (everything seems "only a few minutes away" in Stroud's town centre, which is nice), the fact that we'd lost an hour meant we decided to skip the Ale House (for the moment) and instead met G.M. (who *had* been on the 09:59 train) in the Town Owl Taphouse; decent ale selection, including Hazy Pale from Left Handed Giant (I went to their brewpub in Bristol, the other week, which was great), albeit expensive
Sunny, still – so we sat outside the Queen Vic for a quick drink before the bus ... although, in hindsight, we could've taken our time as the no. 63 was more than 15 minutes late; memories of Cinderford away back in 2010 (same month as the aforementioned cup tie with FGR, coincidentally) as we sat atop a double-decker winding its way through the Gloucestershire countryside
The top four of the MUFC all-time starting appearance makers list features a new name for the first time in several decades, with Alan Massey wracking up his 383rd start to overhaul Derek Gee (which I didn't think would be possible as we exited the cup competitions early and he struggled to even make the bench in recent months); it should go without saying that the skipper is one of *the* greatest players in Maidenhead United's long history, making the majority of his starts at the highest level of non-league (during our golden age) and also holding aloft a championship trophy (an inflatable one!), which very few can say
Godawful defending from those wearing purple gifted the bilious green-shirted hosts an opening goal in the 11th minute – making life harder for ourselves as if it wasn't hard enough already – but we gave as good as we got for the remainder of the first half without having much luck (a deflected effort from Tristan Abrahams hitting the bar) or showing much in the way of clear-headed decision-making (for example, Sam Barratt blasted a right-footed shot high into the stand, then later passed the ball wide when ideally-placed for a left-footed attempt on goal); in truth, I think the home side – jittery-looking on-loan Liverpool keeper an' all – probably had us at arm's length
Referee Abigail Byrne came in for clamorous criticism from some of the 101 travelling fans – *not* because of her gender, but because she made several questionable decisions and also because she was the official who egregiously sent off Thierry Latty-Fairweather ("the left-sided Cafu") vs Solihull before Christmas (Nb. the penalty award for a Tobi Sho-Silva 'handball', resulting in Boreham Wood's winning goal at their place last season, was someone else); she was in no way to blame for our underwhelming second-half performance nor the result in general ... we deserved something from the game with York on Tuesday but nothing from FGR on Saturday
Ecotricity – FGR's shirt sponsors, owned by the club's chairman and major shareholder – make a big deal about green credentials on their website, so they're presumably horrified by the carbon emissions from the long line of vehicles (including our bus on Saturday) stuck in stationary post-match traffic on the only road from the ground to Nailsworth; the whole setup is a bit strange, TBH, with the home support in the fan zone before kick-off resembling folk you'd more typically expect to see in the café at a National Trust location (wearing wellington boots and whatnot)
Excellent drink choices and only £4.40 a pint in the Ale House – my highlight of the day was sitting in there debating 'bin or keep' (few unanimous keeps, you might be unsurprised to learn), and our National League best XI; then G.M. led a supermarket sweep, we had a sing-song on the train (recent additions to the jukebox playlist include tracks from The KLF and Supergrass), and most of us piled into the Portland Arms to join lookalikes of Keir Starmer and Rebekah Staton for karaoke (Ryan D. bottled Angels by his favourite artist, but Macleod [M] did 'All Together Now' for Mick and also duetted with the sister of a former Maidenhead United player), with some staying (perhaps inadvisably) longer than others
Now, we've not yet reached the Rochdale stage, i.e. the defeat in March last season, after which I – and some others – thought we were near-certainties for the drop, but we're not far off and have left ourselves very little wiggle room; a six-point haul from this week's home matches vs Braintree (massive, especially after their win at the weekend) and Sutton (recently defeated 3-0 at home by Spennymoor Town in the FA Trophy) seems, to me, imperative
What a weird experience FGR away is..
— Murdo Macleod (@MurdoMacleod6) March 1, 2025
