Walking on sunshine

Walking the Wolds, Rovers Cup exit & Footy Presentation Night...
 

Summer is officially here.
I'm not saying that just because the last day of the month saw our family enjoying a succulent Sunday lunch out on the patio in glorious sunshine; but also because it was also the first Sunday since last June when I have not had a single word of football-related stuff to type up for either a match programme or the local Press. For one glorious summer's day football was definitely OFF the agenda...and there aren't many times that happens in a calendar year. At least the missus was pleased!

Not that sport was totally missing from the weekend. Saturday saw me skilfully combine some "quality family time" (i.e. a shopping trip into town) with Hull KR's Challenge Cup quarter-final against Warrington at Craven Park. I won't be alone in describing the game as one of the most exciting I've been to and ranking Jake Webster's try that seemingly put Rovers within touching distance of the last four at 22-12 as one of the best I can recall seeing in a long time.

Unfortunately this in no way compensates for the fact that it is "Wire" who progress to the sem-finals courtesy of Lee Briers' extra-time golden point. At least I didn't have to witness the coup de grace - a slight hitch on the logistics front having forced me and my eldest, Emma, to leave the ground at the final hooter in order to catch the bus home. It was somewhat surreal trying to follow the events in extra time by the noise of the crowd; culminating in a final cheer from one section, swiftly followed by a chant of "W*nky W*nky W*nky W*nky Warrington" from t'other. I knew we'd lost! And to compound my daughter's disappointment, she then missed out on the top deck of an EYMS bus due to some kind soul stopping to offer us a lift (in truth I she was more upset by this than the Challenge Cup exit. Bless her).

To further illustrate how such football-free weekends are becoming more and more of a rarity, the latest one was book-ended by Sundays dominated by activities directly relating to the Club. For example, the coming one (7th) will see a gang of us busy down at our Low Farm ground, carrying out a whole host of overdue maintenance tasks. And between now and the first pre-season game on 18th July we have a huge amount of work to do to get things ship-shape for whichever league competition the senior squad finds itself playing in.

Meanwhile, the preceding Bank Holiday weekend saw our annual fundraiser take place on the Sunday, which this year was the so-called "Million Metre Meander" - a 25-mile sponsored walk along a stretch of the Yorkshire Wolds Way. And "Tough" wasn't the word for it. In fact it proved one of the hardest things I've ever done. Suffice to say, never has a pint of Timothy Taylor Landlord tasted better than it did in The Middleton Arms at North Grimston that evening. Not only was the quality on a par with that I've become accustomed to in The Crown & Anchor at Kilnsea but it also provided the perfect finale to an absolutely exhilarating day.
Twenty-one of us, loosely connected in some way with Easington United, completed the route from Market Weighton to Wharram Le Street. Spectacular scenery accompanied virtually the whole length of the Walk as, more significantly, did several short sharp ascents (Rabbit Dale anyone?) and the hottest day of the year thus far. And in places like Horse Dale and Holm Dale, with the breeze blocked by the surrounding valley sides, it became a virtual "sun trap".
Not surprising therefore that after some eleven hours in my walking boots, Keighley's finest ale provided a rich source of comfort.
I'm not sure just how much our group has raised through our efforts. We're hopeful that the figure will be somewhere in the region of £3K, to be split between club funds and buying something for little Mia Silvey of Brough whose Fund was our 2009 choice of "worthy cause".
At the same time as we were completing one of the toughest stretches of our Walk, Hull City were enduring the most tense ninety minutes of their entire season. In the event, our pain at listening to what must have seemed like a never-ending second half was eased by lack of decent transmission signals around Thixendale. Thus Burnsy's commentary on BBC Radio Humberside appeared only in the briefest of fits and starts, while Fozzy's "£2 special" from Asda kept transferring him to a Teesside station's coverage of West Ham v Middlesbrough! It was in Thixendale village itself and via the support car's stereo that we could finally celebrate salvation, courtesy of Five Live's coverage of Newcastle's last two minutes of Premiership football!

Our season may have ended trophy-less but a fourth place finish for the First Team is their best since 2004/05 and inspires hopes of better things next time around. The Reserves and Casuals both face uncertain futures following bottom place finishes with the Stiffs' precarious hold on a Premier Division place of particular concern.

Similar to New Year's Eve the finale to the football season in May always prompts a feeling of nostalgia in me. This usually lends itself to prompting my shelling out for "must have" books and CD's which immediately transport me back to younger days. This year's choices were the re-issued versions of two albums I never bought in their original vinyl format but instead acquired via that favourite thrifty teenage method of taping off somebody else's copy, namely "George Best" by The Wedding Present and by The Pale Fountains "Pacific Street". Ah, the opening bars of "Everyone Thinks He Looks Daft" and Dave Gedge's vocals immediately had me back in Hull's Spiders Nightclub. Carefree days of cheap beer, excellent music and very little responsibility!

An interview with the aforementioned Mr Gedge was one of the first big muso pieces we did in the seminal Hull, Hell & Happiness fanzine during my days of Tiger Trekking back in the late Eighties. Although from Leeds, the Weddo's frontman provided an articulate view of the state of football in general and expressed a certain empathy with our plight at the time (how things have changed??!!).

I was reminded of my Hull City fanzine days when attending Alan Plater's excellent "Confessions of a City Supporter" at the new Hull Truck Theatre last night. Having seen the original version, launched to celebrate the Tigers' centenary in 2004, the updated version - celebrating a first ever season in the top-flight - proved just as enjoyable, if not more so. Not only was Roy "Get It Together" North as superb as he had been five years previous but the bit at the end recapturing Deano's Wembley winner still managed to raise the hairs on the back of my neck. And I'm sure the bloke who played one of the coppers in "Early Doors", who was sitting a few rows back from us, enjoyed it as much as the 150 or so City fans in attendance.

It was the first time I've attended the new Hull Truck since its move from Spring Street and I was very impressed. Despite its increased capacity it retains the homely feel of the original, a place where I'd spent many a great night over the past two decades or so seeing most of John Godber's hilarious comedies and live music acts as diverse as The Meteors and Jools Holland, Hue & Cry and Martin Stephenson (without the Daintees). Ah, nostalgia again.

The recent Presentation Evening also saw some of the more mature members of the squad gain some well-deserved recognition. The aforementioned McNaught brothers, John Clarke and Craig Foster all picked up special awards in recognition of fantasticx milestone appearances passed in 2008/09 (Maccer & JC having passed 650 apps while Fozzy and Biff have clocked up 600). At any level of football such feats are magnificent - and testament to the loyalty that Easington United AFC manages to inspire.
I can't leave the subject of "old players" without a word for veteran keeper Steve Eldon who yet again picked up a couple of player of the year awards. Will he ever retire??!!

Our own season ended with something of an unexpected bonus courtesy of the Second-string's appearance in the South Holderness Cup Final. And although well beaten - eventually - by Hedon therein, the chance for the likes of Maccer, Biff and Trev to be involved in such an occasion again was fantastic.

Still, the onset of blue skies and wall-to-wall sunshine herald in the start of a brand new era. By the time the next update appears, I will be fully involved in our gear-up for the new season. Looking forward, not back...

Some you win, some you lose...

County League lows, Holderness Cup highs & Grounds for concern...

Our season ended on something of a high at First Team level - thanks to an excellent win over outgoing champions Sculcoates Amateurs - but for our County League teams it was a disappointing finale; both finishing bottom of their respective divisions.

I went to watch the Reserves in their last game of the season at Howden Amateurs, a side that can go on to win the title should they continue the impressive run they're currently on. Since finally getting back on to their Ashes Park pitch after drainage problems had left them with over half their fixtures to play in the space of two months, Howden have won nine out of ten games and at kick-off time on Saturday required just three more victories to clinch a first Premier Division championship.

As it was their "dream" should have been over inside the opening quarter. Our Reserves belied their lowly positon to completely dominate the early stages and only the brilliance of the home keeper (plus the post and fortunate goal-line block) kept us out.

Sure enough our failure to convert this superiority into goals was duly punished at the other end - twice - before half-time and despite Jim Hollingsworth's second half strike the Stiffs were bound for defeat and with it a bottom place finish.

So both our County League squads will prepare for relegation over the summer. Although the Reserves may well be saved by the current shortage of clubs in the top-flight and possible promotion of the champions to the Humber Premier League.

As to who those champions might be, it's the best finish to a Premier Division campaign in years. Current leaders Beverley Town finished their campaign three weeks ago and can do nothing but wait and see whether their 38pts will be enough.

So far it has proved good enough to see off the challenge of Wawne Ferry - despite the Hull side going into their last three games requiring just 6pts from three matches. They managed just one. Therefore we are left with Howden and Goole side Viking Raiders, with the potential of a winner takes all clash this weekend.Of course neither Howden or Viking currently play on grounds that meet the entry criteria of the HPL. In Howden's case this is particularly sad as The Ashes Cricket Ground & Playing Fields - particularly on a gorgeouos Spring day like last Saturday - is one of the more aesthetically pleasing venues in the East Riding (pictured above). Unfortunately its facilities are among the most basic; we even had to send out to a nearby garage last weekend just to fill the water bottles!

 

According to the Howden Online web site: "Originally part of the grounds of the manor and known as The Ashes from the 17th century, the playing fields were given to the people of Howden in 1925." It would appear the changing rooms have not been upgraded since!

The subject of grounds and ground criteria is set to be a hot topic with us over the summer as we still deliberate over the direction our First Team take next season. With rumours circulating that the Humber Premier League is to be given Step 7 status from 2010/11, we are in something of a quandry with regards to our proposed move to the Central Midlands League (CML). With only the Supreme Division therein currently graded at Step 7, we could face the strange scenario of joining the CML and then having to gain promotion simply to compete at the same level as the competition we've left. Of course summing things up thus doesn't tell the full story. It has been one of the main gripes of those involved with our Club that there has been no real advance in ground improvements at HPL level since the first three seasons. And from the comments we've had back from the two East Riding clubs who joined the CML last season, the grounds therein are - overall - of a much higher standard. With a meeting of the relevant bodies in Yorkshire to discuss the Step 7 proposals set for 28th May, June promises to be a pivotal month in the history of our Club.
Having mentioned the two "local" clubs to have dipped their toe into the Central Midlands League this season, they've enjoyed somewhat contrasting fortunes. Westella & Willerby have had a fantastic debut, securing promotion at the first attempt and making it to the League Cup Final where they lost out to Supreme Division side Sutton Town. It's been a marvellous campaign for Dave Anderson and his side and we'll have chance to gauge just how strong their current squad is when they come to Low Farm for a pre-season game on 18th July. Not that everybody has been impressed with Westella - read Andy Gallon's review of the recent "six-pointer" against Louth Town at Brough from the Football Grounds In Focus site.
As for Hutton Cranswick, it pretty much depends on who you talk to as to whether they've had an okay kind of season both on and off the field or are looking to return home to the HPL having had their fingers well and truly burnt! No doubt my old mucker Denis will be in touch soon but a sixth place finish would appear creditable enough to me and good enough to inspire hopes of challenging for promotion themselves next time.

The climax of the league campaigns locally have been accompanied by the annual South Holderness Cup competition. One of the longest-running such competitions in the East Riding, it is one I've been closely involved with since 1997 and although not the draw it once was it still proves a competitive affair. For the second year running we tasted disappointment in it, losing to holders Hedon Rangers in the first round. Hedon must now be strong favourites to retain their crown alhough I know Iain McNaught is keen for our 'B' squad to have a real go this year.

Getting the reserves to the final would be another fine achievement for "Maccer" who on Saturday celebrated his 650th appearance for Easington United. He is the second player to reach such a milestone and is one of four who boast over 600 games - all of who are still members of the Club. Such loyalty can only be applauded.

And so another season draws to a close - earlier than I can remember for some years. Still, the absence of anything local gives me a chance to enjoy / endure Hull City's nail-biting end to their first season in the Premiership. Having witnessed another fruitless outing on Monday, via defeat at Aston Villa, I'm not sure the tickets in my possession for Saturday's visit of Stoke will be worth the health risk!

Trawling the various Message Board in recent weeks it's quite astounding how the attitude of fans of other teams towards City appear to have changed in recent weeks; particularly since the "Gobin Hood" / "Cesc Spit" incident at The Emirates. From everybody's second favourite team to the one most would like to see go down appears to be the shift - mainly due to what they see as Phil Brown's constant whinging at decisions that have gone against his team.

Now I'm not Browny's biggest fan but the way he's stood up for the unfashionable members of the "best league in the world" has really pleased me and I just hope he still has the chance to get up the likes of Arsene's not inconsiderable conk next season.

Here comes the summer...

(PHOTOS from top: Luke Smith scores the first against Sculcoates Amateurs (Colin Brammer); Howden Amateurs Ashes Park home (Howden Online); Chris Frost scores against Hedon Rangers in the South Holderness Cup (Colin Brammer))