Friday night football comes to the Welfare Ground, Easington, as Colliery host Redcar Town in Northern League Division 2. A strange one, playing Friday night, but it seems Easington have offered the rest of the division this option and only Redcar Town have taken them up, despite them being one of Easington’s farther away opponents. What was the thinking? Local ‘giants’ Sunderland being home on Saturdays? Whatever, it was a boisterous turnout of 368, helped in part by a large proportion of kids, who enlivened procedures by constantly running around and making noise.
I like the Welfare Ground too. It’s a pleasurable walk, through an avenue of trees and past a memorial to a past mining disaster. Then when you get in, there’s a buzz few other Northern League grounds possess, as the vast majority of the crowd mill around a paddock in front of the social club. All chatter, and beer drinking, you feel like it’s a real community hub. The Friday gamble seems to have paid off too, with a larger than usual crowd. 6 of them are in the Main Stand, a 3 row affair with all the seats at the same level. Handy for putting one’s beer down to read the programme.
Opposite the paddock, and Main Stand, is a large grassed area handy for the kids to run around on and kick a football about should they wish. If this was daytime, I’d be able to see the North Sea from the paddock too, but obviously not tonight. To the right of the paddock is a small angled terrace at the right hand side of the goal, sadly fenced off, presumably as it’s falling apart. Shame, as it adds another bit of character. Behind the other goal, the fence is tight to the touchline, a small path just about allowing one to pass anyone on this side. This is where the youth would lurk this evening, boys and girls, just hanging out, not taking a blind bit of notice of the match. Behind the fence is another beautifully tended football pitch, where early on some of the younger spectators snuck out for a kickabout.
Tonight’s match is between Easington, challenging at the top for promotion, and a midtable Redcar, in their 1st ever season in the Northern League. Perhaps it’s their inexperience / naivety which has led them to agreeing to play on a Friday where others refused. Or a cunning ploy to ‘get well in’ with their new friends. Still, it was an entertaining contest as Colliery ran out comfortable 3-1 winners, despite playing over half an hour with 10 men after a harsh sending off. Meantime, the kids tried making fun of the keeper ‘Who are ya? Who are ya?’ then complained later about the industrial language used during the defensive set up of a corner, the rascals. ‘Oi! There’s kids here!’ Anyone who’s ever been to Easington will confirm the local children are not as precious as all that…
The Damage:
£5 ent
£1.50 programme
£2.50 Easington Colliery AFC lager (pint thereof!)
= £9
The Tunes:
BBC6 Music (Tom Ravenscroft)
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