York City 2-2 BFC, Tuesday 22nd July 2025

‘I think we’ll struggle this season.’ ‘Oh, shut up.’

I can’t resist a new stadium, even if it is only a friendly. It’s our first ever visit to the York Community Stadium, yet another out-of-town new build with barely any character beyond the seats being different colours. I’d put it up there (down there?) with Northampton and Donny, a small stadium in the middle of a few retail bits. This one had a swimming pool at one end, and a cinema at the other. Beyond one side (the away side) you’d be hard pushed to know you’re outside a football ground.

Chris had come up from London. Handily, Yorkshire Cricket Club had arranged to be playing at Scarborough the next day and Chris was going to that. So of course he was coming to York, to drink beer (and wine) and be merry. And see the near-future of Barnsley FC. After several drinks we caught a bus to the ground from outside the pub we were nearly in. Excellent research, C.

We arrived in good time, time enough to do a circumference of the stadium. We met Gally in the queue outside, and cheekily took seats right on the halfway line. We were the far right of Reds support. (Far right of Brexiters? Dear me.) One obvious change from the Harrogate game was Conor Barrett in for Shepherd at centre half and the new guy from Brighton (Caylan Vickers) played right wing. Yoganathan got a trot out in centre mid.

We went behind to a superb goal. A few one-touch passes before Ollie Banks (son of Ian) curled one into the far top corner from 20 odd yards. Later, Cooper was forced into a diving save to keep the score at one-nil going into the break. Of the players, my main thought was of this new winger from Brighton. Apparently he’d had a good season at Mansfield last season. All I saw was a bloke who likes to keep possession (ie, doesn’t like to part with the ball), cuts inside, and carries on going till he’s forced to knock it back. Skill enough to keep a ball, but not skill nor pace enough to beat players beyond cutting inside them.

Coach Conor made no changes at half-time, which gave the 1st half players chance to make amends against the non-league Minstermen. And who should pop up with the equaliser but Caylan Vickers? Jon Russell played a peach through the middle and Vickers comfortably despatched.

On the hour (ish) the subs came on…Phillips for Russell, Farrugia (still being played at right mid) for Cleary and Senior (who?) for Roberts. Ogbeta then hit the post but with McGoldrick, Farrell (who?) and Graham on for DKD, Vickers and Bland, York went ahead. Another superb one-touch move leaves our players stood still in wonder, before the ball is whipped across goal for a tap-in. Now, had we scored their two goals, I’d be raving. Incredible. Movement, passing. Perfect. But as they were AGAINST us, I’m starting to think all you have to do is give it the old one-two. Our players are simply incapable of turning and running, or pro-actively spotting what’s happening before them. These are NON-LEAGUE.

McGoldrick had ensconced himself at left midfield, but fair play, he set up the equaliser a minute later with a throughball behind the defence for Phillips to run onto and score at the second time of asking. Nothing happened in the last 15 minutes. Two-all, a good runout, but we’re still 4 or 5 additions off midtable mediocrity. (Prove me wrong, Barnsley.)

Onwards and upwards!

Despatches: Chris thought it was his round when we got back to the statin, and the York Tap. I soon put him right – it was my turn. Biggest mistake of the nite. Would he like this red wine, that one, or the other one. ‘I’ve never heard of that one, I’ll try that.’ Make it a large one. FIFTEEN POUNDS, or one thousand five hundred pence, whatever sounds cheaper. Of course, Chris’s company is cheap at twice that price. Good job I don’t see him every game.

Drink du jour: Northern Monk Faith and Erdinger at the Fossgate Tap, Bluebell IPA at the Bluebell, Neck Oil at The Golden Fleece and Weihenstephaner at the York Tap.

Away: 772 (2,567).

The Damage:
£15 ent
£4.90 vegan pasty (the only one they had left, and I was hungry)
c.£20 petrol
£12 buses
= £51.90

Harrogate Town 0-3 BFC, Saturday 19th July 2025

‘We’re having a party when Wednesday die.’

Sarah is out for the day and I’ve nothing better to do, so on a whim I decide I’ll drive the hour to Harrogate to see the latest iteration of the Super Reds. I know, I know, it’s only a friendly and it means nowt, just an extension of the training regime of the summer, but surely I’ll learn SUMMINK? Besides, it’s a chance to have a sneak preview of a new signing or 3. And the opportunity to make a snap decision on whether all the optimism over Coach Conor is justified. Let’s go!

We line up with a flat back 4. Hence Coach Conor has loaned out Cotter and O’Keefe, presumably for their inability to defend. (FYI, I’ll miss Cotter. Marauding runs, pace, passion, and can throw a ball. O’Keefe? Showed glimpses of being decent, but I’d put him in the remedial class for his slow development at defending. Hasn’t improved in 2 years.) Today it’s MDG’s turn at being a right back. So, we can’t turn right wingbacks into rightbacks, so we’re going to turn a centre half into one? I’ve not got great hopes. In the centre, Roberts is partnering Jack Shepherd, our Great White Hope after a successful spell at Bratfud last season. And left back is the Plymouth loanee whose name begins with ‘O’ (I think). Ogbata or summink.

Centre midfield is Russell and Bland, while right midfield is the complete left-footer (I mean that in the literal sense) Farrugia. Phillips, DKD and new fans favourite McGoldrick float around the other spaces. Fans favourite? He’s not even played a game and the fans are chanting his name. I’ll add this to my irk that fans on social media are already referring to him on social media by his nickname, ‘Didzy’. I’m sorry, but I’m not calling players who’ve not done anything for us by their NICKNAME. Do we refer to ‘Phillipsy’? ‘Coops’ (new keeper Murphy Cooper) ‘Hapless’? (Watters) No we don’t. So why start now? Mind, the bloke next to me likes him ‘cos at least he’s wearing black boots’. I’m with him on that one.

It takes us 6 minutes to score. A corner is put in and Jack Shepherd heads home, unchallenged. (He’d later get his head to another corner. Have we found a centre half who could be dangerous in THEIR box, as well as ours?) Otherwise, we’re knocking it about nicely. McGoldrick was coming deep for the ball. Too deep? Or drawing defenders out of position, a la McAtee the season before last? I couldn’t tell. Still, he gets his reward for his hard work a few minutes before half-time DKD drives into space, inviting McGoldrick’s marker to come across and cover. The resultant pass is perfect in timing, pace and accuracy, leaving Didzy (Jesus Christ!) to dink it over the oncoming keeper. Perfect. Have we got a finisher? Or is there no pressure in a friendly at Harrogate. Either way, I’m not missing Watters already.

Or maybe I am. I heard someone say they’ll miss the Watters chant. ‘We didn’t sign a striker, but it doesn’t matter,..cos we’ve got Max Watters.’ Me too. I loved that chant, the most ironic in football history. It blatantly DID matter. We were 4th in January. We finished 12th. He’s now been sent on loan to Dundee United. (You should see what their PR guy wrote about him on Twitter. Go on, have a look. PR gold. You’d think we’d just lost Shearer, Kane, Van Basten and Lineker all at once. From memory, my fave bit was how he fired us to the play-offs 2 seasons ago!) In memory of Max (R.I.P.) we had paid (PAID!) good money for him after he was sh*te on loan...600k...and his wages (allegedly) were 6k a week...so in 2 seasons he’s cost us…(quick bit of mental arithmetic)...£1.2m. ONE POINT TWO MILLION. Plus whatever we’re subsidising Dundee United, cos they’re not paying that in wages. Anyway, it’s his last year of a three year contract with us. Such a shame we won’t have chance to wave him goodbye. (Two fingers?)

Where was I? Centre forwards. Well, good job we’ve adequate cover. Cosgrove’s gone, Jalo’s made of glass, and that leaves some kid from the juniors (Keiron Graham?) Yes, Watters is that bad we’ve sent him out despite having NOBODY. Cos McGoldrick isn’t gonna complete 90 minutes anytime soon. Or ever. We’ve obviously got somebody lined up. Or else we’ll wait to see who’s still out of contract come August end, as we did Humphreys. Oh yeah, he’ll not be missed either. Half a dozen decent performances once our season had ended.

Jalo was there today. In the stand, sat down. And the poor lad didn’t half look embarrassed as the fans behind the goal serenaded him...’Jalo, Jalo, Jalo...he’s better than Christiano.’ The only chant better than the Watters one. In other team news, Luca was missing. I honestly hadn’t noticed till 80 minutes in, and even then I had it pointed out to me. Hopefully he was packing his bags, but the Chron said he had an injury. Let’s hope this is a classic example of a club lying to protect their ‘asset’ while he engineers a move to 3rd division titans Wycombe Wanderers. (Have they REALLY offered £1.3m? Are we REALLY haggling? I suspect neither is true.)

Indeed, the fans were in good voice that 1st half, in particular mocking Wednesday’s (latest?) crisis. ‘We’re having a party when Wednesday die’ apparently. And this Chansiri chap is becoming more and more popular everywhere in South Yorkshire outside of S6. Keep it up, Washday.

I moved round the pitch at half-time, to stand on the halfway line and get a better view of our midfield movement and passing. Nothing happened. Farrugia hurt himself sliding out and heading the advertising hoardings. Personally, I’d have put my arms out to cushion the fall. Hopefully he’s alright, though there was nothing in his display to suggest he’s a starter. He looks quite pacey, but what’s the point if it’s down the right wing and you can’t kick it with that foot?

Reyes Cleary came on (left wing) and made a couple of direct runs with no end product, while a couple of youth lads came on to run about and look keen. Following the Farrugia episode, where he was seen off by a defender (fairly IMHO, though it wound up the fans behind the goal) tempers became flared as the Sulphurites (one of THE great nicknames) put in a couple of robust challenges on the halfway line, causing Coach Conor and their manager – the owner’s son, can’t remember his name, but I wish I was the son of a football club owner! – to do passable impressions of Scrappy Doo. Lemme at ‘em, lemme at ‘em!

Then, as we’d all given up on a match breaking out, another sub, Yoganathan, strode forward, chopped back onto his left foot and curled one into the far top corner from the apex of the box. Bergkampesque. (If Bergkamp could do it on his left foot, which he couldn’t.) 3 nil to the Super Reds. I am strangely optimistic. I think we could do really well this season. If we’re playing in the 4th division.

Onwards and upwards!

*** Shepherd. Won everything in the air, made a couple of covering blocks, scored. We’ll ignore the aberration (see ‘Despatches’)
** Cooper. Faultless. Commanded his area both in deeds and words. Bosses communication. (Noticeably when MDG was told to leave a throughball. Memories of MDG messing at least 2 of these up with different keepers last season.) Also made a superb late diving save to tip one round the post.
* Didzy. Great finish for the goal and looked good in possession. A pity he didn’t have the pace to take on a 45 yard run when clean through though.

*For the avoidance of doubt, pre-season friendly top 3s will NOT count in the Londontyke POTY totals.

Despatches:
Short goal kicks. We looked like an accident waiting to happen. And in one, we were. The ball is played to Shepherd, who plays a Sulphurite clean through. Thankfully, Cooper was quick out and the player blazed it over. But, really, if we can’t pass it around Harrogate, it’s not gonna work against Cardiff, Plymouth, etc I’m getting Marcus Schopp levels of PTSD here. And it’s not like we suck the opposition in to ‘play it through the lines’. No, we suck them forward so the keeper is left with no choice but to boot it long. Which he could have done, no risk, straight from the goalkick.

Something I did notice, 1st half. I think BFC had brought their own cameraman, as Coach Conor was issuing him with orders during one corner routine. (The cameras are on the roof above the dugouts.) Will every club let us do this? Do they have to? Or is it just while we perfect those corner routines during friendlies?

Oh, and talking of corners...I saw my 1st corner awarded for a keeper holding onto the ball 8 seconds. I think that’s the new rule, anyway.

Drink du jour: None.

Away: 821 (2,261).

The Damage:
£12 ent
£5 prog (x2)*
c.£20 petrol
= £42

*you read that right. A FIVER for a programme. At a friendly. To be fair, it covered 3 matches (Rovrum and Carlisle too). And I don’t mind keeping Harrogate in business. It’s a lovely day out!

Buxton 3-1 BFC Under 21, Tuesday 8th July 2025

Buxton 3-1 Barnsley Under 21s, Friendly, Tarmac Silverlands Stadium, att. 647

The Club World Championship (the WHAT!?) is still in full swing and yet here we are, dawning of a new season. I’m back from my summer holidays, so it MUST be the new season, right? The Super Reds have just played their opening friendly (a one-all at Worksop) and I’m breaking my own rules by coming to what is, in essence, a training kickabout. But I’ve never seen us at Buxton, and the drive is THE most glorious thing, from the Yorkshire Pennines through the Peak District,up hill and down dale, past rivers and reservoirs, along windy and windy (!) roads. Just to watch the Under 21s. At the highest ground in the land.

Yes, despite being billed as a first team friendly, it’s just the Under 21s out. Worse, 5 of the team are trialists, and when an opposition fan (well, father of an opposition player) asks who in our team has played for the first team, I can only really point at keeper Flavell – and even he only got a few games last season after 3 keepers got injured (2 loanees) and a 4th fell out with the coach and was sold despite being the most in-form player in the team at that time. (The coach was to lose his job by season’s end.) Thus, it was a predictably disjointed performance with no-one standing out for the Super Reds.

Having been before, I parked 5 minutes from the ground, having turned the car around for an easy escape. £10 in, a bit steep for Under 21 friendlies but that’s on Barnsley not Buxton. Indeed, the first team WERE here tonite, bizarrely forced to watch the opening half from the stand. What was the point in THAT? Anyway, standing with Eric, we found out why the first team were pulled. A Reds fan (and Sky cameraman) walking around the pitch stopped for a chat. Turns out we’re playing Glasgow Rangers on Satdy, behind closed doors. Of course it is. Our pre-season consists of Worksop, Buxton, Harrogate and York City. It woulda been nice to play Rangers at Oakwell, though my recollection of Rangers coming to Sunderland in the 80s was of 6,000 Glasweigans wrecking the place. I suppose we could do with avoiding that.

I’ve already had a beer in the social club, on the right as you enter, as well as shaking hands (hoofs?) with the mascot, ‘Bucky’. (‘The Bucks’, see. I know, it’s no ‘Ron Corn.’) He was sweltered, he told me. I advised him to stay in the shade. It wasn’t the evening for dressing up in an animal outfit and being out in the sun. There was a smattering of Reds shirts around. Like me, Eric had no idea it was an under 21 game, though XXX did. Late notice, apparently, though too late for either club to mention it on their social media. But how did XXX know? Given she’s ‘had relations’ with more Reds footballers than I’ve shaken hands with (apparently) maybe she still has her contacts, despite her youth having disappeared long ago.

By now, I’ve walked around the pitch to lean on the fence on the far side. The home end, just past the social club, has a cluster of youngsters, obviously missing their football badly enough to be chanting. I’m not sure I’ve ever heard chanting at a friendly. Mind, I haven’t been to that many. But ‘if you are a Matlock fan surrender or you die’! (Will this attitude prevail at a pre-season meeting of the two? I suspect not.)

On the long side opposite the Main Stand a low propped roof and a couple of steps of terracing lay behind me as we leant on the fence and basked in the sun’s rays. No sign of Bucky. Perhaps he was having a well earned drink. Or maybe sat with the cluster of red track-suited individuals in the Main Stand. Buxton take the lead on 14 mins, as a throughball is slotted easily past Flavell. So much for 1st team experience. Soon, a trialist is injured and forced off. That’s a blow for him. Reds junior Kieron Graham then dispossesses the last defender and is through on goal. Mind, he’s still 35-40 yards out, but absolutely no-one makes an effort to close him down (too hot?) and he runs forward and calmly finishes. He’s perhaps the best of a bunch, keen, closing down, direct. And small. I’ve seen his type fail too many times at this club.

Half-time we’re level, but to prove anything they can do, we can do just as well, our centre half attempts to sidestep the opposing forward and loses it. Hapless. Is he one of the trialists, I wonder? If so, he’ll fit in well at Oakwell. Sub keeper Ravenhill tips round a shot before saving a penalty, diving to his right. I have no idea what the penalty was for. Not cos I disagree with the ref, I was too busy chatting/daydreaming. By now I’ve taken to having a wander round the ground.

Buxton seal it with a few minutes to go, hammering it from close range as the young Reds fail to clear a corner. The ref adds exactly zero minutes to the 90 and I’m off, looking forward to another glorious ride home, in the dusk. Such a pity I’m not capable of simply driving the same route I came, and somehow I miss Glossop and end up in Stockport. Still, it’s nice to have a drive out...

The Damage:
£10 ent
£10 SALT Alpacalypse Session IPA x 2
= £20