We’re on the same train into Manchester Piccadilly, though it’s rammed and we meet on the platform. A change of platform, a game of Wetherspoons Top Trumps, a beer on the train and we’re in Chorley before…well, before I had time to win the game of Top Trumps. I was winning as well.
We are met with a bold statement across the way from Chorley railway station: ‘Chorley, the best of Lancashire all in one place.’ Wow. Go big or go home. Now I’ve been to Chorley, I need not bother myself with the rest of the county.
We have a beer in the first hostelry we find (not great) but further down the street is the Shepherds’ Hall, a grand place with plenty of choice. Then it’s off to the ground, and it’s a simple, if boring walk, alongside the dual carriageway. Kev’s got the (digital) tickets in, in advance. 15 quid for EFL season-ticket holders (that’s me!) whereas he, a mere ST holder of a National League North side (spoiler: Chorley’s visitors Darlington) has to pay full price, whatever that is. Needless to say nobody checks my EFL credentials at the turnstile.
The ground today is segregated. I presume Darlo’s reputation precedes them. (They once knocked down a fence at Spennymoor.) But it’s fine, we’re all together and not split around Victory Park. (The folks of Chorley are confident types, aren’t they?) There’s a tall terrace behind the goal, albeit a quarter the length of the byeline. There’s grass banking either side. Was this once terrace too? Dunno, but it’s fenced off behind cheerless mesh. Still, the stand has an old-school pitched roof and is dark and cosy. So Kev’s family (cousin, nephew, great-nephew, Kev) decide to stand at the perimeter fence, near the goal, in the cold. No amount of hint-dropping will dissuade them. Supporting Darlington is MEANT to be an endurance, right? Or perhaps they don’t want to be near the Darlo yoof with their infernal drum?
The touchline to our right also has some grass banking and an odd, small stand perched above it on the halfway line, the Dave Prescott Stand. I think this doubles as Chorley’s ‘exec area’ and it must afford some grand views. Opposite is a sizeable main stand, an old pitch roofed all-seater that straddles the halfway line, while behind the goal the terrace at this end stretches the entire width, as does the roof. Nothing here looks like it was built after 1960 and it’s all the better for it.
Being cold, we’ve procured another beer from the refreshment hatch (took ages) and a pie each. I had the last meat and potato in town (till the new batch arrived) while Kev went for local delicacy ‘butter pie’. This does not do what it says on the menu, more of a creamy mashed potato. Not for me, tho Kev lives a semi-vegan life anyway, so it’s no skin off his nose.
We’re further perked up by the score. Darlo go ahead on 23 as the winger beats the offside trap and knocks it across goal for Cedric Main to apply a simple finish. This is Darlo’s bogey ground, I’m told, and it’s true: 2 draws and 5 defeats in 7, including an 8-0 tonking a couple of seasons back that Kev was lucky to be away on holiday for. Eight nil. Against Chorley.
Normal service is resumed after the half hour mark as a scramble ends with the ball hooked into Darlo’s net, and Chorley enjoy their best spell. Cuz moans as the ref indicates 3 minutes of added-on time, but he’s not moaning after 4 minutes of it, as Will McGowan scores an improbable second for the Quakers, curling the ball in first time from 25 yards. Improbable, cos we were right behind it and it was going over all the way till it suddenly dropped over the keeper. Stick it up yer, Chorley. Have some ‘best of County Durham’!
The second half is a bit of a no-show, to be frank. I miss the one bit of action, a Chorley player being sent off, as I’ve wandered towards the corner flag to take some photos and to confirm that the goalposts at this end were LEANING BACKWARDS. ‘Nobody even appealed it’ says a mystified Kev, as in, appealed for the sending-off. It’s not comfortable, but Darlo see it out and cement their place in 6th, a play-off place. And as la famille bid us farewell, we hook up with a couple of Darlo and hit a fantastic pub near the station, the Malt ‘n’ Hops. Busy, great beer choice, and sarnies and pies. It pays sometimes to go the wrong side of the tracks and we’ve found it: Chorley, the best of Lancashire all in one place.
The Damage
£15 ent
= £15
beer and pie on Kev!
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