Salford City 1-1 Doncaster Rovers, Tuesday 15th April 2025

Salford City 1-1 Doncaster Rovers, League 1, Peninsula Stadium (Moor Lane), att. 3,030

I’m going rogue tonite. Nevermind a non-lge game, there’s a tempting match up in League 2 of the EFL. Salford are on the cusp of the play-offs, while Donny are chasing an automatic promotion place. For the home side, it’s must-win. For Rovers, a draw will consolidate their position, while a win will have them dreaming of the title, nevermind top 3.

Having experienced Salford before, I’m a little more prepared. Don’t park too close to the ground (parking restrictions) but park close enough to walk. Turn the car around, so you’re ready for the return journey. Get there early enough to have a beer from the 7 Bro7hers shipping container inside the ground. The parking arrangement went to plan, but the shipping container is shut. Oh well. I go into the main social club (behind the South Stand) where I can have anything, as long as it’s famous and tasteless. I pass, tho I wouldn’t mind a game of table football, if I had anybody to play. (I think it’s aimed at giving the kids something to do.)

Thus, I’m very early to the terrace and spend my time on my phone. In surveying the identikit stands, I notice they’re not. Although the roofs on this modern rebuild are all at the same height, due to the slope of the pitch, the back wall is higher behind the South Stand seats than the North Stand. There endeth the interesting features of the Peninsula Stadium, nee Moor Lane.

It’s filling up nicely – in the away end. The eventual crowd of just over 3 thousand is heavily reliant on the Rovers contingent, around 1200. They also provide most of the atmosphere, helped by an early blast from Street, which I enjoyed being right behind. The keeper had no chance. However, the game ends all square as Garbutt scores direct from a free kick a few minutes later (the keeper definitely had a chance with that one).

Otherwise, it’s end-to-end, without it being thrilling, the only footnote being a last minute 2nd yellow for Salford centre half Tilt. Donny consolidate 2nd, but for Salford the play-offs are starting to look remote.

The Damage:
£20 ent
= £20

Salford City 1-0 Stockport County, Saturday 13th May 2023

Salford 1-0 Stockport County, League 2 play-off semi final 1st leg, att. XXXXX

I’ve let my grasp of the 92 slip. Since 2016, new stadia (Brentford, Wimbledon), promotions (Salford, Harrogate) and moving out of London (Brentford, Wimbledon, again) have given me further challenges. I managed Harrogate last season, while I was frustrated recently by Wimbledon’s only sellout of the season a couple of months back. So it came as a bit of a bonus when Salford made the play-offs, and not only made the play-offs, but were forced by Sky to kick-off at 7:45pm on a Satdy nite...after I’d seen the Super Reds (Barnsley) at nearby Bolton for an earlier kick-off.

Even better, the poorly supported league newbies would have a crowd, as they faced another local rival, Stockport County. The attendance (3,923) fell one short of a seasonal high though, as the Ammies restricted County to 500 tickets, no doubt scoping an advantage in the battle for Wembley (as Barnsley did, spitefully restricting the number of away tickets Bolton were given, thereby inducing a tit-for-tat response). Stockport, enjoying a renaissance having been as low as the National League North (6th tier) four seasons ago, have been playing in front of as many as 10,000 this season. Good to luck to them after years of travail.

Considering how urban the Greater Manchester area is, the Peninsula Stadium (great name; sadly it’s just the sponsor, who ‘look after employers’ needs’, whatever they might be) is remarkably suburban, all lovely semi-detacheds and adjacent to a park. Just watch out for the parking restrictions. I found a perfect space a couple of hundred metres from the ground and I had to walk another 50 metres before finding a small sign warning me of the consequences. Good job I was warned in advance! I was there in good time though, so parked on the hill down from the stadium, which was perfect for a quick getaway in the same direction.

I’d bought my ticket online, having first had to email Salford to convince them I wasn’t a Stockport fan. It was £15 everywhere in the stadium (standing or seats). I went behind the goal, on the West Stand terrace. Access was via one of those lovely streets, Nevile Road. No programmes, even at this early hour, though I’m sure I saw someone with one. I was told at the club shop they were on sale inside the turnstile. No they weren’t. The shop did though offer me 70% off all club merchandise. A Salford City FC hoodie for 12 quid sounded like a bargain (though I resisted temptation). When would I ever wear a Salford City FC hoodie?

Even better, for a connoisseur of a certain age, was the Seven Bro7hers brewery stall. Yes, I would like an IPA. I could imbibe it as I read my programme. Oh. There was also an excellent array of food stalls, as well as beer for the less discerning. Altogether, a great package in the home end and exceptionally welcoming.

The Peninsula Stadium is a smart, if dull, affair. It’s been developed as the ‘Class of 92’ owned club rose through the divisions and is functional, if lacking in charisma. Still, I expect several non-league clubs with decent backing would kill for a stadium like this. (Dulwich Hamlet, South Shields, I’m thinking of you.) With a capacity of around 5,000, it’s more than big enough, but cosy too, all-enclosed. Seats adorn the touchlines, terracing behind either goal, with a cantilevered roof all round.

The away fans have been given the opposite far left corner and are a menacing bunch, at one point storming the lack of barriers to charge at the Salford fans and throw a few punches through the dividing netting. That they return of their own accord is neither here nor there, as the 3 or 4 stewards are swamped. It’s unsavoury, but brief, and reinforcements are found for half-time.

The match? 1-0 to the home side, a first half header being the only mark on the scoresheet, despite an entertaining end-to-end first half. The second half was a bit of a non-event. Were Salford just happy to take a lead to Edgeley Park? Were Stockport happy to just take a one goal deficit? I dunno, but it seemed to be the halves were the wrong way around, cagey latter half after an open opening. Anyway, I’m back up to 90. Now, to engineer trips to Brentford and Wimbledon...

The Damage:
£15 Ent
£4 beer
= £19

Harrogate Town 6-1 Scunthorpe United, Saturday 9th October 2021

Harrogate Town 6-1 Scunthorpe United, League 2, EnviroVent Stadium (Wetherby Road), att. 3,180

It’s another international break, and the perfect opportunity for those of us who support a higher division side to put aside the stress of watching one’s own team suffer. I wasn’t alone. Not only did three former Londontykes (plus Junior) make the journey from various parts of Yorkshire, but a couple of us shared a taxi with a couple of Huddersfield fans doing same. The driver said he’d just dropped off some Derby fans too, so no wonder the match broke attendance records, their highest league crowd ever (3,180). It looked more too, as the ground purports to hold 5,000 and there wasn’t much space to be seen. Scunny brought a few too (though I’m sure they regretted it.)

I drove, and well done Loko, who was a few minutes ahead and guided me in (Google Maps being…errr….as little inconsistent). We parked up a couple of streets from the ground, the local disc parking only covering the very nearest streets. It helped getting there early, giving us the chance to walk into the centre, and partake in a beer (just one!) at the magnificent Major Tom’s. Quality craft ales and a Schneiderweisse wheat beer for myself. We all agreed we’re coming back to Harrogate (by train, whatever the cost).

The original plan was to get to the ground early, bag a barrier to lean on, so that went out of the window as we foraged for a Greggs before jumping in taxis. There were healthy queues, partly due to only 5 turnstiles covering 2 sides of the ground. We were soon enough in though as we bemoaned the ‘tickets’ being on Wadd’s phone. (We were all looking forward to having paper copies. How will we remember certain games once Alzheimers kicks in?)

We may have missed a minute. The stand to our right, a thin terrace the length of the touchline, looked packed. As did behind the goal, in front of us. So we stood near the corner flag, and along with a few dozen more, ignored any stewards requests for us to move into the stand proper. It wasn’t a great view of the goal this end, but we could see well enough to the far end, as Harrogate racked up an amazing 5-0 lead by half-time. Fair play to Scunthorpe too. Without their haplessness, there’s no way the Sulphurites (I can’t decide if that’s the best or worst nickname of all time) would’ve scored so many, though their pace melted The Irons (apologies).

On the opposite touchline was the Main Stand, another small, one-tiered affair, and the away end looked a mirror of the home. Scunny had brought a few hundred and a few left early (as in, 1st half early), as we discovered when a blue smoke bomb was hurled over the boundary wall and onto the pitch near us. Before today I’d have been hard pushed to bracket Scunthorpe United with Dinamo Zagreb, but they’re the only sets of fans I’ve seen chucking smoke bombs into a stadium from outside. (Dinamo were playing Austria Vienna away, not Harrogate.) An insane thing to do. I’d never leave a game early.

While we pondered whether Neil Cox would resign as Scunny manager (they’re 2nd off bottom, Town 2nd off top) their side came out early to warm up. It worked too, as they had 3 decent efforts blocked before pulling one back. Still, the last word went to Town, with a late penalty off the post. 6-1 and Harrogate marching on (to promotion?). Plans have already been made for us to return this season. It was nice to enjoy football again.

The Damage:
£16 ent
£3 programme
£5 taxi
= £24

The Tunes:
BBC 5Live
The Bairns (Rachel Unthank and the Winterset)
BBC6 Music (Craig Charles’ Funk and Soul Show)