Total cost: £5.55
Sandwiches: £3.95
Tea: £1.60
Entrance: Free
And so it begins! I'd so far resisted the temptation to go to any preseason friendlies, having made myself a promise that I'd keep June and July clear of football to recharge the batteries and make time for other things on life. However I didn't quite keep my promise, being tempted by the lure of the #oneclub friendly between Handsworth and Worksop Parramore on 31 July. The two clubs would be merging their senior sides in a couple of seasons, and this was to be the curtain-raiser on this new partnership. Handsworth have the long held ambition of being the 3rd club in Sheffield, and I'd always been impressed by them since my first visit in 2011. This is an ambitious and friendly club who have a really positive attitude towards their football, both on and off the pitch. They’d been in the Northern Counties Eastern League for two seasons, before being rather unfairly relegated due to ground grading issues. The merger with Worksop looks like it might create something of a powerhouse in South Yorkshire & Nottinghamshire non-league football in years to come.
Entry was free, and I was able to use my tram pass from the city centre, walking the two miles from Attercliffe tram stop. I spent £3.95 on some sandwiches for dinner from Greggs, and bought a couple of teas at the ground, so this was a very cheap evening’s entertainment. The game kicked off with Handsworth in an unfamiliar red, rather different to their usual orange and black stripes – perhaps this change was a sign of things to come?
The game kicked off at a furious pace, with both teams direct in the attack and looking evenly matched in midfield. Parra’ more forged the most chances, with their no 10 forcing a smart save from the Handsworth keeper, as well as hitting numerous shots over or wide. For all their attacking intent, both teams looked like they had left their shooting boots at home - the woman next to me summed it up well with a 'chuffin hell' at each squandered chance. Worksop’s left-back, who looked and played like the Italian terrier Gattuso, was particularly impressive, marauding up and down the wing, and showing great strength on the ball. Handsworth were holding their own, but didn’t quite create as many chances, with a rare chance coming through a free-kick on the edge of the area which forced a corner. This was a decent game and I was impressed with the pace with which both teams attacked the ball.
The second half swung the way of Worksop, as their superior fitness and organisation began to tell, as they took the lead with a cracking strike from outside the box. Handsworth began to look tired and overrun, demonstrated through the way the players crowded together to stop the Parramore attack. Still they were looking bullish and determined, and their number 11 hit a beautiful long-range strike onto the post to send a warning to the away team. They held on for a little longer, only for Worksop’s number 14 to make it 2 shortly after. Thereon in, it was only going to go one way, and two more followed in the last 15 minutes. This was a decent game to start the season, and I was glad to see that football was developing apace at Oliver’s Mount – watch this space over the months and years to come.
