Entry £17
Programme £3
Tea £1-70
Petrol £28
Parking £4
Total £53-70
Just when I think everything will be smooth... This weekend I planned to visit Morecambe. Like Chesterfield this is one of a few places where I'll have visited both the old and new grounds. I'd managed to get to Christie Park in its final season in 2010, and was heading back there today for the Globe Arena.
Bike at the ready, season ticket primed and I checked National Rail. There were long delays through Sheffield until 1:30, and the previous train to Manchester had been completely cancelled. It sounded like it would be chaos at the station. So I decided to drive it for once, which actually meant I could set off later than planned. I then had a wild idea of heading to Glasson Dock and Heysham but with traffic and the 2 and a half hour drive that was scuppered. I made it as far as the edge of Heysham Port but with a white mist descending, I could barely see a thing. So I headed to the Globe Arena, where I paid £4 for the privilege of parking in a nearby school.
According to the club website there are no cash turnstiles but I managed to find one, parting with £17 for terracing behind the goal. The smaller terraced section at the far end was closed with the Wimbledon fans congregated in the main stand.
The ground was nice enough, with the modern sweeping stand on my right and spacious terraces on the other sides. To be honest it all felt a bit flat. There was hardly any atmosphere as the teams kicked off, and with the cloudy day and my general tiredness I wondered why I was here today.
Wimbledon, who were 7th in the league, should be sweeping the Shrimps aside today, but the home side kept them in check for long periods. Wimbledon had barely a handful of first half opportunities, including a free kick which went over, and a couple of efforts wide by 39. Morecambe's 9 had an effort saved after running in from the right wing, and I was particularly impressed with the reliable and strong 2, who got forward at every opportunity, but could also defend effectively. The most eventful off-pitch occurence was when a senior steward reprimanded some junior staff for standing too close together. They were stood behind the goal having a good natter and looked hardly aware of anything around them!
The second half picked up both in terms of atmosphere and on-pitch action. There were more chants, and the crowd seemed to respond to the announcer's demand for them to get behind the team. Morecambe's ever active 9 fired over after a cross from the right, and then Wimbledon had an effort well-saved by the home keeper from the right side. The home side were dominating possession now, and Morecambe's 4 headed over from 7's corner. Then on 76 minutes they took a deserved lead through 17 who slotted in after a loose ball outside the 6 yard box.
They gained a further advantage when Wimbledon's 20 was handed a straight red for denying a goal-scoring opportunity, with 7 coolly converting from 12 yards. They looked like they would close out the win, until the Dons suddenly came to life for the last 10 minutes. Their 7 made it 2-1 to set up a nervy finish, and despite attack after attack, they could not muster an equaliser. In truth, Morecambe deserved this win today. They had played with great tenacity and organisation throughout, and had earnt some degree of safety in the League Two table. I headed back to the car and after a brief drive down to Heysham Village, headed back to the M6 and across the Pennines back to Sheffield. I nearly managed to run out of petrol but just made it back to South Yorkshire with some left in the tank! This summed up a tiring but worthwhile trip up to West Lancashire.
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