Sheffield-Starbeck train £22-70
Buses in Sheffield £3
Entry £7
Programme £2
Tea £1
Tea at Leeds £1-99
Total £37-69
Today I was off to see one of the worst teams in England. New Mills, visitors to Harrogate's Station View, had picked up 2 points all year, and conceded over 100 goals in the process. So I'd either see a historic win or a cricket score for the home side!
Railways Station View is well named, being located a short walk from Starbeck station. When I arrived I had bags of time so wandered across to Harrogate Towns Wetherby Road for some photos (I had been to a match there back in October 2012). The towns grounds are surprisingly close. Harrogate is a nice place for a wander - even the outskirts were full of impressive stone houses and some intricate church buildings.
Upon heading back to the ground, I parted with £7 entry and £2 for a programme (enticingly placed on a display stand near the turnstile). The ground was a cross between Redditch United's Valley and Whitchurch Alport. Two sides of uncovered hard standing contrasted with a couple of rows of terracing and a block of red seats behind one goal. In line with the centre circle was a small but modern stand, directly behind dugouts which had plastic beige shelters. As I walked round I noticed cracks in the walkway in places, and that the pitch actually slanted from side to side.
After a couple of early attacks for both sides, the first goal of the game fell to New Mills! Their number 6 (Jones) somehow poked the ball in from a cross. Could I be seeing one of their few wins of the season? That hope was soon snuffed out when Railway made it 1-1 when Ovington fired in a low effort in the box after a ricochet away. The away sides defending was chaotic to say the least. The Derbyshire side continued to create chances, and Hibbert's effort bobbled frustratingly wide before Williams fired over after going clean through.
After wandering around for some more comprehensive photos - and noticing that some of the red paint on the metal pitch perimeter had come off in my hands - the second half commenced. Harrogate took the lead when Harry Coates headed in, drawing a wry comment from one fan 'Sorry I missed that - can you do it again?'. This probably referred to the home side’s relatively poor season to date.
From here onwards the Yorkshire side put daylight between them and New Mills. Ovington made it 3-1 after finishing an excellent run by Bromley on the left, and then the latter latched onto a loose ball to make it 4. New Mills had made a decent effort today but they are clearly out of their depth in this league. I hope that they come back stronger next season whichever league they end up in. I was tempted by the announcer’s invitation to 'join Terry and the team for a glass of your favourite tipple' but instead headed straight back to Starbeck station, with the train back to Leeds timed well for once.
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