In my first FA Cup match for 5 years, I saw a crazy tie between two North West teams. Northwich looked to have the initiative at 2-1 up, but fell behind to a penalty and 2 quickfire Bootle goals. They deservedly fought their way back into it to make it 4 all - not a scoreline I would have predicted at the start!
It's been 11 years since I first visited this ground. Going to this bit of Merseyside always brings back a flood of memories so they were on my mind for some of the match. I had not realised how close Runcorn, Northwich and Warrington are, so it's no surprise that Northwich make the short trip up here for home games. There's probably a dissertation to be written on football clubs and grounds in Northwich itself, where I believe Witton Albion still play.
My first game of 2026/27 ticked off after a long wait.
