August 1st 2009 Part One
The George Lancaster Memorial GatesSaturday 1st August 2009, Pre Season Friendly
Bilsthorpe Miners Welfare, Eakring Road, Bilsthorpe, Notts
Kick Off 11AM
FC05 (1) 4 (Westerman (blue boots) 2, Corbett, Knight)
Pinxton XI (1) 1 (Briggs)
Admission: Free. Attendance: Not many
FC05 play in the north Notts village of Bilsthorpe, which stands about three quarters of a mile off the A614 Nottingham-Doncaster road, a few miles to the south of Ollerton roundabout.They have a fenced off pitch with dug outs and a small area of covered standing available at the front of the pavilion which is shared with Bilsthorpe Colliery Welfare Cricket Club.
FC05 have joined the Central Midlands Football League this summer as they aim to establish the club at an higher level in local football. Good luck to them. Their welcome and hospitality was spot on.
Unfortunately today though, that pitch wasn't marked out because it is still the cricket season and the playing area overlaps into the outfield.So it meant a trek further down the field to a pitch beyond the cricketers perimeter boundary.
Oh well, nice morning for a walk and some fresh air.
At least it was at 11.15AM
"Hey number 1! Those tiny specs of yellow right at the far end of the field are your team-mates warming up, enjoy the hike!"Before kick off there was a gentlemen's agreeing reached between both sides that unlimited 'rolling substitutions' would be order of the day, "Oh good we've only got two" said the guy from FC05, "We've only bought one" laughed the Pinxton coach.
You see the66pow gets all the insider knowledge gossip for you - no stone is left unturned ;-)
FC05 (all red) were worthy winners of this game by 4 goals to 1.The first of those goals, that went in via the post when FC's captain directed an header beyond Pinxton's keeper, heralded a change in the weather.
Until that point it was merely a dull, fresh morning with occasional showers, but for the remainder of the game I was wondering when the old gentleman wearing an RNLI cap was going to fire a distress flare so his crew mates would come and rescue us from the bottom end of that rain lashed field.
I don't own any binoculars so the covered pavilion wasn't an option, but it was actually well worth putting up with the downpour, it was a very entertaining game. And you never saw it so you can't dispute my claim either!!!
Scribbling any notes down or taking goalscorers names wasn't an option. My cap was pulled down tightly, my collar was up and my hands stayed tucked deeply in the warmth of my pockets.
Pinxton had a scheduled game at 3PM against Thackley, so the team they sent to Bilsthorpe was a collection of reserves and youngsters with a few older heads offering guidance. They got an equaliser on the stroke of half time, from my vantage point (peeping around a cricket screen that was affording me slight respite from the rain) it looked as if the last player to touch it past the FC05 keeper was one of his own defenders but it was in fact a Pinxton player by the name of Briggs.
In the second half, FC05 took over and thumped home three goals, all from around the outside of the box, the guy in blue boots in the photo above netted two of them, he had a great game, which was good because a lot of players with garish coloured boots are both posers and feckin' useless.
AMENDMENT: Thanks to my pals scattered around the darker recesses of grass roots football I have been provided with the goalscorers names after the event.
Briggs scored for Pinxton and FC05's goals were scored by Nick Westerman (2), Kenny Corbett, and Michael Knight. The latter one explains why there was a fancy black talking car parked next to my demolition derby relic.
Ta for the info inna turbo-charged stylee!
Thankfully, I always have a change of clothes stashed in the boot of my car. Some dry socks, shoes and jeans were a Godsend this afternoon before I headed to game number two of the day.
