On Saturday I watched live football, sadly it wasn’t at St James Park.
I would have loved to have been there, even though Newcastle United were dumped out of the FA Cup by Manchester City, however, once again drawing a blank in the ballot and the laughable attempted purchase by queuing on the Newcastle United ticketing site.
When we don’t get NUFC tickets and a chance to travel back home to Tyneside, we often watch our local (I am a long-time Geordie exile living in London) team Dulwich Hamlet, who play in the Isthmian League Premier Division, the seventh tier of English football.
Saturday was an away match against St Albans City. A short journey from central London.
In the ground amongst the adults were a few Tottenham and Arsenal badges, but what brought a smile to my face, was the large group of St Albans Ultras with their drums and flags. Chanting with their high pitched voices, none of them over the age of fourteen. A decent sized mob of young kids getting to see live football and creating their own vibe. No doubt in this instant age of shared information and video footage they are aware of all the up and coming young players in all the top leagues around the world.
The day was a throwback, paying in to stand on concrete terracing and watching live action close up, so close that sometimes the players react to the audible comments thrown at them from the terraces.
At the end of the game, thanks were given over the tannoy to the two and half thousand fans who had come along, including the noisy and sizeable Dulwich Hamlet Rabble.
What prompted me to write this was an article on The Mag by John Martin, who nailed the situation with season tickets and the ballot system at Newcastle.
Also on The Mag, Simon Ritter points out that as well, there is an additional unpleasant layer of ticket purchasing through third parties on internet sites. I do check the third party sites for tickets when I have failed in the ballot but the prices are just well…
What about away games?
The likes of Simon Ritter (also in exile in the south) and myself have no other choice but to purchase tickets in the home end for away days, as away tickets are now impossible and that there is a whole other article for The Mag.
So after the defeat to Man City we now have three ballots left in this Premier League season. Will we have better luck than previously? At this moment in time I’d wager we will be more likely to be standing on the terracing at Champion Hill to see live football, watching Dulwich Hamlet. At least I can have a pint of Peckham Pale Ale at the side of the pitch.
By the way, Dulwich Hamlet lost 1-0 on Saturday, leaving them 11th in the table, one place behind St Albans City.
A week earlier…
That was also a fail for ourselves as Newcastle United members in the ballot and queue sale, no tickets for the Newcastle v Everton match the previous weekend.
So along with my Cardiff and Forest mates, it was Dulwich Hamlet v Chichester City on the menu. You cannot beat live football and when it costs six quid to get in and you can have a pint of Peckham Pale at the side of the pitch, who can argue. The Cardiff and Newcastle games were still monitored carefully by our at hand technology but football is a live sport. Nothing beats being at the game in person, which is why the lack of tickets for Newcastle United grinds the bones for me.
Chichester City brought a hardcore support, lads in Burberry and Stone Island and all in their twenty something. Big Danny Mills the bustling centre forward and cult hero of The Rabble scores an incredible goal, chipping the keeper from twenty plus yards with the outside of the boot. That is the sort of number nine we need at Newcastle I say to my teenage lad.
There are lots of players who have a great back story. Dan Burn being such a great example working his way up through the divisions and scoring that incredible goal at Wembley in the cup final.
Lots of top players have been released by clubs, judgement being that they couldn’t cut it but have gone on through smaller lower league clubs and ended up in the Premier League. Ian Wright and Les Ferdinand being stand out examples.
So with PSR, SCR or whatever constraints are placed on the club, how are we going to buy the talent we need? Our current number nine is Yoane Wissa. He has cost huge money and I jokingly said I would take Danny Mills ahead of him.
At this moment in time we cannot attract the really top players, even if we were allowed to buy them and pay their wages.
So with our hands tied behind our backs through purse strings pulled, can Eddie Howe find us a Jamie Vardy (pictured above playing for Serie A side Cremonese at the age of 39) style talisman to spearhead us to the title?