Cod Almighty | Diary

A particularly well-run three

15 July 2013

Miss Guest Diary writes: A couple of weeks ago one of my fellow diarists mentioned memorable goalless draws for Town and I thought then of a 0-0 against Ipswich in April '92 which is the match I always cite as being the one which turned me from being a casual watcher into a proper Town fan. I can't remember the exact scenario but it was something like: Town needed the point because they were struggling a bit in their first season back in the old second division and Ipswich were hoping for automatic promotion to the top division. Whatever the reason, there was a huge crowd at Portman Road (22,393 apparently) and the atmosphere was fantastic. I think it was the first time I realised what a thrilling experience being part of a football crowd can be.

These memories came back to me while I was sitting at Trent Bridge on Friday watching England in the first Ashes test. On paper, paying £70 to sit in the sweltering heat surrounded by people, both English and Australian, getting increasingly drunk and abusive to see 246 runs (at a cost of about 28p a run!) being scored doesn't sound great. But it really was.

In the same way that a hard fought 0-0 draw in football can seem like a win, seeing England claw their way to relative safety, getting the runs mostly in ones and twos with the occasional boundary and well-run three, was thrilling. Watching the large group of Aussie supporters sat nearby deflating every time their repeated quacking failed to put the new batsman off his game, or when they finally gave up on their pathetic attempts at wit – "Broady, Broady looks like a lady" – as the score crept higher and higher, was brilliant. That England then went on to win the match in a nail-biting finish yesterday just makes Friday's experience feel even better.

Also on Friday, but back in the more mundane world of pre-season games, Town won 5-0 at Winterton. From watching the highlights and reading the Telegraph report it seems Town could, and maybe would, have scored a lot more but for some great saves by the Winterton keeper. Lenell John-Lewis scored first with a very athletic overhead kick. It's probably the best goal he'll score this season, or maybe the only one, given Town's wealth of strikers: currently five or six, depending on whether Alex Rodman counts as a striker. The jury seems to be out on that as I've also seen him described as a winger and the SNOS is hedging its bets by describing him as "striker/wing-man".

In yesterday's Non-League Paper, Rodman talks about the serious illness which set back his career and kept him from playing for several months last year, the wages he is still owed by former club Aldershot and how pleased he is to have signed for a club with "a good stadium and great fans" which "does not feel like a non-League club at all". With his help, we may not be by this time next year.

Finally, in the least surprising news of the year so far, Town have extended the deadline for purchasing a discounted season ticket until noon on 20 July. The reason given for this shock move is that "Rob and Paul are still busy looking for 2-3 key signings". Let's hope they'll be defenders.