Cod Almighty | Diary

Set the controls for the heart of League One

2 May 2022

Miss Guest Diary writes: Here at Cod Almighty Towers we usually give ourselves the day off on a bank holiday, so me being here could be seen as a bonus. Or a penance. You, the reader, can decide.

As flagged up last week, I couldn't get down to the Barnet game and back up to Sheffield in time for a twice-postponed gig on Saturday evening. The more the advance excitement built up about the inflatable invasion of north London, the more I was regretting choosing the gig over the match. When Town went 2-0 down I began to congratulate myself on a wise choice, then Town rescued a point by scoring two late goals. D'oh.

There haven't been many reports about the fans at The Hive but, from what I have seen, the atmosphere didn't equal the sheer joyous exuberance of the original inflatables game back in 2015, which remains my all-time favourite awayday. Also, the gig was great and it's star is pushing 80 and may never tour again, so all-in-all I think I made the right choice.

Town are back up to sixth in the table, though without a game today, which means Chesterfield will have the opportunity to go above us again if they beat Stockport. A couple of weeks ago I would have banked on Stockport doing us the favour of winning that game but their loss at Blundell Park seems to have spooked the Hatters. They are currently sitting 10th in the form table with Chesterfield 16th, so Stockport should win. But then Boreham Wood are 17th on current form and still managed to beat Stockport on Saturday. We're back to the old "on paper" thing again, aren't we.

In The Guardian at the weekend there was an article chronicling the fortunes of Stockport County since their takeover by a local businessman, Mark Stott, in the 2019/2020 season. His stated goal was to reach the second tier of football in seven years, to which end they have "operated like a Championship club from day one", including signing Paddy Madden for £250,000. Three seasons in and with an eight point lead at the top of the table, things were looking good a couple of weeks ago. Having lost to Town, Yeovil and Boreham Wood since then, Stockport are now only one point ahead of Wrexham. If they don't achieve automatic promotion, their momentum may be lost; they may even fail in the play-offs for a second year. Where will that seven year plan be then?

Writing in Cod Almighty a year ago Chairman Wow promised nothing but that he and his fellow owner Andrew Pettit would "work together to create the future that the club and town deserve…side-by-side with the fans" with a commitment "to see progress on and off the pitch. To rebuild the stature of the club in the hearts and minds of everyone associated with our community." These stated aims, which Town are forging ahead with, are very different from those of the Stockport owner, but I know which I'd rather have.

While watching the BT Sport match coverage on Saturday I noted, not for the first time, that the pundits don't talk about being promoted from the Conference, but "escaping" from it. As though it's some kind of footballing prison. Maybe when Town got relegated in 2010 it did feel like some kind of part-time hell-hole from which the only positive outcome could be escape. Now most of the teams at this level are full-time professionals and around half are ex-League clubs. Of course there are still some small clubs, but that's all part of the fun.

Supporting a team shouldn't be all about the victories and the promotions but enjoying the ride, and there's been plenty to enjoy on our non-League travels. Off the top of my head: Podge's hat-trick at Welling, the Boxing Day 4-1 victory at Sincil Bank in 2012, the second half turnaround at Aldershot in 2016, the experience of standing on the terrace at Tamworth and peering into someone's kitchen window, spending several hours in the Aussie bar in Alfreton waiting for the team bus to turn up. I could go on, but you get my drift. Of course I want Town to do well, but promotion isn't everything and it certainly shouldn't be likened to a jailbreak.

UTM