Here We Go Again...

The news that Darlington have gone into administration wasn't really a surprise to a lot of us fans - let's face it, the club have obviously been trading at a loss since we last came out of administration - I suppose we all hoped things would carry on regardless for just a bit longer and that George II would keep on subsiding the club.

There's already been a lot written about it on the messageboards and I'm sure there's a lot more to come - including conspiracy theories and idle speculation - and I suspect that as fans there's not a lot we can do this time round other than continue to do what we do, support the team.

The days of bucket shaking, raffles, fund-raising events and the like are gone - we had our fair share of charity from the general public as well the football brethren at large when we were last in administration - as a result I think a lot of Darlo fans feel helpless and unable to do even the smallest thing to help.

As I said to Howard when the news first came out, there's a small part of me that would like the club to be put out of it's misery so we can get on with our lives - leave behind the (sometimes) grim results, late postponements, extortionate entry prices and travelling chaos that often bedevils our match days.

However as readers of this blog will know, having a club like Darlo to follow means that in our own cynical way, we do have a lot of fun along the way and it's a great way, often the only way, to keep in touch with those fans we've know for years as well as those we've more recently connected with via DAFTS. I'm not ready for the club to die just yet, thank you!

That said, it's not difficult to see that it's going to be very hard for whoever comes along to make a going concern of Darlington FC - if someone does come in, let's hope they'll have a realistic view of our likely attendances and not expect them to buck the historical trend.

For now, we just need to enjoy what we have while we still can...

Bore Draw

After not seeing a game for a few weeks due to the weather, this would be my third game in a week, as I joined the happy throng of London Millers at their televised game at Adams Park.

Due match day protocol was maintained - I finished work just after lunchtime and ventured out to try a new pie and mash shop - Cooke's on the Goldhawk Road not too far from the office - probably the most westerly outlet for pie and mashery these days. It was OK - the helping of mash was a bit miserly and the pie was a bit light in filling - and certainly not up to the high exacting standards of my local.

I then met Liz at Marylebone and we duly whizzed to High Wycombe on the ever efficient Chiltern Line service - arriving slightly earlier than planned so we had to mooch around the shops until we could head to the Belle Vue and join the throng of people already waiting for it to open (well, two).

As usual, the landlord Chas had a decent choice of beers on - a Wychwood brew, Batemans XB, Butcombe Brunel IPA and an American-style IPA from Saltaire. I stuck to the latter as it's a very nice beer from Yorkshire.

Liz's brother Robert joined us, besuited and fresh from a handily arranged course in London, followed by Tim and then Clarkey. This gave us a car-full which meant that Robert could park for free in Wycombe's car park.

Not surprisingly there were not a lot of Rotherham fans in attendance - a bit of a painful journey at the best of times but I'm sure most were tempted to stay indoors and watch it on Sky. By the end of the night I was beginning to think I should have done the same. That said, there were some big gaps in the home attendance as well.

This was not a match for the purist - or even a neutral - as Rotherham doggedly defended and Wycombe huffed and puffed. The home crowd were angered when a penalty was refused in the first-half but even at the time it was clear the Wycombe man was looking for the decision - too obvious.

Clarkey with support from Rob and Tim, with polite clapping from Liz, kept up the chanting - and probably kept me awake too. Thanks chaps.

There were a few scares for the Millers in the second-half but Wycombe had clearly run out of ideas. And then came the blessed relief of the final whistle.

We clambered aboard the bus for the trip back to the station - joined by our photographer chum Paul - and promptly went nowhere for 20 mins during which Tim got increasingly irate. As anyone who has tried to get away from the Causeway stadium after a game knows, it's sllooowwww going and especially annoying that they don't let the bus have priority.

We finally got to the station to find that we'd just missed a train and the next one was not for another 50 mins - the silver lining to this being some additional drinking time in the handy-for-the-station Belle Vue and a close encounter with a dog called Duffy who appeared to be sporting my hair.

When we did catch the 23:04 back to Marylebone it stopped absolutely everywhere - odd places like Seers Green & Jordans (that's just one station, not two) and Denham Golf Club with bugger all traffic - just get us home! It was almost 1am by the time we got home - remind me to think twice next time...

Fishy Folk Foiled

Another early arrival at Bank Top for Martin and I with ample time to brave the queues at Taylors before arriving at the Quaker at opening time.

Some fine beers on tap today - Captain Cook Sunset, Oakham Inferno, Ringwoods Bitter, Milestone Black Pearl and a couple from Centurion. I started with the Sunset - brewed by local CAMRA member Iain Jackson - and a nice pint it is.

The Oakham Inferno divided opinion amongst some drinkers in the bar - it was an extremely hopped beer, probably too much so for most. I tried it and liked it but I preferred the Sunset.

The big news of the day is that Steve and Linda have given notice on the Quaker and it is probably being taken over by a couple of lads who run the pub on an evening. It will be interesting to see what affect this will have on the beer choice going forward and whether there'll be pressure from S&N to stock their guests. Fingers crossed.

John and his father-in-law Mike joined me after a while as did Colin who was fresh from an excess of bottling at the Oakwood (Rotherham) festival during the week. If you don't know what bottling is, don't ask.

(left) Colin and his bottling tools...


From here we moved up to Number Twenty-2 - very busy today but some decent beers as usual - the service was a bit on the sluggish side however.

Tony Gargett pointed out that he had brought some of his pals, including the one who had seen about 17 games at the Arena, of which we'd drawn just two. Suffice to say we tried to put him off going but he was adamant that today was the day he was going to break his duck.

And then to the match - nice to finally see Darlington in action after what seems like ages - there was a bit of a panic when Pav Abbot failed to show up on the team sheet but I was told it was a virus rather than something broken/twisted/torn. Tonsillitis as it later turns out - phew!

The game wasn't really up to much - both sides cancelling each other out to some degree although Grimsby rarely threatened - Proudlock had a shot over the bar but Gerken was visibly unimpressed and he had very little to do for the rest of the afternoon. Darlo certainly created some chances but we seemed a bit lost without Abbot - Hatch didn't appear to be his usual up-and-at-em self.

The game wasn't helped by the spoiling tactics of the Mariners - constantly falling to the floor, feigning injury and generally trying to waste time - a draw was what they were after and after a while it looked like it was on the card - especially after Carlton missed an absolute sitter.

And of course the ref didn't help matters - inconsistent use of the yellow card especially - and sure enough Nottingham's finest Colin wasn't slow in letting him know about it.

Then cue an inspirational move. No, not the substitution of Carlton for young Curtis Main but Tony and Brian moving to what they assured us were their lucky seats a few rows down. They insisted it had worked before - and so it did again with just a few minutes to spare. A simple header from the 16-year old but that's all we needed to get back on track.

Chairboys Ride Their Luck

In lieu of anything better to do, and certainly preferable to watching the scores roll in on Sky, Liz and I found ourselves at the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Stadium for the third time this season. It did allow us the chance to have another of their wonderful burgers too...

Wycombe Wanderers were the visitors today, fresh from their defeat at Valley Parade where hopefully Darlo would do a lot better tonight.

After the first 25 minutes, it looked like another defeat was on the cards as the Daggers constantly attacked down the flanks with on-loan Ritchie the dominant threat - lots of fluid attacking but let down by bad finishing. What looked to be a good goal for them was disallowed for off-side and it must have been a relief for the Chairboys to go in level at half-time after being second-best to the ball all night.

Wycombe had a bright ten-minute spell after the break and it was then thay they went ahead against the run of play. From then on Dagenham pressed for an equaliser but the Wycombe goal led a charmed life and they held out for the win.

It has been said to me by a Wycombe fan that they've had a lot of luck this season - their late equaliser against us, late winners in other games and not least the fact that Zebrowski had a three-match ban rescinded and then went onto score the winners in the subsequent games - but it might just be this sort of luck that makes the difference for them this season.

Elsewhere Darlo got what looked to be a very solid point at Valley Parade after almost three weeks without a game whilst Rotherham's Wembley dreams are put to bed for this season - let's hope Luton can now beat Scunthorpe in the JPT final.

Too Late/Frozen (reprise)

For once I'll spare you the intimate details of my breakfast and fast forward to my arrival in Lincoln - a pleasant jaunt through the snow-covered Lincolnshire landscape and the start of what promised to be a bright sunny day.

For once (again) we were ignoring the tried and tested, in this case former DAFTS Pub of the Year, the Golden Eagle, in order to try out somewhere new that recently popped up on our radar, the Green Dragon. It was about 10:45 when I got there but it was already open - why can't more pubs open at 10am?

The upstairs bar/dining area was the only bit open at that time but they had four Milestone beers available and I opted for the lightest, Hopelicious, just 3.8%. The name suggests lots of hoppy goodness but it was pretty average.

By the time I'd finished it, I was joined by John Bell and Brian Esley - and then by John and Bev Wilson and finally Colin Fletcher resplendent in his Table Soccer shirt (remembered not to use the Subbuteo word) . After a pint of Milestone's Loxley Ale, we were informed the Real Ale bar downstairs was now open and would we like to move down there? I think we were making their nice dining area look scruffy so we were happy to oblige.

The Real Ale bar does what is says on the tin - there were about 10 beers on tap, most of them quite new to me and there even some new ones for Colin. Our little group was completed the arrival of the father and son combo, Ray and Tony Waters - good timing.

The Green Dragon has it's own microbrewery, Cathedral Ales, so some of us opted for their one beer on offer, Golden Imp. A huge disappointment - at around 4.5% we expected some sort of taste but this was little stronger than water. Thankfully our tastebuds were rescued by a pint of Oakham's Gravity - a brewery that never lets you down.

As I nipped off the gents, my mobile rang and John took the call - it was Chris Stockdale informing us the game had been called off. I called him back - surely this was a joke - but he'd seen the players get their fish and chips and head off back home on the bus so not a joke - it was off. There was general disbelief which turned to amazement once the Lincoln fans in the pub got confirmation.

To break up the rest of the day and get a bit if fresh air, we walked a few hundred yards towards the station to a pub called Sippers - another newie for me. This had a couple of Hop Back beers (Crop Circle and Odyssey) plus Tetleys and Tom Wood's Bomber County. It looks slightly run-down but was very welcoming and we had a few decent pints there.

John, Bev and I decided to move to pastures new and we caught the train to Newark. Newark Castle to be precise which is not a station we've ever been to before. John and I were here a few seasons ago and we had a long wait for a train - ever resourceful we followed our noses and found a good pub and a cracking chippy and so we thought we'd drop in again.

The walk to the Fox and Crown was quite pleasant - through a side of Newark we'd not really seen before - and I opted for a pint of Castle Rock Screech Owl IPA - a lovely full flavoured beer! In the gents I bumped into Brad, one of the many London Millers who'd not been to the Don Valley Stadium that day - it's a small world.

Hunger pangs then got the better of us and we decided against another pint in favour of haddock and chips (and peas) from Appletongate Fish Bar. I wish I lived near this place - crisp golden chips, well-cooked fish, quick service - thankfully the southbound train we caught back to King's Cross was almost deserted and no one objected to the fishy smell.

As Liz was due into King's Cross about half an hour after me, I decided to wait in the Betjeman Arms which occupies a quite corner of the refurbished St Pancras station. I'm not sure what Sir John would have made of this place but it doesn't exude the class and erudition one associates with him.

The outside bar is not really designed for the cold winter months so I headed inside and settle onto a stool at the bar.

They have about three real ales on offer - their own Betjeman beer from Sharps, London Pride direct from a bar-top barrel and XXXB from Batemans. I had a pint of the latter - served in a dimple glass that I suppose the management think is quaint and old-fashioned but is just clunky - the XXXB is OK but not in brilliant condition, a bit on the jaded side.

This place is not the ideal environment for an old git like me but it's quiet and has a decent choice for a railway bar - a shame the ambience was spoilt by the burnt cooking smell coming from the open kitchen. Almost put me off my Indian takeway...

Too Late/Frozen

It was a relief to get to King's Cross and find that after the week-long service disruptions due to the snow all east coast services were back to normal.

John, Martin and I are all in Da Vinci's for a bit of breakfast before meeting up on the train with our chum Paul, the Wycombe photographer.

It was about 45 mins into the journey when we all started to get texts telling us there was a pitch inspection at 9:30am. And then just as the train pulled out of Peterborough, we got texts confirming the match was off. Very disappointing after all the positive noises coming out of the club about the pitch.

Martin decided to bail out at Grantham and head straight back to London. I was keen to continue up for a day's socialising - I checked with Steve who was travelling up from Cardiff and he was game too so we stayed put - it all sounded like fun so Paul decided he'd join us as well.

After about 30 mins I heard from Martin - in his rush to get a train back to London, he'd left his jacket on the train with us. Guess which muggins was going to have to carry it about all day?

The final highlight of the journey up was waiting for the Darlington-built train, Tornado, to pass us - we'd seen a number of train enthusiasts in the fields and platforms as we travelled north - we heard a whistle in the distance and then there was a quick flash of it's green livery as it thundered past on it's way to King's Cross. This was probably the only Darlo-related action we would see.

On a day when we're not in a rush we actually arrived early in Darlo - Paul headed off to the Arena to get some shots of the ground whilst John and I wandered into town, picking up pies from the covered market on the way to the Quaker House.

On hearing our game was off, landlord Steve offered to put the rugby on the big screen later if we were interested - I politely declined explaining that rugby union just leaves me cold and quite frankly I'd rather eat my own intestines.

Steve had a fine selection of beers on offer from some small breweries such as the Yorkshire Dales Brewery and the Hidden Brewery plus there was the re-appearance of the Ghost Ale, originally brewed for the pub by the Brewlab/Darwin crew in Sunderland. Quite how long he can continue to present such a good crop of beers whilst under the shackles of S&N remains to be seen.

Sticking to my roots, I tried the Yorkshire Dale offering - sadly I forgot the name - but it was a tasty ale, hoppy and light - perfect for the start of what promised to be a long afternoon.

Later in the day, we tried a pint of the Hidden Treasure which was a nice dark beer, smooth and mild with a lingering smoky aftertaste.

Half way through the afternoon we moved up to Number Twenty-2 - here we had some Workie Ticket (or was it Radgie Gadgie?) - I must admit that I can't quite remember which of the Mordue beers it was. Suffice to say it was a canny drop.

Paul went and had some lunch in the canteen area of the pub with some fellow Wycombe fans who had also decided to continue north and make the most of the day.

The afternoon whizzed past in a blur of chatter and all too soon it was time for Steve, Paul and I to head back to Bank Top - we've took the opportunity to get some chips and curry sauce from the fish shop on Victoria Road on the way - I'm not convinced that our fellow passengers were impressed with the smell but it's fair to say that we probably didn't give a damn. Besides which, we were soon asleep - the food and the alcohol finally taking it's toll.

Quite atypically we were also early getting back into King's Cross. Paul decided to head for home whilst I popped down the road to the Doric Arch to join the London Millers who were about to hold their annual raffle draw.

It was great to see that a couple of DAFTS were drawn out of the hat - Lance Ireland won a couple of prizes including a book about Brian Clough as well as a bottle of whiskey. He kindly added the latter back into the pot - the Millers will make sure he gets a few ounces of finest shag instead - whilst Howard won a trendy key ring which will complement his gaudy taste in cycling lycra...

Dagenham Beat

Unlike my last visit to the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Stadium - or plain old Victoria Road to you and me - when there was no tube service due to weekend engineering, Transport for London have taken the wise decision not to mess with the Darlo massive and run trains all the way through to Dagenham East.

There is no time for a burger and chips today - I've got all my camera gear and I don't want to cover it all in greasy fingerprints.

I have a quick - and typically surreal chat - with "Mad" Steve before kick-off - he's suggesting that if he falls foul of the credit crunch, he's going to take us all down with him. Er....yes, Steve.

(left) Rude boys Steve and Andy

I decide to position myself in front of the small away stand, more or less in the disabled section where Jamie and Paul - with helpers Margaret and Paul - are sitting. Handily placed it turns out to help Paul finish off his chips - thanks!

In the first half, we kick towards the away end which is full of Darlo faithful - the usual good turn-out that we see in London - and Abbot gets us excited with an early shot but it hits the side netting and doesn't unduly worry D&R keeper Roberts - but then nothing usually does.

Meanwhile the Daggers go close and later in the half they get the ball in the net on a couple of occasions only for them to be both ruled out, once for offside and once for a push in the back, much to the glee of the 321 Darlo fans (322 including me).

The ref seems to be continuing the theme of previous games and players are being booked for relatively minor infringements, perhaps it's the roar of the home crowd influencing him - then again perhaps not!

In the second-half the game continues to be evenly balanced - the danger man seems to be the Daggers' MotM Ritchie (who was announced as being on-loan from Portsmouth City by the D & R tannoy announcer earlier in the season).

Thankfully Ryan Valentine and Rob Purdie keep him under control for most of the game.

In addition, our on-loan keeper Gerken is having a decent game and has stopped everything coming his way. His kicking is a bit wayward though and he did have one rush of blood when he ran out to the edge of the box - on that occasion he was ably protected by Foster and White as he was throughout the second half (as the balls that went clear over the North stand would testify).

And it was from a Foster clearance into the Dagenham half - it would be a bit cheeky to call it a cunning through ball - that Abbot appeared to beat the off-side trap and put the ball neatly past the advancing Roberts.

(right) Pav celebrates - one Daggers fan is not impressed

Dagenham pressed hard for an equaliser in the last 15 mins but Darlo survived a couple of late scares to come out with our fourth victory in January.

For our past match celebration, a few of us went to the Palm Tree at Mile End. We were a little disappointed to see that they only had Fullers London Pride available when we got there but they soon put on another beer - Maldon Gold - so we more or less carried on from where we left our lunchtime session and completed what was a very pleasant day.

And So We Gather...

Superstition got the better of me when choosing a venue for the traditional Saturday morning breakfast.

When we last played at Dagenham, Tony and I tried the Rossi Restaurant and it was a fine carnivorous start to what turned out to be a great day.

Although on my lonesome this morning, I ventured out to Spitalfields once more and wasn't disappointed with my choice - egg, bacon, sausage, lamb chop, liver and chips - magnificent!

Spitalfields is a fascinating place - this area close to Brick Lane has been home to immigrant communities for the past two centuries and some of the streets are very run-down and almost slum-like. Others though, like Wilkes Street where Gilbert & George first set up their studio, still look as they must have done when they were first built - all very Dickensian. And pricey too I'd guess.

It is here that the expansion of the City of London abuts with urban decay and artist-chic and it's quite an odd combination. Most people know the place simply for Brick Lane being a street full of curry houses but it's more than that. A great place to wander round but not today as it's time to head off to the pub.

I'm the first to arrive at the Black Lion - four beers on tap including the regular Courage Best, the ubiquitous Sharp's Doombar and two from the Mighty Oak brewery - Maldon Gold and English Oak.

Unlike my last visit earlier in the season, there's no chance of me venturing out into the beer garden today - far too chilly despite the extra shirt and long johns.

As the lunchtime session progresses, various DAFTS roll up - first is John from Chester who has dragged along his mate Rod - Rod has has not seen us win! Oh good.

(right) DAFTS a-supping in the Black Lion

Next to arrive are the Wilsons along with Ely Steve who is making his first appearance of the season. He has a good record of late so may offset Rod's record.

We then have an influx from south of the river - Paul, Iain and Howard. The last to join us is Tony who has travelled down from Durham.

Argyle fan and friend of DAFTS Geoff Luke is also with us today - he has forsaken the chance to see his boys at Ipswich.

The Maldon Gold at 3.8% proves to be the popular choice with most of us - light, hoppy, very sessionable, perfect for a lunchtime - as usual Bev would prefer something darker.

I try the 4.8% English Oak after a while - slightly deeper in colour, it's quite fruity but still retains a hoppy edge. Very nice. So far, so good.