Ashes to Ashes

For the second week running there was engineering on my section of the tube and it was back to the buses although an 8:30am departure from Kings Cross meant I almost had a lie-in by my standards.

Before heading for breakfast I wandered off to Foyles at St Pancras and as I was leaving, I narrowly missed bumping into actor Jeremy Irons, looking very swashbuckle in an Indiana Jones-style fashion. He obviously doesn't want to stand out in a crowd.

There were no Premier fixtures so the train is pretty quiet save for some Donny fans getting off at Northallerton for their change to Hartlepool.

At Bank Top Martin was met by his fellow steward Claude so they could head off for fish and chips before their stints at Heritage Park. I made my way to the Quaker for the first time in almost six months where I found Tony, John  and Trev at 'our' usual table.

Ticket To Ride



On the bar today were Saltaire Bavarian Black and Bavarian Blonde, Allendale Weizen and Swift, Hesket Newmarket Black Sail, Wainstone Steel River, Wylam Houblon Nouveau, Tyne Bank Castle Gold and Hadrian & Border Ouseburn Porter.

We were joined by Bev and John's in-laws Mike and Jean who were up for the week.  We were also joined by some really odd bloke (even by DAFTS' standards) - a Crook Town fan apparently - who Bev mistakenly though was with us and invited him to our table.  It was too much for Tony who left and went to the ground early.



During the past few months I'd amassed a huge array of local CAMRA mags so it was good to finally divest myself of some of them.  Local Quaker regular Steve popped in so I was able to make sure he got first dibs on the London Drinker.

We wandered up to Number Twenty-2 as some of the others wanted some food.  I caught up on all the news with Durham Tony and his mates whilst everyone else tucked in.

It was the usual Village Brewer offerings on the bar plus a few guests - Harviestoun Wild Hop Ale was one of these and it was excellent.  It was also nice to have a taste of the Nightmare Stout - not had that for quite a while.

We departed just before 2pm to pick up the Supporters Trust bus down by the Dolphin Centre - £4 return with Trust board member Neil Raper taking charge of the clipboard.  This finally allowed me the chance to pass over a bag of Trust badges I'd had for quite a few years.

The bus journey took about 25 mins - the driver seemed to be taking a bit slow for our liking - and on arrival we decided against popping into the March Hare pub just by the ground.

I met Martin and Gordon outside their new tunnel and Martin took me inside for a bit of a look around. 

Obviously the place is a bit more compact than the Arena but it all seems very clean and neat. Clarke Keltie was on the treatment table with his trackie bottoms down when I popped my head in - not for the faint hearted.

Terry Farley and Marin

There are still the other old faces helping behind the scenes - Terry Farley still looks after the referees whilst Eric Laycock keeps an eye on the press - such as they are these days.

As I made my way round to join John and Trev over on the grass bank opposite the main stand, I bumped into various old faces who were all happy to see me back in the fold. Isn't it nice to be wanted?

I tried out the catering - the chips and curry sauce were very nice. But I was still peckish and found that the pie, peas and gravy nicely filled the remaining gap.

Ashington had a small number of fans in attendance but they were quite vocal. No doubt they were delighted to take a surprise lead after just eight minutes, especially after Darlington had made a most determined start to the game, almost taking the lead direct from the kick-off.

The home fans didn’t have to wait too long for an equaliser as Leon Scott slotted home from edge of the box just two minutes later. And three minutes later Darlo took the lead after Stephen Thomson scored from a similar distance.

The disadvantages of Heritage Park became apparent in the first half as the dark clouds gathered, bringing with it a short rain shower followed by an intense bout of hailstones. All part of the deal at this level and it wasn’t long before we were back to bright sunshine.

Darlo continued to apply pressure for the remainder of the half but failed to add to the lead before the half-time whistle was blown. Home keeper Norton kept the Ashington score to a single goal after bringing off a good save.

After the restart Darlo who continued to make all the running and it took just a few minutes to extend the lead - Thomson scoring his second from the penalty spot after a foul on Nicholls.

Darlo piled on the pressure but it took another twenty minutes or so before Amar Purewal extended the lead, heading in the easiest of chances from about one yard after the Ashington keeper parried a cross right into his path.

View from the terrace towards
the (new) Tin Shed

Minutes later a fifth goal came from another header, this time from Scott and in the closing seconds, Emms was put through and calmly slotted it past the Ashington keeper.

Darlo certainly could have scored more whilst Ashington rarely threatened with any seriousness – for the most part the away side were chasing shadows and were probably glad to have kept the scoreline down to six.

It had been a very enjoyable game with a great atmosphere throughout - you can't beat winning, can you?
We filed out of the ground and along to the bus stop for the coach back to the Dolphin Centre. Back in Darlo I had about 40 mins before our train so could have gone for beers but decided against it.  Thankfully the train back was very quiet - with just one stop at York - and Martin and I snoozed all the way back to King's Cross.

Feeling refreshed, we headed off to the Euston Tap for some beer and post-match chat.  Martin got a taste for the refreshing Bernard Light whilst I had an absolute excess of choice before me - Brewfist Fear (Italian milk stout), Summer Wine Oregon, Magic Rock Clown Juice, Saison Du Pont, Kirkstall Framboise, De Molen Blikken & Blozen (a darkish saison) and last but not least, Kernel Simcoe-Magnum.

As ever I ended up staying way beyond closing time to make the most of this, only making it home on the last tube.  But what a great way to finish off my first game at Heritage Park.

The Season Starts Now

Sky Sports have been excitedly telling us that the season starts today - obviously they mean no disrespect to the League teams (yeah right) but they are right - today sees the start of the Blue Square Premier season.

If you really want to be pedantic (sit down Brian!) you could say that Forest Green and Stockport jumped the gun last night as their game was live on Premier Sports - free to air - but for once we'll drop the pedantry.

Martin and I had an early breakfast at Da Vinci's as the only cheap rail tickets were on the 7:30am departure - couldn't see any other football fans at that time but there were plenty of people off to Edinburgh for the fringe.

After all the recent wet weather it was nice to find that it was a very nice day in the north-east. Martin and I had a wander round the shops - popped into Millets for a new stool and got a Hawkwind DVD for a fiver from one of the stalls - talk about excitement!

It was certainly good to be back in the Quaker again after all these months though - just the same of course but it was nice to be sat on my stool at our table. We're back to normal.

A bit of a mixed selection on offer today - Hambleton Steeple Stuff, Idle Idle Dog, Sulwath Criffel and Galloway Gold, Hadrian & Border Premium Lager, Hambleton/Black Dog Rhatas, Jarrow McConnell's Irish Stout and Wall's Beater's Choice.

(left) Sam Russell collects - but is he excited about something?

We were given a taster of the Idle Dog and advised it was an acquired taste - we had a sip and quickly agreed.

The Premium Lager and Galloway Gold were both tasty - the Steeple Stuff was well liked too but my favourite was the Beater's Choice - and no bias just because it is a relatively new brewery in Northallerton.

A good turnout from DAFTS today - John W, Brian, Trev, John B, Colin and of course Tony who was handing out the season tickets he'd kindly collected for us.

Worryingly, I discovered my ticket was for block 9. OK, I don't use it very often but I like my seat up at the back of block 11 - the others didn't seem too bothered that I'd been moved though. Gits!

After trying most of the beers, we moved up to Number Twenty-2 which had Burton Bridge Top Dog Stout, Dancing Ducks Pale, Thornbridge Sequoia, Brass Monkey Son of Silverback and Jennings Cumberland Ale as guests.

The Sequoia is a lovely beer I've had a couple of times before so I stuck to that until our taxi arrived.

(left) Greg Taylor continues to impress despite dodgy coloured boots

For the second season in succession Darlo kicked off the season against the champions from the BS South though Braintree are much more of a non-league outfit that Newport County in that they are semi-pro.

One of the Braintree board was next to me pitchside taking photos in his blazer and club tie because if he doesn’t take shots for the club, no one else will.

And no overnight stays for their players and staff either – they’re used to early morning starts on a Saturday, he told me. Tell me about it!

Throughout the first half Darlo found it quite hard going – they had plenty of possession but failed to make the most of it, rarely putting their keeper under significant pressure.

In fact it was Sam Russell that was called into acrobatic action on a couple of occasions, once tipping over from a smart shot. He was not happy with his defence.

The 40-odd Braintree fans looked rather adrift in the away end but they had more to cheer than the home fans.

Thankfully there was some improvement from the Quakers in the second half – Greg Taylor continued his good pre-season form with plenty of attacking movement. He is currently standing in for Aaron Brown at left-back but he will be of more use to us if he plays in a more forward position.

In one rare flurry of activity Liam Hatch – once again sponsored by the Capital Quakers - hit the post and MB-W fired the rebound over the bar. MB-W and Chandler were both subbed – by their standards they'd been fairly quiet - McReady and Bowman coming on in their stead.

Bowman almost scored as he blocked a clearance from the keeper but the ball crept a couple of feet wide of the post. New striker James Walshaw was making little progress and was eventually replaced by John Campbell.

(left) Hatch is congratulated by a brace of Taylors

As time started to run out and a draw looked ever more likely, another new boy Kris Taylor found space at the edge of the penalty box and crossed towards the six yard box where Liam Hatch scored with a stooping – not quite diving – header.

A little cruel on Braintree but even then it wasn't all over as they almost equalised in stoppage time but all three points went to the Quakers thanks to a last gasp goal-line block from Graeme Lee.

So plenty for Mark Cooper to work on if we’re to be serious contenders this season and the next game at Fleetwood will be a much sterner test for the squad.

A slightly later train back to London for Martin, Howard and I but it ran non-stop from York and so we were in the Euston Tap - at Martin's insistence - before 9pm for a final couple of pints...

(Barely) Alive and Kicking

A very relaxed journey north today - Chris was travelling with us but a late addition to the trip was his fiancee, Suzy, so they'd got seats together in coach G rather than sit with us in coach F. The good thing was this meant there were no arguments about Big Bad Baldy Bazza Conlon.

Instead Martin could get on with his pools selection -aided by his pile of out-of-date newspapers - whilst I listened in to the podcasts of comic duo, Trevor and Simon, which I'd recently come across.

(left) The gang in the Quaker

Although the pair - known for swinging their pants and not doing duvets - were thought of as kids entertainers on Saturday morning TV, I'd always liked them. Far too good for children.

Suitably amused, we arrived slightly early at Bank Top which meant I was pastried up and in the QuakerHouse before the town clock had struck 11:30am.

Beers on today included: Oakleaf Bitter and Pompey Royal from the Oakleaf Brewery, Bread of Heaven from Brains, Manx Pride from Bushy's, Matchlock Mild and Brickdust from Martson Moor, Odins Raven and Dual Hop from Rudgate plus a golden ale from Atlas.

And on parade today were Trevor, John W, Bev, Tony and John B. The latter was here against his better judgment - his back was playing up but he came in the belief that the pain of the game would mask that of his ailing back. You really shouldn't jest about such things.

Of the beers, the one from the Atlas bewery plus the Dual Hop, Matchlock Mild, Brickdust and the Manx Pride all impressed.

Also impressed was my old chum, Ken the ticker from Durham - who I'd meet a few weeks ago in the Newcastle Arms - he was making a rare foray to the Quaker and was delighted as he'd get five ticks from the selection today. That's pretty darn good in the ticking world.

In Number Twenty-2, in addition to the usual suspects there were a few other decent ales: Monty's Firkin from the Magpie Brewery, Decade from the York Brewery and Warlock Stout from Houston.

(right) A pint of stout separates John and Trev

The stout was very good - one of the best Iwe've had recently and worthy of more time but before we knew it our taxis had arrived.

One of the first aspects of today's game that was just a bit worrying was the referee - we never seem to do well when we have the diminutive Mr Mathieson in charge and he's certainly been on the end of some of my more sweary shouts in the past.

But today he didn't really put a foot wrong - unlike Darlo.

And it didn't take long to all go wrong - after just ten minutes Darlo allowed Torquay two attempts at goal following a corner and the ball was knocked past Redmond through a fairly static back line.

And that was it - the remainder of the half was a very grim affair - it was clear that Torquay were as poor as we were and it was not pleasant to watch. Alan White received a long, drawn-out talking to from the ref but did not produce a card which surprised most of us.

Then just as we were looking forward to the half-time break, Torquay doubled their lead somewhat fortuitously - the Torquay man evaded our defence fairly easily but his shot dribbled in. It was one of those days - we seem to have more than our fair share of such days.

The second half brought some hope of improvement after Curtis Main (sponsored by the Capital Quakers of course) was given an open goal - in fact the chance was so easy it seemed to take him by surprise before he reacted and stabbed it home.

But overall Main's performance was underwhelming and Guy Branston had probably the easiest afternoon for quite a few weeks. If Main put as much effort into fighting for the ball as he did moaning that he'd been man-handled then he might have got more out of the game.

My worry is that Curtis Main is not a natural striker - he has the nasty coloured boots befitting of a star forward but he seems to lack a battling desire to get to the ball first. Perhaps when he was a big lad amongst his peers a few years ago it was all too easy for him. I fear he is not the bright young star many hope he is (and I do hope I'm wrong). Tony W agrees - which must be a first for us both.

There was a respectable turnout of Torquay fans who were in good voice throughout - as you would expect if you're winning a long away from home.
There was no sign of their most famous fan, Helen Chamberlain, presenter and mainstay of Sky's Soccer AM.

However her absence won't prevent me from posting a picture of her and I at a Coca-Cola Football League PR event a few seasons ago.

(left) Torquay's fairest fan

Unfortunately in this shot I'm holding the wrong end of her but rest assured that I did originally start further up (if you know what I mean). She's a lovely lass - very genuine.

For some reason she thought I resembed Bomber from Auf Weidersen, Pet!

The Gulls fans were delirious when the final whistle blew - we were simply resigned to our fate. Not that we weren't already resigned to the drop but the manner of the last three defeats means that it looks like the players have given up too.

Trev and I trudged back to the station - always a depressing walk but even worse after a defeat - but at least all our trains were on time. Our train was full of Geordies full of their 6-1 defeat against Barnsley - the Tykes fans themselves were rather quiet, bemoaning the sending off of their keeper.

On arrival back in London I popped over to St Pancras and met up with Liz and Jenny in the Betjemans Arms for a few nightcaps and then it was time to wend our weary ways home...

Daylight Robbery

For once there were no engineering works on the District Line and it was a stress-free journey to King's Cross and the usual breakfast at Da Vincis.

We meet Chris and his bike on the concourse and for a short while it looks like the Big Bad Baldy Bazza Conlon argument from a previous journey was about to re-ignite. Thankfully it died out - life is too short for this nonsense.

Chris tells us that he and his fiancee, Suzy, are going to be cycling from London to Darlo in a few weeks time - much as he did with Howard a few years ago.

This time there's a twist - they're going on a tandem. I suspect it will be a good test of their relationship. Personally my money is on Chris cycling solo from Peterborough!

We arrived slightly later into Bank Top today and by the time I'd got my pastry items for the day, John was already waiting for me in the Quaker.

As ever a very good choice was on offer: Saltaire Stein Gold, York Guzzler, Hadrian & Border Are You Listening Gordon Heal?, Moles St Elmos Fire, Wolf Remus, Hart Squirrels Hoard, High House Farm Black Moss and Broughton Old Jock and Exciseman 80/-?

John and I got stuck into the extremely quaffable Stein Gold - John taking it easy as he was still suffering from the night before when he'd been out on the town with Tony. The Remus was also very tasty.

Joining us later was Brian, Tony (not looking or feeling as bad as John), John B, Lesley and then Neil. The latter had only just made it from snow-bound Aberdeen. Their lose is clearly...errr...our gain.

As ever we then wandered up to Number Twenty-2 - in addition to the usual Village Brewer beers, the guests included Bradfield Blonde, Thwaites Original, Sharp's Special, Copper Dragon Challenger IPA and Cathedral Ales Red Imp.

(left) The bar at Number Twenty-2

Once down at the Arena, John and I wandered into the club shop to see what schmutter there was to be had.

We were looking at some nice bench coats - they didn't quite have my size in but John found one which was just right - not too bad at £35. I got a wooly hat and a pair of DFC-branded gloves instead.

Once inside the ground and headed to the back of block 11 which is where we were greeted by the massed ranks of the Darlo Tykes. As ever, my old neighbour Geoff had pulled together a formidable group of fans and friends from Northallerton - plus other waifs and strays - and they were sure to make some noise and bring a bit of atmosphere to our section of the stand (full of moaning old curmudgeons).

The Tykes had all scrubbed up nicely for the occasion - my only worry was the number of shirt buttons looking under extreme strain. Protective head gear required.

The game started with Darlington looking the more lively - we seemed assured in defence and up front we made most of the running. Mor Diop had a good chance but he put the ball just the wrong side of the post - as ever he looked like he had his legs on the wrong way round.

Thankfully we weren't to rue this missed chance as Tadgh Purcell scored just before the half-hour mark. He was well placed in the six yard box to slip the ball into the net from a Mulligan pass.

(right) Darlo Tykes celebrate Purcell's second goal

The game continued to be bossed by Darlington until the half-time whistle. And then Purcell struck again early in the second half to double the lead.

The ref - who had a fairly decent game which meant Colin was extremely quiet for once - awarded the Quakers a free kick just outside the Spireites box. We were a bit concerned when the ref only paced out nine steps for the wall to retreat - it didn't matter as Purcell slotted home with what looked like a deflection off the defensive wall.

Diop managed to miss another chance but Darlo continued to look good value for their lead. Staunton made a few substitutions and after the second of these, the defence failed to pay attention when Whaley took the ball forward and then shot from outside the box - the ball squirmed under Redmond.

A goal from out of the blue and there was a noticeable tensing of the atmosphere amongst the Darlo faithful - the players must have picked up on this as they then looked extremely nervous as Chesterfield upped their game.

And then a wonder shot from Talbot that looped over Redmond - unbelievable. Coasting to victory one minute, hanging on for a draw the next.

If only.

Chesterfield continued to pile forward in the final minutes and our fate was sealed when Richie Byrne tried to clear but only succeeded in putting the ball into our own net.

A cruel, cruel finish to what had been a very decent performance with lots of positives - well, for 80 minutes. We do seem to make a habit of conceding late goals.

My old Supporters Direct chum, Phil Tooley, summed the game up perfectly in his report for the Sheffield Star when he said "Darlington were the better side with more ideas and more accomplishment for virtually all of the contest but they came out of the game with nothing more than a 13-point chasm to clear to find safety with games rapidly running out. "

I left as the final whistle went and caught the bus back into town - off to drown my sorrows in the QuakerHouse as we were on a late train back to London. Martin joined me after a while - he was keen to have some of the Guzzler in an effort to console himself - he said that some of the Chesterfield staff were almost embarrassed at the way they'd snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.

If only we could be that embarrassed for once...

Washed Out

So the snow has all but vanished and things are slowly returning to normal. Certainly the trains were all OK so it was all system go!

For a change we had young Chris Stockdale with us - still bubbling from his recent engagement - and it wasn't long before the recent Clark Keltie episode was given an airing - Chris is a fan of the simian-faced player whilst Martin and I have always been less than enthused about his abilities.

One thing we do agree on is that it's good news that Alan White has rejoined us as it's imperative that we start to keep clean sheets. Now all we need is a reliable keeper.

Not long into the journey, Martin received a text from the club saying "Pitch inspection 10am".

I don't know why we're surprised as we should know by now that as soon the as the club says it's confident about the game going ahead, we should be worried. A flurry of texts ensued as we pass on the news to others.

By 10:20am we've had no further updates so Chris uses his internet-enabled thingy to check the Uncovered messageboard which is when we find there's another inspection at noon. Martin's alternative plan to get off at York for their game against his local club, Hayes & Yeading, is put on the back burner for the time being.

On arrival at Bank Top, I wait until Steve Duffy's train pulls in a few minutes after us and we wander down to the Quaker House via the covered market.

A wonderful choice of beers awaits us today - Marston Moor's Poona Guard, Grafters' Brewers Troop, Allendale Beacon Fire, Dent Porter, Jarrow's Swinging Gibbett, Yard of Ale Yards Ahead IPA, York Guzzler and Purple Moose's Snowdonia.

I'm followed in by Brian who was hailing me as I walked to the pub but I was in my familiar head-down-get-to-pub mode and totally oblivious to him.

First beer of the day was the Snowdonia which is a lovely quaffing pale ale - just 3.6% but full of flavour.

This proves to be the most popular beer of the day as we're joined by Tony and the Two Johns (Bell and Wilson) and they take to it like fish to water.

(left) A pensive Mr W

A text from Liz - Rotherham's game at Accrington had been called off and so the London Millers were going to be spending the day trying out various pubs in Preston instead. Nice.

We were still eagerly awaiting further news on our pitch inspection and it took a bit of time to get through to us. We were a little disappointed it was off - mainly as we wanted to see the new signings in action - but staying in the pub was hardly going to be onerous. Martin called to say he was on his way to York.

Next beer for me was the Yard of Ale IPA - very similar to the Snowdonia - and then it was onto the Dent Porter which was dark, full-bodied with a slight coffee-ness to it.

Highlight of the session in the Quaker was Steve's very impressive and impassioned rant on Nick Knowles, BBC's perma-tanned TV presenter.

Steve - like Liz and I - are continually amazed that he seems to be on every crap daytime show going - clearly he knows where the bodies are buried - how else does he get a job? It was as good as a work-out for Steve. A shame we didn't record it for posterity.

After a few more pints, John and I moved along to Number Twenty-2 where I meet my Northallerton chums, Richard and Diane, who were escaping the kids for a day or so and spending a romantic evening in Hotel Bannatyne.

(right) Richard and Diane get a big hug from a hairy man

Some good beers are on here too - most notably the Geordie Pride from Mordue and the
Black Dub stout from Wensleydale Brewery which was exactly as I like it - dry and full-bodied (not unlike me, dear reader).

It was a very pleasant afternoon - John Bell left early-ish as he was remembered what state he was in after the last postponement turned into an elongated session - he badly needs to earn some brownie points for future games.

Steve, John W and I weren't too far behind though and we supped up and headed off into the night. On the way to the station Steve went for a pizza whilst John and I popped into what was the Victoria Fish Bar - now revamped for all sorts of fried and baked snacks - but they still do curry and chips so that did me.

Hopefully we'll not have the same problem next week at Crewe - a ground I've not visited for many years - and we'll finally get to see our latest line-up...

Cobblers Frozen Off

The Saturday before Christmas is not generally one of the better times to be travelling as it tends to be the day a lot of people go home for the break but King's Cross was very quiet considering.

Meanwhile, just over the road at St Pancras it was all tears and disappointment as all the Eurostar services had been cancelled and the place was packed with disgruntled travellers.

Despite the wintry weather conditions affecting the chunnel and the rest of the country, the trains on the east coast all looked to be running on time. Martin and I joined John and Bev in coach G.

They'd come armed with bags of cards and stamps as they attempted to make good use of their time on-board. It was interesting to see just how fractious such an innocent past-time could become. The Transport Police were put on standby...

Of course we were well aware of the 9am inspection for today's game and we'd not long pulled out of Peterborough station when Chris rang through with the news we'd been expecting - the game was off.

Unfortunately for Martin this meant waiting until we reached Doncaster before he could get off and get a train back south, hopefully without incurring further expense.

Liz rang - Rotherham's home game had also bitten the dust following a pitch inspection but since the London Millers leave London relatively late, they'd not even reached Stevenage and so were all returning back to London without a great deal of inconvenience.

I was happy to continue northwards safe in the knowledge that there'd be a few DAFTS in Darlo happy to go drinking instead. Given the recent run of results and the injuries we have, it would be nice to know we weren't going to lose this weekend.

On arrival at Bank Top I left John and Bev and headed straight into town - a quick stop for pies in the covered market and then over to the QuakerHouse.

Now as far as some of we brave casketeers (© Viz) are concerned, the problem with this time of year is the huge number of Christmas ales that are produced, all with a regulation humorous name and jolly pump clip.

And it's all a bit of a lottery as to what sort of pint you're going to get - will it taste of Christmas pud, all fruity and rich - which is not my idea of beer - or be a cinnamon bomb that more resembles a joss stick?

(left) Neil's festive egg and twiglet combo

I generally avoid them but today in the Quaker it seemed everything but the stout (Black As Owt from Ferryhill's Yard of Ale brewery) was a festive-themed ale.

We had Jingle Fells (Hawkshead), Three Kings (York), Rudolph's Ruin (Springhead) and Winter's Yard (Yard of Ale) and Christmas Carol (forgotten the brewery) . To be fair I tried the Three Kings and it was OK. The Rudolph's Ruin was more or less an ordinary beer in the usual Springhead style.

It wasn't long before I was joined by Tony and Brian - and then Neil came in after he'd finished Harry's Xmas shopping. And then finally John and Bev completed today's little group of Darlo-ness having posted their cards.

We had a good try of most of the beers - at one point Milton Dioynosus was put on which is a very quaffable beer from Cambridgeshire.

Neil then went for a pickled egg and with the addition of two twiglets produced a festive reindeer-shaped snack. He's been in Norway too long...

Next stop was Number Twenty-2 which was busy with festive shoppers. It was good to see that they had Westoe's IPA from the Jarrow brewery - an excellent beer like most of their stable, nice and hoppy - the beer of the day for me.

(left) Please, can I have some more?

Tony then got us all some stout for the next round - there is always a decent stout in No 22 and today it was Goose Eye's Over and Stout.

Unfortunately we found it to be disappointing - not the type of stout we normally like and in the end I didn't finish it and went straight back onto the IPA.

And then the final port of call was up to the Brittania - I only ever seem to come here when games have been postponed which is a shame but I'm just too lazy to do three pubs pre-match under normal circumstances

(left) Neil with yet another snack

I only had time for a pint and then I had to get back to Bank Top for my train home.

On walking through the market square to the station, large heavy snowflakes were starting to fall - a good time to get out of town...

Oh No It Isn't!!

For the second time in two days I was in Darlo though today promised a higher level of entertainment as I took my sister and nieces to see Aladdin at the Civic Theatre.

Before that, the girls went shopping which left me enough time for a quick stiffener at the Quakerhouse where the staff were busy putting up Christmas decorations.

I had a pint of Wenleydale Brewery's Sheep Rustler which was a nut brown ale - something which you don't see too often but it was very smooth and silky.

Just as I was supping up a new beer was put on, the wonderfully titled Cyril The Magnificent from High House Farm brewery. Judging from the label this was a dunkel weisse and Cyril is a cat.

But as we know we shouldn't judge by labels as the beer was far from dunkel - in fact it was a fairly straight-forward impression of a weisse beer and not at all dark. Soft and smooth but not wheaty enough for my tastes.

And so onto the panto - my first proper panto ever and it has to be said I only really want to see this one as the Grumbleweeds are appearing.

The Grumbleweeds are in many respects a relic of the 70s - a comedy troupe from the club circuit doing impressions and telling dodgy jokes - and northern too of course - but we used to love their radio shows which ran from 1979 to 1988 on Radio 2 and characters such as Uncle nasty and Wilf 'Gasmask' Grimshaw. Believe me, it was funny - honest.

Appearing with them was Chico who more represents the modern-day breed of panto artiste - which tend to be soap 'stars' or the winner/runner-up of some modern-day reality show - at least he should keep the ladies happy.

Should we ever have cause to go back to Kenilworth Road and I complain about the seats, just say "Civic Theatre". There's hardly any legroom and I'm almost bent double and you all know that I'm not the world's tallest person. I'm sure Justice Taylor wouldn't be impressed.

It's only the third full performance of the show and the occasional line is fluffed or forgotten but my youngest niece loves it all the same.

Then following one song and dance scene, Widow Twanky comments that she's not enjoyed herself so much "since Darlington last won at home".

And there we have it - Darlo are once again music-hall material just like the old days...

It's Panto Season...

As I was up on my annual pre-Christmas trip to see the family in Northallerton, I was able to have a lie-in and still be in Darlo by 9:30am. This early start was to allow Tony the chance to take me somewhere for breakfast.

We settled on the cafe which sits above the covered market and overlooks High Row. The full breakfast was excellent - good to have a bit of fried bread for a change - and it was nice to eat whilst watching everyone rushing around doing their Christmas shopping.

Once fueled, we have a leisurely stroll around town and pop along to get some pies for Howard and Martin who were travelling up from King's Cross.

And then having exhausted shops to wander in as we try to waste time, we get to the Quakerhouse about 10:55am - they're open and they let us in.

For once we beat regulars George and Gwyn to the bar although a Bradford ticker did actually get in the beers in first - very rude but he looked a bit of a ticker and generally their human-skills tend to be a bit lacking.

The beers on parade were as follows: Coach House - Dick Turpin and Coachmans; Rudgate - Good, Better and Best; Hadrian & Border - Tyneside Brown; Vale - Winter Solstice; Marston Moor Brewery - Cock Caper and Winters Tail; Hambleton - Stallion; Woods - Quaff and finally York - Nippy Nights. I'm sure the ticker was impressed.

We'd just got our first beers when John Bell joined us - a change of routine as he normally meets us after he's been to the Brit.

(left) John and Tony audition for the Sound of Music

And then the Sheffield contingent arrived - Brian and Trevor are joined by their mate, Richard, who is a Monkeyhanger. Despite this aberration he was made welcome.

This being December, it seems a collective decision was made to don Xmas headware - in this case the black and white "Bah Humbug" hats. Unfortunately due to the size of my brain box, none of these would fit me.

John Wilson pops in whilst wife Bev is busy shopping - there can't be many football-supporting couples that top and tail the divisions with Bev's Chelsea-mob riding high and the Quakers holding up the rest of the teams.

After trying a good few beers, John and I wander up to Twenty-2 where we bump into Durham Tony. I get chatting to one of the regulars that I've got to know in there over the years - Colin - who has just recently been diagnosed with Parkinson's. He's taking a very positive attitude and making sure he comes out to the pub as he's always done.

The rest of the gang then catch up with us and we nab a nice seat in the front window. There's a lovely stout on today from Marston Moor and it's going down very nicely.

At 2:30pm we pile into our taxis - we have a novice driver who takes us the long way round and by the time we get to the ground the others have overtaken us.

I wander into the club shop as I've heard they've finally got some decent clobber in but the shelves are almost bare. There is a nice managers-style coat - only £35 - but it has a loose thread and there are no others in my size.

(right) A Happy Bah Humbug to all our readers

Up in the stands the East Stand is looking very empty and forlorn - thankfully Bradford have brought a few fans and so we should exceed the 2,000 mark.

As reported in the press, there's no Foster on duty due - although he's on the bench - but there's no sign of Miller either which leaves a relatively inexperienced (for us) pairing in central defence.

The team come out to a muted welcome - it's as if nobody is really looking forward to this game - it's clear that Brian isn't as he is soon asleep, safe in the land of the nod.

Meanwhile the rest of us have to watch the game and for the main, we struggle to retain possession against a busy Bradford outfit that can sense nervous prey.

We're 1-0 down after about 20 minutes - a corner is taken and Liversedge looks as if he's coming to collect then scrambles back when it's clear he can't reach it. The ball is volleyed in from about 12 yards - the defence look at each other and the keeper shouts at them though I feel he could have done better.

(left) Brian tunes out...

We struggle for the remainder of the half - it's not pretty and to be fair, we do well to be only one down at the break. There's been a lot of talk about players being played out of position but it's difficult to keep track as our 40th player of the season makes his debut today.

As the whistle blows, the Sheffield mob take a leaf out of my book and wander off to the pub. Tony is tempted to join them but stays.

The second half is a much improved from Darlo's perspective - the anonymous and apparently uninterested Diop is replaced by Collins and then Main and Convery are sent on to try and find a way through.

It's not long before Tony weakens and leaves to join the Sheffield mob but it has to be said that the second half is an improvement - it would be difficult to be otherwise - but we never really look like scoring against a fairly solid Bradford back four with Darlo old boy Clarke sporting a bandage.

The game meanders to a close and as the referee blows, I rush off to catch the shuttle bus back into town. On board there is much grumbling from long-time fans - "the worst side we've ever seen", "the club are not listening", "we're doomed" - it's not nice to hear this but who can really blame the fans?

Back in town, I pop in for a quickie in the Quakerhouse - spookily quiet - and then pop back to Number Twenty-2 where John and Bev are waiting. There's no more stout so I make do with Burton Ale - something I've not drunk for years - and then Burtonwood Top Hat.

It's nice and warm in here and I could stay all night but I resist and head back to Northallerton and the curry house. Not up to East End standards of course but any port in a storm...

Three Points At Last...

It feels quite unusual arriving at King's Cross on this blustery morning - I've not been to a home game since our home defeat by Macc over a month ago - but it feels really good to be back in the groove.

Howard narrowly beats me into Da Vinci's for breakfast and then Martin arrives with just enough time for a cup of tea. Once on-board, it's clear to see that the North-East's Big Three are not playing today - plenty of room on the train. And despite all the bad weather, no problems on the track.

Today also marks the first day in charge for East Coat Main Line who took over from National Express at a minute to midnight on Friday the thirteenth.

This is, of course, the government in the form of operator Directly Operated Railways so it will be interesting to see whether things will actually improve. It might be nice if they can actually get the buffet open before we get to Stevenage for starters...

The journey is fine and we arrive on time. I suddenly realise that I've left my season ticket at home - so much for being back in the groove - but a quick call to Peter Cook in the ticket office soon sorts that out - they'll happily print a replacement for me.

The queue at Taylors isn't too large and I'm soon in possession of a host of pork, steak & kidney and fruit pies having taken orders beforehand.

I'm welcomed like a long lost son in the Quaker and it's good to see that the beers on offer are as varied as ever.

(right) The Quaker - for sale sign removed

Gary and Brian have now fully taken over the Quaker and the For Sale sign has been taken down. Gary was telling me that he's putting friends and punters to good use, getting them to bring back barrels when they're off travelling to other parts of the country. Sounds like a good idea.

And they're also going to be re-opening the room upstairs which was rarely used of late - should help with some of the over-crowding they can get on an weekend.

The choice on offer includes : Corvedale Brewery's Molly Morgan and Winter In The Sun; Brew Master from 1648; Brentwood Brewing's Marvellous Maple Mild; Tamar Best Bitter; Otter Head; Old Raby Ale from Village Brewer and Matfen Magic from the High House Farm Brewery.

Gary tells me that in the cellar he has a barrel of Darlington Spitfire from Lincolnshire-based brewery Dark Tribe but alas it won't be on today - the brewery has already produced a beer called SS Darlington so we ponder on whether they have some sort of connection with the town.

The Spitfire in question refers to a plane built after the townsfolk raised over £5000 back in 1940 - the story is covered in some detail here for those that are interested.

Howard arrives shortly after me and then I get a text from Colin Fletcher - the M1 is closed and he can't get to Doncaster to catch his train. So I'm not to get him a pie. Too late there but I'm sure it'll not go to waste.

And then another text, this time from John Bell - he's at the Brittania where they have a couple of stouts on, including one of my favourites, Titanic Stout - and I suspect he's trying to get me to deviate from my routine. I don't think so...

Howard departs to go walkabout in the way that blokes of his age do while I head onto Number Twenty-2. Not too busy so I get myself a stool at the bar and get chatting to a guy from Leeds about rugby league and the chances of a victory tonight over the Aussies at Elland Road - very slim.

Durham Tony and then John pop in and I have some very nice Coffee Porter that they've got on today - can't remember who brewed it but it was local - just a hint of coffee which is how I like it.

Down at the ground I pick up my replacement ticket but can't get a programme - they appear to have sold out. I meet Brian and we wander in to find that there's seems to be a few more people in blocks 11 and 12 today despite some of our little group being AWOL today.

John W is cruising in the Med with wife Bev whilst local retail magnates Tony and Lesley are following their NFL team in San Diego.

More new faces in the squad today - Nathan Mulligan and Stewart Giddings making their debut - and by the time we'd sat down and got sorted we'd actually scored.

Not for the first time in his career, Rotherham reject and thug-at-large Guy Branston took out Diop just outside the box. Branston protested his innocence to the ref - David Davis carried on and took the free kick quickly, passed to Mulligan who back heeled it to Curtis Main who calmly shot past the Burton keeper.

Have we peaked too early? That's always the fear especially given the number of clean sheets we'd previously kept in the league so far - none!

Darlo continued to push forward for most of the half and Miller went close with a header - this was starting to look quite positive.

Burton looked stronger though as we got to half-time - it ended with another bad challenge from Branston - quel surprise - who lead with his elbow in a challenge against Diop who was floored for a while. Those near the tunnel saw the egg-sized bump on his head when he came off for treatment. The referee thought nothing of it though - much like us in respect to his performance - and he was the centre of attention when the players came off at half-time.

In the second half, Darlo were under the cosh for large periods. Just after the restart Branston went close with a header and Liversedge had to make several smart saves. The defence looked a lot stronger today though - Miller and Foster back to form and Giddings breaking up Burton's breaks down the wing.

The referee continued to perplex Darlo players and fans alike with some very odd decisions and it all started to get a bit fraught.

Thankfully, the tension of the onslaught from Burton and the poor refereeing is broken by the chanting from a group of kids in one of the boxes behind us (and good to see a lot of the boxes in use).

My favourite was "The Referee's A Sausage" though I do my best to tell them what word they should really be using. It's just a matter of time I suspect.

Sub Dan Groves could have made it 2-0 late on and saved us a few grey hairs but his effort was cleared off the line.

The defence continued to hold out and the relief is palpable when the final whistle blew.

I rush out to catch the bus back into town - we're on a later-than-usual return train to London and so I'm off back to Number Twenty-2 to bask in the glow of my first win of the season.

Martin joins me for a couple of pints of Wensledale Bitter and then we head up to Bank Top for our train. It's very quiet and we have a table to ourselves and once we've had our pies I'm dead to the world...

Giving It All Away

For the first time in many a month, there were the old quartetback together and travelling to a game - Martin, Howard, Chris and myself - and overall we were quite positive. Martin still predicting a win, especially so as he thought we played really well against Rochdale.

Quite a pleasant journey until we hit a red light and ended up being held in Northallerton station - apparently the high cross winds meant speed restrictions were in place (though that didn't stop trains in the other direction).

It later turns out that a couple of northbound trains had a little bump in Darlington station and so all trains were sharing the southbound platform. Very annoying as this was eating into our valued drinking time!

The Quaker House was ringing to the sound of little bells when we got there - a side (the collective term apparently) of Morris dancers had more or less taken over all the tables with themselves and their baggage with no thought to other pub users - thankfully they all departed after one beer leaving the place to the usual Saturday regulars.

A good choice of beers as usual - Titanic's Last Porter Call, Hoskin's White Dolphin, Consett Brewery Blast, Black Dog Whitby Abbey, Salopian Maori, Everard's Equinox and York Decade.

Having had the Maori at the recent Darlo festival, I went for the White Dolphin - very nice and refreshing. After a couple of those I tried the Titanic Porter - a wonderful pint, full bodied and packed with flavour.

I was joined by John and Brian - and then Trevor making one of his rare visits to a home game. Perhaps he'd bring some luck?

As is traditional we moved on up to Number Twenty-2 for a change of scenery - some decent beers as ever, the best of which was probably the Bradfield Stout which certainly seems to have improved from earlier tastings.

I wandered into reception on arrival at the Arena - there's very few familiar faces here now but I have a quick chat with Eric Laycock and Andrew Wilkinson of the Evening Gazette.

(right) The 'new' Tinshed - not very busy

Not surprisingly the main topic of conversation is the identity of the new manager - according to rumour Mark Proctor seems to be the name doing the rounds. No doubt we'll see if this is true...

And so to the game. After Martin had given such a positive report from the Rochdale game, it was if another team had come out in their stead.

Our play was hesitant from the outset and it was Macc made most effort to take a hold on the game - and after 15 mins, Jeff Smith did just that for them.

A Macc attack down the left flank saw the ball come across the box to Smith - whilst attempting to guide it away for a corner he put it past Hoult and into the net. Oh calamity!

There's a part of you that seems to be numb to such things and it's just as well as things didn't get any better for the remainder of the half as Macc had chances to double or treble the score but didn't have the gumption to do even that.

It was a different story in the second half - OK, still a bit of defensive frailty but we were creating chances in front of goal but were as abject as the Silkmen were in the first-half.

Devitt had mercurial periods, Curtis Main hit the woodwork and then spurned another good chance - Gall too - and I dare say we could have played all night and still not scored.

The frustration of our performance was exacerbated by the presence of some young fans in the boxes behind us.

They were waving their Darlo flags with gusto and screeching their little heads off. OK, full marks for enthusiasm but it was like fingernails on a blackboard.

(left) The fans of tomorrow - can't wait for their voices to break

And with the final whistle we trudged back to the station - on arrival the two Johns, Bell and Wilson, jump on the first train south leaving me to wait for Martin and Howard. The train is about 15 mins late which is not brilliant but could certainly be worse.

The journey passes without incident - a couple of Stevenage fans leave behind a programme from their draw at Kit Kat Crescent so Martin and I have a read. Not brilliant - £3 and loads of adverts. Interesting though to see that Lance's old favourite, McGurk, is still plying his trade there.

We all miss going to York for a game - one of our favourite cities for a day out - but the way we're playing these days we could well be going there next season.

At Kings X, Liz and Jenny were patiently waiting - flush after their late winner at Gresty Road - and we took a short walk to a new pub, King Charles I.

(left) Kings Charles I - well worth a visit

The main reason I wanted to call in here was that I'd heard it served Brodies beers - this is a new-ish brewery in Leyton, East London - and they've been getting rave reviews but I'd yet to try them.

There were about four hand-pumps - Deuchars IPA plus three from Brodies. All the Brodies were off as there was some problem in the cellar. However they had a barrel of Brodies Mild on the bar and though it was a tad warm it was very tasty - very tasty.

And the first pint was free after the barman noticed my Mastodon t-shirt - he's clearly a fellow of great taste as well. The pub itself has a heavy rock jukebox - none of this R'n'B rubbish - and a young vibe without being annoying to we older folk.

I finished the night with a bottle of the Brodies Porter which is sublime - we're definitely coming back here soon if this is what they have on offer - the next time probably after the Barnet game at the end of the month...

Back Home

And so back to grim reality of the Northern Echo Darlington Arena....

I left home at around 6am - the District line is out of action for engineering so had to catch a local bus to Stratford and then onto Kings X. I hate buses - and after this bus is 15 minutes late I like them even less.

Still, due to my getting up in good time I'm in Da Vinci's for breakfast and have almost finished it all off when Martin joins me.

We're on a busy train north today - not just school holidays but the Edinburgh Fringe is in full swing and so we have lots of actor-luvvie types on the train - I did spot someone relatively famous - Pete Baikie - who was one of the folk behind Absolutely, one of my all time favourite sketch shows, and who has written the theme tunes for quite a few TV and radio shows.

I got chatting to a nice Geordie couple who were sharing our table and found that we had a mutual friend as well as (generally ancient) mutual musical tastes in common (despite their returning north from a U2 gig at Wembley!) so the journey just flew past.

Interesting to see on arrival that new ticket gates have finally been installed at Bank Top station - a bit of a pain but certainly preferable to the useless set of revenue inspectors they had there at the end of last season.

(left) The covered market

Down in the town there was a modest fair in place on the market square - not doing a lot of business but I suppose it was a bit early in the day for that sort of jollity. I nip into the covered market and get some savoury pastries for later.

John Wilson is already ensconced on my arrival at the Quaker House - interesting to see the "For Sale" sign is still up though current licensees Brian and Gary apparently have had their offer accepted. Let's hope that this is the case.

(right) For Ales - very funny...

Inside though it's service as normal- regulars George and Gwen are already in place and Linda is still serving with the usual good choice of beers on offer.

There's a trio from Hambleton Brewery (Stallion, Freckled Warrior and Lager), a brace from Captain Cook Brewery (Sunset and Black Porter) plus Springhead Leveller, Allendale Black Grouse and a seasonal offering from Caledonian Brewery.

I give the Hambleton Lager a try but it has an odd taste - I wonder whether this is their gluten-free lager? I tried their gluten-free ale once and it was not very nice.

John and I are joined by Tony, Colin and then Brian - Tony dispenses the season and match-day tickets he's kindly picked up for us. He also confirms that we should all systems go for our curry evening in a few weeks - more details soon.

We then move up to Number Twenty-2 which has seen the addition of two odd-looking chair-table contraptions in the bar - very odd they look.

Colin and I try the Goodrich Castle from Springhead - it's OK at first but then it's gingery taste starts to cloy and in the end I leave it. Colin moves onto the Monkey Wrench whilst I try a new beer (Old Knottingley?) from the Yorkshire Dales brewery. Much nicer all round...

As ever, the cabs from Station Taxis are on time and we get to the ground twenty minutes before kick-off where the car park looks very empty.

I wander to reception to meet Christine Balford after we'd spoken earlier in the week about my continuing sponsorship of Steve Foster. He'd been accidentally allocated to someone else but he's now back with me for a third term. I'm sure that's a relief for both of us.

(left) Unlikely lads

On taking my seat in block 11, it was clear to see the crowd was not brilliant - there were a few gaps around us where regulars seemed to be missing but maybe they're on holiday. Or moved to get away from me and/or Colin (as in the case of Harry who has moved further down the block).

And then the game. Well, there wasn't a great deal to cheer in the first half - Bury are pretty anonymous apart from the annoyingly-attired Sodje and we don't really make a concerted effort on their goal. The Bury fans claim Knight should have walked for a tackle on one of their players outside the box - looked 50/50 to my eyes.

The second half livened up after Bury took the lead - slack defending again - and the lead could have been doubled except for a goal-line clearance by my man Fossie.

At this point the crowd is getting quite agitated and it's tempting to join in but what's the point? Meanwhile Colin is back in his default mode and is berating the referee - seems fair enough.

In an effort to get a point out of the game, Todd brings on Windass and Main. Young Curtis looks as if he's grown a bit more since we saw him last season and certainly looks a bit more mobile - very encouraging, especially for the Capital Quakers who are now sponsoring his home shirt.

But it's Windass who has the chance to get on the score sheet after Main is taken out by the Bury keeper with seconds remaining. The crowd cheers in relief and then it's back to the groans as we witness possibly the worst ever penalty from a Darlington player as Windass almost passes the ball to keeper Brown. Unbelievable!!

The journey back to London was quiet - no Newcastle fans today as they're kicking off late - Martin and I ate our pies, had a good old moan and then fell into a slumber, thankfully free of nightmare penalty gaffes...

Bees Sting

I knew deep down that I should have ended this season's attendance at Spotland last weekend - a truly excellent day out as Bill (or Ted) might have said - but instead habit drove me along the usual early morning trail to King's Cross to take in my final game of the season.

In theory it was a last visit to Da Vinci's for breakfast - I'm now known by the staff and no longer have to order - "your usual, sir?" and a nod from me is now enough to get me my early morning plate of plenty. And it's been consistently very good throughout the season. However I'm sure I'll find an excuse to pop in during the close season.

The journey north was pleasant enough - we were sat with a nice chap from Reading who was a Leeds fan - off to Hartlepool for his sins.

In fact to qualify for an away ticket he'd had to attend a minimum of 19 away games - very credible, or very sad, depending on your point of view. Although I subsequently heard that a lot of Leeds fans got around this by simply paying cash on the day to go into the home areas.

Arriving at Bank Top station at 10:30, there were a few police awaiting the expected hordes of Brentford and Leeds fans - in fact there were a handful of Bees fans waiting expectantly outside Hogans.

As ever all the handpumps were in use in the Quaker today - and quite a few dark beers amongst them too - which included York Brewery's Terrier and Last Drop Bitter; Quartz Heart, 3 River's Delta Mild (not too popular it seems - had been on over a week and still some left!), Stump Cross Ale from the Richmond Brewery, Hadrian & Border's Secret Kingdom and from the Jarrow Brewery, Venerable Bede and Rivet Catcher.

There was a decent quota of DAFTS on parade too - John Wilson had travelled up the night before, Steve Duffy had flown up to Newcastle from Cardiff and Keanu Reeves body-double Brian Elsey had travelled up from Sheffield - obviously no Hollywood duties this weekend.

(left) Keanu Reeves - it had been a hard week

As usual we then wandered up to Number Twenty-2 for an hour or so - there looked to be an interesting stout on offer but it was just too warm for that. By this time we'd been joined by Tony and Lesley plus John, her Dad, neither of who had been to a home game for quite a while.

Arriving at the ground it was interesting to see a bunch of bulky rugby league players handing out leaflets to the fans - it seems that Gateshead Thunder are playing their Challenge Cup tie against Oldham at the Arena on the 9th May. Let's hope they get a decent crowd for that.

I wandered off to reception before the game for my usual quick chat with John and Eric - today I was also picking up Steve Foster's away shirt, sponsored by yours truly for the second season running, as I wouldn't be attending the official presentations following the All Stars Game.

Any misgivings I'd had about attending this game were put to bed within seconds of the kick-off as Alan White's careless (and that's being diplomatic) aerial challenge on Damian Spencer fully deserved a red card - the Brentford man suffering a fractured cheekbone in the process proving he wasn't making a meal of the clash.

It's not the first time Whitey has been sent off for a challenge like this - I seem to remember something similar at Exeter a few weeks ago and overall it's his fourth red card with Darlo in two seasons - and it put paid to any chances we had of getting any sort of result from this game. And what is most frustrating is that it the challenge was on the touchline - not even in a dangerous area - and totally unnecessary other than to make a strong first impression on an opposite number. Well, that was certainly achieved - well done...

There was a rapid reorganisation and Darlo looked to be holding out quite well despite a lot of Brentford possession until the Bees were awarded a disputed corner - the refereee apparently over-ruling his linesman - and from it they scored.

And then any expectation of beating the odds a la Lincoln were extinguished when Billy Clarke headed a second just before the break - at least he had the good grace not to celebrate too frantically in front of us.

(above) Three wise something or others

A shame really as we'd had a couple of good chances - including a cracking free kick from Franz which clipped the bar.

The second half saw Brentford get the benefit of some further dodgy decisions from the referee - Franz went down (rather theatrically of course) after being taken out in the box but it was a stonewall penalty. But no, not a sniff from the ref.

Instead Brentford got the ball down the other end very smartly and Clarke made it 3-0.

Despite fears of a rout, Darlo tightened up and even pulled one back after Abbott slid the ball under the keeper. The last few minutes were a bit fractious - one their defenders should certainly have followed White for an early bath after manhandling Abbott but the ref was happy to only book both parties - an equal opportunities ref obviously.

These decisions would probably had no impact on the overall result but it just left a bad taste - fair play to Brentford on their promotion but it was hard to take when we really should have been in the mix as well. With this in mind, there were plenty of anti-Houghton chants throughout the game and apparently he made himself scarce in the second half.

Whereas Bank Top station at the end of last season saw Dagenham & Redbridge celebrating their eleventh-hour retention of their league status for another season (and look where they are now), this time it was Brentford fans raising the rafters.

Our carriage was full of them chanting all the way to Kings Cross - some dotty old passenger optimistically asked them to "please stop singing" - some hope dear. Thankfully my walkman and the fantastic new album from Mastodon came to the rescue whilst poor old Martin simply had to suffer in silence.

On arrival back into Kings Cross the celebrating Bees all headed straight down into the tube, back to Brentford and champagne in the Griffin (or so they were hoping) allowing Martin and I to escape to the relative peace and quiet of the Betjeman Arms where we met Paul, our Wycombe chum, and his friend Dave.

Paul had been up to Stoke to see Wycombe settle for a point at Port Vale - and so they're still short of automatic promotion for another week - whereas Dave had been to Derby to see Charlton get beat in front of a very respectable 33,000 crowd. A season of highs and lows for all of us.

Also in the pub were a pack of London Wolves who were still celebrating their promotion to the Premiership - last time we saw a couple of these chaps in the Doric Arch they'd been very much the worse for wear but they still recognised me from our chat that day - "Hey, Beardyman!" - well, I assume they meant me...

Not Quite Dead And Bury-ed

Another earlier than usual departure from London for the second of our bank holiday games - we were back on the east coast line and so we arrived in Darlo slightly ahead of schedule.


I made it into the Quakerhouse just after the town clock struck 11am yet still found I wasn't the first person in - beaten once again by George and Gwen.


For the second week running there was a cracking choice of beers from Yorkshire including Leeds Brewery Ascension, Longbow from the Empire Brewing Company and the Raspberry Blond from Saltaire.

Representing the north-east were a trio from Jarrow Brewery - Rivet Catcher, Caulker and McConnell's Irish Stout and a brace from Hadrian & Border Brewery, Flotsam and the Ouseburn Porter.


There were also a couple of southern beers, Vale Gravitas, from Brill in deepest Bucks, and British Bulldog from the Westerham Brewery in Kent.

I managed to try a good few - the Ascension (very floral), Longbow (OK), Raspberry Blond (very raspberry but not overpowering), the Bulldog, the Flotsam and the Caulker - all in tip-top condition as usual.


As time went by, the Quakerhouse got quite busy with the appearance of more Darlo fans - Number Twenty-2 was shut as it usually is on a bank holiday which meant I stayed put for once - and after a while I was joined by John Bell and Paul Brown.

On arrival at the ground, I made my normal trip to reception to see my old mates on the press desk, John and Eric, and was surprised to see ex-chairman George Houghton standing outside reception looking for all the world like he was still in charge. He wasn't there long though after being given various abuse from passing fans - not very clever.

Darlo made a slow start to the game as Bury looked every bit the promotion candidates that they are - we were under pressure from the off and seemed to be keeping them at bay until a jammy deflection off Tim Ryan put them in the lead.

This seemed to knock the wind right out of our sails and it took a while for us to string some decent moves together and start to attack their goal whilst Bury looked content to soak up the pressure. Our patience was rewarded after Kennedy headed past their keeper following a cross from Burgmeier. One-all at the break.

The second period saw a flurry of Darlington pressure before a Bury corner led to a goal from the head of Efe Sodje who looked a bit of a big girl's blouse in his bandanna and gloves. A good header though but he was allowed too much room. Alan White seemed to come off second best as he was taken off for attention after he started leaking a bit of claret.

Sodje continued to irritate by falling over when being tackled by Curtis Main - hardly crunching takles as I'm not convinced Main has adjusted to the physical side of the game - yet he fell to the floor like a mighty redwood - quel blouse.

This time Darlo kept their heads and got right back at Bury, eventually being rewarded after a smart piece of play from Main - he picked up a forward ball from Ravenhill and kept his head to pass a great inside ball to Pav Abbot who slotted the ball past the Bury keeper.

For the final quarter of an hour it was end-to-end stuff - Bury hit the post late on whilst Sodje cleared off the line and eventually it finished as a draw.

Quite an enjoyable game in the end and probably a fair result but as at Chesterfield, great credit must once again go to Dave Penney and the team for the attitude they've shown in these dark times.

I've been reliably informed that the Quakerhouse has been recently selected as Darlington CAMRA's Pub of the Year - the sixth time it has won this award under the stewardship of Steve and Linda. Congratulations to them both.