Trafford 0 – 2 Halifax Town; 14/08/2010.

Trafford 0 – 2 Halifax Town; 14/08/2010.

Our fifth Saturday friendly is our last, and both players and fans alike should be happy about that. With most every other league in action however, steps three and four are the slow kids again and refuse to keep up, saving it for Sat 21st. Hence, the last two games have been with our newly ex-rivals from step four savagery, Clitheroe away (3–2 to us) and this here Trafford match, presumably both arranged as transfer agreements with Vardy/Garner and Metcalfe respectively, three squad-bolstering prospects.



A fruitless quest for guest ales at local pub Bird i'th Hand brought me to a cheese & onion Holland's pie with peas at Shawe View, followed by seconds at half-time. I've now visited the ground in three out of the four past seasons (autumn, spring and summer that is) and though it felt dull to return to a seemingly tiny place, the atmosphere is cosy, every single detail in the ground is well tended to, and there definitely isn't sporadic dumpings of litter here and there like well, Bamber Bridge's place. Our golden goal opportunity (home goal, 87th minute) was thankfully thwarted in the expected time—in about four minutes, Vardy perfectly lobbed the keeper from the edge of the side of the box.



Trafford faced the same problems they've always had with our Aspin-run team from then on, and their hoofs out calls came with the responses of us charging towards their ever-present defense. Like a bagatelle, our corners went straight to our headers, but our headers missed the net. We had a good share of close free kicks, including one which enraged a Trafford player so inordinately for a friendly that the referee forced a substitute out of him; a benevolent way of getting him off the pitch. Our thin lead wasn't under threat and it was OK to keep by half-time.

Immediately came the news that the inevitably doomed Blackpool were 3–0 up away to Wigan! For the time being, that will be the story we'll all relate to the start of the 10/11 footballing season, relievedly stopping Chelsea's 6–0 victory over WBA in the evening taking over the back pages of the papers tomorrow. Personally ecstatic that Blackpool were the team to nick the title off—for less than three hours.



Just like the last away day to Trafford, the half-time satisfaction of winning lead to the tedium of us not putting away our chances. The play was polite as a friendlies entail at our end and were the need there, I'm sure it would've been more. Something I really was hoping for, to give our new signings a taste of the effort we put in to so many competitive matches. Trafford steadily improved. Were it not for Hedge's anticipation, they could've brought it back, but luckily traffic was still going our way. A few opportunities for us lead with Trafford's number four hardnut/egotist clashing with his tubby 'keeper and them getting frustrated with each other. "DON'T DO THAT AGAIN!" barked #4, taking the goalie's confidence by a notch each time. Managing to finger one tough shot left of the post and punching a likely higher kick over the bar helped, but in the 89th minute our other Clit Hero signing and bleached wonder Garner fired home.



Neither we nor our players were that merry either. Facing Buxton at home, playoff candidates by merit of their pre-season run, wouldn't be as easy on the back of a draw and there came a little frustration. A decent enough cross by Tom Baker didn't quite go as planned in his mind, and he screamed "SHIT! FUCKING SHIT!"

But the second goal came, and straight after it boredom got the better of the ref' again who blew a whistle before normal time had even finished. An unfit Phelan seems doubtful for next week, and thoughts linger in my mind as to whether going to the Halifax Show would've been more cathartic, in the form of watching angry geese attack equally angry dads, rip-off ghost trains, and donut helpings as endless as the hay bales. But nah, this is my team, this is my duty. I'm in Edinburgh next week for Camp for Climate Action/Edinburgh Fringe Festival/Beirut and Richard Youngs live. My only wish is for Deano to return to play as soon as I return to the stands, to participate in a long and eardrum-rattlingly loud "DEANO! DEANO! DEANO!"



Trafford 0 – 2 Halifax Town; att. 250 approx.
Non-partisan entertainment: 4/10


FC Halifax Town: pre-season friendlies 2010/11
Brighouse Town 0 – 5 Halifax Town
Halifax Town 0 – 0 Droylsden
Hyde 1 – 1 Halifax Town
Halifax Town 0 – 0 Gateshead
Halifax Town 1 – 2 Grimsby Town
Clitheroe 2 – 3 Halifax Town
Trafford 0 – 2 Halifax Town

TITILLATINNG TOP TABLE TOWN TROUNCE TORRID TRAFFORD TO TATTERS

TITILLATINNG TOP TABLE TOWN TROUNCE TORRID TRAFFORD TO TATTERS

Sadly, Lancaster remain top of the table after taking the points in the last few minutes again, making it 2–1 against Mossley. Around ten substitutes, a referee, two linesmen, a physio, a bored-looking ballboy, a few officials and the odd fan attended the Lancashire to-and-fro at the Giant Axe.

But with a more convincing win, the Shaymen held their first away clean sheet in two months with a well-deserved 3–0 scoreline against Trafford. The end result is a two-goal push against our fellow title-contenders, and something I'm footballistically (ta for that one, Arsene) happy to take; the score I predicted on Wednesday.

The three points come against a mid-table outfit who were more up for a game of football than ever. It was prevented the last two times I saw them due to the goalkeeper ever falling over so their physio (young blonde woman) could run on and dab him again. The rotund keeper, guarding a nice set of league-standard nets today, asked for no heed this time around and as a result, he was bullied by the fans behind the net far less for his unfootballing size. Also, has anyone noticed that several Unibond physios are all young, baseball cap-wearing women with really long blonde hair? Don't remember any of their faces however, just in case it turns out that it's the same one, deployed to the most-attended game every matchday.



Oh no though, today the keeper stood in the way of several Town shots that weren't flying to either side of him, and got his fingers to a few others. At one point I retrieved a stray ball which I accidentally kicked toward the corner flag rather than him, and I apologise about this because it wasn't a matter of wanting to make him run a little or waste time, rather after not playing football properly in a decade, I'm a rusty cog. He won't be happy now either way, as three goals did go in, book-ending both the start and finish of the game. The first came two minutes after the kick-off, Wilde being released perfectly and cleanly putting the ball away.

Play came and receded from then on, but it was mostly Town domination. Trafford had two attacks early on after Town's two, but from then on the 50:50 play was over. It was another case of one-way traffic this time, though a nice change to see it away from home too. There were moments among these, Syko's very early save-forcer, narrow misses, some excellent crosses and balls that weren't executed early enough. The first half was a wave-off with certainty that some killing-off goals would come our way.



Normal service continued in the second half, but as mentioned, the shots ranged in quality but never tested so much. To liven up our forward few Peers replaced Sykes and an unimpressive Dean went off for new striker Lee Gregory a little later on, but play was starting to get tentative when things were at 1–0 in the final quarter what with our record for throwing things away. We let Trafford get back in it a little, if enough to attempt to penetrate our solid defense although Hedge wasn't given any challenges. The grumbly windbags stood around me (need to be more selective where I stand) really kicked off when loaned man Barnes, a man who has left no impression on Aspin's promising mold, was sent off after allegedly headbutting a man, and said goodbye to a short and unremarkable career as a Shayman.

Though this brought us to the height of clenched teeth for the game, it was a good reason for the lads to act on Aspin's urgent words to put more in. Peers struck a low shot from outside the box that completely bypassed the Trafford 'keeper just before injury time, and gave one for Nick Gray to easily put away a couple of minutes later. The crowd went from panicky to very much satisfied, and the "RUBBBISH PEERS, AS USUAL" moans seemed more moronic than ever. Super sub.

Lee Gregory had pace, but with little given to do couldn't to put his name on the score sheet. The fans were few and quiet today, but certainly happy by the end of things. As for the 20 Trafford part-timers who went off just before Barnes was too: why? You clearly have no license to chant "We love you Trafford, we do" when you've just sneaked out at your most hopeful moment of the game!




Our time at Shawe View was exactly how the guy with the microphone described it: a pleasant afternoon. The temperature was edging on the tens, dry weather and rolling clouds made it a good opportunity to lie on the banking behind one of the goals. And the pitch was in fantastic nick, not a speck of mud showing through, even around the nets, oddly considering the goalie's hippopotamine figure. Their groundsman has been nominated for an award and it shows: a flat, lined surface, no litter even in the ground's recesses.

The ground itself has been a work in progress in the 19 years of Trafford FC's existence. In its current state it has two opposing stands lengthways, a banking behind one goal and cover over part of the other. The stands themselves are basic as they come—galvanised tin on poles, and backless. It sounds rather lacking but what we had was a ground kept so trim that it qualified as an excellent venue. That and it was one of the few places I've been to flogging cheese and onion pies, which is always very welcome. Just a nice tidy place in nice tidy surburbia Mancunia.

At half-time, the guy with the microphone announced they were soon to face Lancaster again on the 13th, a rare day's rest after the Shaymen play Curzon Ashton. Well, it fits snugly inside the Easter holidays for me, and I'll entertain the thought. It'd be a pleasure.



Trafford FC 0 – 3 FC Halifax Town; att. 512.

Ground: 7/10
Pitch: 10/10
Programme: 4/10 (lots of stats, very little write-ups!)
Non-partisan entertainment: 8/10
Top men: Peers, Wilde, Phelan, Sykes