Flat land is at a premium in the valley, so round here, the recreation grounds are built high up: as with the Astleys, a set of one cricket and three football pitches above Sowerby Bridge. There are worse things to do on a Sunday morning.
A slightly familiar scene perhaps, whether generally or specifically to this location and club. But I don’t care. This take on it pleases me and although my lot (in orange) lost 2-0 this was the most pleasant thing about the day.
I was looking around today for some kind of shot that represented the milestone I have reached today — four thousand days, which is, now you know, about three weeks short of eleven years. No big round numbers particularly revealed themselves, though I did look. But these trophies will do — I feel I deserve some kind of award, if only from myself. There have been times when I have felt like it’s been going long enough, particularly on those days when I’m staying at home with little to see. But usually, on the horizon, I can see something else ahead which keeps the interest going — like right now, with a holiday to come and then a (work) trip abroad… Let’s not give up just yet then. I would lose that little bit of creativity that I am currently obliged to display each day. And I’m not dead yet, either.
It’s nice when interests coincide. Behind one goal at Atherton Laburnum Rovers’ Crilly Park stadium, there was growing today a whole run of plump, ripe blackberries, of which this was just a small part. Luckily for me I had a collection vessel, which was definitely filled before I settled in to watch the game.
You might have noticed that a nice round number approaches, in terms of the number of days I have been doing this. But that’s for tomorrow.
Bacup Borough FC’s ground, the Brian Boys West View Stadium, is located at about 280m/920 feet above sea level. Which, OK, is not very high by the standards of some countries but for Britain it’s elevated: in fact this is one of the highest football grounds in the country. So even at the end of July it wasn’t exactly tropical. The goalie ponders play while the moorland ponders dumping some more rain on all participants and spectators.
Yeah yeah, so I didn’t go more than 5 weeks without a dose of football, and travelled to North-East Wales to get it (specifically the village of Llandyrnog, near Denbigh). But the sport is incidental here to the rainbow, which was exemplary, one of the best I have ever seen — a double rainbow lasting at least 45 minutes (the second half, in other words). The price was that everyone got a bit wet earlier on, but it was worth it.
The last day of my latest break from work provided an opportunity for Clare and I to finally finish off the Calderdale Way, which we started 15 months ago. Nine legs and 50 miles later we returned to Heptonstall church and thus completed the circumnavigation of our home valley. On the way, some very fine views, even if they were of familiar places. This is one of the rare shots that just about gets away with having a telephone wire stretched across it: it’s there, if you know where to look.
On a glorious Saturday afternoon in May I personally can’t think of anything much better to do than sit down on the edge of a small field and watch people run around playing football. Or in the case of this shot, it’s more watching the people watching the football, as I like the variety of positions they adopt. The kid sat on top of the dugout stayed there for the entire match. Taken at Lower Hopton FC, whose battle to remain in the ‘Supreme’ division of the Yorkshire Amateur League was not harmed by coming back from 2-0 down to snatch a point against visitors Wortley. This was all a lot more fun than the tedious crap served up by the millionaires at Wembley later in the day, for sure.
Ivy House FC (of Halifax) come out for the start of the second half at the rather picturesque, if basic, ground of Midgley United. They were 1-0 down at this point but recovered for the draw. But who cares about the game today? I went for the landscape, and it did not disappoint.
Midgley has appeared once before on the blog, on 17th December 2013, day 845. Returning after 3,035 days, this little village on the hillside between home and Halifax now takes over (from Nottingham) as the place with the longest gap between appearances.
Brighouse Town celebrate winning the West Riding County Cup — and against Leeds United, no less. The need for a penalty shootout was just an additional hurdle of no consequence. They look happy about it, and rightly so; as was I, this being the first time I have ever actually seen a club I follow win a Cup of any description. There are worse ways to spend a Thursday evening in south-west Leeds.
Being 42 