Paper Cups I Declare

Yorkshire 517 all out 

v Leicestershire 415 all out 

Yorkshire 220 for 4 

County Championship Division Two

Thursday 6 April 2023 (Day 1) and 

Saturday 8 April 2023 (Day 3) 

Played at Headingley 

Sheffield United 1 v Wigan Athletic 0 

The Championship 

Friday 7 April 2023 

SUFC 2022/23 Game #58 

Albion Sports 2 v Thackley 2 

Northern Counties East Premier Division 

Wednesday 5 April 2023 

Played at Ground Share with Farsley Celtic 

Sheffield United U18 3 v Sheffield Wednesday U18 3 

U18 Professional Development League 

Wednesday 5 April 2023 

Played at Shirecliffe 

SUFC 2022/23 Game #57 

Three games of football, two days of County Cricket, and some beer. This could either be a long Blog. Or basically a diary entry. (We're aiming for the latter).

Let's begin with the important cricket issue of the new season. The Yorkshire County Cricket Club Long Room Bar remains the most fucking soulless and joyless bar at any sporting event. My instinct says the bacon and/or sausage breakfast sandwiches look half decent. The braised beef and potato pie, with mushy peas floating around it, looked a useful handful. But, the beer set up has declared and won't bat again this season.

The whole sorry mess is lead by PAPER CUPS again. Who? Why? How? It's an indoor bar. Glasses are there, behind the bar. Beer in glasses is routinely served in pavilions, members and other bars at County Cricket up, down and around the circuit. But, not here at revived and rejuvenated YCCC. On Day 3, there was an explanation.

Oh. Do. Fuck. Off.

Plus. 12pm to 5pm? Where are we? Nineteen fucking seventy six. Game starts at 11. Finishes a minimum of 96 overs later. Call it 7 o'clock on a bad day. Fucking Joyless.

Arcadia Ale House

Headingley Central, Otley Rd, Headingley, Leeds LS6 2UE

Is, handily enough, an absolutely superb pub. So, the working assumption is that's where the Carrier Bag Firm will drink all season. Let's not mention the Headingley Long Room again. Assume it's fucked unless I update you otherwise.

Seven on Cask. Four or five, depending on your counting method, on pukka craft keg.

Wylam (Newcastle upon Tyne), Fleek on Cask at 4.2%

Fresh crop Citra & Amarillo. Very nice beer. The Citra doesn't come through too much though. But there was still a lot of hoppy flavour.

Horsforth Brewery, Mosaic Pale Ale on Cask at 5.1%

Unfined that one. And was absolutely glorious. There was a Neptune Mosaic on as well. In a previous life, we'd have bought a pint of each and had a gladiatorial Mosaic Off.

It's Yorkshire's to decide what to do with that one. Lead of 322. The County Championship points have been changed (again) this season to reward a win more and a draw less. Bat Leics out of it? And have less time at them? Or get at it? Gibball.

Lyth, Bean and Malan all went cheaply. I'm not sure that makes a heap of difference. The run rate was still 4.7.

Wigan

A good win I thought. Always very nervy at just one nil. But, we had loads of chances and could/should have been out of sight. I couldn't understand how Billy doesn't score his chance. But, on the tele, the keeper just makes a ridic instinctive save. And, maybe Iliman should do better after he's rounded everyone.

Billy Sharp Scores Goals. But, also provides leadership. We'll need that. I thought McBurnie was better with the ball at his feet than he's been for a bit. Facing goal. Coming inside with the ball at his feet. Looking to shoot. We'll need that.

Albion Sports

That Ground Share at Farsley Celtic's The Citadel ground was my 423rd Ground Tick. The goals came in batches. Thackley's opener on 13, equalised on 18. And Thackley's go ahead on 71, equalised on 74.

U18 Name Calling Derby

A bit of a scrappy three all at Shirecliffe. With the Young Blades only equalising on 88, Brandon Ly. But, it was the Kurtis Havenhand show really. Fouled in the box on 9 minutes, for George Dickinson to score the opener. By the time we'd reached 60, Sheffield Wednesday were 2-1 up. Kurtis hit a post on 61, hit the bar on 65, and equalised with a great header on 69.

Wednesday went 3-2 on 76. Before that last gasp equaliser. Simplest thing to say about Kurtis is - he plays like a striker. Ball at his feet, head down, get moving towards goal. Ball in the air, don't worry about defenders, worry about where the ball is, get into position, attack it. Free kicks, I'll have a shot. Greedy For Goals.

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The Rain Came Down (And Up)

Hallam 4 v Thackley 2 

Northern Counties East Football League 

Premier Division 

Tuesday 16 August 2022 

The torrential rain started as soon as we left Carrier Bag Firm Towers. By the time we were walking up (and it's Sheffield, so up means up, not along) Ivy Park Road, we were already in Double Whammy territory. The rain was certainly coming down, in the accepted manner. But rainwater was also coming up - from the inundated drains. And the roads were flowing like rivers.

We weren't going to fuck about, so we got a seat under cover as soon as we got in Sandygate. A perfect vantage point for the rain. Conditions were interesting & I dare say challenging. The ground must have been dry and hard. And basically, the rain wouldn't sink in, it just stayed on the surface. And, none of it turned into mud. And despite the slope (them hills again) the surface water seemed as bad at the (top) Shed End as at the (bottom) cricket nets end.

Of course, from the seats, all you can really tell is it's still raining. As the game kicked off, a Thackleyite kicked up a spray of water in front of the dugouts. Oh, hello, didn't realise it was that bad underfoot.

After about ten minutes another Thackley player was wringing his shirt out while it was still on. 

My impression was that Thackley were the better side early on. Playing, and successfully playing, a passing game with lots of movement. Sure enough, they quickly went two nil up with goals from Greaves on 14 and 16.

Maybe the conditions claimed their first victim almost immediately. Thackley's Waddington (who I think had assists for both goals) went down after playing/moving the ball with no one particularly near him and no contact. He was helped off and subbed.

I'll be honest, while not expecting Hallam to be overrun, I didn't really see much of a way back. Shows what I know. Goals on 24 & 37 saw them level. And there was a lot of encouragement for them from the 218 crowd as they walked off at the end of the first half, and back on. Incidentally that crowd 900 down on the crowd v Bury AFC. That torrential rain will have had a big impact.

As the second half got moving, the rain did ease slightly. Still banging it down, but the pitch, not completely inundated, did improve. Hallam hit the bar, with the players convinced it had bounced in. But, they did go ahead on 56. It was chances at both ends stuff for much of the rest of the game. As the 90 ended, I felt Hallam had held on. But, they actually added another to bring it all home.

I ordered pints of Bradfield Blonde in the clubhouse. Even in the plastic glasses, they looked ridiculously opaque. I had a swig of one - gone. I was offered the option of waiting for the next cask to be put on & pulled through. But, I decided to go with;

Sharp's Brewery, Atlantic Pale Ale on Keg at 4.2%

As a football club, standard keg pale that's OK. Nothing to worry about.

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