Match: v Halifax Town - Nationwide Football Conference

Date: Saturday, April 7th, 2007

Result: Halifax 1 Cambridge United 0

THE JOURNEY

Departure Time: 9am

Arrival at Ground: Only our second trip of the season up the A1 and the road was on its best behaviour as it welcomed us back like old friends. The complicated roadworks around Blyth were Easter-affected - but in a good way - and although there was a slight hold up on the M62 where a Mercedes had used a 38-tonne lorry instead of its brakes to stop, the only real congestion was in the service stations where Peterborough supporters on their way to Accrington were clogging up the queues.

We parked in warm sunshine, or a car park if you want to be pedantic, at about 12.30pm.

AT THE GROUND

The Ground: From the outside, at least from the car park side of the ground, the Shay is a picturesque little ground with walls and ancillary buildings made from the local yellowish sandstone. At least that's the impression you get if you don't look up, as the scenic view is overshadowed by the skeletal superstructure of a stand in the throes of being built. Actually, 'being not built' might be a more accurate description as, once inside the ground, it is apparent that not a single bolt has been added since our last visit... or the visit before that for that matter. This 'stand in progress' runs the length of one side of the pitch and a bit beyond so one end, which might have been an embryonic multi-storey car park, stands a little behind one of the terraces behind a goal.

Three-quarters of this stand's roof has been built while concrete steps, onto which seats will eventually be bolted, are in place in a different three-quarters of the stand. A couple of token blocks of blue and white seats have been fitted and although these are used by directors and sponsors, the 'magic' black blankets are still employed for segregation purposes. Draped across steps and seats in an otherwise near empty stand, these blankets look like blackout curtains left out to dry on the first washday after the Blitz.

The slightly surreal air of this stand is completed by the presence of a portakabin Site Office which, given the lack of progress in recent years, may contain the busiest coffee machine in Christendom and might also explain the presence of a couple of armchairs randomly set out in the stand.

Smart, reasonably new, large banks of terracing are behind either goal. Covered by a roof, these two aren't quite a matching pair as the one for away fans has an open back and a tea bar in the centre at the top, while the one for home fans has a closed back and a bar underneath.

The stand that runs along the remaining side of the pitch is in complete contrast to every other area of the ground. The only remaining throwback to the old Shay, this stand has been cut into the side of a hill and filled with more seats that it can comfortably accommodate. As a result, the press bench has been bolted over the backs of the row of seats in front which mean that anyone over five-feet tall spends the entire match with their knees tucked under their chins. The back couple of rows of seats have disappeared in part of this stand, and this allows a number of the locals to stand up throughout the match.

Grimy and pigeon-splattered, this stand has a neglected feel which is coupled with an unfortunate smell, not unlike the distinctive aroma you get from a dog that's been paddling in stagnant water.

A pitch that's on the bald side of threadbare completes this curate's egg of a stadium. Dry enough to need watering before the match, a standpipe appears from one side of the pitch to hook up with a hose that was so enthusiastic, the groundsman had to then fork the centre circle to persuade the water to soak away. Once this standpipe had been used, an area was left that was so swampy, it could have been inhabited by alligators.

United Fans: Great support, particularly as the search for an equaliser grew ever more desperate.

View from Away End: Excellent from high up on steep terraces. The only difficulty was looking into the sun, but that only affected those at the front of the terrace - and there was plenty of space in which to move around.

Home Fans: Halifax fans seemed to overcrowd one section, standing in gangways, but there was loads of space in the rest of the terrace. Having got behind their side loudly at times, they celebrated the result as though they had just completed a league and cup double. It might have all been very different if United had scored first though, as there was a slightly poisonous undercurrent to their support that constantly threatened to bubble to the surface, as though the Halifax fans were always on the verge of venting their collective spleen.

Police/Stewards: Stewards stood at the openings in the boundary fence and would not be shoved out of the way by U's fans who tried.

Programme: £2.50 for 48 pages, the 'Shayday' is not one of the better productions of the season. Of the 'big print to fill space with as few words as possible' school and very few photos it had the fate-tempting subtitle of 'Three points for the Shaymen? Thank U's very much'. It was printed on a relatively heavyweight paper, so had a decent heft to it if nothing else.

Food/Drink: If you were at the front of the terrace, you needed sustenance by the time you'd climbed all the way to the top to get to the catering van. Once there you found a good selection of (not so) jumbo hot dogs, burgers that were even tastier than those at Kidderminster and chips and tea that were scaldingly hot.

State of Toilets: Those in the away section were adequate but basic, while the facilities for the old main stand came replete with hot and cold running water and that pre-disinfectant aroma so familiar of seaside public toilets in the 1960s. It was reported that the ladies were treated to some jolly decoration in their facilities where a tree was growing oblivious to its surroundings.

AFTERWARDS

The Journey Home: The journey back was pleasingly uneventful, other than when I overtook Murray Walker on the M62 (yes really!), which was the highlight of the day... unless I'm very much mistaken!

Mileage: 346.0 miles

Total Distance for Season: 5,417.3 miles

Mark Johnson, with additional reporting by David Gray, Paul Johnson, Ryan Johnson and Gordon McMillan

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