Match: v Aldershot Town - Nationwide Football Conference

Date: Saturday, April 8th, 2006

Result: Aldershot 1 Cambridge United 3

THE JOURNEY

Departure Time: 10.30am

Arrival at Ground: We had a first, and very pleasant experience of the Baldock bypass; which had been opened eight months ahead of schedule. I wonder if the builders have been contacted about finishing off Wembley? The emptiness of the bypass, coupled with the state of the M25 - which always threatened to bring us to a grinding halt, but never quite delivered - meant that we were able to park behind the ground at about 12.15pm.

The final part of the journey took us past a Private Shop about half a mile from the ground. Aldershot being a military town, it was a little surprising not to see a Sergeant Shop next door.

AT THE GROUND

The Ground: Located on the high street, behind a façade that's more local park than football ground, little seems to have changed at Aldershot in the 16 years since our last visit.

With first impressions of the Recreation Ground suggesting that it is well named, it is set far enough back for traffic not to be apparent once inside. But, as it is placed close to where a busy railway line crosses the road, trains are a constant feature to one corner of the ground as they seem to pass above a side wall.

That side wall had an area of open terrace in front of it which lead, as you moved away from the main road end of the ground, to a stand which was of similar height to the Main Stand at the Abbey but only ran from level with midway inside one half of the pitch to a similar position inside the other half.

The roof of this stand was notable for a board advertising strong glue that removed the requirement for nails. To prove its efficacy, a washing machine had been stuck to the roof. However the power of its message had been undermined a little as a chair, which had apparently been alongside it earlier in the season, had fallen off after being hit by a ball!

A bank of moss-encrusted terrace curled from the side of this stand to the stand behind the goal in the style of a Japanese garden, and this theme was enhanced by the small copse of trees that inhabited its upper steps.

A large, barrel-roofed bank of covered terrace was behind the goal. Separated by a large metal cage that ran from back to front, this area was split between home and away fans. The cage was home to a large contingent of police who emerged from time to time to issue warnings to supporters before scurrying back into their compound.

Continuing around the ground, the remaining side of the ground contained a mix covered terrace at the back of a shallow bank of seats that ran in blue and red stripes along the length of the pitch. A collection of brick buildings and caravans behind this stand housed decent toilet facilities and ample food bars.

The area behind the remaining goal was in stark contrast to the other three sides. While these combined to make for an extremely traditional, if somewhat old fashioned football ground reminiscent, perhaps, of Huddersfield's old Leeds Road ground, the remaining end was more like Histon's Bridge Road with a flat area of uncovered standing behind the goal.

Home Fans: Some arrived early to swathe the front and side of their main terraced area with flags. The support was equally boisterous to start with too, and although they only seemed to sing when the drum was going, its beat was incessant until United took control of the game.

United Fans: While Aldershot had their flags, including one for the Cornish Shots, United responded with a first outing for the Yorkshire U's flag. This, coupled with some good acoustics from the metal roof, made for a good atmosphere from the travelling U's fans.

View from Away End: Although there were a large number of columns supporting the roof, there was enough room to make sure you weren't standing behind one. The view was also helped by the one significant change since we were last at the Recreation Ground; the large fence that used to be at the front of the terrace has been removed.

Police/Stewards: There was a very heavy police presence both inside and outside the ground. This was reassuring as, when U's fans came away from the ground after the match, a few experienced a bit of a throwback to the bad old days with some of the locals looking for a fight; although one Aldershot fan was promised a beer by his girlfriend if he could manage to avoid getting arrested.

Programme: At £2.50 for 52 pages 'Talk of the Town' contained a large number of decent articles but in an effort to keep production costs to a minimum, a surprising number of black and white pages for the price. All in all, a programme in a similar position to the team.

Food/Drink: A bit of a mixed bunch here. There were a good number of catering outposts behind the main stand and all served tasty food, cooked to order. The reports from the away section were less encouraging, with food dispensed from a small burger van which had a disappointing lack of chips.

State of Toilets: A disparity here too, with brick facilities - albeit pungent ones - for home fans while the away supporters had to make do with four portaloos that were as salubrious as those at Canvey Island.

THE NUMBERS GAME

Mileage: 173.0 miles

Total Distance for Season: 5,961.7 miles

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

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