My footballing year started on New Year’s Day with a dilemma as to where to head to. AFC Goole or North Ferriby United. A toss of a coin some 362 days ago determined our destination for the first game on 2015, The Victoria Pleasure Grounds in Goole, where we watched a 1-1 draw against Lincoln United. Almost a year on and as we headed across The Humber Bridge we had the same options. That was until Northern Steve checked the Interweb and discovered that The Amateurs (Lincoln United for those unfamiliar with step 8 team nicknames) game at Goole had fallen foul to the weather. North Ferriby United v Bradford Park Avenue it was to be then.
It’s been quite a year for The Villagers. Their penalty shoot out win over Wrexham at Wembley Stadium in the FA Trophy gained them national headlines, then just a few weeks later owners Eman and Steve Forster, Daughter and Son-in-Law of Hull City’s multi-millionaire owner Assem Allam announced they would be selling up, throwing the club into chaos. Their investment into the facilities and squad gave the club a clear advantage, allowing them to compete with clubs with much bigger resources. Their average attendance is just over the 300 mark and shows just how much the club has to fight to compete with the likes of Stockport County or FC United of Manchester who average crowds nearly 10 x the size.
The first thing that strikes you driving into North Ferriby is that it is tiny. A one pub, two church village sitting on the banks of the Humber Estuary with a population of 3,893 to be precise and once the home to William Wilberforce. Wilberforce, a man who fought against all the odds to see his dream of a slave-free British empire come to pass, would certainly approve of the dogged approach The Villagers are taking to make their mark on Non-League football. The approach to the ground is still very county league – down an unlit lane alongside the allotments.
After a brief visit to the club shop to pick up some Official North Ferriby fizzy rings, the smell from the snack bar enticed us. “Sorry luv’, we’ve not got any cheese for the cheesy chips. I can do you them with gravy but they won’t be called cheesy chips?” Who were we to moan? Pre-match got even better when we were invited into the boardroom to “meet” the FA Trophy himself, possibly the biggest football trophy I’ve ever got my hands on and approximately 7 times larger than the UEFA Intertoto Cup which is still on display in the boardroom at Upton Park.
The crisp Humberside air was frequently punctuated by the rattle of a train passing above the far-side stand. Ironically, the last ground I went to where the game could be watched from a passing train carriage was Goole’s Victoria Pleasure Grounds. I’m sure there is a whole book out there somewhere, combining two of the least social past times.
Formalities over, it was time to enjoy the final game of 2015, cup of tea in one hand, non-cheesy gravy soaked chip in the other.
North Ferriby United 1 Bradford Park Avenue 0 – Grange Lane – Monday 28th December 2015
This was one of those games that for an hour seemed as if it was destined to be goal less. Despite the efforts of both teams, and the antics of both keepers, the goals seemed to be living charmed lives. It is always interesting watching other Non-League clubs and trying to assess how we would fare against them. North Ferriby’s centre-forward, the giant Tom Denton, may have looked like a stereotypical target man but the home side’s approach play was more subtle than that. Denton threw himself at everything and if I was allowed to bet on football I would have had a tenner on him being he opening scorer. Northern Steve, who can bet on football, suggested that it would be a waste of a tenner and backed Stoke City v Everton to have less than 1.5 goals.
Despite having the one man advantage Bradford PA couldn’t breakdown the stubborn North Ferriby defence in the last 15 minutes and the final whistle brought relief more than anything from the 500 plus crowd, as well as three vital points in their push for the top spot.