Saturday 3rd December 2022 – The FA Vase – Hillheads Park, Whitley Bay
There’s no doubt that Tyne & Wear is a footballing hotbed. Whilst the Geordies and the Mackems try to outdo each other on tales of past glories to replace any recent successes (granted, things appear to be looking up for both sides at the moment), just to the east of the center of Newcastle lays the seaside town of Whitley Bay who hold a record which is unlikely to be beaten.
Back in May 2011, The Seahorses of Whitley Bay FC won their third consecutive FA Vase title at Wembley Stadium, beating Coalville Town 3-2. They became the first, and only side ever to win the title on three consecutive occasions, and adding to their 2002 they have won the trophy more times than any other side.
If watching the Vase record breakers wasn’t motivation enough, then a visit to the famous Left Luggage Lounge at Monkseaton station certainly provided the pre-match entertainment. The former luggage storage room at the metro station is everything that a pub should be – warm, welcoming, some decent beers in a unique location with the best pork pie I have ever had (sweet chilli if you are interested). So good was my pre-match that it was tempting for just a moment to stay.
But it would be a long way to come just to have a beer and a pork pie, so I head down to Hillheads Park for the Third Round tie against West Didsbury & Chorlton.
The visitors from the suburbs of Manchester plied their trade in the North West Counties League, diametrically opposite the Northern League, with just the North Yorkshire Moors separating the two divisions. West Didsbury & Chorlton also came with a reputation – one of fanatical fans, who supported their team with humor and good will. Their community outreach is well known in Non-League circles and they even sported a pink and blue kit, giving them a Dulwich Hamlet feel, a club that knows a thing or two about being at the heart of the community and having the community at its heart.
They had certainly brought a decent support with them, taking up a position in the covered terrace in a crowd of 440. To be fair they provided more entertainment that the two sides could muster on the pitch over 90 minutes. Their support, through the flag waving and amusing songs, were high points along with the half-time game changing tip from the lovely lady in the tea bar about adding black pepper to Bovril and a heady mix of curry sauce and gravy on my second half chips. Fuelled by that calorific intake the tie became bearable, despite the cold wind blowing off the North Sea and the squally showers.
The home side took the lead at the end of the first half, a chance from close range that the West Didsbury keeper couldn’t stop despite getting a hand to it. Whilst both sides had flattered to deceive each other’s keeper, it was a rare moment of goal mouth action and Brewis etched his name in the story of the 2022/23 competition.
The second half saw marginally more action but to the majority of the fans it seemed the game would finish 1-0. And then in the last minute the luck that had appeared to have been left on the coach from Manchester made an appearance. A deep cross was headed back across the goal, a West Didsbury player poked the ball goal wards. The ball hit a defender, deflecting the ball out of the path of the Whitley Bay keeper and onto the post. The ball rebounded along the line, just sneaking over (or did it in Japanese style???) to equalise. Miller was credited with the goal but Lady Luck (and a defender, a post and a small divot on the goal line) could claim the assist.
And so with no extra-time in the competition anymore, we went straight to penalties. The sudden disappointment of giving away the lead must have weighed on the home side’s minds as their second penalty was blazed over the bar, whilst the fourth was well saved. The visitors converted all four of those, the winning kick being scored by Darren McKnight, sending them through to the Fourth Round for the first time in their history.
Nobody likes games decided by penalties, if you are a fan of the losing side, but to the rest, and neutral fans, they are the best thing ever. Whitley Bay may be the most successful club in the history of the competition, but any thoughts of a return to Wembley will have to filed away for another year. For West Didsbury and Chorlton there’s only 31 other teams left in the competition, and five more games until a final date in May.
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