Ground Works

The one thing I regret most about 2014/2015 is that I’ve not been to more Northern League grounds, specifically to watch my club Newcastle Benfield. While I’ve visited 14 grounds in total so far, only 7 of those have been with Benfield. I may get to one more ground this season, Penrith on April 25^th, but it clearly isn’t enough of an effort to get round the whole of the Northern League. I am still to visit Newton Aycliffe and Ryhope CW as well as Penrith’s new home, before I can claim to have completed my set. During my 7 trips with Benfield, I’ve seen losses at Jarrow Roofing, Bedlington Terriers, North Shields, Whitley Bay (5-3 after being 3-1 up with 13 minutes to go, scarcely credibly) and West Auckland Town 2-0, a goalless draw at Dunston UTS (disappointed to see there weren’t any half Cusack / half Wraith commemorative scarves on sale) and a solitary victory, 5-2 at Crook Town. In addition, I’ve seen games at West Allotment Celtic and Bishop Auckland in Division 1, as well as second division games at Team Northumbria, Hebburn Town, Chester le Street Town and Whickham. To me, the 3 most interesting grounds I’ve been to this season, in order of visiting them, have been Crook Town, Bishop Auckland and West Auckland Town.

2014/2015 has been a bloody awful season for Crook Town; after an opening day draw away to North Shields, the sponsor disappeared, the club slashed the playing budget, nearly all the staff left and veteran manager Peter Mulcaster had to start from scratch. They were effectively relegated by Christmas, having only managed one win, at home to West allotment, and a draw at Benfield when only a 93^rd minute Paul Brayson volley denied them victory. There has been rumour of relocation from their glorious old Millfield ground, which is perhaps the only one in the Northern League with steps up to terracing behind the goal and two large structures along one touchline, in terms of a covered enclosure and a seated stand. The idea that they move to the nearby municipal Peases West sports facility is not one to be encouraged. Unlike Shildon who harbour ambitions of progress and so may leave the venerable Dean Street for the functional Middridge Athletics Stadium, Crook only have reorganisation and regrouping on the horizon; they really should stay at Millfield, even if the snow flurries on the afternoon I visited with Harry Pearon proved the stand roof was for decorative rather than practical purposes. I sincerely hope it is not another 18 years before I visit Crook again.

I only ever visited Bishop Auckland’s original Kingsway ground once; for a 2-2 draw in the Durham County Cup against Spennymoor in October 1995 that attracted a crowd of 570 on a Monday evening. A great occasion when I recall Bishops keeper Kevin Wolfe telling a Charles Hawtree lookalike Spennymoor fan to “put your teeth back in four eyes.” Back then both teams were in the Northern Premier League, from which they fell like stones, though Spennymoor, by the sleight of hand that saw them amalgamate with Evenwood Town in the way Austria amalgamated with Germany in 1938, managed to get a leg-up and eventually were promoted out of the Northern League last summer. Bishops remain in the Northern League, having conspicuously failed to pull up any trees since they arrived back, though they do have the new Heritage Park ground. I missed Benfield’s 4-4 draw there on a Tuesday night in early January, so when my mate Gary offered a lift down there for a Friday night game (the groundshare with Darlo means the lower placed hosts have to accede to their guests’ fixtures when there’s a clash) against Jarrow Roofing a couple of weeks back, I was delighted to accept.  Heritage Park may be a new ground, but under floodlights I thought it was a top quality ground; a superb stand on one side, a covered end and a freebie uncovered stand behind the far goal donated by Darlo mean that were Bishops to get it right on the pitch (as well as sorting out a pitch that seems to hold water like a sponge, resulting in games being called off whenever it gets a bit cloudy), they’d be in prime position to make a move back up the leagues. Heritage Park may be the absolute polar opposite of Millfield, but I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to a ground that is neat, impressive and state of the art. It’s also handy for Sainsbury’s if you want to get the shopping in as well. The game was decent as well; Bishops deservedly coming out on top, 2-1.

I’d only ever been to West Auckland Town once before; a dreary 1-0 win over Whickham in February 1997 when I was hellbent on completing my northern League set, which I did when heading up the hill to Evenwood Town a month later. Back then, West Auckland were a struggling second division side, but they’re established themselves as one of the title favourites this season, building on the excellent work of former manager Peter Dixon who twice took them to Wembley in the FA Vase. Back in November, Benfield put in one of our best performances of the season, trouncing them 3-0, but it was always going to be hard to replicate it on a windy day with a bumpy pitch to deal with. In the end, we lost 2-0 to a pair of shots from outside the box by a side that were hungrier for the win than we were. Darlington Road has been improved massively; no longer can drivers sit in their cars watching the game. There’s a decent terrace behind the top goal and a perfectly serviceable little stand as well. A decent crowd, a football lesson and a lift home from Gary; not a bad day all told, even if we lost.

Thanks to Gary for the photos of West and Bishops; appreciated