Home/away day stories

[Shade]

The Alex Russell/Leeds away thread got me thinking, what are people's best/worst/most bizarre football stories, home or away? Think we might have done this a few years ago on here but time for an update and gives new usernames a chance to contribute

Mine was Orient away in Dec 2008. My mate was conveniently already meeting up with old Uni mates that Saturday night, 4 miles from the ground, so we decided to go to the game and then the reunion. As it would be a fairly late one, I decided I'd drive us and not drink. What a mistake. Firstly, when we got down there we couldn't find the ground and were driving around London's shitty roads with even shittier road signs for the best part of 2 hours. Finally found it and parked up at 2.58pm. Ran down the road and got into the ground just as they kicked off. We went on to lose 2-0, JJ Melligan scored. Horrible wooden seats/benches back then, don't know what it's like now.

Left the ground, only to find a clamp on the car and half a million f#!$ stickers all over the windscreen as I was parked on what, to me, was blanked out double yellow lines (apparently they were just worn...), so had to put up with that as a couple of thousand happy Orient fans went past. Freezing cold, had to wait 2 hours for some lackey to wander over and unlock the clamp. Then spent the next 2 hours driving around looking for this bloody place that my mates reunion was at. Gave up, drove home, both extremely fed up. Thoroughly miserable day.

[Lord Elpuz]

For me it has to be Saturday 15th November 2008:

“Hereford moved off the bottom of League One with an emphatic 3-0 victory over fellow strugglers Cheltenham.

First-half goals from striker Steve Guinan in the 15th and 26th minutes put the Bulls on their way to victory for the first time in five games.”

The infamous MA had taken control of our Club a few weeks beforehand and the CTFC faithful turned up at Edgar Street full of anticipation that this match would represent the turning point in our fortunes. It was a truly miserable day as our fans were herded into an inadequate uncovered space behind the goal, but still expecting our team to put Hereford to the sword. One of our former players then scored a couple of piledrivers against us, as we were humiliated by the League’s bottom team. On the way back on the double-decker, I noticed the headlights of the bus getting dimmer as we reached the outskirts of the City. I recognised the alternator must have failed and the bus was running on a dying battery. The foolhardy driver carried on going up the long hill and sure enough, halfway up, the bus stopped in total darkness and the passengers all had to disembark onto the grass verge on a cold damp night in complete darkness, until a relief bus arrived some 2 hours later. I think I got home at about 22:30, absolutely seething.

[Si Robin]

Not sure which story is best in fairness:

Notts Forest away - 2007 - My brother had been drinking all morning and got absolutely smashed. At half-time he was thrown out because he fell into a steward. As he couldn't be trusted to be left alone, I stormed out as well, leading to him refusing to leave as I would miss the second half. This led to him being arrested and me being stuck in Nottingham waiting for him to be released when he had sobered up - which didn't happen until around 10pm. Luckily, my other passengers managed to source other lifts home.

Notts County away - 2010 - The dreaded drink was involved again. This time, for reasons I won't get into, on the way home we stopped at Tamworth Services. My brother (yep, him again) and I got into a scrap and this led to us being left behind by the mini-bus (at my behest) and us being forced to walk to the nearest train station and getting the train back to Cheltenham. Naturally I made him pay.

I've also fallen asleep in the second halves at Huddersfield and Southampton, been threatened to be barred for life from the Gas Club in Huddersfield (for singing about how we were going down with the Huddersfield fans), got lost on both occasions that I've been to Chester, broken down on the way to Yeovil (fan belt went) and had bricks thrown at us in Kettering.

I miss away days.

[Ralph]

Donny away at Belle Vue when we were behind the goal and they had an area with the snack kiosk in it for home fans right to our one side and the bricks that came over from them into the away end. We couldn't get any snacks because of where the kiosk was. The home fans start trying to climb into our end and there was some old granny steward about 5' tall that was the last line of defence stopping them before the police got there

Sittingbourne away in the fog

Gosport Boro or Thatcham (think it was Thatcham) away in a cup game and the flymo boys were all in fancy dress going up and down the sideline following the lino with every move he made.

Boreham Wood bricks thrown at us after the cup game when we were in the away end and having to get on the pitch to avoid them. Then the little oiks were still there throwing stuff on a roundabout as we were all driving out

I really did love the old days. Things changed when we made it to the FL

[RegencyCheltenhamSpa]

Home game for me I think. Can't remember the oppo but remember the morning.

Height of my hectic London living and Friday plans meaning I was not coming back until the Saturday. Pish poor planning meant I had no travel booked so yo avoid on the day train ticket extortion I tried to buy a National Express ticket in the morning. Website down. Went to Victoria 30 or so mins before departure to buy ticket. Whole IT system down and tickets being booked and written down by hand. So huge queue and went nowhere in 15 mins.

So grabbed a black cab "Paddington as fast as you can". Just missed the direct service to CNM Spa. So boarded a Cardiff bound train and alighted at Swindon (Wilts). Catastrophic failure to a chugger train meant no service for an hour. Already 1pm, so an hour to wait would mean missing kick off. To the taxi rank " how much to Cheltenham ". Deal agreed off we set. Arrive at step-parental home. Up to my room, quick spray of Lynx, grab my ST from the bedside drawer and the CTFC top from the wardrobe and quick 25 min march. Made it in time for a swift one in Parklands before a Hancox " coffee" before taking my seat and sighing. I had made it.

Away days: Woking being called off in the fog just after Gillespie put us 2-1 up and two of us celebrated in front of / surrounded by Woking kids. Made it back to a packed Uni bar where Champs League was on. Still in our Cheltenham tops which prompted many questions from the foreign hordes packing the Three Tuns. Was only about 5 metres away from Monica Lewinsky who was studying a masters at the time, but the CTFC top obviously not Presidential enough to catch her eye.

Chatting to Terry Gornell whilst he ate a huge pizza on the slow train back from Hartlepool to Newcastle after we won 1-0 was interesting.

[Ralph]

Cardiff home and away in 7 days league and cup and having the soul crew on one side and a net dividing us and the kid Cardiff fans behind the goal. Them all lobbing coins through the net at us. I collected 4.65 that day lol

[Henry The Dog]

Any away game where you really make the effort to get there and the team don't seem to bother, Blackpool away last season or Exeter. Boreham Wood for the freezing cold and bricks being thrown as we were kept in. Plymouth as arrived in heavy rain got soaking wet walking to the ground, lost in injury time and still hadn't dried out by the whistle. Southend away in the cup, arrived 20 mins late as stuck on M25, ground all locked, managed to find a steward who let us in for £10 then we missed a penalty and lost in extra time! Losing to the tiggers when Dale Watkins chipped a wonder goal against us.

[East End Robin]

Best experience was as a kid. My grandad is a hardcore Fulham fan, and held a season ticket for around 20 years. He used to volunteer to look after the mascots at Fulham for every home match after he retired. We drew Fulham away in the cup in 2004 when they were in the premiership, so we decided it that I would try to be Cheltenham mascot for that day. The experience was amazing - it was my grandad's job to look after me, so he took me to meet all the Cheltenham and Fulham players (Fulham had the likes of Van Der Sar in their team at the time). I remember getting a massive cheer from the Robins faithful when during the warm up, dressed in my replica Cheltenham kit, I decided to wack a ball in the back of the net in front of them. We played really well that match, but lost to an injury time winner.

As for bad experiences, living in London has allowed me to bring friends to a few fairly awful matches.

During my first year of university one Friday evening a friend of mine said he wanted to go to a football match the following day. It just so happened that Cheltenham were away to Stevenage the following day, which wasn't too far to travel. So I convinced him, and two others that we invited along, to be one of around 200 sat in the fairly empty away end at Stevenage, having travelled by train for over an hour and walked a good 20 minutes from the station to the ground. Of course the year was 2014, so we went out and got walloped 5-1. Yates was sacked not long after, and we know what happened after that. None of those friends have since been to another Robins match.

Another one that springs to mind was Dagenham away that same season. This time I got to bring a different three friends to sit in a bloody freezing January stadium, and watch us lose 3-1 whilst a person sitting in front of us was kicked out of the ground by the stewards for some reason, and CBB tried to start a fight with our fans.

[RegencyCheltenhamSpa]

Funny how things go. I took some London friends to their first match at Dagenham not long after Yates took over, and we won 2-0. They loved it.

[longmover]

Gloucester City (a) boxing day 1993 (?) rained all game and got soaked, but first time I experienced a proper away atmosphere with CTFC, the away end was rammed and loud.

Burton (a) when we new we would be promoted and fans sat on the pitch waiting for the glow city result to come in, look where Burton are now.

Bath City (h) Fa trophy 1/4 final, crazy ten or so minutes.

[RegencyCheltenhamSpa]

Swansea away, either Boxing Day or New Years. Nightmare finding parking so used the nearby retail park. Post match a steward tried to make my mum, two kid brothers and me walk round three sides of the ground rather than the quick way behind one stand against the flow of Swans. After making it blatant to him that we were the least likely people to cause trouble he let us through on condition we hid our colours for our own safety. Anyway, back to the car. Littlest brother realises he must have dropped his Gameboy/DS game, which he got for Christmas the same week, under his seat. So we trudge back to the Lib, explain what happened, and get let back in to find it. Which we did, just before the litter picker working through the away block got to it. At least it meant by the time we got back to the car the traffic had subsided (as much as it can subside at a retail park in post-Christmas sale fever). Same brother hated Downing ever since that game. Didn’t start Gillespie, our favourite player, brought him on at 4-0 down, he scores a great individual goal and hits the bar with another individual effort. Downing never forgiven by my brother for not starting Gillespie that day.

[Si Robin]

That was Boxing Day in 2007, RCS. Swansea were the best team I have ever seen us play a League game against that season. They were phenomenal.


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[cagliostro]

FA Trophy semi final 1998 - Dover - came home via Ostend....a night to remember for many reasons LOL
Cag

[Malabus]

Has anyone mentioned the bomb scare.

[longmover]

Ah yes, missed the end of that game as had to go to work. who was playing over the park?

[Jerry St Clair]

Oddly, I visited Whaddon Rd as a Reading supporter for the FA Cup game in 1997.

First game was postponed (waterlogged pitch?) but we were already in Cheltenham so had a few drinks in pub right opposite the away turnstiles as I recall. Did there used to be a pub on Whaddon Rd?

Came back for the rearranged fixture, drank in the same pub and stood on the corner of what is now the Colin Farmer and got drenched. After the game GlosPol, clearly treating this as a massive game with potential for large scale disorder (despite Reading having no reputation for anything of the sort) lined up at the exit behind a metal barrier to try and keep us in the ground. Failed miserably with Us just pushing past and proceeding to leave perfectly peacefully.

Thoroughly enjoyed the replay. Cheltenham had a large presence in The Spread Eagle outside Elm Park. Were any of you in there?

[London Exile]

Oddly, I visited Whaddon Rd as a Reading supporter for the FA Cup game in 1997.

First game was postponed (waterlogged pitch?) but we were already in Cheltenham so had a few drinks in pub right opposite the away turnstiles as I recall. Did there used to be a pub on Whaddon Rd?

Came back for the rearranged fixture, drank in the same pub and stood on the corner of what is now the Colin Farmer and got drenched. After the game GlosPol, clearly treating this as a massive game with potential for large scale disorder (despite Reading having no reputation for anything of the sort) lined up at the exit behind a metal barrier to try and keep us in the ground. Failed miserably with Us just pushing past and proceeding to leave perfectly peacefully.

Thoroughly enjoyed the replay. Cheltenham had a large presence in The Spread Eagle outside Elm Park. Were any of you in there?

The Cat & Fiddle used to be just up the road opposite the chippy. Housing of sorts now

[RegencyCheltenhamSpa]

Away turnstiles for the Reading game would have been Parklands carpark or club car park? Or had we switched the ends by then. I know Boreham Wood I stood behind the goal where Hazlewoods is now but for Reading I was in the UCAS.

[Malabus]

Ah yes, missed the end of that game as had to go to work. who was playing over the park?

No idea who was playing but it was their biggest attendance.

[RegencyCheltenhamSpa]

Ah yes, missed the end of that game as had to go to work. who was playing over the park?

No idea who was playing but it was their biggest attendance.

Always assumed it was Gloucester.