Cod Almighty | Diary
I don't want to go to Bromley
14 March 2022
Miss Guest Diary writes: So, Town won at Yeovil on Saturday, thus bucking the usual trend of being the team against whom someone in the lower half of the table ends a winless run (see Aldershot earlier this season). A goal from Sean Scannell, who some had thought was destined to be this season's Glen Downey, and another from Manny D – the man with the widest smile in football. I can't say any more than that, as I didn’t go to the game.
It put Town back in the play-off positions, about which I can and will say more.
Since we were last down in the fifth tier the play-off system has undergone a change which heavily weights the second promotion spot in favour of the teams who finish second and third in the table. For those who don't know how it works – and it's hard to find chapter and verse on it – a new qualifying round has been introduced which sees the teams from fourth to seventh compete for a place in the play-off semi-finals, with sixth and seventh playing their game away from home.
As I understand it – and I'm prepared to be told that I've got it wrong – as the table currently stands Town would have to play Halifax away. Then, if they won that game, play Chesterfield away in order to reach the play-off final at Wembley. Knowing our luck, though, when the table is settled in May we'd end up playing the qualifier away at Bromley or Solihull, two places where we've already had dismal losses this season and which I was hoping not to have to visit again for a while. Then, should we prevail in the qualifier, the semi-final would undoubtedly involve the long trip to Ryan Reynolds' Wrexham.
Finishing in sixth or seventh means winning two difficult away games before Town can get a sniff of Wembley. All in all, and I know many won't agree with me, if Town can't manage to finish at least fifth I'd rather we finish eighth, thus avoiding all that stress and expense and keeping our powder dry till next season.
Instead of going to Yeovil, I watched Boreham Wood v Chesterfield on TV and wasn't really impressed with either team. That's not to say I expect Town to have an easy time next weekend at Boreham Wood. They have the meanest defence in the division and are unbeaten at home this season, and they must have something about them to have reached the fifth round of the FA Cup. Town do have a better record against Everton, of course, having won our last game against them at Goodison Park.
Town have only made one previous trip to Boreham Wood's ground, in September 2015, and a jolly trip it was. Outnumbering the home support, over 700 Town fans were rocking on the open terrace behind the goal. Many of them were a little the worse for wear after visiting local hostelries and spent much of the game good naturedly joshing one of the stewards who bore a passing resemblance to Danny Welbeck. Even a mini half-time pitch invasion to take selfies with the Town subs. Let's hope we can keep it as good natured at Chesterfield next month, now we've been granted the "privilege" of a 3pm kick off.
Outnumbering the locals and becoming over-exuberant after taking a drink is nothing new for Town fans – have a read of Pat Bell's account of invading Nottingham and causing panic by "upsetting the morals of this city" in the decades before the last war. Plus ca change…
UTM