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Horsforth St Margaret’s Reserves  3  Golcar United Reserves  1

Yorkshire Amateur League - Championship

The rainy season is upon us, and while we are certainly not in Japanese typhoon territory, it is starting to cause a few issues from a football perspective.

I’d got Wortley v Lower Hopton on the radar, but after swapping texts with the club it soon came to light that it was going to be dependant upon a pitch inspection. It failed, and with Kibworth Town being off as well I did start to wonder about 3G options, especially in the North which seemed harder hit than elsewhere.

As luck would have it, Horsforth St Margaret’s Reserves were down as playing at home, so having once again swapped texts with Ryan (a player / secretary) who was incredibly helpful, and having also established that they were on a 3G, my mind was made up, it was time to head to Leeds Trinity University.

I do like the North side of Leeds, especially the corridor that runs up past Kirkstall Abbey and out towards the airport, it makes for a pleasant journey, and you always know that the venues for the football will typically be good ones, and the choices of pubs indeed plentiful.

Horsforth St Margaret’s first team play in the Supreme Division of the Yorkshire Amateur League, while the ressies play in the Championship (third tier). As you go through Horsforth and out along Brownberrie Lane, the clubs ground appears on the left, but this is just used by the junior sides and the third and fourth teams. A little further along the lane is the University, where the firsts and seconds play, presumably because of grading requirements and pitch availability.

Once parked up and safe in the knowledge that car parking charges don’t apply at weekends, it was time to give the student union bar a try, and with it take a trip back in time!

I went to University at Keele, in Staffordshire, and they were blessed with bars. You had Union Square, you had BJ’s, you had the Main Union and then each halls of residence had it’s own bar, which in my case was Lindsay Bar. My favourite was BJ’s, myself Craig and Suzy always went in on a Monday night, they had a deal on whereby Kronenbourg was just £1 a pint (it was 1991). It was never very busy and the jukebox was ours, with favourites being REM, Guns N Roses and of course who could ever forget ‘Zoom’ by Fat Larry’s Band!

I tend to think Student Union’s have changed a bit since my day, not least the pricing. A pint of lager was £3.50 which certainly didn’t smack of student subsidies, whereas the food was very reasonable, I had a very edible warm ham, cheese and chicken wrap for just £2.90. They didn’t take cash though, it was cards only, what is the World coming to?

Just across the way was the 3G pitch where today’s action was going to take place. Visiting Golcar, who’s first team have just been promoted to the North West Counties League, and with it they are getting some unreal attendances, sat top of the table with three wins from three. The ‘Maggies’ on the other hand had two wins and a defeat from their opening three games.

The first half was pretty much one way traffic, with the hosts racing into a three goal lead thanks to some very clinical football in the final third which saw them get behind the opposition back four seemingly at will.

Golcar pulled a goal back in the second period and looked a better outfit after the break. They could count themselves somewhat fortunate to still have eleven players on the pitch when the referee failed to see a head butt on a Maggies player following an altercation, but despite finishing the game strongly, the hosts hung on and on the first half display alone, deserved the three points.

The journey back to blighty was a straightforward one, with another of the YAL top flight venues in the bag, so just Wortley to go now, and they themselves have still not played a home game yet this season.

I’m not sure when I’ll next get the opportunity to sample another student union bar, but when I do, I’ll remember to take my credit card, because apparently, this is the 21^st century?

“Zoom, just one look and then my heart went boom………”