Dewsbury Rangers v Toronto Wolfpack
AFC Emley v Eccleshill United
Kinsley Greyhounds
Avery local jaunt for me today, centred around the first ever game on British soil for Toronto Wolfpack, who will be playing in next seasons rugby league championship.
This meant off Sowerby in the light for once. My train arrives on the right. Between Leeds and Manchester, each hour there is one all stops, one semi fast, and one fast service. For capacity reasons, those that get the express service, get the Pacer, so the train on the left is a 142 'fast' service, that has just flown through the station.
The York - Blackpool services don't stop at Sowerby so it was a couple of stops up to Hebden Bridge.
Only a short stop at the wonderfully restored station, before a 158 took me onwards.
The route over Copy Pit is quite remote, and was shrouded in mist.
The plus side being it also obscured much of Burnley.
The Colne - Blackpool services on this route are the trains that pass the most league clubs per mileage run, taking in Burnley, Accrington, Blackburn, Preston and Blackpool on their 49 mile trip. A hundred years ago Nelso could have been added to that list.
By Accrington, the sun was blazing.
I jumped off.
My destination was the floodlights on the left horizon, which is Accrington Academy.
First of all a quick look around the town centre. I'm sure this is the pinnacle of Arnold Chippendale's retail empire.
There were three brass bands contending with each other. I used to like a brass band, but my move up north has meant the interest has somewhat waned, I am unsure if this is due to over-familiarity or giving up binge drinking.
I headed northwards, eventually locating my destination.
These days, road signs seem to be inundated with rival team stickers, declaring things like "Woking Tifosi on tour 07".
However, the ones in Accrington were of a much more sinister nature, obviously put up by those groups that want to preserve the quintessential British way of life. That way of life being in a Whetherspoons by 0930 each morning in order to spend your disability allowance.
However, the academy was deserted.
I'd previously seen Accrington Reserves on the pitches behind the Crown Ground, so I headed there, but no signs of life there either.
I'd checked the Accrington site the previous evening, so checked again and it was still showing the game.
However, Rochdale had been good enough to give an update.
So a wasted journey. While I was here, I thought I might as well have a look at what the main stadium looked like these days. Firstly, it has a stupid name.
Without doubt, the football team is the most famous thing about the town, although it is only up against Janice Battersby, Bumble, Mike Duxbury and the drummer from Dire Straits. However, it seems the club is only well known for having a quirky name, resigning from the league and thatfuckingmilkadvert. No one has affection for Halifax?
The ground is a different one they had to their previous league days, and it is fair to say there are a few signs of its non-league heritage. The main portakabin offices.
The luxurious players entrance.
A couple of new stands have been built since they rejoined the league. These have been of a strange style, as they are a goalpost supported cantilever, despite being only ten feet high. This design means the trusses can just be raised if there was ever a need to extend the stand.
A quick glimpse inside the ground.
And a lone spectator on the uncovered terrace, four hours early for the afternoon's game against Plymouth.
Although I hadn't seen an academy game, I was able to record their transport; branded six year old long wheel base transit with front hub caps.
Heading back into town, and semi-Hovis scene.
The town centre is in the valley, and is absolutely dominated by the railway viaduct.
Back to the station.
Sorry, the eco-station.
The station used to be the junction with the line up from Manchester via what is now the preserved East Lancs railway. This was the main route so the station was orientated to it, the platforms for the route to Burnley being an awkward annex. The closure of the former route has seen a Tesco built on that part of the station, the remaining platforms being on a horrific set of reverse curves that have a very punitive 5 over 15 PSR. My onward service starts to negotiate the Senna chicane.
This was a Manchester bound service taken to Todmorden.
This passed over the recently re-opened Todmorden curve, which links the Manchester - Leeds Calder Valley route to the Copy Pit line without having to reverse at Hebden, and saw the introduction of a Manchester - Blackburn via Burnley service. This means that direct trains run from Blackburn to Manchester, that depart in completely opposite direction, the other going via Bolton.
I swapped platforms for a Leeds via Dewsbury service.
Back past my flat, four hours after leaving, and with no game ticked.
Into Brighouse, the station is an almost unique example of a millenium project that actually opened in 2000. It had closed in 1970 when the line became freight only.
I wandered up out of town on the Bradford road. A short walk took me here.
The ground is a large sports complex, taking in cricket and rugby as well as a very opulent club house.
Unprecedented scenes.
Still not the worst ever UK edition of Pimp-my-Ride.
The glamour in the centre, the normality on the right, the reality check bottom left.
The club were well prepared for the day, with an excellent programme and free Canadian flag. Entry was via the £2 programme, tremendous value.
Brighouse Rangers 26 v Toronto Wolfpack 28, Trialist game.
The original Brighouse Rangers were founded in 1879 and were one of those having a pint outside Huddersfield station in 1895, choosing to be a founder of the Northern Union. However, they disbanded in 1906. Since then, they have come and gone, the current set up restarting in the mid 1970s. They are still part of the winter set up, playing in division 1 of the Pennine league.
Canada has always had a keen rugby league following, but has never put this towards either a strong club or national side. This has changed recently, mainly due to the efforts of Eric Perez, a Canadian who went to university in York and became interested in the game. He set up a Toronto team, but looking at travelling times, it was just as easy to join the British set up as it was the North American league. So Toronto Wolfpack have joined League 1, the third tier of rugby league. They will pay the travelling costs of the away teams, and will play in six week blocks of home and away games. They have set up a UK training base at Brighouse Rangers.
When Brighouse reformed, they played at the town cricket ground, but had a clubhouse on a large scruffy site in the town centre. In 2000, they sold this to Tesco, and were able to open this very plush complex.
Although there are covers...
...these actually belong to the bowls section.
The seating provision is perhaps in need of an upgrade.
This is the only cover for the rugby, but who is the lone figure in the dug outs?
A subtle presence from the new tennants.
There is a programme on local cable called Rugby AM, which is a bit like its football counterpart but filmed on a camera phone. They were interviewing Eric Perez and also coach Paul Rowley, who mysteriously quit superleague bound Leigh, then emerged at Toronto, showing they must be paying a whack.
The team manger is ex Bradford/Wigan/Great Britain coach Brian Noble. We ended up in a bizarre discussion about the psycopathic nature of his hooker, who despite being one of the smaller palyers in the team, was the one Noble was most fearful of, seemingly solely based on his day job as a mortuary attendant.
The teams entered the fray, with it looking like a very low turnout.
Team pictures recorded for prosperity. Toronto showed their novice status...
...by not having the required one player who doesn't notice what is going on and has to sprint into the picture.
The ref looked like he had come straight from a sex dungeon, but it was actually a body cam.
By kick off, the crowd had swelled, to much higher than most league 1 games.
But almost immediately, Brighouse took the lead.
The reason for the game was that the trials process for Toronto was part of a reality tv series. This was the fifth week after games in Philadelphia, Tampa, Jamaica and Vancouver.
There was some improvisation of TV gantrys.
Toronto soon came back into it, scoring a try.
Converting it amidst a decent collection of groundsman's clutter.
Though this pride and joy was on display. Not sure if it really does require a crash helmet and gloves.
The Tesco money obviously went as far as fancy padded touch flags in club colours.
Another favourite of mine, rusting barbecues, with no less than three on display. In the background, was the surreal presence of a bloke cleaning zorb balls.
The game then ebbed and flowed.
Brighouse looked to be the better team, and lead 16-12 at the break.
I'd love to give you some tips on who to look out for, but Toronto didn't have any numbers.
A dramatic finale to the game saw Toronto score at the death to win 26-28.
I headed off, though staying off the cricket pitch.
Not many clubhouses can boast such splendour.
I left with the teams still being applauded.
Conveniently, my next bus onwards went from right outside the ground.
This took me along into Huddersfield, though I was too late for the top-deck, front seat prime position.
A quick change at the bus station, took me on a Wakefield bound Yorkshire Tiger service, which despite its name, is actually run by the German government via Deutsche Bahn and Arriva.
My bus departed on the hour, along with about ten others, so there is this grand prix like start onto the dual carriageway.
We headed south east, onto Emley Moor, going right by the TV tower seen from Penistone a few weeks ago. Still the tallest freestanding structure in the UK.
Heading into Emley, and the floodlights could be spotted on the horizon.
Except by the bus driver, who went flying past the stop outside the ground, and refused to stop until the next one.
Walking back up, and the floodlights behind the housing, with teenagers joy riding a hot wired scrambler on the right.
It was a good job I had seen the floodlights, as the entrance was a track off the main road, with the tiniest of signage (it is the second one down).
Eventually, I was at the ground.
I got a £2 discount and free programme for arriving 25 minutes into the game.
AFC Emley 3 v Eccleshill United 2, Toolstation Northern Counties East League, Division 1
Emley have an interesting history. The original Emley side were formed in 1903 and progressed through the Huddersfield District League, to the Yorkshire league which then became the Northern Counties East League in the 1980s. After winning the league, they eventually gained promotion to the Northern Premier League. Having already been Vase finalists, the 1990s saw FA cup fame, reaching the third round and a tie against West Ham, narrowly losing 2-1. However, the ground is shared with the cricket club and this caused problems with more stringent grading. Therefore, the club decided to move in with Wakefield Trinity, the reserves carrying on in the NCEL in Emley. The first team renamed as Wakefield and Emley but the core support remained in the village with the reserves. Eventually, they formed their own team, AFC Emley, and the Wakefield side petered out in 2014.
Eccleshill United were formed in 1948 and are from the northern outskirts of Bradford. They played in the Bradford Amateur and then the West Riding County Amateur League before stepping up to the Northern Counties East League in 1985, where they have been since, regularly swapping between the divisions.
The club moved to the Welfare ground in 1957 and facilities are concentrated on two sides, mainly deriding from the NPL grading requirements.
The 250 seat main stand was opened in 1989.
The covers behind the near goal are all second hand from the coal board, the largest one coming from Denby Grange colliery.
Behind the far goal is what appears to be hard standing...
...but is actually a very shallow two-step terrace.
To go with the narrowest two step terrace.
And an obscure corner terrace.
On the far touchline is the cricket ground.
The fence is removed for the cricket season, errecting instructions are painted on it.
The adjacent cricket square gives the pitch a pronounced hump.
I arrived with the score already 2-1, and a mad scramble prevented it going 3-1.
The fiercest game was going on behind the goal.
This then spilled onto the main pitch at half time, involving the away subs.
Eventually taking over half the pitch.
At the other end, the home subs were warming up with two stewards.
I headed to the 'Dug out diner' for a cup of tea.
Which they were quite happy to add a side order of mushy peas to. Good work.
Back to the more mainstream stickering.
Seeing as half the world seems to have a Stenhousemuir supporters club, it is about time they started repaying the favour.
This is without doubt my agricultural machine of the season.
Whilst there were no @keepers_towels on display, the away goalie had a gloves bag, something I'd not seen since the retirement of Bruce Grobbelaar.
Into the second half, and the away side got a very dubious penalty.
Which was dispatched.
However, the home side then regained the lead.
They had most of the rest on the game but couldn't score.
Eccleshill almost snatching an equaliser but hit the bar.
The game finnished 3-2, just as the tower finally emerged from the mist. This was Emley's tenth straight win and saw them top of the league.
I headed off, noting the novel touch of writing the next game details in human faeces.
Night had fallen, with the TV tower lit in the behind the sorry remains of Emley Cross.
My onward bus arrived.
This dropped me down into Wakefield.
The delights of Wakefield bus station on a Saturday evening.
Onto a private operator heading for South Elmsall, which had been torn apart by the feral youth on its inward journey.
Off at Kinsley.
I was rounding my evening off at the dogs.
Kinsley was a flapping track for many years, but went licensed early in the new century.
It is located right next to the main Leeds - Doncaster railway, so BAGS meetings are good for a bit of cranking inbetween races.
Shockingly, I had two reverse forecasts come in from the first three races. Although these were only £2 bets, there were a lot of christmas parties in the restraunt, so the Tote was a lot higher than normal. As this had already exceeded my expected win tally by two, and paid for the day out, I gave it another couple of races then headed off.
I walked back to Fitzwilliam, for a 321/9 on the Donny - Leeds shack attack.
Into Leeds for a Brighouse service.
This was taken to Halifax.
Adjacent to the station is the Quality Street factory, in full production for christmas. Probably making green triangles tonight.
My Manchester Victoria bound service then arrived.
Which took me back to Sowerby.
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