Sunset over Droylsden

Droylsden is a convenient away game for midweek: to go straight there, I can leave Liverpool after 6pm. There are four reasonably fast trains to Manchester per hour (even if three leave within 10 minutes), going onwards in three different directions, reducing the chance of being affected by disruption on one line. This time, trains going on to Yorkshire were cancelled due to a whippet chewing through a track circuit in the Dewsbury area, but I caught the electric train (this really should not sound as exciting as it is - it's grim up north) going on to the Airport, and a tram at Piccadilly. The Butcher's Arms (or possibly Butchers' Arms, the club website is not specific on how many butchers) ground is a short walk from the tram - shorter than the time waiting to cross the road at the traffic lights outside the King's Head. I had a better journey than the players, officials and kit, who had mostly been stuck in traffic, and, with no coach, not even the reassurance everyone is delayed together.

I arrived to find a small crowd gathered round the team sheet, and thought clubs could assist in raising the number of people who can read it at once by putting a couple of pairs of reading glasses on a string, when a gentleman emerged from the office going one better and handing copies round.

I took up position for the teams lining up, looking into the sunset. This did not do much for my numbers, boots and haircuts pictures for identifying the opposition, but it looked striking.

Fortunately for me, we were attacking into the sun, and it did not cause too many problems for the players, as we opened the scoring with Lloyd Dean heading in a James Edgar corner.

Droylsden keeper James Coates organises his defence - seemingly unaware of the threat beside him

James Edgar takes the corner ...

... and Lloyd Dean heads it in

The reflection of the strong low sunlight on the clubhouse building was causing a few lighting problems, and I was glad I had taken this picture in raw so I could correct them myself.

The hosts picked up with two goals a few minutes before half time. We usually expect the best sunsets at the coast, but Droylsden was putting on a good show, one to delight the local shepherds who look after the lamb on the club badge.

Primary illumination for the second half came from the lights, with a pylon in each corner. The light is better closer to the goal line and touchlines than with the more common side arrangement.

Sam Staunton-Turner

Bram Johnstone

In the last few seasons we have not enjoyed a good record at Droylsden, former Cables Player Assistant Manager Ged Murphy having an annoyingly good record against us since he returned to his home town club.

Ged Murphy

It looked as though we might be in a similar position this evening, until Lloyd Dean scored a second with 15 minutes to go. Both sides worked equally hard after this to secure the win, with our efforts denied by a particularly good performance from James Coates in the home goal.

I packed up my equipment a few minutes before the end, ready for a quick getaway. My train was at 2207 from Piccadilly, with an hour until the next one. I timed the tram out at 17 minutes with no delays. Had there been a couple of goals between the teams, I would probably have slipped away early for an earlier tram. Not that I knew when they ran: they do not publish a timetable, Traveline gives timings based on 12 minute intervals since the start of service, there is no real time information online, and I had to obtain the journey time by observation, as they do not publish that either. I am not sure what it is with trams, Croydon has the same issues.

In any event, I knew by the time the tram arrived that my train was 10 minutes late due to the earlier problems in Yorkshire, so I could stroll to the platform rather than try to sprint past people who do not realise it is not called a moving walkway for nothing. Realtime Trains is your friend when out and about.

The rest of the pictures from the game can be seen on the club website here, and on Google Photos here.

Final score: Droysden 2 Prescot Cables 2 (Dean 2).