FA Vase, fifth round
Attendance: 398
Bemerton Heath Harlequins. What a splendid name. It
fair leapt out of the draws for the latter rounds of the Vase – and was reason
itself to travel to Co Durham for today’s tie at Spennymoor. For the
uninitiated (and that will be most of you) Bemerton Heath is a district of
Salisbury – just down the road from the equally wonderfully named Fugglestone
St Peter. One of the many things I like about the Vase is that competing clubs
hail from such small places you often have to look them up. As the FA Cup goes to seed
it was nice to get back to basics in the Vase – and on a benign winter’s
afternoon and in a crowd small enough not to feel conspicuous taking pics.
This was one of the biggest matches
in the 24-year history of the Harlequins and Spennymoor were seeking to reach
the quarter-finals of the Vase for the first time. However, in view of Friday’s
sell-out top of the table clash against Darlington 1883 and put in a historical
context, the game wasn’t such a big deal for the hosts which may account for the
slightly low-key atmosphere for a match which puts the winners two wins from
Wembley. (That said, today’s gate still exceeded all but three in the
Conference North). In their pre-2005 incarnation as Spennymoor United the club played
in the Northern Premier League, reached the semi-final of the FA Trophy (in
1978) and were regulars in the proper rounds of the FA Cup.
Spennymoor were hot favourites for this tie as,
indeed, they are for the competition. They have been Northern League champions
for the last three seasons, are unbeaten in the league this season and were
drawn at home for the fourth consecutive round.
Despite all that they went behind to a surprise
Harlequins goal after just two minutes. (From the cheers it didn’t look like
many had made it up from Wiltshire and you can hardly blame them). You always
felt this was a temporary set back, though, and so it proved. The dominant Moors
hit back with two goals before half-time. To their credit the Harlequins stayed
in the match and grabbed an unlikely equaliser on 54 mins. It wasn’t long
before the Moors had regained the lead, though, and they rattled in a fourth to
end the contest with three minutes to go.
During the second half I sat in the grandstand. Next
to me I chatted to a 90-year-old who spent 16 years as the secretary of the
local RAF association (don’t know why he told me that but I tried to look
impressed) and a 78-year-old with a jumble of teeth who has been coming here
since 1957. He shaked me by the hand as we bid farewell at the final whistle. For
me, this, as ever, is likely to be a one-off unless the Moors play Guernsey at home in the quarters or semis. Now
that would be an even more novel southern visitor that it would be hard to
resist.
Style notes: The Harlequins away strip (sadly not
diamond patterned like their home strip) was all orange and the goalie sported a
clashing shade of lilac. I liked the ad for a hairdressers in the programme:
‘Support the Moors in style with Streets Ahead hair salon’. From a quick scan
of the elderly gents around me a short back and sides is the most elaborate
coiffure required by spectators.
Attendance: 398
Following recent improvements to the substantial and
smart Brewery Field ground including new floodlights officially switched on
only last week the Moors are carefully gearing up for promotion back to the
Northern Premier League in a manner which reminds me of Staveley Miners Welfare.
The old terraces behind one goal and pronounced slope of the pitch are the only
hints of the ground’s 106-year past. I particularly liked the new continental-style
dugouts with a garden fence arrangement running behind and above them, an ideal
position from which to do ‘Kilroy was here’ impressions and share views with
the coaching staff.
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| The Northern League lends itself to black and white photography |
During the second half I sat in the grandstand. Next
to me I chatted to a 90-year-old who spent 16 years as the secretary of the
local RAF association (don’t know why he told me that but I tried to look
impressed) and a 78-year-old with a jumble of teeth who has been coming here
since 1957. He shaked me by the hand as we bid farewell at the final whistle. For
me, this, as ever, is likely to be a one-off unless the Moors play Guernsey at home in the quarters or semis. Now
that would be an even more novel southern visitor that it would be hard to
resist.
Star connection: Frank Skinner’s dad played for Spennymoor before the Second World War.
Further viewing: For some great pics of the Harlequins scenic home ground and magnificent clubhouse click here. Hardcore Vase fans will also enjoy this complete recording of Bodmin v. Gornal Athletic on the Cornwall Channel.
Further viewing: For some great pics of the Harlequins scenic home ground and magnificent clubhouse click here. Hardcore Vase fans will also enjoy this complete recording of Bodmin v. Gornal Athletic on the Cornwall Channel.