2022 in review - 55 football games

Football doesn't divide into calendar years, but even so the Futbology App can give you a summary. So here is what my footballing 2022 looked like. 

My 55 games is a record for a calendar year, as is the number of new football grounds I visited. The 16-0 high score is my all-time record as well. 

Football only restarted in Wales a couple of weeks into the New Year after the 2021 Christmas lockdown. My first game of the year was my first visit to Lydstep Park, home of Cardiff Draconians on 15th January. My final game of 2022 was on 29th December at the Montgomery Waters Meadow watching Shrewsbury Town contrive to lose 1-0 to Cheltenham Town. 

I went to two cup finals - the Welsh Cup final at Cardiff City Stadium and the first final of the new Ardal Southern Cup, at the Bont, home of Penydarren BGC in Merthyr Tydfil. I saw one Cymru game, a defeat to the Netherlands. And I went to several Shrewsbury games including a trip to Portsmouth, which is the furthest I've been to see them play in a long while. 

There is a funny twist to the record score. The game was Cardiff Corinthians versus Aberystwyth Exiles in the FAW Trophy. A few days before Christmas I discovered that a new work colleague, Charlie, was the goalkeeper who let in 16 goals in that game! I'm not sure he was happy to be reminded of the scoreline. 

I have already kicked off 2023's matchgoing by seeing Barry Town win at Llantwit Major today! It was also my first new ground of the new year.