Summery season summary

I didn't go to any football matches in May, but this week I went to watch Cymru's women's team play Czechia in their final group game qualifier for the Women's World Cup. It was my final game of the season. Cymru won 3-1 to make sure I wrapped up my season on a high.

I feel like I had a good season, even though 47 matches is a few less than I've managed in recent seasons. Even with the slightly reduced number of games I completed four and a bit of the six goals I set myself for the season.

My 9 new grounds this season means I hit a new milestone of 150 football grounds. That was one of my season goals. 

My season's map of all the 27 grounds I went to has one significant outlier. 

Yep, it was my trip to Malaga. (Read my match report.) Going to a game in Spain with my friend, Jim, was another ambition for the season that I'm happy I ticked off.

Two of the other new grounds were watching Shrewsbury playing away, at Swindon and Oldham respectively. At the start of the season I listed six possible Shrewsbury away games to go to. Swindon was on the list, Oldham was not. I didn't make it to any of my other targets on the list, a mix of other commitments and crap scheduling. 

Shrewsbury had a pretty dire season, saved by a new manager bounce when Gavin Cowan came in as manager and won 5 games in a row. I didn't see any of those wins. In fact, I only saw one win in the six matches I went to.

Cardiff Draconians had a good season, finishing sixth in their first season in the second tier. Barry Town also did well, finishing third and winning the MG Cup. I couldn't go to the final because I was at a bucket list Thousand Yard Stare gig. I went to the Welsh Cup final though, and saw Caernarfon lift the trophy for the first time in their history. 

The Dracs helped me to another one of my season goals - ticking off all the grounds in the Cymru South. I managed that early in the season, with a trip to Carmarthen Town in August. My final domestic game of the season was a play off match for Poole Town - this took me up to 10 Poole Town games, which was another target for me this season.

One goal I missed was another game in Scotland. My trip up there at the end of October didn't work out football-wise, but I had the fantastic consolation of watching a rugby international at Murrayfield instead. 

I'm currently thinking up some new goals for next year during a brief break from football. (I'm boycotting the ghastly World Cup!) However, pre-season friendlies and the qualifying rounds for UEFA competitions start soon so I don't have long to wait. 

My April 2026 round-up (part 2)

This month has been so busy I've had to do two round ups. In part 1, I mentioned canvassing, litter-picking, going to a local history evening, football and loads of other stuff. I've also blogged a Book of the Month, an Album of the Month, and about my monthly Blood Bowl fixture with Bryan.

I spent the first and last weekends of April in Shropshire, celebrating my birthday at the beginning of the month by feeding rhinos at West Midlands Safari Park, and then celebrating my youngest niece's birthday with a family party on the final Saturday.

Since my interim round up post I have been in Liverpool for the Diabetes UK Professional Conference (DUKPC). 

The programme I work on had a bigger presence than ever before including involvement in some sessions. This meant I had my second bucket list moment of the month (after the rhinos).

Nine years ago, in 2017, when I was working in the NHS, I went to DUKPC as a punter with my friend Sara. It was being held in Manchester. I remember saying to her that one day we would be presenting together at the conference... and nine years later my prediction came true!

The whole conference went very well from our perspective. We had a great team of young people working with us. It was even sunny the full time we were there.

After the conference I went to Shrewsbury for the weekend. My niece's birthday party included a bouncy castle and a piñata. I took this photo of my Mum just before she delivered the killing blow that smashed the poor colourful donkey.

Everyone else had a go too. Some people were more dangerous flailing with a stick than others!

I went to Shrewsbury Town's final home game of the season in the afternoon. It closed out a nice symmetry as I was at their opening home game back in August. It's been a long old season and they looked in danger of a second successive relegation for much of it. But they were safe by the time this game came around. It finished 2-2 and Shrewsbury's equaliser was voted goal of the season a few days later!

Blue the Lion, the Shrewsbury mascot, got injured during the half time mascot race with Fleetwood's Captain Cod and had to be helped away. It's perhaps an indicator of what a poor season it's been that their mascot lost a foot race with a fish.

I got to see some bonus football watching Zac on the Sunday morning. His team were drubbed so we went to Greggs afterwards to drown our sorrows in sausage rolls.

My final game of April was Gloucester City v Poole Town in the play-off semi-final in the Southern League Premier Division South. I went with Steve. It was a great game but I'll mainly remember it for some terrace aggro that delayed the game when two scrappers fell over an advertising hoarding.

Gloucester won 3-2 after extra time. I think it was the first game I'd seen this season that went to extra time.

It was my 10th Poole Town game. I got a Futbology badge when I checked in.

And then on the last day of April I did my final station trip of the Senedd election campaign, with my friend Anna.  I have done 28 of these weekly sessions since October and I am weirdly going to miss them when the election is done.

May is going to be busy with the election and then some traveling. So next month's round up will likely be another full one.

Futbology triple whammy

Last week I blogged about getting a badge for my 650th game logged on Futbology. What I didn't expect was for my next game to be a milestone badge as well - with Ludlow Town's stadium becoming my 150th football ground.

A couple of days later and I went to watch AFC Bridgnorth v Chelmsley Town. Back in the 90s I used to go and watch Bridgnorth Town - the previous iteration of AFC Bridgnorth - with my Dad. More than 30 years later I hit two milestones at Crown Meadow - 10 matches there and 10 matches with Bridgnorth's main football club in both its guises.

Purists might say that AFC Bridgnorth and Bridgnorth Town aren't the same team, but I don't care. It's my list and I'm counting it as 10 games!

I think this is the first time I've had milestone badges at 3 games in a row. Which make me a happy football nerd.

Futbology milestone

Last night I went to one of the worst local stadia to watch a game, in vile weather. Happily though, Cardiff Draconians won, making this a great game to hit a Futbology milestone!

How bad was the venue and the weather? This bad:

Match report: Malaga CF v Albacete Balompie

The main reason I went to Malaga was the opportunity to watch the football team my friend Jim supports. Malaga CF play in Liga Segunda - the Spanish second division - in a stadium that was rebuilt for the 1982 World Cup, La Rosaleda. (Scotland played their 1982 World Cup games there.)

I'd not been to a game in Spain before and I'm pleased I made my Spanish matchgoing debut at an authentic lower league club in a ground with a bit of history. Although saying it like that does make me sound a bit soccer hipster!

Malaga's opponents were Albacete Balompie. I'd not heard of them before. They are from Albacete and Balompie is another word for football (bal-om-pie, ball with feet). I think balompie is my new favourite alternative word for soccer. 

We had seen La Rosaleda in the distance when we climbed up to Gibralfaro Castle the day before. It was a short walk from the city centre along the heavily canalised river and we got a good view of the stadium as we approached.

We had plenty of time to get to the game as it was a 9pm kick off. One of Jim's friends, Salva, is a die-hard fan so we met him before the game and went to greet the team bus as it arrived at the stadium. That also gave me an opportunity to buy a scarf at one of the merch stalls set up opposite the ground. 

I decided not to buy the Jesus scarf.

There was a protest by the ultras just before the game started. Some ultras dressed as cartoon burglars scurried about the ultras terrace representing corrupt referees "stealing" points from Malaga. We were sat next to the ultras section so we had a good view of their antics.

They were soon back to their normal boisterous support.

As mentioned, this was my first game in Spain and it really was a cracking match. Rapid end to end play with pacey strikers pouncing on defensive errors, midfielders dribbling the ball forwards from box to box, and nobody given much time to dwell on the ball.

My only disappointment from the game was not getting a close up encounter with Súper Boke - the Malaga mascot. At half time he was in a penalty shoot out down the other end of the pitch. 

Given the pre-match protest, the ref did OK in a very hostile situation. But he did bottle one decision when he should have given a second yellow card to an Albacete player who had just been booked and then scythed down another opponent almost immediately. The manager hastily subbed him while the ref dithered and that kept the game 11 a side. 

The only goal was a magnificent screamer into the top corner early in the second half. Like the half time mascot penalties, it was down the far end from where we sat. The stands had already been buzzing but they got a bit buzzier after the goal. 

Albacete almost equalised when a Malaga defender sent his keeper scrambling to retrieve the ball before it crossed the line, and also from a free kick on tbe edge of the box in the fourth and final minute of added on time.

But the home side held on and it was a very happy crowd that headed out into the chilly Malaga night. 

Post-script

I got a Futbology badge for seeing a game in a new country, and my map of European grounds I've visited now has an outlier!

2025 Sports Round Up

2025 was a decent year for sport for me. It will come as no surprise that football was the sport I watched most. I went to 53 football matches - which averages out at a smidgen over one a week for the year! Here's my 2025 report from Futbology.

The highest score of the year was in my first game of the year: Cardiff Draconians v South Gower back in January. This year the Dracs were my most watched team. 

Here's my map of new football grounds I went to this year. I saw Shrewsbury in Oldham, Exeter, High Wycombe and Swindon. The Northernmost ground was Ainslie Park, home of Spartans in Edinburgh. Most of the new ones in South Wales were from watching the Dracs away and a couple were from watching Caldicot Town, the club for whom my friend Ben plays. 

I went to four cup finals in April and May, including seeing Shrewsbury Town's under-17 team win a cup in a final played at Cardiff City Stadium. Shrewsbury's senior side had a poor season and were relegated from League 1. Meanwhile, Cardiff Dracs got promoted to the Cymru South (the Welsh second tier). Both sides have continued their form into the 2025-26 season, Salop hovering dangerously near the drop zone in League 2, while the Dracs finished the year sixth in their division.

My favourite football photo of the year -
 Trefelin v Cardiff Dracs (Welsh Cup)

Along with live football, I enjoyed watching the women's Euros on TV over the summer. I thought it was a great tournament. England won - their second title in a row. Wales found it difficult in their first appearance in the finals. (Here's a full write up.)

However, it wasn't all football! I went to a rugby international in Edinburgh. It was my first rugby game for almost 3 years and my first ever visit to Murrayfield. I was very impressed with the stadium even though the game was a blow-out. (Blog post about the weekend.)

I also made it to two Cardiff Devils ice hockey games. One was a friendly against Concordia University from Montreal (pics on my bank holiday sportsfest post) and the other was on our wedding anniversary. 

My sports participation this year was minimal. But Cathy and I had two full rounds of mini-golf. The first was at Legoland and we also played underground mini-golf in Blenau Ffestioniog during our North Wales holiday. 

But I have been getting my fix of table-top sport. I played 12 games of Blood Bowl with Bryan in 2025, which averages as a game every month, although when we met up in December we spent the time unboxing the new updated version of the game. 

My final Blood Bowl record for 2025 was played 12, won 5, drawn 5 and lost 2. I used several different teams in the course of the year including three teams I built and painted - the black orcs, the wood elves and the Norsemen. You can see all my match reports on my Blood Bowl index page. 

I have a few aims for 2026. I'd like to do some more activities, watch a few different sports, and keep up my football-going, if possible. I have an overseas trip lined up with a football match on the itinerary already. Hopefully more opportunities will come. (If you want to challenge me to a game of mini-golf, get in touch!)

Football season 24-25 review - Futbology badges

It's been a decent season for Futbology badges. My biggest achievement was hitting the 600 games mark in April.

Earlier in the season I passed a milestone for the number of games I've seen at Jenner Park - which, incidentally, is now the stadium I have seen most games at.

And in my last game of the season I hit the half century at Cardiff City Stadium.

Almost half those games haven't involved Cardiff City, which is quite amusing to me.

I got a couple of smaller milestones for other teams - including Caldicot where my friend Ben plays.

And Penybont, mainly for all the Barry games I've seen against them.

I also got a ten-game badge for Cardiff Corinthians - although I only arrived at this game at half time so really it should only be a nine and a half games badge!

I decided to go to the Welsh Cup final. It was a good game and I was able to pose with the actual cup before the game. Getting a badge was a bonus.

And a couple of international games at the end of the season came with badges too.

Not a bad season haul at all!

Football season 24-25 review part 2

Last week I went to two international matches - watching Wales women lose to Italy in Swansea and Wales men winning in Cardiff - and with those two games I've brought the curtain down on my 2024-25 football season. In part 1, I wrote about the fortunes of the three clubs I follow most - which included a promotion, a relegation and a nothing-particularly- memorable. 

But now the season is finally over here's my Futbology round up of the season:

My total of 61 games is a few less than last season's 65, but is still my second highest total ever. In the four seasons since football restarted after the pandemic, I've been to 60, 57, 65 and now 61 games. It's been four years rather full of football. 

Some highlights - four cup finals, one play-off final, only one penalty shoot-out (very early on in the season). The highest scoreline I saw was an 8-2 win for Cardiff Dracs, which edged out Barry's 9-0 drubbing in a friendly at Oxford City right at the start of the season. I made it to a game in Scotland, which was also my nephew Finlay's very first football game (as mentioned in my post about my weekend in Edinburgh). That game was the most northerly of the 15 new football grounds I went to in the season. Here they all are on a handy map:

You can see from the map that most of my new grounds were in South Wales. I haven't quite got to saturation point there, but I'm close. I'm not far off totalling 150 grounds and I might need to start travelling further afield to tick them off next season. Hitting that total is one of the, admittedly modest, ambitions I have for next season. I'm not going to list them here, but I might put them in a kick off post for next season.

And so, as the curtain finally comes down on my 61 game season, I want to give a shout out to the many people who kept me company at all kinds of random grounds watching all kinds of random games. So here you go -  if your name isn't on the list and it should be, then let me know and I'll add it in! 

So, thank you for your company Steve, Paul and Val, Paul (Podge), Dave, Joy, Zac, Dan, Finlay, Ella, Scott, Sara and Leanne (and Cadi and Payton), Tom, Matt, Jim and Nik, Dan R and Emma, Jon D, and the Barry hoppers: Tim, Ian, Joe, John, Nick. I'm looking forward to seeing you all again next season!