Football recap of the month - February 2024

February 2024 proved to be a megamonth of football for me, as I went to nine matches. This is the most I've ever been to in February.

Game 37: Caerau Ely 3-2 Llantwit Major

Reason for going: This was a late decision, when my friend Steve suggested we go. It was a Friday night game and set me up for a 3 game weekend. 

Point of interest: Llantwit Major came back from two goals down but were only level for a couple of minutes. 

Game 38: Barry Town 0-3 Pontypridd Town

Reason for going: Barry's first game of phase 2 of the Cymru Premier season. 

Point of interest: The first goal of the game was calamitous from the home team's point of view. The goalkeeper rushed out and failed to clear the ball leaving the striker free to fire home from the edge of the box. 

Game 39: Barry Town Ladies 1-3 Cardiff City Women

Reason for going: I'd been to watch Barry Town Ladies the week before and enjoyed it. So decided to go and watch them as they were hosting the table-toppers. 

Point of interest: This was the penultimate game of Phase 1 of the Adran Premier League. Cardiff City were unbeaten up to this point and it was easy to see why. They were a good team. (They lost the following week, though.) This was also the third day in a row I'd been to a football match. 

Game 40: Penybont 2-2 Barry Town

Reason for going: Penybont is one of the closest away trips for me.  

Point of interest: This was my 100th Barry Town game. I got a Futbology badge.

Game 41: Newport County 1-3 Notts County

Reason for going: My friend Paul is a Notts County fan. Although, for reasons of restricted ticket supply, I ended up in the home end with Paul's wife, Val, instead.

Point of interest: We caught the train to the game. Unlike last time I tried to watch Newport County, this time the train from Cardiff to Newport thankfully didn't go via Reading!!

Selfie with Val

Game 42: Llantwit Major 1-0 BK Skjold 

Reason for going: This game was in the Fenix Trophy, which is an international competition for amateur and semi-professional clubs founded in 2021. Skjold, from Copenhagen, were the holders. Llantwit Major were the first Welsh team to compete in this competition and bigged this game up as their first ever European tie. So there were a lot of reasons to go!

Point of interest: Llantwit's ground is known as Windmill Lane and there is a disused windmill next to the football pitch. It provided a vantage point for a couple of hardy souls during the game!

Game 43: Barry Town 1-1 Haverfordwest County

Reason for going: At this point, I think it's a more a case of hope than expectation. 

Point of interest: Former Barry player Rhys Abruzzese scored a very late equaliser for Haverfordwest - clocked at 90+6 minutes. Also Mike Lewis, the Barry goalkeeper, saved a penalty.

Game 44: Cardiff City 2-1 Stoke City

Reason for going: My friend Andrew asked me to act as "football sherpa" because his son, Ben, wanted to go to a football match, so we went and sat in the family stand. Andrew's nephew, James, joined us as well.

Point of interest: Because we were in the family stand, we got a visit from Bartley Bluebird, the Cardiff City mascot, in the second half. 

Game 45: Caerau Ely 1-0 Taff's Well

Reason for going: this was a chance to set a new personal record for February with a ninth game within the month.

Point of interest: Caerau Ely scored what would prove to be their winner after just 40 seconds!

Football recap - December 2023 and the rest of 2023!

I made it to just one game in December, on the very first day...

Game 32: Notts County 2-3 Shrewsbury Town

Reason for going: When Shrewsbury were drawn away at Notts County in the FA Cup, my Nott-supporting friend Paul said we had to go! So we did. 

Point of interest: Ryan Bowman scored a hat-trick after three woeful defensive errors that became memes for how bad they were. The first goal came after a Notts defender just fell over instead of clearing the ball. It was very hard to cheer the goal because I was laughing so hard. 

And then the fixtures conspired against me for the rest of the month. On Saturday the 9th I was working. Barry Town's home game on the 16th got swapped for an away game. I was driving up to Shrewsbury on the 23rd but getting there in time for Shrewsbury's home game was a bit too much, logistically. Shrewsbury weren't playing at home on Boxing Day. And then on the last Saturday of the year I had other plans. So, that means December 2023 is a one game month!

Despite the low tally of games for December, 2023 as a whole calendar year has actually set a new record for me. I went to 62 games since my first game of the year on the 2nd January at Llantwit Major. 

Futbology has given me a handy summary

Futbology also produces a map showing all the new grounds I visited in 2023. There were a lot in Port Talbot, but I got a decent spread of football grounds across England as well.

As I am the kind of nerd who dissects his football attendance data, I have a breakdown of the games I have been to as monthly totals. This past year I set new monthly records for February (8 games), May (6), July (7) and September (5). I also equalled previous records in March and November (both 5 games). 

If I equalled all the monthly records in 2024 I would end up going to 76 games. That feels like a lot!

Football recap of the month - July 2023

I'm not planning to do a separate football post every month, but my main recap for July was mostly about me changing jobs. It didn't feel like there was also space for me to talk about football matches too.

This year I set a new record for football matches in July, going to seven games. Five of them were friendlies but the two competitive games I went to ended in penalty shoot outs and there was some other drama along the way as well.

Game 1: Barry Town 1-0 Canton Liberals

Entertainment value: 1/5
Reason for going: I'd not seen a game on the 1st July before.
Noteworthy fact: This is one of the last games played by "Canton Liberals". At the end of July the club announced they had changed their name to Canton FC.

Game 2: Cardiff Met 0-2 Cardiff Draconians

Entertainment value: 3/5 (mainly because its fun to watch Cardiff Met lose)

Reason for going: this was the first game for the Dracs under their new manager, Nana Baah and also my friend Steve wanted to go.
Noteworthy fact: see reason for going

Game 3: Barry Town 5-2 Cardiff Corinthians

Entertainment value: 5/5 (7 goals - and the Corries were a much better team than the scoreline suggests)
Reason for going: Peer pressure, and to see if the Corries are going to be any good this season.
Noteworthy fact: This turned out to be Barry manager Lee Kendall's final home game in charge as he unexpectedly resigned the following weekend.

Game 4: Haverfordwest County 1-0 FK Shkendija (1-1 aggregate after extra time. Pens 3-2)

Entertainment value: 4/5 (although the first 85 minutes were 2/5. The rating (was boosted by a very late goal and the drama of a shootout)
Reason for going: it was a Europa Conference League qualifying match held at Cardiff City Stadium - within walking distance of my house - and there was the added curiosity value of seeing a team from North Macedonia.
Noteworthy fact 1: the previous time I saw Haverfordwest the game ended with a penalty shoot out. Goalkeeper Zac Jones saved two penalties in both shoot outs.
Noteworthy fact 2: Haverfordwest became the only club from the Cymru Leagues to win a tie and progress in European qualifiers this season.

Hero keeper!

Game 5: Cwmbran Celtic 2-2 Taff's Well (no ET. Pens 0-3)

Entertainment value: 5/5
Reason for going: this MG Cup game was a last minute alternative after a game I planned to go to was called off due to Biblical levels of rain. Basically it was close enough to get to.
Noteworthy fact: this was my second game in a row that ended in a penalty shoot out - after Cwmbran scored twice in time added on at the end of the game. The Taff's Well goalkeeper saved the first two kicks he faced.

Game 6: Caldicot Town 3-2 Shirehampton FC

Entertainment value: 4/5

Reason for going: My friend Ben plays for Caldicot. He got an assist.

Noteworthy fact: Shirehampton were the first English team I'd seen this season.

Game 7: Shrewsbury Town 1-1 Notts County 

Entertainment value: 2/5
Reason for going: my friend Paul is a Notts County fan so we travelled up together along with Paul's wife, Val, and another Shrewsbury fan who is also called Paul. We all had lunch at my mum's house where Fred the dog made some new friends!
Noteworthy fact: with typical foresight, Shrewsbury had closed the old club shop and hadn't opened the new one yet, so no new shirt for me!

Pre-match canine shenanigans for Paul

Roll on August!

Crimes against football

Bit of an old photo this - Shrewsbury v Notts County on Boxing Day, 2012. Notts County are the oldest club in the football league, which is the kind of random trivia fact I retain. They also played in LURID PINK!

Ugh.