Ground: Victoria Pleasure Ground (capacity 3,000)
Location: Goole, England
Ticket price: £6 - Purchase at the ground
Storm Ciaran was an unwelcome guest in the idyllic stone-housed towns and rolling-hill greenery that call Northern England their home. He stropped, he tantrumed and he caused a whirlwind of chaos that saw homes flooded, debris blown and football matches cancelled. I was eyeing the fixture list, hoping to make it to a game this weekend. P-P, P-P, P-P dominated the NCEL Premier and NCEL Division One website, however there were a few games that offered a beacon of hope. One game I saw that was not postponed was Goole's fixture against Sheffield Hallam. The club's Facebook and Twitter feeds bore no mention of a cancelled game and joint-manager Paddy Kenny (yes, that Paddy Kenny) made reference to the fact that his side were preparing for the fixture that morning. That was confirmation enough for me that the game was going ahead so there I went.
Goole, in terms of distance, isn't too far away, but it is a bit of a pain to get to on the train if you don't live in or near Doncaster. You can get either the Hull or Scarborough train from Doncaster station as both services stop at Goole station. From there, it's a rough 10 minute walk, opposite a large Aldi, to the Victoria Pleasure Ground. There is a nice little bakery, Fullers, near the ground which serve up a decent crumbly parkin for £3.20.
Goole AFC are nicknamed The Vikings as the town offered easy access for their ships back in AD 865, as they would sail their rowboats through the Ouse to reach Jorvik (now known as York, a city well known for its Viking history). The viking ship on Goole's crest is there to pay homage to this history.
Paddy Kenny had recently joined Goole alongside Nathan Heliwell, a venture which originally stemmed from a conversation the two had whilst watching the horse racing. This conversation encouraged the two to apply for various positions before being successful for the Goole job after a strenuous process which included five other, "strong applicants" according to the programme notes. It's a move which caught me off guard slightly as Kenny, who now runs his own construction company, left football after a short spell as a goalkeeper coach because he didn't enjoy working in the game in a coaching capacity, something which he explained in further detail in the Undr The Cosh podcast he featured in. I guess he's changed his mind since.
Hallam are a team Kenny knows well, after all he mentioned that he has, "good relationships" with a few of the volunteers at the club, and it was them who took the lead, a long throw which was flicked onto the head of Scott Ruthven, who diverted it home after 42 minutes of play. Iren Wilson would extend their lead 7 minutes into the start of the second half. A very sloppy goal which Kenny and Helliwell will be furious at. A, what seemed to be a harmless goal kick, somehow bypassed the entirety of the Goole midfield before a delicate through ball found Wilson one-on-one with keeper Luke Chadwick, rounding him before slotting home. Chadwick's keeping was indecisive which Kenny may have mentioned to him at full time. Ex-Wakefield player Ashley Flynn scored the game's final goal, slotting the ball home from close range after a looping header smashed off the crossbar.
Despite this, the Goole crowd appeared to be in good spirits. "Paddy, give us a wave. Paddy, Paddy, give us a wave" they chanted as the Goole joint-manager raised a wry smile and a nervous hand. As the rain lashed and the cold wind gnashed, one fan shouted towards the end of the game, "You've got a lot of work on for you here, Paddy!" and based on that showing, he was probably right.
Goole AFC 0-3 Hallam FC 04/11/23
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