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Bluebirds vs Magpies today – Barrow were playing Maidenhead in the Vanarama National League. An opportunity not to be missed to support the town where Jon works and my home town! We opted to catch the train and our plan was to stop in Reading for a bite to eat on the way home!
Everything ran smoothly, and Callum was excited that the train taking us from Reading to Maidenhead was one of the new Electrostar trains. Another train ticked off his list!
We had about an hour before kick-off so Jon suggested grabbing a light bite from Wetherspoons – it was busy as they were not only showing the England Rugby match, but also the Spurs match.
From here, it was a 5 minute walk to the Stadium – allegedly the York Road stadium holds the record for being the oldest senior football ground to be continuously used by the same club – since 1871. Jon’s office had a great view of the pitch!
We watched the first half of the match from the stands then moved to watch the second half from the terrace behind the Maidenhead goal.
It was really cold with snow starting to fall but nothing that would stop the match. We grabbed a hot drink at half time and I was impressed to see that they were selling Chewits. Callum couldn’t understand why I thought this funny – those of a certain age may remember the ad from the 1980s! He happily munched his way through a packet though.
Click here to reminisce on the old advert!
Maidenhead weren’t playing particularly well … Barrow scored, and the crowd went wild (well, the 90 or so supporters that made it down for the match!). A key win for the Bluebirds. On our way out, we had to pass the player exit and unbelievably, the Barrow Manager was there shaking everyone’s hand to thank them for their support and coming along to the match. For some, it was a 550 mile round trip, so this was a really nice touch. Not sure many other managers would do this.
We passed the bar – Stripes – on the way out and headed back to the station and caught the train back to Reading. We decided to see if Thai Corner had a table free for this evening. We were reasonably early, so we were hopeful. Luckily, we arrived just after opening and there were a couple of tables free. Have to say, the food was really lovely – one of the nicest Thai meals we’ve had so will probably be back at some point. As we headed back to the station, the snow started to come down a little heavier, but not settling on the roads. If there is snow overnight, then there’s a real risk the Reading Half Marathon will be cancelled in the morning.
The train was in the station as we arrived, so perfect timing. As we got back home, the snow was starting to settle and wondered if it would still be hanging around in the morning.
