It was Valentines weekend and sadly Cupid (who I assume must be gainfully employed during the whole Valentines Day gig) proved to be a somewhat capricious, contrary and cruel chum. Much like the cunreferees charged with officiating at my beloved Cities’ games.
Here were two cast iron opportunities to let romance rule, for the sceptics and cynics to be slapped around the chops with a single red rose followed by a big, fat, loving smacker on the lips.
The Mighty Saints had a new manager, Ian Allinson, most recently of Boreham of the Wood as they don’t call it. Surely if there is a time for a team to go on a fairy-tale, heart warming run of form to avoid relegation it is when the new manager’s arrival coincides with Valentines weekend AND TLF giving a debut to the new varifocals – new vision in the stands and the dugout. And he looks the part (Mr Allinson not my specs, although they are quite cool…assuming your definition of cool is looking like a nodding dog that’s just had a stroke as I try and work out which bit of the lens you look through). Mr Allinson has that older-generation-I-know-this-league-sonny-give-me-100%-and-I’ll-do-the-rest look about him. And most importantly he is wearing a suit. He looks old school. Although I do fear for his tan brogues in the mud of the technical area.
And then there was Lesta City. Fearless little Lesta, everyone’s favourite second team, the story of the season, managed by the Thinker Man not the Tinker Man…blahblahblah. Sorry, as any fule kno TLF doesn’t like to be a churl but the amount of media attention is out of the ordinary, a bit unnerving and surely must be unlucky (TLF passim).
Anyway that Lesta City were away at Arsenal the following day, on your actual Valentines Day, presenting the aforementioned patron Saint with the opportunity to prolong the heart-warming daftness that is Lesta being top of the Premier League. Ever the caring partner, TLF had thoughtfully invited Mr TLF to a romantic, Valentine’s Day lunch….in front of SKY Sports, Chez TLF, with the promise that TLF would keep a sense of perspective regardless of how the game played out.
Turns out St Valentine didn’t share TLF’s views of the romance potential in either fixture. Satday sees the mighty Saints take a two goal lead with some attacking intent and a more convincing performance than perhaps we had seen down at Clarence Park in awhile. ‘Perhaps’ is a key word there as TLF was partly distracted by the discovery that glasses you wear all the time do not come with windscreen wipers or a de-mister. WTF?
WTF indeed, as Saints have a third goal disallowed for handball, Corcoran called offside as he went through for the next ‘third’ goal and then an 89th minute equaliser from the opposition. Even first prize in the raffle cannot warm the cockle of TLF’s heart.
Still, there’s always Sunday and Lesta. HA!
One soft sending off, a foolish foul and a 95th minute winner by the opposition later and TLF’s promise about perspective is not so much broken, more vaporised. One kicked door and a very long stompy walk later and calm is restored – Mr TLF is bemused but relieved that there hasn’t been a Valentine’s Day Massacre.
Match Stats
St Albans City 2 Concord Rangers 2
Attendance: 476
Raffle tickets purchased: 10, including the whiskey winning white ticket 501. BOOM!!!
Goalden goal: 2 failing tickets.
Alcohol consumed: one pint golden ale from the Three Brewers, one pint Stella.
Snackage: crispy bacon cob and bacon wheat crunchies due to Hertfordshire bacon fry shortage.
Incidents of general confusion and blurred vision due to new glasses: Too many!
Should have gone to Spec Savers Fox