A Report from a Crows Travelling Fan….
Crows Fly High in Bedfordshire
Match v Barton Rovers FC
Monday 27th August 2012 19:45 Kick Off
Result: Barton Rovers 1-3 Crows
The Journey
I left Royston at 18.30 and after a straightforward journey to Hitchin, I was stuck behind a tractor for 10 minutes through the centre of Town. A tractor in Hitchin!!! Perhaps they are ploughing up Kennelworth Road in readiness for another local derby! I eventually made it to the ground for 19:20.
The Ground
I made yet another mistake and decided to park on the roadside not realising that the football club had a car park that would make most league clubs envious! (Ripe for development maybe!)
After joining the queue, yes a queue, mainly made up of a large travelling contingent from Roystonia, we moved through a turnstile and given a ticket for “admission one” brought back memories of the old priory cinema!!!
The ground itself can be described as a late 60’s early 70’s build and yes it had character, bucket loads. Two open ends of terracing with an electronic scoreboard in one corner. Boys and girls, we’ve made the big time! On the far side of the ground, 3 groups of brick built covered terrace with the two dug outs in front. The main stand opposite is quite impressive for a village team in the Southern League, smart blue seats, not overly faded with time. At the top of the stairs you could find the boardroom with extremely friendly directors!
Behind this stand you could find the supporters club with toilet facilities to the left… I will describe those later!
Food and Drink
This intrepid reporter was starving by the time he reached Barton (Mum are you reading this, hint hint!) So I took full advantage of the hot dog at £2.25, pretty good value. Tea excellent, first time I have ever been to a ground and was told “hang on love, gotta put the kettle on!” As I was driving, I did not use the bar facilities, although told by several fellow Crows, that the beer was pretty good.
Programme
£2.00 for well, a pretty poor showing to be honest, far too many adverts, not a good read, and most of the Crow info was taken from Wiki, damn social media, etc!
State of Toilets
Inside the supporters club, excellent, with towels to dry your hands! However the outside toilets, well I saw grown men come out ashen faced after using those facilities!
Tannoy System
Unfortunately I sat directly underneath the main speaker. Loud I tell you. Sound track of the day “ you sure do” by some 90’s group and when I say sound track of the day, it was the only song played, 4 times!
Home Fans
Spent much of the time moaning at the officials decisions and to be totally honest, they did have a point! An air of resignation at the opening Crows goal and shock of how the ground erupted with a large Crow support. When they equalised, they more than made up for it.
Crows
Approximately 60 in a crowd of 159 made it from Royston and boy did we make them realise it. Loud throughout much of the game, we even broke into chants of Ole when Matt made it 3-1.
The Game
After a tense first half, dominated by two midfields, the Crows came alive in the second half and played some excellent football compared to the hosts “hoof and hope”. The Crows fully deserved their win and was summed up by the visiting chief scout from Luton who stated “Royston are the best footballing side in this league, let alone this division, you will not only stay up, but you will surprise a lot of people”. Hope he was not scouting our players!
Man of the Match
For me, Li’ll Luke Robins, he was hustled and bustled by a mean Barton defence throughout the game, but he never gave up. He was at the heart of a lot of good in Royston play and topped it with a cracking goal. Honourable mentions for me go out to Lee Wilson, Lewis Endacott and Carl Edwards, but to be honest, it was an excellent team performance.
Mileage for me so far (Round trips)
120.8 miles
