Five Alive

 

It's been too long since I was at Moss Lane, or the J.Davidson Stadium as it is now known, the home of Altrincham FC and a cracking place to watch football with the perfect blend, for me, of a big enough crowd to create an atmosphere while still being to move around to different vantage points if you so desire.

Tickets for the National League game at home to Kidderminster Harriers on Tuesday 24th October have been reduced to £5 for adults, £2.50 for children aged 5-11 and £1 for under-5's.

The Harriers themselves are offering £10 terrace tickets (purchased in advance) when they host Wealdstone on Saturday 7th October.

In Brief

Mentions to three clubs who have featured often on these pages over the years...

Bath City host their annual Community Day on Saturday 23rd September when Dover Athletic are the visitors in National League South.

Admission is on a 'Pay What You Like' basis with lots of activities going on in addition to the match itself, including face painting and a Beat-the-Goalie.

With a busy run of home fixtures coming up at Top Field over the next few weeks, Hitchin Town have made the league clash against Barwell on Saturday 23rd September a Pay What You Want fixture (tickets available online with a minimum of £1).

And Bradford City have made all tickets for their League Cup Third Round tie with Middlesbrough available for £5 (when purchased before midnight on the day of the game, Tuesday 26th September) with these on general sale now.

Nearly 19,000 watched today's League Two game against Grimsby Town, testament to the great work the Bantams have done with season tickets over the years.

Highland Games

 

A view from the touchline last Saturday as Lossiemouth and Strathspey Thistle battle it out in the Highland League Cup, a late penalty giving the visitors the victory.

I can't quite put my finger on why I enjoy watching football in this part of the world so much but there is something about it, perhaps the way that clubs such as Lossie, Keith, Rothes and others are at the heart of their local communities, or perhaps by knowing that in having a pint in the social club a couple of streets away and then walking across to Grant Park you are doing what many have done before.

Strathspey Thistle's history begins later but, as at Lossiemouth, a hard-working group of volunteers are working full-time to improve year-on-year and put foundations in place for a brighter future.

The threat of relegation out of the league, due to the expansion of the Scottish pyramid system, is a new one, however, and one that both these clubs are fighting hard to avoid this season, Strathspey's victory, as welcome as it was, would have been sweeter if it had brought three points with it.

Football goes back even further at Forres Mechanics, founded in 1884 and founder members of the Highland League, although not quite at this exact spot as Mosset Park was moved to accomodate the A96 on which traffic was pretty constant during Wednesday night's North of Scotland Cup victory against Strathspey.