It was like a scene from James Bond; an immaculate dark silhouette, the gold pinstripe glinting in the early morning sunshine with the sponsor’s logo dazzling. It was Tesco Pete – licensed to shrill, proudly gliding across the carpark looking smarter than ever in his brand new away shirt. In contrast, the Greetland Shayman followed on, oblivious to the excitement, but looking forward to our 229-mile journey South and a visit to Ebbsfleet.
With last week’s trip taking around six hours, we were once again prepared for the worst, this time however, traffic was almost non-existent. Our biggest problem was that we arrived at our usual breakfast spot to find a handwritten scrawl sellotaped to the inside of the door – closed for kitchen maintenance. We tried the door several times as there were some people inside, you can never be sure. Once the panic and hysteria in the car park had calmed down, we plotted our route to an alternative venue, just four miles away. Serenity restored!
With no further delays we rolled up to Ebbsfleet’s Stonebridge Road ground around lunchtime, far too early for football but we located a decent parking spot near the away entrance. The local area was industrial with factories, a petrol station, and tall cranes for unloading cargo from the nearby River Thames. Eagle eyed Tesco Pete spotted one of those posh coffee shop chains, an oasis of opportunity, hiding down a side street, moments later he was off…
‘I asked for a Martini, shaken, not stirred,’ he announced as a wandered back towards us clutching his drink. To be fair, it looked like the next best thing, it was a multi-coloured, mango iced tea with a twirly green straw, all capped off with a sunshine umbrella. Reassuringly expensive too. It kept him quiet for a good 30 minutes or so, money well spent!
With an admission price of £19 for adults and £15 for concessions we were given half the open terrace behind one goal. We also had access to the first block of seating in the old wooden main stand. There were around 70 travelling Shaymen in attendance from various locations, Bournemouth, Brighton, Northowram and Oslo. The Norwegian Shayman had carefully planned a family visit to coincide with an opportunity to cheer on the team.
The Shaymen took the lead attacking the seated home fans at the far end in the opening three minutes. This was just before the delayed 14:45 train from Gravesend arrived along with another 10 or so away fans… Town look good in the opening quarter of the game, creating several chances without adding any further goals. Ebbsfleet then held more possession but rarely troubled Sam Johnson.
The second half continued with Ebbsfleet having much of the ball but again not creating any clear chances. The Shaymen came close to doubling the lead on a couple of occasions but missed the target with both attempts. The last few minutes was tense, Cooke had been sent off for a second yellow and for the first time in the game Ebbsfleet looked dangerous. The Town defence stood firm however, with the referee’s full-time whistle breaking the tension.
The team were well applauded for their efforts at full time, it wasn’t a glamourous three points, but it was a win and a clean sheet, nevertheless. It marked the first win on the road, a second game on our travels without defeat, and we all travelled back home happy with three points.
Next up and we’re off to the seaside with a trip to Hartlepool. There’s going to be a great atmosphere with lots more travelling Shaymen attending, and who knows with Billy Waters back they could be licenced to Thrill!
Miles on the road: 898. Goals on the road: 2
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