3pm 17 October 2020
Sheffield County Senior League, Premier Division
Wakefield 3 Wombwell Main 2 (att 293)
Football at this level, as least with spectators, feels like it might be on borrowed time at the moment. If further lockdowns, either local or national, cause another pause soon then I'd have been frustrated had I not got to Wakefield's new home.
Like Worcester Raiders, Wakefield have ambitions to climb the leagues, and have taken up residence at rugby stadium which should satisfy ground graders however high they get. The only down side is that it's not in Wakefield.
Playing at Featherstone Rovers' Post Office Road ground doesn't seem to stop them gaining support though. The maximum capacity for football at the moment is 300, and all tickets were snapped up online ahead of this match.
No doubt it helps that tickets can be obtained for free (although an asked for donation seems reasonable) but the club's marketing efforts are clearly paying dividends. The last time I visited a football club called Wakefield (pre-blog) they played at the city's rugby union ground, were three leagues higher than this, and attracted a crowd of just 56.
That Wakefield FC, and an earlier version I'd seen playing at Woolley Colliery, are no longer in existence. Hopefully this incarnation can buck that trend. People will watch a winning team, but I think they'll need to progress from county league football quickly to maintain interest.
This win pushed them towards the right end of the fledgling league table, but it wasn't easy. Wombwell had looked marginally the better side until Wakefield's 34th minute opener. A second goal followed before half time, but the visitors were unfortunate to have a goal ruled out just before the break.
It looked all over when the hosts extended their lead to 3-0 with about 15 minutes left. But Wombwell didn't give up without a fight, and two goals in the last 10 minutes made it a nervy finish for the home side and their supporters.
I've seen a few rugby league matches over the years, but have never made any effort to 'tick' the grounds, and had never been to Featherstone Rovers. There are seated stands on three sides, and uncovered terracing at one end. It can accommodate about two-thirds of the entire population of Featherstone.
Often, when a football club lodges at a large stadium spectators a restricted to a small part of the ground. Not here, the entire ground was open and social distancing was easy. That, and the fact the PA system and scoreboard where in use, and the club shop was selling replica Wakefield AFC shirts, made it it feel like Wakefield's ground rather than short-term arrangement. It'll be interesting to see how the Wakefield AFC story develops.
Nice
ReplyDelete