Close to Home Gateshead is just a forty-minute bus trip from home, so today was an easy Hop, and just as well! Friday night into Saturday morning was not a happy time in the Hopper household. Mrs Hopper has been suffering from a bad back for some while now. Last night, a particularly painful night…
Category: Hopper Tales
Workington AFC, Borough Park – Hopper Tales #64
Coast to Coast Time for another trip from the east coast to the west coast. Having already visited Carlisle United and Barrow this season, it was time to tick off the other big club in Cumbria – Workington AFC. Of course, they haven’t always been this far down the league pyramid. In 1977, Workington AFC…
Newcastle Blue Star, Scotswood Sports Centre – Hopper Tales #63
Strikes Are Back It’s been a little while but the train workers are striking again. The remedy for this for any groundhopper is to find a local club that you haven’t yet visited. For us, that just happens to be Newcastle Blue Star. Blue Star currently ply their trade in the Northern Football Alliance League…
Stenhousemuir, Ochilview Park – Hopper Tales #62
A View to an Ochil Like Partick Thistle last week, we have tried to visit Stenhousemuir and Ochilview Park before. Again, train strikes thwarted us, so we would try again this weekend, successfully! Stenhousemuir… it’s one of those names I remember from hearing in the classified results on a Saturday evening. Read out by the…
Partick Thistle, Firhill Stadium – Hopper Tales #61
Third Time Lucky Partick Thistle… We have tried to get up to Firhill Stadium twice this season and twice we have failed. The first time, Mrs Hopper became too ill, so we didn’t travel. The second time, we were thwarted by train strikes. I contacted the club through social media and asked if there was…
Celtic v Rangers, Hampden Park – Hopper Tales #60
A Glasgow Ham Double – Part Two Life is full of strange meetings and coincidences, isn’t it? For instance, when I started playing a silly little game on my phone about three or four years ago, I never imagined it would lead to tickets for a Celtic v Rangers cup final – yet, that’s precisely…
Hamilton Academical, New Douglas Park – Hopper Tales #59
A Glasgow Ham Double Hamilton and Hampden – what a weekend we had lined up! First up, a Saturday trip just to the southeast of Glasgow to see Hamilton Academical for the first time. They would be facing table-topping Queen’s Park. We have previously seen The Spiders twice this season, losing 5-0 at Ayr United…
Hull City, MKM Stadium – Hopper Tales #58
To Hull and Back This week saw us visit Hull City and me re-ticking one of the ninety-two grounds of the English Leagues. I first visited Hull City when they were still playing at Boothferry Park. The 15th of August, 1992 to be precise. It was the opening game of the season and a day…
Barrow AFC, Holker Street – Hopper Tales #57
A New Coastline With our semi-regular trips up the northeast coast on the way to Scottish grounds, we are used to the beautiful coastline that runs along the eastern coast of Britain’s north. Today, we would start just inland from the Durham Heritage Coast but end up on the other side, to venture down England’s…
Seaham Red Star, Seaham Town Park – Hopper Tales #56
Staying Local With the latest train strikes finishing on the 3rd of February and the knock-on effect they always have on the following day, we decided to stay local this weekend and visit one of the nearest football grounds to our town, Seaham Red Star. Seaham is a small town on the northeast coast and…