Today I'm going back 35 years to 1986 and York City's visit to Somerton Park to play Newport County in the Today League Division 3. This date resonates with me for more than just football reasons. I had looked forward to this particular game since the fixtures were produced that summer but then, sadly, my Grandad passed away a week or so in advance of the match and, wouldn't you know it, his funeral was arranged for 4th November. Rather fortunately for me, the service was over fairly early in the day and I decided to travel to Newport anyway knowing that I would ever after think of my Grandad on the anniversary of this match. It's still happening Grandad!
This game was a very special one for me because it completed my set of 92 Football League Grounds visited, a landmark that I'd wanted to achieve since going to my first match in 1977. I didn't know it at the time but, with promotion and relegation having been implemented between the Conference and the Football League and, with many clubs needing to build new grounds in the wake of the various football stadium disasters, I would need to keep on recompleting the 92 with each new ground that came along. These days it seems as if there's one or two new Football / Premier League grounds to go to each season with AFC Wimbledon and Brentford being the latest new arrivals. However, visiting Newport's Somerton Park was the first time that I completed the 92 and remains special to me for that reason.
There are various apps and websites available to Groundhoppers like myself to record matches and visits. Some are better than others. My favourite app is "Futbology" and I've used that to record every match that I've ever been to. Having entered all the games (which was a pleasure in itself), it keeps track of statistics such as the number of different grounds visited (575 if you must know), the number of games attended (2,472), the number of countries in which I've seen a match (20), complete leagues visited (6) and so on. "Doing the 92" (DT92) is an interesting website since it keeps track of the number of grounds that have ever held a Football League match that I have visited for a game (not necessarily a Football League match however). According to DT92 I've managed to see a match at 167 grounds that have been used for a Football/Premier League match at some point in their lifetime. That's 167 out of a total possible of 233 and a large number of the difference is accounted for by Grounds that ceased use well before I was born. Whilst clearly not everyone uses the site, I seem to be second only to a chap who has visited 168 such venues so I'll take that as an indication of some kind of achievement and I shall plan a visit to Ashington one of these days to add another to my total!
Anyway, Somerton Park got me to 92 which was a proud moment indeed but sadly, it is no more. Newport County have flirted with financial difficulty throughout their history and, in 1989, they finally succumbed and went bust. A new phoenix club rose from the ashes of the old club but was forced to start from the bottom of the English football pyramid (and yes I know that Newport is in Wales!) in the Hellenic League. Over the years the new club has progressed up the Leagues and in 2013 they finally made it back into the Football League where they remain to this day. Somerton Park was briefly used by the new club until 1992 when they moved into the Newport Stadium (an athletics stadium with a running track around the football pitch). Somerton Park was then demolished the following year and has since been redeveloped for housing. One day they'll maybe attach a blue plaque to one of those houses to celebrate my 92nd ground?
Season 1986/7 wasn't a great one for either York City or Newport County. County finished bottom of League Division 3 and were relegated whilst York survived by the skin of their teeth finishing 20th and just outside of the bottom four who were all relegated. York took four points off of Newport that season and it could be said that these were the points that kept them in the Division. The game at Somerton Park finished 1-1 and York beat Newport 3-0 at Bootham Crescent later in the season.
CRB Match No. 463
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