8th August - Tranmere at home

Something that I suspect is common to many football fans the world over is the sense of routine one gets into during the season. There are in fact two distinct routines, one which applies when we are playing at home and the other that kicks on those Saturdays that the team are away. This year we begin the season at home. In my case, since I live in Southampton, work in Winchester and watch my home games in Yeovil, some sixty odd miles away, it all begins on the Friday evening. Having walked to the car down a pleasant route along the river Itchen I drive the ten miles to pick up my brother from his flat near Andover. I am usually in the car to listen to the Archers, a drama programme I have listened to on the radio since I was a teenager. There follows the longer journey down the A303, including on this occasion a diversion via Tisbury and Shaftesbury due to traffic congestion, to my mother's home in a village near Yeovil. We get there about 9PM.

There is usually some job, like cutting the grass or washing the car, that needs doing in the morning, until lunch and then shortly after 2:00 it is time to leave for the ground. I have my own favourite spot to park the car five minutes walk away. The club has its own excellent car park where I used to park but now I prefer to save the £2. Having a Season Ticket saves me the time queueing up at the ticket office and means I can afford to get to the ground just before kick off.

There are two types of fan in this regard. Some like to turn up well before, up to an hour in some cases, 3:00 and soak up, or help to create, the atmosphere. Others can be seen at the very last minute arriving at the ground or rolling in from the club bar. For away grounds, especially where it is my first visit, the early arrival is more of an attraction to me but normally I like to get there with just enough time to buy a cup of tea and climb the steps to my seat.

Again, that is part of the routine. The same seat, the same fans around you to chat to although you may have very little in common apart from football, and the same view of the game unfolding in front of you.

Predicted Team
Alex McCarthy
Terrell Forbes, Stafan Stam, Steven Caulker, Nathan Jones
Danny Schofield, Ryan Mason, George O'Callaghan, Andy Welsh
Sam Williams, Gavin Tomlin

Predicted Score 2-1