Missed Matches

[Bruce Rioja]

Tranmere at home - 27th Dec 1994. I used to pay on the gate to stand on The Paddock back in those days. We used to get around 10,000 on at that time so it wasn't an issue. So, I turn up for the Tranmere game only to be told, quite unbelievably, that it was full. So, I ran round to the ticket office to see if I could get in the seats only to be told that it was a sell-out. Turns out that all the once-a-season crowd had chosen this game as their one, it being on the Saturday between Christmas and New Year. Utterly dismayed, I trudged off home to listen to it on the radio. Imagine my juddering apoplexy when they announced the crowd as being 17,000. Tranmere had fetched about 300, and, BWFC being a club that never has been able to run a fecking bath, rather than just put the visitors into The Embankment only, insisted on allocating them all the Embankment and that section (33%?) of the Burnden Paddock too, thus turning away 100's like me away that hadn't got in. Wankers!

[Athers]

Missed all 3 wins against United so I've never seen us beat them, just suffer those late Bellion and Owen equalisers.

Managed to spend a lot of student loan on the big 3 Euro aways. Shame I missed the others but that's that.

[Leyther_Matt]

Being sat on the car park at Quarry Bank bloody Mill listening to GMR for the Reading play-off final. Last game at Burnden as well when my non-footballing family thought they'd try and get tickets for me as a surprise....the day before the game.

Went to all the Euro home games but didn't go to any of the away's as my lad had only just been born so there was no chance I could afford it.

[Always hopeful]

Living in Holland between 1994 and 1998 and having a job that meant I was on call 24/7, meant that I missed many, many games that I wish I'd been there for. We were just about able to pick up a very weak MW BBC signal, so managed to listen to many games, slightly muffled by interferance including muffled Dutch umpah music.

In true "Likely Lads" fashion, I managed to record on tape the whole of the Reading play-off final commentary. I came home from work with anticipation having managed to avoid hearing the result. I asked Mrs H if it had recorded successfully (I had asked her to turn the tape over half way through, to record the second half), to which she replied "yes, and it's a great match" with a big smile on her face.

I didn't know whether to shout and ball at her there and then for giving the game away, or celebrate what was obviously a victory of some sort.

I chose the latter, then repremanded her later.

[bobo the clown]

Living in Holland between 1994 and 1998 and having a job that meant I was on call 24/7, meant that I missed many, many games that I wish I'd been there for. Still, I went there shortly after getting married and came back with 2 sons. I didn't completely waste my time out there.

So they're Dutch ?!?!

[Always hopeful]

Living in Holland between 1994 and 1998 and having a job that meant I was on call 24/7, meant that I missed many, many games that I wish I'd been there for. Still, I went there shortly after getting married and came back with 2 sons. I didn't completely waste my time out there.

So they're Dutch ?!?!

Yes and no. I've just edited my recollection. Have another read.

[Always hopeful]

Living in Holland between 1994 and 1998 and having a job that meant I was on call 24/7, meant that I missed many, many games that I wish I'd been there for. Still, I went there shortly after getting married and came back with 2 sons. I didn't completely waste my time out there.

So they're Dutch ?!?!

Yes and no. I've just edited my recollection. Have another read.

We registered them at the British consulate in Amsterdam and they have British passports, so for all intents and purposes they're British, but I think they can choose to be Dutch if they want later in life. So long as they choose to be English or Dutch and not Welsh that'll suit me.