Sligo Rovers ..July 9th 2011
I'm a sucker for scenery. When starting out this journey I was looking forward to seeing as much of our Emerald Isle (whilst putting to the back of my mind unemployment, immigration , Brian Cowan and the filth that is Seanie Fitzpatrick) as much as the visits to the 21 grounds themselves.
It wasn't all pretty. Potholes in Port Laoise and floods in Ferns took away a lot of the fun and when you're driving blind down some god-forsaken backroad in the middle of nowhere in the hope of finding a duel carriageway the whole trip loses its mystique.
I didn't know what to expect when I drove from Derry (ground number 20) to my final port of call
- Sligo Rovers.
I need not have been worried as thankfully the scenery in-between rivals anything Killarney will
throw up at you. On the way into Sligo I stopped at a bar/restaurant about six miles from town, not
because I was hungry but to stand in awe at its location - at the base of the majestic Benbulben Mountain so I could rest for a while and enjoy the view ( I've now forgotten the sodding name of the place but its distinctive so Rovers fans will know where it is)
With over 2500 miles clocked up to that point it was a well earned rest. I ordered some nosh, washed it down with a Red Bull (gotta keep pep!) and wondered what The Showgrounds and its fans would
offer me. I never planned it that Sligo Rovers would be my last port of call, it just drifted that way through my calendar to its July 9th conclusion against Drogheda United.
By that stage I was shattered and thought about getting my snap done, have a little chit-chat before the game with locals and get some information sent via the wonders of electronic mail, but I'd have done the club and its fans a disservice.
It's by chatting to them in Mooney's Bar, a pub a stone-throw from the Showgrounds that drips in nostalgia (and would make a nice place for a launch...wink wink.) that I learned some crucial information...none more important than this... you NEVER call the club Sligo. Sligo Rovers is acceptable but to fit right in you'll be best of sticking with "Rovers"
"I know the next question you'll ask...what do we call those lads from Tallaght?" said the barman (name escapes me) "Well there simply know as "Shams" - there's only one Rovers around hear and they don't play in Green & White Hoops"
At the ground, still awake but dreading my 4 hour drive back to Waterford, I'm engulfed by the biggest collection of statisticians in one same at one time. Thankfully Anthony Kilfeather takes me by the hand and introduces me to people like Leo Gray , Joe Molloy and club photographer Michael Melly, as well as himself and the role off possible every single stat I need in my crash course guide to Sligo Rovers 1928-present.....all except one...the clubs highest attendance.
I'll let you guess to what it unofficially is, but thanks to Mr Kilfeather I've found officially the biggest crowd ever to congregate in The Showgrounds...and its a classic!
The game itself was a comfortable 2-0 win against Rovers, though I had to leave just before the end (77 minutes to be exact) to prepare myself for the trip back.
In-between this Keith Dwyer the clubs PRO and a top man, made sure I got the above snap taken by
Mr Melly and a warm round of applause rippled through the Treacy Stand along with a hug from Benny The Bull- winner of my friendliest mascot award.
It all got a little to much for me as I made my way out, thanked everyone and turned to take in the scenery one last time before I made my way back to the car with tears streaming down my face. Not bawling or on the point of a nervous breakdown but happy in the knowledge that when the book comes out next week I'll have been the only person to have catalogued all 21 clubs by driving to them, putting in on paper as well as including all the little nuggets of info for everyone...and I'd done it alone.
I've got plenty of launches lined up in October, people to see, things to do, books to sell....but a part of me hopes , if given the time, I can end it all again...just one more time...at Sligo....Rovers
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