Ten years ago today.

[Northumbiron]

A cautionary tale!

It was a Saturday and I was heading down the A1, not to watch the Iron get stuffed 5-1 at Forest, but with my friend who is a Chester City fan, and two other mates.

Chester were top of the Evo Stik League (N) and set for automatic promotion to the ES Premier. To be deprived of this achievement they would have to lose to Garforth and nearest rivals Skelmersdale would have to win by seven goals. It wasn’t going to happen was it?

As we approached the A1/M1 turn off my mate said he had a bad feeling about the day. We assured him that the Blues would thump little Garforth, and even if they didn’t Skelmersdale weren’t going to win 7-0 at Ossett Albion.

Half time and Chester led 1-0. However Skelmersdale were already 5-1 up at Ossett. But as long as Chester held out it was job done. Midway through the second half the tide turned. Garforth scored twice to lead 2-1 and Skelmersdale had scored two more. My mate was very worried.

Full time at Garforth. A 2-1 home win. Six minutes of additional time at Ossett. Nerves were jangling and Chinese Whispers abounded. Skelmersdale were 9-1 up! No, it was still 7-1. There had been a goal, but who to?

The Tannoy announced the final score. Ossett Albion 2, Skelmersdale 7. Chester had won the league by two goals.

The moral of this story – don’t ever assume that these freak score lines can’t happen. An eight goal swing isn’t as impossible as you think.

Trivia bonus question. Which Brazilian legend once turned out for Garforth Town at the age of 50?

[Greylag]

Sócrates Brasileiro Sampaio de Souza Vieira de Oliveira.

[SODIron]

Tomorrow I will have one eye on the Southend match, and one eye on ours..

[Northumbiron]

That’s Dr Sócrates Brasileiro Sampaio de Souza Vieira de Oliveira to you!

Correct, you win the goldfish?

[SODIron]

This weekend is HUGE for Scunthorpe…

I’ve just subscribed to watch the Barrow vs Southend match….gonna have one computer playing Scunthorpe match, the other Barrow vs. Southend.

[Iron-awe]

I won’t be watching until we are allowed back into GP again, hopefully next season, hopefully to watch a football league club, hopefully we will still have a club left to support and long term hopefully a ground to watch them play in.

2 users thanked author for this post.

IRONINTHEBLOOD, Awaywego

[DarrynStampGoalMachine]

8 goals to make up is nothing if they win 2 and we lose 2.

And I would bet that we will lose 2 without scoring.

1 user thanked author for this post.

IRONINTHEBLOOD

[BobbyGmeister]

Tango man and others are talking about an eight goal swing but it’s actually nine due to our much superior strike rate. Also NI, a very apt cautionary tale but the ‘swing’ didn’t actually happen! Still, first time for everything…

[SODIron]

Given we’ve conceded 16 goals in the last 5 matches it is not beyond the realms of possibility for us to concede 6 or 7, or more goals in the next two matches.

We are only 8 goals better than Southend (9 if you include strike rate). If Southend manage to win their next two matches and we fail to add anymore points, we will be close, very close, to relegation, and could easily be joining the Cods!

1 user thanked author for this post.

BobbyGmeister

[Northumbiron]

BobbyGmeister wrote:

our much superior strike rate.

Wow! I never thought I’d read that statistic this season.

So we could be kept up by a strike force that has gone through whole games without registering a short on target? How ironic would that be?

BobbyGmeister wrote:

The ‘swing’ didn’t actually happen!

Indeed it didn’t. Courtesy of a guy playing his last game of football who scored both of Ossett’s goals. Amusingly Chester invited him to be guest of honour at their end of season awards dinner.

[Author]

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