I’m getting old. I know I’m getting old because (a) at this gig, at one point, I knelt down to take a photo and seriously had a moment of wondering exactly how I was expected to get back up again, and (b) because Alfie Saunters (git) introduced a song as being in the style of […]
PhotosWaffle2026hastingsjack in the greenmorrismorris dancingold town
We move on from “What kind of Irish is your Granpa?” to “What kind of English was your Saturday?” Mine started with parkrun, moved on to a full breakfast roll at an arts centre, included dropping my son off for an afternoon cinema visit, continued with watching some Morris dancing, before taking in the finale […]
“You’ve got to write about this, Jon.” Well, Billy Wood, impresario and manager of Hastings, you are not the boss of me. You are, however, correct: I did have to start by mentioning the slight delay to the game caused by a footwear malfunction for referee Owen Radley that had to be corrected by a […]
You know it’s hot when the Caribbean islanders sigh and say, “It’s hot.” You know a bit of grammar is complex when the Icelanders look at it and go, “Yeah, this is going to take some explaining. And you know it’s windy when the Little Common players look at you and opine, “Bit blowy today, […]
If you’re of a certain persuasion (terminally online) then you will spend an inordinate amount of time reading the opinions of football fans who believe that relegation is a key part of the excitement of following soccer. (You will also, ignorantly, believe that soccer is an American word). Those people will believe that there were […]
PhotosWaffle2026buckingham fcfootballnew bradwell st peternon leaguesoccerspartan south midlands
It’s a Saturday afternoon in England. Up and down the country, there are games. On fields that are hemmed in by new housing estates, where black and white memories may be on the walls of the clubhouse, but that clubhouse may now be for a club with a different name, at a ground now called […]
Some cultures have dozens of words for snow. I assume, in that manner, that the people of Bexhill have seventy four words for wind. Today’s was low breeze when not gusting, vicious when gusting, and with gusts in surprisingly long bursts. The word for that is … well, I wouldn’t know, I’m not from Bexhill. […]
Non League Day, held during an international break so lower level football has a chance to show off, is often not just about the game. Clubs find ways to make it an event. And so to did Hastings with speedway bikes, pyrotechnics, music, pre Academy kickabouts on the pitch, and extra refreshments added to the […]
The sun shone! It wasn’t cold! The crowd was reasonable! Let’s focus on the positives. And, to be fair, in a season during which Hastings have used over 60 players, losing a tight game they should have taken a point from against a side who previously would have overrun them may count as a positive. […]
A few years ago, when Hastings United, with some players who were also on the pitch today but having moved on, were winning most games by a decent margin, it did get a bit hard to find something new to say each time. Now that that mantle has been passed on to Eastbourne Borough, I […]
