The Opponent: Macclesfield Town
So how many of us are going to make the long trek north for this one? Sadly I won’t be amongst the numbers travelling what with work and everything else so its Wiltshire Sound for me in a Transit van. The trouble is I often end up working outside of the listening area, I’m due out in Cirencester later today, so it could be a case of relying on the TEF for updates, although whenever I look for updates on here I usually find out that Player is shit and the opposition commentary is much more entertaining than ours! Another interesting week at STFC. The General Manager is no longer, with plenty of reasons as to why he is not, some laughable it has to be said. Safe journey to those making the trip today, fingers crossed you bring the result home that makes the draw much more interesting tomorrow.
Macclesfield has been accused of having few cultural amenities; in 2004, research was published in The Times naming Macclesfield and its borough the most uncultured town in Britain, based on its lack of theatres, cinemas and other cultural facilities. On the flip side, despite being a cultural desert, in 2008, the borough was named as the fifth happiest of 273 districts in Britain by researchers from the Universities of Sheffield and Manchester. Some of the more well known names from the musical world include bluesman John Mayall as well as Ian Curtis and Stephen Morris of Joy Division, and Gillian Gilbert, who along with Stephen Morris was a member of New Order; Bernard Sumner, who was also a member of both New Order and Joy Division, is from the nearby village of Alderley Edge. A memorial to Curtis is located in Macclesfield Crematorium. Other famous folk from Macclesfield include cricketing legend Jonathan Agnew, Antiques boffin David Dickinson and bearded sailing hero Ben Ainslie.
Where the opposition gather – http://fansonline.net/macclesfieldtown/mb/view.php?id=121263Macclesfield Last 6 – WLWWDW
They have served us both - Paul Ince, Ashan Holgate, Antony MacNamee, Yaser Kasim, Colin Heath, Jon Beswetherwick, Mark Gardiner, Mark Cooper
The Odds – Macclesfield 4/1 Draw 11/4 Swindon 4/6 Fancy a repeat of the Port Vale scoreline? A rather miserly 66/1 with Hills for a 2-5 away win. Bit of a longshot for first goalscorer and rather long overdue has to be Darren Ward at 28/1 with Bet 365.
The Son Says – He seems to remember this lot beating us before but has assured me that it was a one off and we will thrash them 1-0.
The Prediction – I am thinking class is likely to shine through here, we are 2 leagues apart for a reason and off the back of putting 5 past Port Vale last weekend I am going for a 3-1 win, with goals from N’Guessan and a Ranger double, 2’444 in attendance with 355 from ourselves.
And Finally – A local legend attaches to the famous flight of 108 steps from Water's Green to St Michael and All Angels Church in Macclesfield? It is said that anyone who can make it from bottom to top without taking a breath on the way will have a wish granted. The cynical, however, might wonder if any such claim was based on a quick stop in the pub where the trek begins.
