The Opponent: Stevenage
We move on from all matters off the pitch and a weekend off for all concerned as we entertain Stevenage (The football club previously known as Stevenage Borough), battling for a place in The JPT area final. Now we have got this far it would be great to have another pop at it. Granted, the Chesterfield defeat was nowhere near as painful as the Millwall play off game, but it would be great to have our moment at the new Wembley Stadium. First things first though. Stevenage will have the same hopes and expectations as us. On paper, we should win this, but our home form has been a little patchy, and if the rest of this season thus far is anything to go by, it could go either way, but we really should have enough to book ourselves a place in the area final. Our JPT record against Stevenage is consistent it must be said, having paled 1 and won it, although the less said about the FA Cup record the better. Oddly enough, our highest scorer against Stevenage is none other than Aden Flint, having scored a double against them at The County Ground towards the end of last season, in a 3-0 victory, the other goal coming from jug eared winger Gary Roberts.
Making the front page of the Stevenage local rags at present is the football match fixing scandal that was broke by one of Murdoch’s gutter press on Sunday. It seems Blackburn Rovers striker DJ Campbell spent a season with them and he is the latest person to have the finger pointed at them. Another dramatic headline read, “Police called as car ends up in a ditch in Hitchin”. Who gets paid to think these things up? It is easy to write Stevenage off as another soulless new town, and to make stereotypical remarks about it as a place to live, as countless unthinking and lazy commentators have done, so I will keep it easy, as that is pretty much what it is, even if you do look at the town of Stevenage from above and it is a pretty much perfect heart shape, it doesn’t make up for a place that has seen its population expand like rabbits at a swingers party. If you ever find yourself ‘fortunate’ enough to be in Stevenage (much like TV’s Saxondale), then they have their very own answer to insomnia, The Stevenage Museum. This small but totally unfascinating museum is a real gem in Stevenage and acts as one of the few links between Stevenage's past and present. It tells the story of Stevenage before it was a new town, which is a time most know very little about and after it became a new town. Inspiring stuff really.
Where the opposition gather – http://www.borochat.co.uk/forum.jsp?article=255815What an exciting bunch. Still, back to White Hart Lane on Saturday.
Last 6 – WLWLLW
They have served us both – Jamie Slabber, Oliver Risser, Paul Peterson, Lloyd Opara, Graz, Jimmy Gilligan, Tony Thorpe, Alex Smith, David Preece
The Odds - Swindon 4/6 Draw 14/5 Stevenage 4/1 Yaser Kasim to finally pop one in the back of the net? 20/1 with Bet 365. No doubt plenty of you took my 11/1 winner with Luongo scoring the first goal the last time we met, although my minimal £’s are backing Dany N’Guessan at 5/1 with most outlets.
The Son Says – He remembers the pain of Chesterfield, his first visit to Wembley and like me, believes now is our time. 3-1 win.
The Prediction – Home win here, a confident and classy performance will see us win 3-0 with goals from N’Guessan (2) and a late Pritchard free kick. An unenthusiastic 5’297 will be in attendance, with 291 from North London.
And Finally – Once King Miguel of Portugal (1828-1834) had enough of being the regal sort he chose to move to England and found a house on the high street of Stevenage. Of all the places.
