Today I should have gone to a cricket match somehere locally but it is footy pre-season and Stocksbridge Park Steels (home of Jamie Vardy) were entertaining a Sheffield Wednesday XI (U23s). So I toddled off with a few pence in my little zippy purse and had to pay £8 for the privilege of getting into the Stocksmoor Ground. Doh! I forgot to ask about concessions!
I bought a smart programme (see below), well some soul had made the effort to produce it, so that set me back a £1 and then I had a strip of 5 raffle tickets, which I lost before the draw at half time, during the course of trying to juggle my and purchase, change, ticketswaterproof (not needed).
I was also holding my cap to keep the sun off my head, had my radio with the Test Match and other pre-season matches tuned in, with headphones dangling around my body and of course the statutory pint of Bradfield Blonde (a beer) in a plastic pot. I looked and felt like an "anorak". Actually I think I am but then it's my age and I'm not standing on a railway station.
Sheffield Wednesday are closely linked to cricket of course and the Wednesday Cricket Club was founded to give the cricketers some fitness during the winter break. They played on a Wednesday as you will gather and this might have something to do with the traditional Wednesday half closing.
The football Club was formed on the evening of the 4th of September 1867 at a meeting in the Adelphi Hotel in the city and there was a formal announcement in the Sheffield Independent newspaper stating this.
The Wednesday football club soon eclipsed the cricket club and it realised that there was already a well established Sheffield FC as competition nearby and then Hallam FC started up soon after.
Wednesday played its first official match against the Mechanics Club at Norfolk Park which the Wednesday won by 3 goals and 4 ROUGES to one. (a rouge of course you would know about-yes? No?) its a score when the ball passes outside the goal but between posts set a yard or so wider....rather like Aussie Rules. Get it?
On February 1st 1868, Wednesday entered the Cromwell Cup, a four team competition, for newly formed clubs in the area (uner 2 years old). Oliver Cromwell (no not him) ran the local Alexander Theatre. Wednesday went on to win the cup in extra time, beating a team from the Sheffield Theatre Royal called The Garrick 10, by what may be considered the first ever "Golden Goal". The match was played at Bramall Lane.
The Cromwell Cup is the second oldest cup comeptition recorded, the first being the Youdan Cup which is being held in Sheffield this weekend as youth clubs from home and abroad come together to compete in small groups and then in a knock out trophy. I'm going to see some of these games on Monday. SO THERE IS A POINT TO ALL THIS.
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