Wednesday ...

...working in Cheadle Hulme, I guess I missed most of the "action/stuff" in Central Manchester today - yes I've seen the pictures "Manchester turns Blue" etc etc - and getting into Piccadilly from CHulme this evening I've seen a fair few who won't be seeing too much of tonight's game - all smiley smiley mind ... so - instead of the "sea of blue" pictures you will see elsewhere - I bring two - one small juxtaposition from Platform 14 on Man Picc tonight - Irn Bru, Fosters, Carling - and the mystical "Buckfast"...



.....and the second picture is what I had with my salad tonight ....



I'm doing this at h/t naturally - could have been a pen late on there (!!!) - otherwise comfy - just get that ball up front quicker ...
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Real Football Tonight .....

Stalybridge Celtic Reserves beat Padgate St Oswalds 3-2 - and yes the sad b*st*rd has pictures from same ....

http://mossleysmiffy.myjalbum.net/CelticResvPadgate/

interesting to see not only Mike Fish (striker) at No 6 but also Jon-Paul Lewis (keeper) at No 5 ....

I have to say JP looked a useful central defender without his mittens on - and Fishy ...fell over a few times :D

Cheshire Assoc Div 1 - just like the f**king railways mind - I bust a gut to get there in time for the 1830 kick-off - it finally "did" at 1900-ish ...

hey ho - football continues ......no idea what I'm doing Saturday - in the Belper area

Football ? Errr - YES !!

With it being "ju-jitsu" night for boy - I managed just over 39 minutes of the Leeds v Carlisle game on telly this evening - and wasn't that little bit rather good - rather refreshing .... a good honest "end-to-end, hard-tackling, players getting up and getting on with it" 39 minutes of football. I saw the first goal too - ex-Woodley Sports' Simon Hackney did the hard work, only for it to go in off Danny Graham's arse !! Apparently it finished up 2-1 - with Leeds getting "their one" on about 95 minutes.... a surprise to some maybe....but that keeps it open for part two eh ?

And STILL the season goes on ...tomorrow night - at Bower Fold - kick off 1830 - that's six-thirty to you - Cheshire Association Division One - Stalybridge Celtic Reserves v Greenhalls Padgate St Oswalds ....

....I've even been offered some West Riding games for next Saturday (sorry Dave but I'll have to decline - it's a Belper/Mother-in-Law weekend - now if you know of any Central Mids League stuff (no don't look - that DID finish last Saturday))

We'll look no further than tomorrow for now ..... !!!
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Football ? Errr - No ...

A family man can only do so much over a weekend - so today it was "walkies" with Mrs Smiffy out in the Derbyshire Dales (Calver/Baslow) ... so this is what you get today / tonight ....

A bluebell wood ..



A "Whitebell" in amongst the bluebells



A "flying thing" on a "purple thing" - any clues would be welcome (I don't do the "Observer Book of...." type stuff !)



Good to see Stockport getting a draw down at Wycombe mind .........

(Added at 2355)

Holy sh*t !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes I've just seen the Man City result ......................................
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Stockport Georgians v Prestwich Heys

From one extreme to another eh ??

Pix at

http://mossleysmiffy.myjalbum.net/StockportvsPrestwich/

but you'll have to wait for everything else as I'm missing a film I want to watch at the moment - it started at 2000......it's now 2014 ...

...stay tuned
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Stalybridge Celtic v Barrow

Some pictures here on this new-fangled "JAlbum" thing ...

http://mossleysmiffy.myjalbum.net/StalybridgeBarrow/

The afternoon got off to a bad start - finished work at 1230 - home at 1330 - to find house-key on key-ring - in desk drawer - d'oh .... had to get Mrs Smiffy out of work to "let me in". Back to Stalybridge, and a small "calmer" at the Buffet bar before heading for the Bus Station - busy ....

Unfortunately the buses were "a touch late" - OK as far as Buxton, and then .... to say "cross-country" would be an understatement. Not exactly farm tracks but Monyash ????? Finally got to - and through - Ashbourne and on to Burton, our coach arriving about 1920 (another did not make it till after the kick-off !).

The game - first half a little flat in my eyes anyway - chances were few and far between. Half-Time - 0-0 and me in trouble with the security etc vis-a-vis camera - next season I really MUST get my paperwork in order !! The second half was a different story - ebbed and flowed until Barrow took the lead on the hour with a header at the far post. They had chances for 2-0, but the final 20 belonged to Celtic - but they just couldn't get the ball in the net. The post was rattled, a hand was rattled, but on the night it was not to be.

A sombre journey back - a touch quicker than the outward mind - arriving back just before midnight into the "Last Days of Sodom and Gomorrah" that is Friday Night in StalyVegas. However sanctuary was found in the "Fleece" where post-mortem and quiz machine were the order of the day/night/morning. Taxi back to Mossley about 0230 - and now this ...

Later today - pick up house-keys from workmate's house in Stockport, before heading for Stockport Georgians ground for this afternoon's Manky League "finale" against Prestwich Heys (don't forget 1430 kick-off) - last night's crowd of 2,530 is unlikely to be beaten !!
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Friday ....

...OK - it's apres midnight as we speak (OK 0100 !!) - and to be honest, all eyes should now turn towards Stalybridge Celtic in their quest to "wave at Droylsden as they pass 'em" - viz the BSN Play-Off Final @ Burton in just over 19 hours.

It's interesting to go around the boards of the "Six Tame Sides" - it varies between complete indifference (Curzon) to "C'mon Barrow" (Hyde & Droylsden).

I'm going - OK, call me a Mossley fan if you like (it's nice ...) but it's probably because I'm not born, bred and buttered in any of the local towns that gives me the urge/feeling/etc etc to go and support a local team other than the one five minutes walk away from my house ...

I've a sneaky feeling that there will be a few from the Tameside area down at the Pirelli later today - let's hope for something good. After last Sunday's game at Bower Fold (i.e best part of 3 hours of everything - up - down - heart attack - etc) - well who knows.......

DON'T FORGET - If you can't go - get down to a pub that's got Setanta - cus it's on live ........... I'm told the "Q" in Bridge will have it on - if you want to avoid the "StalyVegas" crap - go to the"Railway" in Greenfield - if there's more than one of you - they'll put Sultana on - I watched a few Conf play-offs up there last season ... no probs....
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Something for the Weekend Sir ??

This post will exclude Friday night @ Pirelli Stadium Burton-upon-Trent ....the build-up to this one is better viewed either via the Stalybridge Celtic board ...

http://www.stalybridgeceltic.co.uk/forum/index.php?showforum=2

or even the Barrow message board ...

http://www.barrowfc.com/

THIS is more for those who need their " Saturday Fix" - well there's plenty afoot in the Manchester League with four offerings, two of which affect the outcome of the Championship ...

(Note all 1430 KO)

Atherton Town v Gregorians (who are top - 72 pts GD +25)
Breightmet Utd v Wigan Robin Park (second - 71 pts GD +46)
Hindsford v Leigh Athletic
Stockport Georgians v Prestwich Heys

As Mrs Smiffy has to go to work on Saturday in Warrington (a teacher's work is never done..) I may well partake of the Stockport Georgians game .. assuming the return trip from Burton goes OK on Friday night (Saturday morning ?) - yes I'm going of course - 5 coachloads up to now from Stalybridge ...

A crazy crazy thought, but wouldn't it be nice if they could get the support of all "Six Tame Sides" - if only for the evening - it just couldn't happen ...... could it ??? A little bit like last Thursday at the Ashton United Quiz Night .... hey ho ...
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