Willand vs. Yate Town
‘Give him a ball and a yard of grass.’ Niall O’Flaherty, lead singer of The Sultans of Ping, shouts into the microphone before pausing for a drum beat. He calms down before the song winds on.
‘He’ll give you a move with the perfect pass’ he almost whispers in comparison.
The song is taken from the highly recommended 1993 debut album ‘Casual Sex in the Cineplex’ and features a blend of football references and witty observations, earning it a cult following.
The band actually wrote the song as a tribute to the legendary Nottingham Forest manager Brian Clough, referencing a quote about Scottish international John Robertson, even though it might sound like they were describing another River Allen performance.
“John Robertson was a very unattractive young man. If one day I was feeling a bit off colour, I would sit next to him. I was bloody Errol Flynn compared to him. But give him a yard of grass, and he was an artist. The Picasso of our game.”
While Clough may have been highlighting Nottingham Forest’s finest winger’s talent, he, and indeed the Sultans of Ping FC, were also making a more subtle point about the beautiful game. Clough held the belief that football was a straightforward game, urging players to play it accordingly. He often emphasised the importance of doing the basics right: passing, movement, and effective teamwork, a point embraced later in the Sultans song.
‘If God meant the game to be played up
There he would’ve put goal posts in the air.’
It’s not surprising then that drummer Morty McCarthy served as the editor of the Cork City fanzine “No More Plastic Pitches,” which to many was the devil incarnate of the game itself.
Plastic, or to give them their more accurate name, artificial, pitches have been around English football since the late 1970s and could be encountered in sports centres around the land. No one who had the mispleasure of playing on one of the early pitches came away unscathed with burns that seemed to defy even the thickest of tracksuits, and I’ve long held the theory that it was Germolenes owners Bayer who were the driving force behind such atrocities.
The pitches eventually and inevitably arrived in the professional game in the early 1980s, with Queens Park Rangers Loftus Road the first incumbent, followed later by Luton, Oldham, and Preston North End. The pitches were unpopular with most of the population, from players to supporters, with complaints ranging from bounce consistency to affording an unfair advantage to the home team, and the FA moved to ban the controversial pitches in 1988.
That was the end of plastic pitches for the higher echelons of the football league, but there was a rebirth in the 1990s with the introduction of 3G, and later 4G, advanced technology that improved both the aesthetics and playability of pitches. Early adopters of this new technology included Bromley and Harrogate, who switched to 3G in part to improve facilities and offer year-round usage for teams and community projects, but there was continued resistance from clubs and fans alike.
The real issue for both casual and dedicated supporters alike remained the same. Concerns about player injuries, inconsistent performance compared to natural grass pitches, and gaining an unfair advantage continue to dominate discussions surrounding artificial surfaces.
Former England captain Faye White summed up some of the concerns. ‘These pitches slow the game down, the ball bounces differently, and there are more injury consequences.’
Joe Royle, the former manager of Oldham, was a fan. ‘I always thought, psychologically, that it gave us an edge. If they stuck their heels in and shook their heads, I knew we had the upper hand.’
In truth, the controversy over artificial pitches, at least in the eyes of the layman fan, isn’t as nuanced as it first appears and can be articulated in a simple statement: artificial pitches alter the essence of the beautiful game.
When discussing the vote to allow them back into the professional games, Burnley General Manager Matt Williams succinctly summarised the sentiment: ‘We’ll be voting no for quite simple reasons: we believe football should be played on grass.’
But the truth is that artificial pitches, once maligned, have to become an inevitable solution for some non-league clubs.
With technological advances, they provide reliability where grass cannot. The elimination of weather-related cancellations means clubs can plan matchday revenues with greater certainty, and the pitch becomes a year-round training facility.
Financially, the ability to rent out the pitch for community use brings vital income, turning what was once a controversial choice into a key player for both clubs and local engagement.
Plastic pitches may never be popular, and fans will always lament the loss of a yard of grass, but perhaps it’s time to pass the mantle and embrace a new era of the beautiful game.
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Today’s visitors to Silver Street, high-flying Yate Town, spent the previous week busy improving their already impressive squad, with Jerry Lawrence and Ollie Dewsbury both arriving from Bristol Rovers.
David Steele named a starting eleven missing Jordan Lamb who picked up an ankle injury in last week’s win against Cribbs, his place on the left taken by Douglas Camilo.
Willand began the match on the front foot, pressing Yate from the outset with a clear gameplan of hurrying and harassing the visitors in an attempt to deny them any rhythm in possession. The first clear chance of the game came in the 5th minute, when Searle pounced on a loose ball from Yate’s full-back on the edge of the penalty area, but his shot was straight at Sainsbury in the Yate goal.
Moments later, Howe nearly put his side ahead after a sublime turn and an outside-of-the-boot shot that narrowly missed the target, and the Willand captain continued to trouble the Yate defence, coming close again in the 15th minute after being played through on goal, his shot from the edge of the box missing the post before a fan behind the goal was not so fortunate.
Despite Willand’s dominance, they couldn’t find the breakthrough, with Howe again finding himself with a chance in the 21st minute, turning sharply in the box, only for his shot to lack power, allowing Yate’s defence to clear the danger.
Yate, who had struggled to get into the game, began to find their feet around the half-hour mark. A powerful run from Dewsbury signalled their intent, but they couldn’t penetrate the Willand defence, and the first half ended goalless, with Willand left to rue missed opportunities.
Half Time – Willand 0 – Yate 0
In the second half, Yate posed more of a threat in a much more even game, and the impressive Dewsbury was involved again as the visitors struck the post in the 62nd minute, the ball carouseling through the air in what felt like slow motion.
As the match marched on, Willand’s early intensity began to wane, no doubt legs feeling the effects of the relentless pressing, and Yate took the lead in the 82nd minute under fortuitous circumstances. After a series of deflections in the box, Taylor found himself in the right place at the right time, smashing the ball home from close range.
Willand responded almost immediately, though, as substitute Josh Baker rose highest to meet an Allen free-kick in the 86th minute, his header powering past a diving Sainsbury to bring the game level.
As the match passed the ninth minute of the five added for injury time, Dorothy came agonisingly close to snatching all three points for Willand, but his powerful shot flashed just wide of the post.
In the end, while Yate looked dangerous when they pushed forward, their insistence on playing short from the back continued to invite pressure, and Willand took full advantage, working hard to press the defence and winning several opportunities to regain possession in dangerous areas.
While the home team will feel disappointed that their hard work, especially in the first half, didn’t yield a greater reward, a draw was ultimately a fair reflection of a match that could have gone either way.
Full Time – Willand 1 – Yate Town 1
