This was the first time I made the trip to Norton and it is a trip I will always remember as one of quite a few that was characterised by naff internet directions to the ground from the railway station. At one point I thought I was really going to struggle to find the ground. That was when I asked a Police Community Support Officer on where to find Norton United FC. The Officer replied in his West Midlands accent, in a manner to suggest that he had never heard of it. Thankfully after giving some brief information from my directions to his female colleague, I did manage to make my way to Community Drive in the Smallthorne distruct of Stoke-On-Trent.
Walking across the car park, I saw none other than Paul who did the filming for our games in those days, and later became Reds Review Programme Editor. He kindly offered me a lift back to Longport Station at the end of the match.
The first half was pretty even before Andy McCoy put us ahead just after the half hour with what I believe to be a pure fluke. McCoy clearly attempted a cross from the left side of the area that went in off the far post. Did he mean it? Surely not! Karl Gornell made it 2-0 before half time.
For their part, Norton United were still mathematically in with a tiny chance of finishing in a top two promotion place if remaining results were to go their way. I would have thought there would be some reaction after the break, and they did start to put us under a bit of pressure. That said, the nearest they came to scoring was when our Keeper and a few defenders had a bit of a mix up.
One player in which fellow fan Dave The Rattler was not too fond of from the class of 2009/10 was Dave Ojapah. He came on as a substitute, and made a challenge near the touchline where we were both stood. We both had to move pretty sharply as the ball came flying towards us as a result of that challenge. I promptly joked to Dave that this was no doubt the reason Mr Ojapah was not one of his favourites!
By his high standards Steve Corris was not having his best performance in the first half. He would often give the ball away, prompting chants of "Norris", "Dorris", "Morris", or "Horris" from various members of the congregation. It was possibly a little unfair considering he had generally been a solid performer down the years. But that said, I know it was only meant in jest.
We finished 4-0 winners, following late goals by Karl Gornell (for his second) and Liam Coyne. Ironically at the full time whistle, some burning could be seen in the distance as Norton's promotion hopes had literally just gone up in smoke!
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