28th March 2010 - Johnston's Paint Trophy Final at Wembley Stadium, London
00.00hrs - listened to the Saturday Rock Show on Radio Cumbria. They were doing a 'Fest' of Jimi Hendrix intersposed between rock from the last five decades. It was the perfect backdrop to our preparations for our trip to Wembley.
00.59 - Put the clocks forward and suddenly it was
02.00 - Only an hour before we have to call the taxi company to confirm booking. Eli and I are up, showered, dressed and busy packing our lunch box and checking we have flasks of hot water to make tea or coffee on the journey.
02.30 - Alan arrives and I cook eggs on toast for breakfast for us all. Alan has been to a cup final before, but Eli and I are really excited about our first trip to one. Also, none of us has been to the new Wembley stadium so that is going to be very interesting.
03.00 - Eli called the taxi company and they are sending a car in about ten minutes. It is time to check we have all the stadium tickets/coach tickets/wheelchair/medications/ warm clothes etc.
03.10 - taxi arrived five minutes early so we all got loaded up and headed for Brunton Park, home of Carlisle United Football Club!
03.15 - here we are at Brunton Park. Lots of people here already and we are not due to leave until 04.00. We wait fairly quietly (lots of houses nearby with sleeping occupants).
05.00 - finally we are off. One or two hitches meant we are all late setting off but nobody seems worried as we are now on the road to Wembley for sure!
05.15 - well... apart from a couple of stops to pick up other people :)
The Journey was fairly uneventful. Roadworks of course on M6... nothing new there. One stop for 45 minutes to refresh ourselves then back on the bus and straight to London.
Arriving at Wembley, we are struck by how BIG this place is.. and by how run down the area it is built in is. It is understandable that it is here for two reasons:-
1) People don't want a football stadium in their nice area because it will lower house prices and they will have to put up with paying for policing and so on....
2) If you build a brand new stadium in a run-down area it will hopefully regenerate the entire surrounding area and bring a lot of business and money into it...
Still, it is sad to see the state of the area and makes us hopeful that the regeneration is soon and sufficiently sustainable.
As we headed for the disabled lift from the basement parking 2 level (ground floor) up to the main concourse, we tried to take in the size of the building and the views all around us. But nothing compares you for what you see as you enter the main stadium seating area.
I should mention here that the stewards and all stadium staff were pleasant, cheerful, helpful and informed and made our visit as free from worry as it could possibly be.
So... here we are! We arrived at the wheelchair seating section directly opposite the big screen in the North Stand and with a view of the entire arena which it is almost impossible to describe. Television coverage does not prepare you for the experience. As the stadium filled we were treated to some preliminary entertainment, including the ladies under 13 and the men's five a side finals. The big screen opposite us showed highlights of the road to Wembley for both finalist teams, so we were able to relive some of the wonderful goals we had seen at Brunton Park or on television.
The main event finally started. Fireworks, Flaming tall drums and air balloons carrying the crests of the clubs, the national anthem and finally... the teams prepared to face off.
The volume produced by over 50,000 Southampton fans was incredible. We Carlisle fans were noisy, as usual, but we were heavily outnumbered. However, there were times when we drowned out the singing from the others. The sound was a physical presence nearly blowing us over whenever a goal was scored (there were five in the match).
I will not dwell on the game. We lost. We played as well as could be on the day, but it was not good enough. However, all the team should feel proud because they did us proud. It was clear even from where we sat that every player was determined to play their heart out for the club and they never dropped their heads or gave up to the last whistle.
So.. 1-4 was the final tally and we were runners up this year. We stayed to applaud our lads getting their medals and of course, we applauded the Southampton lads for their brilliant win too, because we are big enough to be gracious in defeat.
It was quiet on the bus home, not because we lost, but because Carlisle is a very long way from London and most of us hadn't slept in over 40 hours. Regardless of the outcome of the game, a visit to Wembley to support your side is a fantastic experience. To be part of that was something Eli and I may never have the opportunity to repeat. I hope we do get the chance though!
