Not a tome
“Where’s the book?” you might ask. Last week, you were promised a special email to announce the arrival of the book From Hashtag United to Wembley. Well, the book was ready to purchase from Amazon on Thursday, about one hour before news of the
Queen became public knowledge. To make matters seem more inappropriate, Chapter 1 of the book has the title ‘Queen’. Now, I am in the USA, so not only was there ‘not a tome’, but I am now not at home. You are probably wondering why I am in the USA and whether I am taking part in a multi-city book signing tour. Eh, no. Anyway, you can get the book from this link. It’s available as a paperback or in Kindle format.
What to expect in the From Hashtag United to Wembley book
The book follows my FA Trophy Wembley trail, which started at Hashtag United v Chipstead in the 1st Round Qualifying. From there, I
followed the winners of each tie all the way to Wembley. For each game, I explored the town or city, meeting locals and gaining a mixture of reliable and unreliable information as well as, of course, watching some cracking FA Trophy cup ties. My travels allowed me to meet an ex-drug addict who wanted me to write his life story, gangsters and how to survive with a vocabulary of four words. Oh, and there are occasional excruciating puns like ‘not a tome’.
The award winners in the book
At the end of the book, there is a selection of award winners. Reece Beckles-Richards of Cheshunt wins the best goal of my Wembley trail for his cracker at St Albans City, and Trevor Stotten of Chipstead wins the award for most jobs handled at a club by one person. The Royal Oak in Wrexham won the best pre-match pub award, although subsequently, Wrexham failed in its bid to be the 2025 UK City of Culture. Clearly, the judges didn’t visit the Royal Oak. Anyway, why am I giving so much away? Buy the book and learn about oodles of other trivia.
FA Trophy delayed
As all games were postponed last weekend, the First Round Qualifying of the FA Trophy was held over to the weekdays of this week. You will have to wait until next week to learn more about Workington and New Salamis‘ progress and where the trail heads next. Alternatively, you can have a quick Google, but you can be sure there will be more obscure facts about these clubs in next week’s review.
Soccer that is not in a league
On my travels, I happened to mention to an American I met today that I was interested in non-League football. “I s’pose you mean soccer”, he said. I didn’t mean soccer; I meant football, but I nodded to make it easier for him. “So, non-league soccer is soccer for teams that don’t play in a league?” he asked. “No, it’s football for teams that are not in the Premier League or Football League in England”, I replied. “So, kids?” he responded. I gave up.
Doncaster Rovers Belles not silenced
I learned that you cannot sound bells at weddings until after the Queen’s funeral. Thankfully, there are no restrictions on Doncaster Rovers Belles. They can play their fixture on Saturday at Long Eaton United. At least, so I’m tolled.
Bog standard
Having flown from London to New York this week in a brand new, sparkling British Airways plane, I then had to transfer to an American
Airlines flight for my final destination. The plane looked as though it started life in the 1950s. I indulged in some black humour (or humor) with a fellow passenger as we wondered whether it would make it to our destination. “It won’t be our destination if it crashes”, he said. As the plane left early, I complained to my new-found friend that by leaving early, it was shortening my life even more if it crashed. “Less time to worry”, opined my fellow passenger. I agreed. As you will realise, it arrived safely. However, the one thing I did notice is that toilets on planes are all the same. I guess they have always been bog standard.
