The Great Day...Ever?

At last, a blog update that is safe to publish! After all the ups and downs of recent years it was brilliant to go back to what I love best - Writing about Chesham United as a fan. Nothing more, just a loving, dedicated, fan. This article formed part of the weekly Chesham United newsletter, but it seemed worthy of a permanent place on the blog site. Enjoy the memories...

Photo by Trevor Hyde

The words simply do not exist to describe what happened last weekend. You can watch the goal over again and again, you can spend hours flicking through the numerous pictures online and you can pick up any of Monday's NATIONAL newspapers and it will be in your face...But did it really happen?

A lifetime of watching it happen to others. A lifetime of telling people you support Chesham United and they look at you like some weirdo and say "who?". It all changed on one completely mad, totally surreal, Sunday afternoon in November.

It was an incredible occasion for the club and for the town; and for the supporters that have dedicated their lives to helping the club, travelling all over the country each weekend, spending freezing cold winter nights in some derelict ground in the middle of nowhere with no more than 40 other punters...it will still not have really sunk in yet.

A Sunday afternoon game was unusual enough, but to turn up at Bristol Rovers and walk into a local pub two hours before kick-off and see it packed out in claret & blue, and then heading onto the terraces in the ground to join 600 Chesham United supporters singing their hearts out, intent on enjoying their once in a lifetime experience of seeing Chesham play a competitive match against a Football League club...Was it a dream?

Everyone had their hopes for the day, and they revolved about enjoying it, and having no regrets. Stay in the match for as long as possible, do your fans and the town proud. The previous day had seen Staines Town have their moment of glory at Leyton Orient, they were 3-0 down after 13 minutes...Chesham fans hoped to stay in the game for longer than that. Make us proud.

The game kicked off amidst an incredible atmosphere in the away end. On the pitch Chesham were holding their own. There were nerves, but the players stayed composed, and competed physically. 10 minutes passed. Still 0-0. Will take that. 13 minutes gone - Staines were 3-0 down by now, still 0-0 - Proud of you lads.

20 minutes gone. 0-0. This is getting ridiculous. We were not just holding on, we were playing in the Bristol Rovers half. 25 minutes. 0-0...Still you felt nervous every time they broke, but it came to nothing. Another Chesham attack...Brad is brought down, in the box - Penalty ref!

It's given. Bloody hell. Nearly half-an-hour gone. Still 0-0...and Chesham have a penalty. On the terraces supporters can barely look. Some nervous bouncing up and down. Pearce steps forward...The keeper saves. Nearly 600 Chesham voices burst into song encouraging the lads to keep their heads up. Nobody wanted to say it, but you could almost read each others minds - Will we rue that miss for the rest of our lives?

Heads did not drop, the singing did not stop and still it felt impossible to believe that you were at a Chesham United match.

The half-time whistle blew. Still 0-0. Beyond the wildest hopes and dreams.

After the break Chesham were attacking the end where the Chesham fans were still in full voice, but as fitness maybe started to play a part, Bristol Rovers began attacking more and more, creating chances, but constantly coming up against a brick wall of a defence that was throwing everything in the way to keep little Chesham in the match.

The clock on the big stand opposite us ticked it's way around to the 60 minute mark. Still 0-0. 65 minutes. 0-0. 70 minutes. 0-0. Was it too early to dare to dream about the possibility of forcing a replay? The goal for the day had been achieved. We had done ourselves proud, stayed in the match for over 70 minutes, and were still in it. On the terraces you felt guilty thinking it, but moving into the last 20 minutes you still fully expected the inevitable stab in the heart, the huge sense of disappointment mixed with pride. The later the goals conceded came, the more it would hurt; but already it had been a day to live long in the memory.

Barry Hayles came off the bench to a heroes welcome. It was still 0-0. 76 minutes and another Bristol move into the Chesham box is thwarted by a solid defence. The ball breaks to the half way line where Hayles is waiting. He plays a ball out to Ryan Blake who is hovering in space just in front of the Chesham fans.

Behind him on the terraces there is a sense of relief that the ball is out of our own half. Blake controls the ball and heads towards goal. A quick look around and there is nobody around to pass to...Hold the ball up Blakey, only 13 minutes to go, we can still get a draw out of this...He steps up the pace and then from 20-25 yards out he surprises everyone by hitting a shot to the keepers near post. The ball bounces and skids in front of the keeper. The net bulged. The bloody net only went and bulged!

The idea of being crushed on the terraces celebrating a Chesham goal would have been laughable at any point over the last 30 years, but it was happening. The away terrace absolutely exploded with an overwhelming sense of joy as supporters bounced up and down hugging the nearest person they could find. Was this really happening?

1-0 to Chesham. 13 minutes to go. Rovers had to attack now, and they did. 80 minutes. Still 1-0. 85 minutes. 89 minutes. The 4th official raises the board - 6 minutes of added time! Rovers attacked. Corner after corner, cross after cross was launched into the Chesham box, without fail being met by a heroic soaring header from the Chesham defence. On several occasions the ball fell to a home striker who had a chance to equalise only to find that Shane Gore in the Chesham goal was turning in the performance of his life.

92 minutes. 94 minutes. This is going to happen isn't it? 96 minutes. 97 minutes - The away fans are screaming and pleading for the referee to blow the whistle and let the party begin.

The whistle blew. Bristol Rovers 0-1 Chesham United. The final whistle stamped a mark in the history book of Chesham United Football Club as the greatest day for a generation, and maybe even the greatest day ever for the football club. As one supporter was heard to say: "That is the best day supporting Chesham United since we went to Wembley in 1968...But we lost that day, so this is probably even better than that."

And there my friends is how, five days on, the good folk of Chesham United are still in a state of disbelief. Pinching themselves every morning to check it really happened.