| Crocs
on Tour
> 2010-11
> Burgess Hill Town |
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Burgess
Hill Town -
Saturday 10/07/10
For
some unbeknown reason, Gus Poyet seems to have developed a
liking for Ryman League Division One side Burgess Hill Town.
Having played one charity match at their Leylands Park
ground last season, he enjoyed it so much that he agreed to
give the Hillians the honor of hosting the Albion's first
pre-season friendly of 2010-11. With a well-stocked bar and
a sunny day, it would have been rude to ignore the opening
game of the year, especially with it taking place right on
the Croc's doorsteps.
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Mode
of Transport:
With McCarthy living in Burgess Hill, he was
able to walk to the game after meeting Potter,
who arrived via train, for a delightful
breakfast in Mooch@76 |
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Team:
Gustavo used two teams per half, both set out in
a 4-4-2 formation. For the first period, the
Albion lined up: Brezovan, Cook, Hall, Elphick,
Painter; Kishishev, Bobson, Jamie Smith,
Sparrow; Murray, Holroyd. Mitch Walker replaced
Brezovan after 30 minutes, before being replaced
himself for the last 30 by Michael Poke. The
second half saw the following play: Poke, Whing,
El-Abd, Dunk, James Smith; Caskey, Dicker,
Navarro, Thomson; Barnes, Hart |
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Kit:
Burgess Hill were in their home uniforms of
yellow and black halfs, black shorts and black
socks. The Albion wore their new home kit of
blue and white stripes, blue shorts and blue
stockings. All three 'keepers chose their
emerald green jersey with black shorts and socks |
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Gus
Poyet's Attire:
Gustavo was dressed as a flair dictator for this
one, combining standard issue training t-shirt
with shorts and socks |
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Weather:
An unbelievably hot and sunny day ensured Mid
Sussex lived up to its reputation as a tropical
climate |
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Stadium
Rating:
One stand stradles a third of the touchline with
delightful yellow and black seats, while a
clubhouse behind the goal is large and offers
good beer at good prices. 3/10 |
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Food
Rating:
Those who partook in the consumption of food
said they thoroughly enjoyed the home cooked
efforts available from the burger van. 7/10 |
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Entertainment:
Two penalty shoot outs and a raffle was about as
good as it got. 4/10 |
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Friendliness
of Locals:
Extremely friendly, the Burgess Hill supporters
seemed to revel in hosting their more
illustrious opponents. 8/10 |
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Standard
of Local Females:
Only a few females were spotted in and around
the ground, but they were of a decent enough
standard given Burgess Hill's reputation as a
breeding ground for dogs. 6/10 |
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Steward
Rating:
The only stewards appeared
to be those who were operating the turnstiles,
doing a fine job in their roles of muggers by
taking £12 off paying customers. 7/10 |
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Flag
Attention:
The Crocs flag was deemed not needed for a
pre-season game |
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Match
Report:
A typical first season of the friendly passed by
with the Albion dominating but unable to turn
that dominance into a convincing win over their
lower league opponents. Glenn Murray opened the
scoring after three minutes, and that was, well,
that. Gary Hart and Chris Holroyd both had
chances they should have done better with, but
with Mr Poyet more concerned about fitness than
results at this stage of the season, he would no
doubt have considered it a useful exercise |
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Thought
of the Day:
Discussing job prospects for the future and the
lack of those available to university graduates,
one gentleman was heard to come out with the
consoling words of "it could be worse. You
could be homosexual, tattooed or coloured" |
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