TT No.80: Steve Hardy - Sat 23rd April 2016; AFC Liverpool v Ashton Athletic; North West Counties Lgue Premier Div. Venue: Marine FC; Result: 1-4; Admission: £3 (concession); Programme; £2; Attendance: 114. 

Matchday images (18) https://picasaweb.google.com/footballgroundsinfocus/6277861279241910673

AFC Liverpool are a protest club. They are also a very polite protest club. They go to great lengths to explain that they are not anti Liverpool FC or it’s owners, but more the ridiculously high cost of actually going to a Premier league match these days, which has meant that going to a traditional working man’s sport is now beyond most working men!

After a few seasons groundsharing at Prescot Cables, they have now pitched up at Marine FC in the respectable suburb of Crosby, and that is where the train took me last Saturday, for the visit of Ashton Athletic.

The Marine ground is squeezed in between two houses on College Road in Crosby. They have a huge stand behind the goal at the College Road end of the ground, covered terracing along one side, more terracing behind the far goal and that is it. No access to the fourth side as there is no room for even a pathway with the pitch being right up against the back gardens of the neighbouring houses.

On the pitch this was a typical end of season game as far as AFC were concerned, but not for Ashton who raced in to a deserved 3-0 league before you could say lobscouse. Liverpool pulled one back just before half time, but a 4^th for Ashton just after the break killed the game off.

Before the game, I sat on Blundellsands beach and ate my sandwiches, whilst admiring Anthony Gormley’s Another Place installation.  Despite the beach being bitterly cold it was still full of tourists like me taking pictures of the statues, with some people even wading out to sea to get a close up picture!

Another top afternoon out, at a really friendly and welcoming club.

contributed on 26/04/16