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The final evening of early kick-offs in the East Lancashire League and three intrepid travellers are lining the un-roped pitch at a recreation ground in East Lancashire - between them in the last few days they've been to games in the Scottish West Division Juniors, the Spartan South Midlands League, the United Counties League, the Sheffield County League and other points east, west, north and south.
But the lure of a 6-30pm kick off on a Thursday evening has proved un-missable, especially as the secretary's wife is so helpful when fielding a check call to prevent a wasted journey up the Rossendale Valley.
"The referee's been down earlier in the day and said the pitch is fine, all we're hoping is that the council has been down to do the markings-out," she explained. "We'll find out when we get there. Park in the car park opposite the Rose 'n' Bowl and walk down by the side of the restaurant and you'll find the ground."
The directions were spot-on and Stacksteads, a small mill village nestling in the valley between Rawtenstall and Bacup is easy to find-sure enough the car park is virtually empty and a leisurely stroll down to the recreation ground, passing a disused mill and an immaculate bowling green along the way leads the expectant traveller to the destination.
Stacksteads St Josephs are an established team in East Lancashire League circles though the church bearing their name was demolished some years ago. Their ground is rudimentary but has everything needed for this level of football - a changing room block, hard standing on two sides and a well grassed and flat playing surface. The River Irwell winds past the ground on the far side and the club has wisely invested in a large fishing net to retrieve the ball from the waters. In the distance a disused cotton mill is a legacy of the days when the valley was a thriving industrial base - these days the looms are long gone and the new houses are largely purchased by commuters working in Manchester and surrounds.
Dusk is already settling on the village as the teams prepare for kick-off at 6-30pm. The game is fast and furiously fought, sadly punctuated by fouls that mar a decent contest. St Josephs take an early lead, add a second on 27 minutes and a third on the stroke of half-time from a disputed penalty.
The second half is more even, Enfield fighting back with one goal and going close to several more. The last few minutes are played in virtual darkness and the referee calls for time with just under 41 minutes played- the first-half was 43 minutes long.
This is football in the raw- a back to basics approach to the beautiful game. But the East Lancashire League is growing on me. I've seen several games this season and the standard has been pretty impressive, the discipline of the players generally less so. It's whole-hearted and certainly not wanting for commitment. And without it why would three groundhoppers in a crowd of around 30-strong be in Stacksteads on a Thursday evening in early September.
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