Isle of Man 2001

Friendly Isle

Shaun Holmes apologised to my Dad!

Andrea Prince explains...

My husband suggested that we spend our summer holiday in the Isle of Man this year. However, it wasn't until later that I discovered it coincided with the football festival. My husband David, who is a Wrexham supporter of some 20 years, thought this would be great as he doesn't get home to watch them play very often. We live in Peterhead, Scotland, and only visit Wrexham maybe twice a year to visit family.

So, seven hours and 420 miles later, we arrived at my mum and dad's house in Garden Village. We had invited them along too as they used to go to the Isle of Man in their courting days and we thought it would be nice for them to go back. We finally arrived in Douglas after catching an early ferry along with a few other Wrexham supporters. We settled into our cottage in Castletown and got ready for the matches.

David and my dad went to the first match against Burnley while Mum and I had a few glasses of wine back at the cottage. When we found out they had lost 2-0 we decided we must go to the other games to bring them some luck! 

So to the next match against Oldham. We got some seats directly behind the Wrexham bench and got a good view of all the players (including all the nice tanned legs). My Mum couldn't believe how small Brian Flynn was! She was also impressed with Lee Trundle's juggling skills when he caught the ball between his legs. We decided that he must use a sunbed as being that tanned was not natural! We kept wondering if Pryce Griffiths would turn up, but thought he was probably in the Bahamas or some equally exotic location. During the game Shaun Holmes kicked the ball in frustration directly at us, narrowly missing Dad's head by a whisker. Later, Shaun came over to us and apologised and shook Dad's hand! What a nice bloke! The Reds eventually got a goal and won 1-0. Our lucky mascot tactic had worked!

On our way to the Isle of Man match in Ramsey we were just approaching the stadium when a football came flying over a wall and past us. Next thing we know, there are three or four heads hanging over the wall shouting: 'Oi mate, get the ball for us will you.' We thought it was kids at first before we realised it was Lee Trundle, Michael Blackwood and Steve Roberts. David retrieved the ball for them and Lee said: 'Robin Gibson's got his shooting boots on!' Inside the stadium we again sat near the front. When Brian Flynn walked past he spoke to us and said 'Alright' to David. Within minutes of the game starting we were ahead 2-0. My Mum was really getting into it and even started shouting at the players: 'Come on Gibbo!' At the final whistle Wrexham had won 5-0 - an excellent result. This meant they topped the group and would progress to the final.

As the day of the final dawned we were wondering if Wrexham could carry on where they had left off with the Isle of Man. While waiting for the match we spent the day in Douglas, where we spotted the team bus travelling down the seafront to the final. At the game we sat directly behind the Wrexham bench again so we could hear all the team orders. Wrexham played very well, especially during the first half and as the second half dragged on it looked like neither team would score. Then up stepped supersub Faulconbridge to score the winner. A great end to a great week!

It didn't finish there, as later that evening the Wrexham side sailed back on the same ferry as us, where we could do some more 'Wrexham Spotting'. The majority of the squad was seen in the departure lounge with several players having meals on board, including Mum's new favourite player Gibbo having pie and chips. Also Kristian Rogers was on his mobile phone for ages.

Overall my experience of this tournament has allowed me to see the Wrexham team in a totally different light. The whole atmosphere was much more informal and friendlier and being able to speak to, and interact with, the players and staff has renewed my enthusiasm for Wrexham Football Club. Well done! Looking forward to the new season.

Trundle's tanned torso and Rooster's chair

Colin Dollimore reports...

I had some business on the IOM so I set out on Sunday the 22 July with two female employees and we made for Liverpool Airport. The conditions were cloudy and cool but the flight was on time and we arrived at about 2.40pm at Ronaldsway and found the weather to be hot. 

A colleague on the IOM had left one of our pool cars in the airport car park as she was in Oxford for the weekend. She posted me a spare set of keys and emailed instructions on where the car was parked. No problem finding it and as insurance there was a big notice in the back window saying: 'THIS IS THE CAR COLIN' - obviously making allowances for the fact that I am a mere male! After having negotiated the automatic car park pay machine we were off and headed straight to the Welbeck hotel in Douglas. 

I told the girls to be quick after we registered and I would show them some of the island before returning for the Burnley match. The west of the island is beautiful and we headed for Peel where roadworks had split the town in two. In the event we did not stop, but headed south down the coast to a favourite pub by a waterfall about four miles away. It did open on a Sunday, but was closed for the afternoon. Now those that know the IOM will recall that it is like a time warp and operates like we did 20 years ago. Very pleasant, but not when you are hungry on a Sunday afternoon. Decision time! Port Erin or back to Peel? We chose the former. PE is very pleasant when the sun is out, but not when everything is shut. Just as we were despairing and thinking, 'please not McDonalds or football ground cuisine', we came on a cafe by the bowling green and tennis courts. A cup of tea and a bun I thought…but like a mirage there were tablecloths and nice fresh food. Two of us chose the roast lamb and spirits rose immediately. 

Now on to football matters. One of the girls, Emma, is an avid Wrexham fan and the other, Hayley, is an occasional MUFC fan. Both agreed to go to the match and off we went. 

We had an ice cream at McDonalds, which is next to the National Stadium and this either cooled us down rapidly or the weather was changing! It can change several times a day on the island and this meant Hayley was cold before the match even started. I do not the Douglas stadium as the athletics track means the pitch is some way from the main stand and it therefore lacks atmosphere. The stand was dominated by Burnley fans but even so there definitely seemed to be less Wrexham supporters than usual at this event. 

Wrexham had more of the play than Burnley, but the familiar problem of not taking chances meant we knew that Burnley would take theirs. Sure enough, 1-0 down, and Hayley still cold. At half time she asked for a cup of tea and I had my first experience of the refreshment trailer. The queue was long and most wanted hot dogs or burgers - which always take longer to cook when everybody is watching them. Prices were £2 upwards, although there may have been a children's portion available. There was also a big one priced at £4, comprising half a pig and anything else they could fit in.

The second half saw no real improvement from Wrexham and Burnley scored a second near the end. An interesting comment from two Burnley fans behind me: 'They play more attractive football than us, but if BF had been in charge then we would probably not have gained promotion.'
The next day, after a hard day s work, there were changes: Hayley was dropped (she stayed in the hotel and washed her hair!) and was replaced by Jo who had returned from Oxford and was keen to attend her first, yes first ever, football match. 

We arrived at the National Stadium and found it a bit empty and a notice said the match had been switched next door to the Bowl. We drove to the Bowl - this ground is more intimate with a better atmosphere and Wrexham normally do well on it. The players were sat just in front of us and when the fourth official turned his back to talk to somebody, Kevin Russell nicked his chair. The poor bloke had to stand all match!

The game itself saw changes to rotate the squad and this time Oldham had more chances and the referee was quite lenient. Gibson could have been sent off for kicking a player in retaliation, but he survived and was the best Reds player. A female Oldham fan in front of me was getting very incensed with the ref and made a few suggestions that won't have been heard on the IOM before! Jo was a little worried about this, but I said it was nothing to worry about. In the second half Trundle stripped off to come on and Jo was definitely impressed with his tanned torso. I was more impressed with the contribution he and DF made when they came on and LT scored the winning goal. These two work well together and will control matches this season.

In conclusion the smaller squad seems to be building up a good rapport and may surprise a few people this year. The players stayed in a cheaper hotel than usual (three doors down from us in fact) and the coach dropped them off by the bowling alley after each match, and they walked up the hill still fully kitted out. I would still recommend this trip to supporters as a good friendly football break.