The Diary

04 October 2003: The Stripes Go Marching On At Gillingham?

Tomorrow sees us embarking upon yet another marathon journey on the Albion Magical Mystery Tour; this time, it?s destination Gillingham, in Kent. Not to be confused with the town of the same name in Dorset, by the way; if you do make that mistake, it?s time for geography lessons, methinks. Mind you, we should talk; on our honeymoon in the US, about 13 years ago, we managed to travel to the wrong Las Vegas ? in case you didn?t know (we certainly didn?t!) there?s the famous one in Nevada, and the one-horse town in New Mexico, and we mistakenly chose the latter. How come? Mostly the fact we had - erm - other things to think about at the time!

Looking at the team news first, we didn?t really need the diagnostic skills of Doctor Kildare to work out Jason Koumas would be sitting this one out tomorrow. No worries, though, we can stick Sakiri in the vacant slot ? assuming that?s what our manager intends to do, of course. Makes perfect sense to me, horses for courses, swap one creative midfielder for another, dead simple. It?s nice to know we do have that option these days. Trouble is, as we saw on Tuesday night, what seems logical to us ain?t necessarily so to Gazza, but you really can?t argue with success, I suppose. I?d also like to think we?ll be continuing with Big Bertha at the back. For me, he was one of our better performers versus Millwall, and virtually never put a foot wrong all night; nothing that flashy, just quiet competence. It?s also looking as though Scott Dobie will get a start again, which, to me, makes perfect sense also. He?s just started to hit form and the back of the net, but not necessarily in that order. That looping header of his for the second goal beat The Lions? keeper hands down; let?s hope now he?s embarked on something of a scoring streak, he?ll be thirsting to add to his tally at The Priestfields Stadium tomorrow. Thus far (we?ve only played The Gills four times previously in the League), we?ve managed a 2-1 win and a defeat by the same margin at their place. I?m quietly confident of us getting something tomorrow, even if it?s only a stinking cold or piles from sitting on those awful open seats in their away-end! As The Gills have been in this division three seasons, they?ve had to make the place all-seater by law. Trouble is, as far as the visitors? accommodation is concerned, they seem to have gone for the cheapest (uncovered) option, which means a pretty wet and miserable 90 minutes for us all should the weather take a turn for the worse.

Now for the cultural bit. Gillingham actually forms part of what?s commonly known as ?The Medway Towns?, and in this are lumped not only Gillingham, but nearby Chatham and Rochester as well. The Romans loved the area; not only did they build a strategic settlement there, one of their roads, Watling Street, runs right through the middle of the three. Coincidentally, that same road also runs quite near Lichfield as well, so you could argue there was a Midlands connection even then. The place has always had strong links with the armed forces; most of what used to be Chatham Naval Dockyard ? many old matelots still remember with awe the inscription ?FEAR GOD, HONOUR THE KING!? on the perimeter wall of the Naval Barracks - is actually in Gillingham, and the Royal Engineers School of Military Engineering is located just down the road from the railway station. Another curious fact; up until the late 19th century, much of the surrounding area was covered in brick fields i.e. heavy clay soil suitable for baking in kilns and because of this, extensively used in the building industry. How come? The local farmers quickly realised it was more profitable to allow the fields to be dug for brick clay than use them for agricultural purposes; the former Royal Naval Hospital was constructed entirely with bricks from this source.

Another relic of the military is what the locals call ?The Great Lines?. Nothing to do with the markings on a football pitch; the name refers to its former use, as army-controlled land. During the 18th century, many Anglo-Saxon burials were discovered there, also the remains of prehistoric mammoths. A particularly arcane aspect of this area is the graffiti, which transcends the usual sexual and/or obscene stuff, and would have the average Dingle reaching for the smelling-salts with great rapidity. Well, I ask you; what are you supposed to make of the stuff daubed on the wall of the former Naval Hospital? It reads (and I crap you not), ?Ban the mind-reader, the murdering computer, it has caused a number of explosions and fires,? or, ?Ban the mind-reader, it makes the criminals,? and, again, helpfully listing the symptoms to finally clinch the diagnosis, ?It causes sickness, bends and vomiting!? What does it all mean? Ask me one on sport! Famous Gillingham folkies? Top man was Will Adams, the first Westerner ever to visit Japan. There was also Charles Dickens, but he lived in nearby Rochester, so we can?t really count him, but we can include David Frost, because he attended the town?s Grammar School, in what must have been the time of the aforementioned mammoths! Also an alumnus of that educational establishment was celebrity chef Gary Rhodes, although what he thought of the school dinners isn?t recorded.

As usual, us Dick Eds will be there, and stationed outside the away end, as per usual. Not that we have much to flog; we now have around 20 of the current issue left, so if you?re still short of a Dick, stop us and buy one. Come to think of it, why not simply stop for a chat? The Noise will be willing and eager to answer your questions, especially those surrounding Wedgwood?s working practices and Stoke Speedway. The ultimate challenge, though, has to be a protracted conversation with our garrulous co-editor about his American holiday. Only those with a strong constitution should apply.

And finally?. I was pleased to hear yesterday that Tam Mkandwire had gone to Hereford United on a month?s loan. Today, I emailed one of their supporters? club luminaries with a potted pen-pic of the lad, programmes etc. for the use of; as I said in my mail, they?re certainly getting a good ?un. Not that I want to get rid of Tam; it?s just that he?ll get some much-needed first-team experience there, along with ex-Albionite Danny Carey-Bartram. Trouble is, right now, there?s precious little chance for our youngsters to break into the charmed first-team circle; the last kid to do so was Adam Chambo about three seasons ago. It?s no surprise that Tam was yet another of the lads brought on by John Trewick and Richard O?Kelly when both were at the club. We should have guessed what was in the wind the night we played Man United Reserves; we spotted Richard O?Kelly (now Hereford coach, of course) in the old Halfords Lane directors box then, and at the time, speculated at length as to who was on his shopping-list ? and now we know!

 - Glynis Wright

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