Stocksbridge Park Steels take Saturday showtime due to coronavirus

On Planet Football, it was a far from normal Saturday.

“F*** off corona, we’ll still watch football,” chant eight teenagers at the Northern Premier League South East Division game v Cleethorpes.

Despite occasionally ignoring coach-turned-chairman Graham Furness’s request to mind their language, it is all in good 
humour.

They were no more serious bellowing “We’ll see you outside!” to three even younger Cleethorpes fans, one twirling a scarf above his head, on the grass bank behind the opposite goal than in demanding VAR.

It must be difficult chanting solidly for two hours with your tongue in your cheek, but they manage.

“We’re back to school on Monday... Boris, Boris call it off!”

It was the sort of atmosphere and game you hope for at non-league football.

Faced with nothing for who knows how long, some fans just needed a fix. There were 51 at October’s Senior Cup game against Parkgate, but this season’s average gate was 137 until Saturday’s 398.

“I should come more,” admits James Harper over his pre-match pint, Sheffield Wednesday bobble hat on the table. “I watch Wednesday’s away games on iFollow but three or four times a season I come here.

“It’s a good set-up, good quality football, 200 yards from our house. My lad Ben plays for the Under-11s. I’ve been going to Hillsborough for nearly 50 years and I know everyone around me but not as well as I know Phil there or Graham in the corner.

“I don’t worry about it because it’s always been here. Perhaps we should. People get a bit complacent. Today I told everyone on Facebook, ‘Get yourself up’.”

Ben once took part in a keepy-uppy challenge with George Boyd before a pre-season friendly, and met Sheffield United’s Billy Sharp in another. “It’s friendly,” he says. “I get to sit in the Jamie Vardy Stand and go on the pitch.” Former England striker Vardy’s Steels goal-scoring record takes up a page of the £1.50 programme.

“We’re Sheffield United fans, we’re local and it’s a day out,” reasons Kaley Stokes, who has brought boyfriend Danny Storr, nine-year-old Evie and six-year-old Ellis. “It’s not expensive is it?”

With the league setting minimum ticket prices, Steels charge adults £8, children £5.

Phillip Steaton is also sat in the busy Vardy Stand in his Sheffield FC jacket, hand sanitiser in his pocket. A member there, he watches the men’s and women’s teams.

“Sheffield FC and Staveley were called off,” he says. “I probably get here once or twice a year.

“None of the Football League people chuck any money at them. Their goal bonuses would keep a team going for a year but they don’t seem interested.”

Furness says: “People have the perception the steelworks and Jamie Vardy throw money at us. We had a load of backing from British Steel when I started in 1986, but none now.

“A scout recently said, ‘Vardy sends you £1,000 every time he scores, doesn’t he?’ If he does it’s to the wrong address! We got a transfer fee we were quite happy with, never thinking the next sell-on would be £1.2m.”

The Northern Premier League bucked a global trend by deciding to play.

Steels have a bottom-six budget and cancellation would have cost between £700 and £1,000. “We don’t own this bar, we’re reliant on football,” stresses Furness. “We’re expecting they’ll at least suspend it on Monday. We were scheduled to have five home games this month.

“We’re not looking for more money to throw at players, it’s for the infrastructure. We’ve no debt but the days of massive cash reserves have gone.

“We took over 18 months ago. I turned it down at first. Sometimes I think I should have stuck to my guns.”

Fortunately for Steels, they have plenty of non-contract players who only get paid when they play.

“They always promise they’re going to put more money into non-league football but the only way that’s happened so far is FA Cup prize money,” claims commercial manager Roger Gissing. “Our manager’s not won an FA Cup game in five years!”

Stocksbridge quickly take the lead, Josh Nodder drilling a shot in off the post.

“(Wednesday’s Cameron) Dawson would have put that out,” chunters a punter as goalkeeper Jacob Carney calmly passes to centre-back Liam MacFadyen.

“We showed non-league football’s not all long ball and huffing and puffing,” says Steels manager Chris Hilton.

Theo Richardson needs a great reaction save with his feet to stop Stocksbridge doubling their lead before half-time.

When the DJ abandons his jumpy CD to read the half-time scores he explains: “We would normally have scores from the Premier League now but for some reason they’re not playing.”

Cleethorpes start to dominate after the break, equalising through Paul Walker but Steels almost nick it at the death but they ripple the side-netting instead.

“We were excellent in the first half but we needed more than one goal,” reflects Hilton. “One-one was a fair result.

“I’ve got a full-time job as a sales manager and we’ve all got mobile phones and laptops in case we have to work from home. Football’s a great thing but lives come first.”