Saturday September 27th

I felt ill when I woke up this morning. I had a blocked nose which started running later and also an aching, throbbing headache which twinged every time I stood up.

I felt down, although the weather, which was grey and miserable, probably didn’t help. For most of the morning I hung around feeling generally ill and wishing that football matches and Saturdays didn’t coincide for although I wanted to see the match (Athletic v Hillroyd Victoria), I also wanted to go into Easterby to spend the £10 Mum gave me from an insurance policy which had ‘matured’ or ‘fermented’ or whatever insurance policies do. I was half thinking of buying Santana’s “Welcome” which I’ve wanted since hearing it at Robert’s in Rotherham.

I compromised and went with Dad, who was on 2-10, at one o’clock. We arrived in Easterby at 1.15 p.m., and after looking round Smiths record department on Queensgate, I went to HMV records in Schofield Street. The album wasn’t in either of those two places, so I tried “Aymers” (no success) and then gave up after trying to find "Michael’s."

The football match started at three, so I wandered up at about two-fifteen. There was a smallish crowd there so I had time to buy two Manksteads v Athletic programmes, two Athletic v Brunswick progs and a couple of the current ones (40p).

Athletic started well and looked much the better side, Hillroyd relying on a packed penalty area for defence, desperate, straight-up-in-the-air clearances etc., but despite their superiority they couldn’t score. Typically Hillroyd got a breakaway goal just before half-time, an easy header from the near post, a result of bad defending. The second half was the same, classy play from Easterby and tight defending from Hillroyd, yet despite this, Athletic went two down when Hudson dropped a cross and allowed Hillroyd to score. Goals three and four I can’t really remember. The game really folded up as far as Easterby were concerned, and I was so sickened I left immediately after their fourth was scored. 4-0!! I can’t really believe it. There were even “Gough Out!” shouts.

I shouldn’t have gone out because I felt rotten when I got home, headache, sore throat and runny nose. I’ve smitten Mum too. I spent the evening watching television and feeling poorly.