So off on another League of Ireland ground-hop, first for the 2017 season, and 6 out of the 20 completed to do tick off the LOI list! This time heading to the west of Ireland to see Sligo Rovers.
Sligo, a small coastal seaport of about 20,000 people, is the county town of County Sligo, in the west of Ireland. Sligo (in Irish “Sligeach”) which means “shelly place” in reference to all the shellfish found in the Garavogue river.
The town is surrounded by numerous mountains, with the well known picturesque Benbulben looking mighty from afar, with the Atlantic also in view.
Sligo has an abundance of ancient historical sites from some ancient megalithic tombs near Carrowmore to a cairn at Miosgan Maeve, amongst other archaeological sites all around the city and county, showing that their was civilisation dating back here pre history. Also the fact that the Greeks and Romans knew about Sligo as a harbour area shows the historical importance of this small town.
It was the Normans who really progressed the town of Sligo with their Castle and developed the port, a port that brought so much trade and wealth to the town down through the years. But strangely enough the Normans never really controlled the town as that was left to the Irish chieftains the O Conors.
Sligo is probably most famous for the Yeats duo, poet and Nobel laureate W. B. Yeats and his brother the artist, and illustrator Jack Butler Yeats. As people say, this is Yeats country!
But its not only the two brothers, Sligo also have a bit of a long history for Irish music, and the famous Irish music competition that attracts thousands every year, the Fleadh Cheoil, was held in the town on five separate occasions, the last been 2015. This festival has to be seen to be believed as its virtually a must for anyone even remotely interested in Irish music, regularly attracting crowds in the six figures, easily becoming one of Ireland’s biggest cultural events every year. Sligo having it just goes to show how important Irish music is to the area.
With two full time theatres on the go, the poetry of Yeats, and all the Irish music, Sligo is a real den of culture and the arts, and we didn’t even mention the lads in Westlife , no lets not go there!
Getting to the town is relatively simple. Get the N4 from Dublin if driving, or get Bus Éireann from Dublin Bus Station, but it does stop in Mullingar and Longford so be careful! Or the easiest would be to get the Irish Rail train from Dublin Connolly, roughly a 3 hour journey (bus is a little under 4 hours but cheaper!)
Pub watch
The Swagman
Address: No 5 Wine Street, Sligo
First pub of the day was The Swagman, a little bit of a walk from the train station, but eventually found it. Had a massive crowd in it which was impressive for the middle of the day but I guess the rain has people in with nothing else to do on a Saturday! Was hard enough to get a seat but did in the end. Bar man charged my phone which was gracious of him.
Bar was doing well with food, and had the rugby on the box. Not really my type of place, I am not a huge fan of bar/restaurant combos or at least places that dont separate the two crowds, the beer drinkers and the foodies.
A lot of options to drink from the usual to some interesting craft beer options. Apparently they have got over 30 craft beers on offer! Got an ale from local brewers The White Hag Brewery, on the recommendation of the bar man. Found it a bit tough to drink to be honest, but its always good to try something different.
Bar had a very interesting decor, traditional feel but also with a lot of Australian references, which was very interesting to look at, and overall it is a nice bar, just a bit too crowded and cramped for my liking, albeit service was efficient and quick enough which is always important!
I would like to visit this bar again away from the midday food crowd as I’m sure at night it can be a place to have some fun in. And I see they do have some live music and trad nights so I guess will have to be back to test that!
Tricky’s McGarrigles Pub
Address: 11 O’ Connell St, Sligo
Next up was McGarrigles Pub, a smallish pub with some pretty cool relaxed decor. I think they call this style Berlin retro or something, where the bar looks like your old living room with wall paper, lamps, old chairs, and framed pictures all around. Have certainly seen this style before, and I like it a lot, as it creates an inviting atmosphere and gets you relaxed in no time.
Small bar but had some good beers on offer, but I played it safe and just went for Smithwicks, in fact I had two as it was a nice relaxing bar I decided to break the one pint one pub rule.
Bar man was friendly, and there was a nice crowd in, and a nice ambiance in the bar. no TV blaring out or loud music, just people enjoying conversation and relaxing over good pints.
Seems to be a second floor as a few came in and vanished upstairs. I should have checked it out, but I was too lazy.
It seems they do food as well, and going by the reviews it looks popular, but to be honest it doesn’t look like a place for food as I didn’t get that vibe or see a menu, and I certainly didn’t see anyone ordering food while I was there anyway.
Apparently they have a lot of good live music happening here at night time, again its so small but perhaps that’s part of the charm, unless upstairs is massive.
Anyway liked this place, was very relaxing, had a nice chair at the bar and felt very comfy. Could have had another few beers and that’s what its all about really. Will be back next time nearer the night to check out some of the good live music they have
Thomas Connolly
Address: Markievicz Road, Sligo
http://www.thomasconnollysligo.com/
Next port of call was Thomas Connolly in the centre of the town. Pub has a beautiful and traditional exterior, old style and inviting. As the rugby was on, and more specifically Ireland against England, the place was packed to the rafters.
Here since the 1860’s (officially Sligo Town’s oldest pub), the bar has an extensive collection of whiskies, over 60 according to their website, gins and craft beers as well on offer, the bar also has live music on most weekends
Lovely looking bar with some old style wooden decor, and a nice long bar with a decent selection of beers (A really long bar!). I played it safe and just went for a Smithwicks, as the bar was busy and I didn’t want to dilly dally! Was very impressed at how quick I got served considering it was standing room only in the pub. Hats off to the barmen in this place, quick and efficient.
As Ireland seemed to be winning in the game, there was a jovial atmosphere building up in the pub. Have zero interest in the egg chasing but any sport we get one over on the English is always to be welcomed.
Pint was fine, but it was hard to scout out the pub what with the huge crowd in the pub, so its a bar I’d like to return to in the future for another time.
Rendezvous Bar
Address: Holborn Street, Sligo
As I was wandering around I decided to pop into this bar which was off the main drag. Place was heaving and what was unusual (or normal) was that the clientele were more interested in the horse racing than the rugby, which might tell you a bit about the type of bar it was. Got a pint and sat down and rested my legs, recoup the old batteries.
Decent bar, good service, and a bit of an atmosphere in the pub. Best to go with a friend as they probably dont take kindly to strangers round here, lol, or that could be the mad state of me!
Anyway I like bars like this, rough and ready, do the business and no pretentiousness, its a real town pub.
Hargadons Bar
Address: 4 O’Connell Street, Sligo
Was getting a bit hungry, so with luck I ventured into Hargadon’s bar, a lovely inviting pub from the outside, in the centre of town, which serves delicious food all day long. Lovely look decor, very old style and a traditional bar which was small but had regulars relaxing while the rest of the bar was quite narrow where there are many snugs, at the back, where people can have quiet chats and good pints, or in my case sit down rest the legs and order some food and a beer.
The bar has been here a long time, since 1868, and as usual for a lot of these old bars it used to double up as a grocers and a place of liquor!
Staff were friendly and efficient, the food came very quick which was great. This bar has a reputation for good food (and all locally sourced) and I have to say its not wrong. I ordered some pasta (pasta with broccoli and almond cream…as far as I can remember!) with a side plate of chips, and some soup to start, all washed down by a pint of Franciscan Wells Red Ale, a Cork brew I haven’t had in a long, long time. All together it was fantastic, very tasty and really refreshed me no end, good portion size too. Cant beat good food. The food was so good that the beer was an afterthought, which is unusual for me!!
The place had a laid back Saturday late afternoon crowd in, wasn’t too busy as I found it easy enough to get seated. Atmosphere was good, and not loud or with music or TV blaring out. Has a real charm to it and the booths at the back are really cool.
My only regret was that I didn’t sit at the bar to get the banter with the locals, and have a sample of their various craft beers but if I’m ever back in Sligo I will definitely return. Recommended
Mooney’s Bar
Address: Maugheraboy Road, Sligo
The best thing about Mooney’s is its right beside the Showgrounds, so you will get a good dose of pre match banter with all sorts of fans congregating in and around the pub. Was here before, so know its a great place for a chat and some high jinks from the football mad Sligo fans who are always up for a laugh. It was here I met some of the Forza Rovers lads, but also got into conversation with a few other fans.
Lovely exterior, traditional, and inside not too bad either. Good pub, great and efficient service, always easy to get a seat, always guaranteed to be talking to someone, mostly about Sligo Rovers, but that’s fine. Had a pint of Smithwicks, was perfect, might have had two, but wished I had come earlier as I was enjoying myself here, but time crept up and I had to toddle along to the damn game!
Love this bar. Recommended, and a definite must if going to a match just up the road.
Sligo Rovers FC
Stadium: The Showgrounds
Location: Churchill, Sligo
Capacity: 5,500 (4,000 seated)
Manager: Dave Robertson (Since sacked!)
Founded: 1928
Leagues: League of Ireland Premier Division
Honours:
League of Ireland Championship: 3 (Last 2013)
FAI Cup: 5 (Last 2013)
media@sligorovers.com
Nickname: The Bit o’ Red
Sligo Rovers Football Club, founded in 1928, have been in the League of Ireland since 1934. The club is supporter owned and have played in the Showgrounds since their inception. Sligo is a real football town and the supporters are a loyal bunch with the Showgrounds regularly getting decent crowds for games, averaging around 2000 per home game, which is pretty decent for the LOI.
In terms of silverware, they have won the league three times, the most recent in 2012, and the FAI Cup a total of five times.
The History of the club (skip if not interested!)
With some good initial success at non league, junior and intermediate football (Winning the Leinster Senior League in 1933, not bad for a team from Connaught!), they decided to step up and joined the Free State League on 28 June 1934. Manged by English man Bob Preston , Sligo came a very impressive third in their first season playing top level football, with forward Gerry McDaid finishing as top scorer. Not bad.
The good work continued as in the 1936–37 they won the title for the first time, pretty good for a club less than ten years in existence, trained by Jimmy Surgeoner with the Englishman Harry Litherland scoring 19 league goals, a record that wasnt surpassed until 2011 by Eoin Doyle scoring 20 league goals.
In 1939 they had a double dose of bad luck as they came second in the league to Shamrock Rovers, and also second in their first FAI cup, losing to Shelbourne one nil. 1939 was the year that Sligo somehow managed to pull of a coup of a signing when they got the legendary Dixie Dean to play for them. Ok he was an old fella at the time, but to get a big name like this was pretty impressive. Dean, of course, is best known for his time with Everton, where he is still the club’s all-time leading scorer and his record of 60 league goals in a season (1927/8) still stands today, and I doubt it will be beat anytime soon.
Scoring on his debut Dean drew a big crowd to the games, and went on to score nine goals in seven league appearances, before the impending World War curtailed football everywhere! And that was the end of that!
After the war, Rovers went through a long period of ups and downs, mostly downs. They did come second in the league in 1951, and got to an Fai Cup final in 1970 where they lost to Bohemians, but it was a period with no titles and the odd re-election to the league, having to reapply to play in the league on four separate occasions.
It was in the 1976/77 season that Sligo won its second league title, after a long 40 years wait. On Easter Sunday Sligo Rovers beat the other and lesser known Rovers (Shamrock Rovers) 3-1 to claim the title from Bohemians by a solitary point. Scottish Manager Billy Sinclair, in only his second season at the helm, had a winning squad made up of Irish and British talent, including local lad Paul McGee the seasons top scorer, and who later went on to play for QPR in London, and also get 16 caps for Ireland.
In 1983 they finally got their hands on the FAI Cup, beating Bohemians 2-1 to win it for the first time in their history. It only took about 50 odd years, albeit they did get to 6 finals beforehand! Local lad, Tony Fagan, who holds the club record for most appearances (590 appearances), was the man to lift the trophy aloft.
It took them a while to win the FAI Cup again, in 1994, on a wet May day they beat Derry City one nil, a Gerry Carr header to clinch their second Cup, with another local land, Gavin Dykes lifting the trophy and managed by Willie McStay (Paul’s brother!)
The arrival of Scouser Paul Cook in 2006 really changed fortunes for Sligo. By playing an attractive brand of football, getting them into Europe for the first time in 12 years and also into an FAI cup final, the first in 15 years, against Sporting Fingal which they lost 2-1. A game I actually attended and played out in gale force winds and torrential rain. Summer football Irish style. Building on this Cook managed to get Rovers into another FAI Cup final in 2010, this time against their hated foes, Shamrock Rovers. After a pretty dour 0-0 the victory was achieved, and their third FAI Cup, when Ciarian Kelly saved all four penalties in the shootout. A pretty amazing thing for their second choice goalkeeper to pull off!! There was also a huge crowd of 36,101 at the game, the highest attendance for 32 years, to see the FAI Cup final in the newly revamped Aviva Stadium (ex Landsdowne Road)
If Sligo fans thought that was good then they had another reason to celebrate, as the next year they just went and done it all again, winning the FAI Cup two years in succession, another win in 2011. This time beating Shelbourne, but again winning on penalties. after the game finished 1 a piece at full time. Cook did something that was quite extraordinary to watch. Just before full time he took off his regular goalkeeper Clarke to replace him with Kelly the spot kick hero from the last final. It worked a treat as Kelly saved two penalties, with Sligo native Raffaele Cretaro taking the decisive penalty to keep the cup in the town for another year.
Unfortunately for Sligo, Cook got a good offer to return to the UK to manage Accrington Stanley (“Who are they?”), but they had nothing to worry as their new manager Ian Baraclough, just given the job 5 days before the league season had started, by the end had cemented on the good work done by Cook, to win the title in his first season in charge, winning Rovers third ever league title, and a long 35 year wait. The league was decided during a memorable home game against St Pats, who were also going for the title. About 6,000 people crammed into the Showgrounds to see Rovers edge out a 3-2 win in a pulsating game that will live long in the memory for the bit of red fans. Barraclough followed that success up with another FAI Cup win in 2013 (Their third in four seasons) , beating Drogheda 3-2 with a last minute winner from Anthony Elding to send the Rovers support into raptures.
Winning their first league title wasn’t enough for Sligo as they shortly after got rid of Ian Barraclough in the summer of 2014, and sure enough they haven’t won or even come close to winning anything since. That’s Ireland for ya!!!
I have to mention Joseph N’Do, the Cameroonian start who played for Sligo Rovers and played a big hand in all three of those FAI Cup victories for the club. In fact he was man of the match in the 2010 final and was always the type of player fans would love to see, with his mazy dribbles and fancy flicks.
But possibly the best player to come out of Sligo is Seamus Coleman, who got his big break when Paul Cook played him as a sub against Derry in 2006, quickly establishing himself as the teams right back. He was slowly making a name for himself and it wasnt long before a top team from across the water took not. That team was Premiership team Everton, who introduced him fairly quickly onto the first team where in 2010/11 season he was a nomination for the PFAI Young Player of the Year. He has also established himself as a regular in the Ireland national team, and an essential player that Ireland needs if they hope to qualify for the World Cup in Russia 2018.
As they play in red their nickname is the “The Bit o’ Red”. It is strange to me though why they play in red and not in black, as the GAA team play in black and it is the county colours, but there you go!
The Showgrounds
Playing in the Showgrounds, one of the oldest football grounds in Ireland and home to Rovers since the club was formed in 1928. Located in Church Hill just on the outskirts of the town. The ground is a publicly owned ground to be used solely for sport and leisure.
Stadium capacity is around 5,500 with 4,000 seats, and it must be said one of the better stadiums in the League. Sligo Rovers are one of the few clubs that have made a concerted effort to improve their ground and spectator facilities with a lot of that hard work, it has to be said, down to the huge voluntary effort of their supporters. There are three stands, a club shop, plenty of parking space and the most important thing of all, a decent playing surface for good football. This is one reason why the club has such a strong bound to the town, it really is a supporters club, they virtually built it and maintained it through the bad old days, and now they have pride in what is easily one of the top grounds in the LOI. Hats off to Sligo and their fans here.
The record attendance was set in 1983 with 13,908 fans coming out to see Sligo Rovers take on Cobh Ramblers in a semi-cup final replay.
My ticket cost 15 euros. I must say I enjoyed my visit to the Showgrounds, and it really was refreshing to get a great vibe off the fans, you really can feel in how proud they are of their club. And the amount of young people, teens and children, with their Sligo Rovers gear, and all the rest, was great to see……this is how you build a football club, from the ground up. The place had a buzz, ok the football might not be too hot at the moment, but I’m sure the glory days will return soon enough.
To the game
Sligo Rovers 3 – 2 Bray Wanderers
18.03.2017 the Showgrounds
3 ‘Gary McCabe (Bray)
26’ Derek Foran (o.g)
27’Chris Kenny (Sligo)
37 ‘Gary McCabe (Bray)
55’ Kieran Sadlier (Sligo)
Attendance: 1’387
Exciting game, end to end, with some nice goals to boot.
Kieran Sadlier the stand out player, constantly beating his man on the wing all night, and to top it all he managed to clinch the winner with a lovely free kick from 25 yards out on 54 minutes to win Sligo’s first game of the season.
But a Sligo win didn’t look very likely after just 3 minutes into the game, when ex Sligo rovers player, Gary McCabe slotted home from close range after a weak clearance from the Sligo defence.
I have to say I was quiet happy having backed him at 7/2 with a fiver on him to score. The simple old player returns tip that surprisingly often comes up! Thanks Gary.
Sadlier, a constant thorn in the Bray, defence hit the post, and not long after whipped in a low dangerous cross where Bray defender Foran managed to put into his own net to put the game one all.
Barely a minute later, Sadlier once again cut back to cross in another dangerous ball which was cleared, but only to fall to Chris Kenny to thunder it home, for Sligo to take the lead.
But the lead only lasted about ten minutes as that man again McCabe scored a cracking free kick from just outside of the box, top corner, goalkeeper with no chance, excellent goal. Wonder why Shamrock Rovers let him go, perhaps Bray are paying him more, I dont know but he is having a cracking season.
Excellent first half, four goals and end to end football. Second half had more of the same, and it wasn’t long before Sadlier finally got on the score sheet, no more than his hard work deserved. Another free kick, another goal, this time Sadlier swung it in from right to left, top corner and a great goal for Sligo to take the lead again.
Sligo sat back a little after that, or Bray increased the tempo, I am not sure but either way Bray had a handful of scoring chances that they really should have scored from, some simple misses, that had the Bray supporters aghast. I know as I was sitting with them in the second half! But 3-2 to Sligo it stayed and Bray had the long journey back to Wicklow pointless, they deserved a draw but alas that’s football.
Excellent game, both teams playing some pretty good football, some cracking goals, good decent atmosphere at the game, and with Sadlier I now have a new favourite player to follow in the LOI. Oh yeah I also won some money. Cant do better than that!
Highlights of the game here
Interview
Short chat with Sean from the supporters group, Forza Rovers, Sligo Rovers most fervent supporters who one can see in the small Jinks Avenue Stand
Sean for Forza Rovers
Group’s going now 9 years. Next year will be our tenth year
It was going great for our first you know 5 or 6 years
The last few years it kind of died down a bit
A lot of lads getting old, Emigration you know, things like that
But actually our group was nearly Coming to an end at one stage there last year
And we were kind of saying, you know….the numbers weren’t really justified calling ourselves an ultras group so
So we started kind of recruiting a few young lads again and…..
Things are on the pick up again so………..
But you have a very impressive social media, I have to say…the website and on Facebook
Yeah but that was part of the drive of getting young lads, more young lads involved
We kind of kept to ourselves a lot of the time, it was kind of a very close, very close knit group but we kind of opened up things a lot more the last while
Sligo has always been a soccer town, I mean what’s the history about that, why….. I mean even in the rough times you do have a general good support in the town
I suppose traditionally it is a garrison town going back…………….and football has been played in Sligo since the 1880s you know so….. Gaelic never really took off here, you know it’s kind of more seen out in the county more so than in the town itself.
So that’s probably why
And how far is that reach from the town, does it go into the country. The county of Sligo, or?
Oh yeah, yeah, like myself, I’m not from Sligo town myself you know, So like a lot of lads
We got fans from you know like all over the north west really
I know a lot of fans from Leitrim, mayo, all over sligo
Like there’s North Sligo, it’s like a massive community
Course because Summerhill school used to be a boarding school, years ago, so you got a lot of lads coming in from Roscommon, Mayo, staying there, that’s kind of how it took off
And what about yourself then, how long have you been supporting the rovers?
Mid 90s my dad started bringing me, the early mid 90’s
Then, the first time we used to stand on the terrace kind of beside the shed
And then when I kind of got old enough I was allowed into the shed!
Some crazy nights there as a young lad
So its kind of a progression then is it?
Ah yeah, yeah it was like that, it was good, you know it was good
So what about the best season all those years you followed them then?
Oh it has to be when we won the league you cant beat that you know
In fairness, like I know the last two years people are saying things have gone downhill a bit but still when we were in the first division, and struggling and you know and 600 people in the ground, you are looking round the place and no atmosphere, the place was dead
I still think its good now you know
We won the cup in 94, that was when I started getting involved following rovers, and my dad started bringing me back then
What about your cult heroes then, what are the cult heroes of the club?
Of the club in total? There’s plenty
but at the moment
Raf is the cult hero at the moment, local lad
Is has been here a long time hasn’t he? I cant seem to believe he is still playing!
Ah no he is something else raf is
Probably score tonight
Hopefully anyway yeah
But no we have plenty of cult heroes down through the years
Ndo was unreal there
Myself I always kind of have something for local players, it’s the main thing to kind of support
The guy that won you the league, was it right to sack him? It’s like Leicester a little bit!
Barraclough. A lot of people weren’t happy with his tactics, his signings and blah, blah, blah. Personally I think he deserved to see out the end of the season and his contract
It left an awful lot of instability there
When he left we had caretaker managers and this that and the other
I think we are still suffering from that time but hopefully things will improve now
This season, what the hell is happening this season, Jesus!
Yeah, a look it….its a bit soon to call for a managers head and all that but…….
It was 6 games last year before we got a win so it was a struggle
Look, we will see how it goes….
The LOI is a small place but are Sligo too big to go down!?
No, there’s nothing like that. Look, we have been down before and we have been up and down…..a ten team league so its really going to be tight this year. It;s not looking good at the moment but hopefully…
Are there any players that perhaps people wouldn’t know coming in from the outside, any young players we should look out for or any up and coming talent?
Ah I don’t know, we don’t really have anyone at the moment. Maybe it’s the way the manager is playing the side…..there is no one really that I could see. There are a few lads there but there is no one really that I can see that’s going to…..….
Is it difficult to get people into the showgrounds?
No…..last week weekend against st pats the crowd was down, think it was down 1300, cause it was Friday night football.
But if a game is on Saturday and we dont get our games moved by television or FAI poor fixture listing, no but a Saturday night traditionally great support and it’s always the way
So what should I expect tonight, in terms of atmosphere, going into the ground?
Bray isn’t ….is not a crowd puller, never will be
They are never going to be a crowd puller, you know there’s no rivalry with Bray. they are doing alright this year and they will do well but Its not going to be a massive crowd puller
Hopefully with st Patricks weekend there should be a big crowd down
Atmosphere? We will see how it goes?Just a few more questions
Rivals? I guess its Derry and Galway
No no Shams, fucking shams, fucking hate them
That was my next question, the other rovers, are they not rovers?
Shams for us!
Whats the copyright for that!
Well if you are in town, everyone likes to say rovers because if you say Sligo they presume you were at the Gaelic game
So rovers are rovers and shams are shams
When they come to town then is it……everybody’s a bit on edge
Yes it can get a bit heated at times alright
Yeah everyone is fired up for playing shams obviously you know
They probably see us as country bumpkins, come down act the bollix, but …fuck them!
So in terms of the season we have at the moment what’s your expectations, at this early stage it’s just avoid relegation
Yeah definitely, if you had asked me when last season had ended, players signed up early and it was looking good, I was saying we could push for a top four but now survival at the moment, and we take each game as it comes
Time for pints, come on lets go! Thanks man
Ok lets go
Overall
I have to say Sligo is a cracking little town with some great pubs and a nice friendly vibe to the place. Was surprised, as Galway tends to steal all the thunder out west, while Sligo is often overlooked as a “fun” destination. Along the riverside with its nice stone bridge, developed since the 90’s, looks fantastic, and some nice buildings and monuments, yeah Sligo is a happening place, you really are spoilt for choice here with great bars and good eateries, and definitely I will be a returning.
The Forza boys certainly created some good atmosphere at the game, and I really enjoyed my time at the Showgrounds. Everyone is so chilled and friendly. Its a shame they dont sell beer there but anyhow.
Would like to say one thing that was a slight dent in all the positively. Seen this pig of a man throw a big pile of rubbish on the floor without a care in the world. Now I know in itself this happens at grounds, but what was shocking was there was a bin right beside him and I happened to catch the reaction of three young kids who were left gobsmacked at the sight of this. Normally i would confront someone like this, but I really wasn’t in the mood for some agro as i really had a great day so i did the next best thing i guess, took his pic and a little of his soul……I guess!! repent he should!
I was right not to get into a confrontation, and keep the good ambiance kicking along, as I eventually ended up with the Bray fans who despite their team losing were in decent spirits and kind of enough to give me a lift near my home in their mini bus (for a small price, naturally!) as they were using the same route back to Dublin I had taken on the bus earlier. Saving me the 4 hours or so hanging round waiting for the night bus……..cheers fellas!
Anyway, here is my day out in video form!
The brewery was founded way back in 1657 when Hans Pope was awarded a “Bräustätt” (“brewing law”) for 30 guilders and set about to brew his beer. In 1859 Josef Anton Höss buys the brewery and since then, the Hirschbrauerei in Sonthofen has been owned by the Höss family.
Had a nice frothy head and a golden yellow colour. Very clean and clear, looks great.
Pretty much everywhere in Switzerland you will find a Coop (or its rival Migros), albeit at least in North Switzerland. 
Bit of carbonation, bubbling away nicely
As there are a few discount supermarket beers in Switzerland…….Coop Lager, and Tell to name just two, Feldschlösschen have decided to get a leg in on this market with their own offering, Anker, available in Coop at a cheap price. 
Smell, none! Or very light, of a lagery aroma, disappointing. 
Wohlen is a small town of about 15,000 residents, to the west of Zurich, and in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland. Mostly a farming area it really only got going as a town after the 1800’s when it developed into a key industrial town with important rail and road links. In particular, for the straw braid industry, where Wohlen became well known all over the fashion world for its straw hats and garments. Sadly that industry is long gone in the town but the affects of that legacy is a small town that is thriving, (or not doing too badly I guess!)
First pub of the day, wasn’t a pub at all. But I was hungry, having skipped breakfast and after a nice walk around the town this place looked perfect to sit down outside, have a quick bite to eat and a beer. Was very busy for a Saturday morning, which is always a good sign. Went simple just got some chips with ketchup, and two beers. Simple but fantastic with the peppers and salt, lovely. Good friendly service and a nice place to sit outside and watch the traffic of Wohlen go by. Had two small cans of Feldschlösschen Hopfenperle, a decent enough lager. Perfect start. 
Ventured in and ordered a bottle of Birra Moretti, which is always nice to sip. Zanzibar looks like a very trendy lounge bar and club, impeccably clean and modern, the place looks really snazzy and cool. For the time of the day, early afternoon, naturally there were only a handful of customers, who looked like they were Italian Swiss chatting away to the very friendly barman, guess that’s why I guess was in the mood for a Moretti, which went down fine. So good I had another beer, this time a nice cold Eichhof Lager
Zanzibar is the place to be once it gets dark, as it is a club venue that promotes a lot of up and coming DJ’s and invites international dance acts to the club every month. 
Door was closed and didn’t look very inviting, but then I was early. It opened at 4 and I was there bang on time! Restaurant with terrace was doing a cracking trade next door on a lovely hot day, while I was the only customer in this, truth be told, rather tired looking bar with an old fashioned British style decor. I went for a Feldschlösschen braufrisch on tap, a Wheat Ale beer, which was fine, not as good as their lagers I think. Bar lady was friendly, but this seems like a bar that could do with a makeover. Drank and left.
On the way back to the train station, from the game, I accidentally stumbled onto the path of this bar. Looked good so ventured in. A small crowd in, with some friendly service. Had a Brooklyn Brewery lager, which was fine with the complimentary nuts that I scoffed down. Place was quiet for a rock bar, but had a chilled out atmosphere, or perhaps that was just me. 
Just before I got my train home, popped into a hookah bar right at the station. Not my usual type of place to go for a beer, but it was cool enough. Lovely decor which was very relaxing and in an Arabic style, the service was friendly. Place was quiet, but it was still relatively early. Just ordered a regular beer, a Feldschlösschen lager. Nice place to wind down for the day, lovely ambiance and a nice pint in the dimmed lights. Would have liked to stay for another beer but had to catch my train. 
Founded in May, 1904, FC Wohlen play in the Challenge League, the second highest league in the country. They say the best things come to those that wait, well the highlight of over 100 years of football came late, in June 2002 when the team got promoted to then National League B, today’s Challenge League , the second tier of Swiss football. 
Without doubt their most famous son is Ciriaco Sforza, the ex Wholen player and coach who had an illustrious career with stints in Germany with Bayern Munich, FC Kaiserslautern (when they were half decent) and in Italy with Inter Milan, a long way from tiny Wohlen. 
Nice enough little ground, a not too far from the town centre. Ticket cost me 20 Swiss Francs, and manged to get a scarf as well which was great. But even better was I somehow ended up in the VIP room, where there was complimentary wine and titbits to bite. I know it was a little bit cheeky but why not as I do consider myself at least a little bit important. The two girls behind the bar were very friendly, and were more than kind enough to fill my glass on the many occasions they got empty! 
Nice club with a lot of friendly staff, from the ticket sellers at the gate, the grounds staff directing people to their seats, the ladies in the office who sold me the scarf, to the girls in the VIP room.
For a nil niler it wasn’t the worst game I have ever seen. Some good build up play from both teams, especially from FC Wohlen while Le Mont were more concentrated on attacking from the break down. I would say though that Wohlen need to practice shooting from distance as on many occasions they were in good positions to take a shot but their players passed instead. Is that a confidence thing, perhaps but it did really irk the crowd on a few times looking at good shooting opportunities go amiss. 
Thought Wohlen midfielder Sandro Foschini was pretty decent and set up a lot of play and opportunities for his teammates, but I noticed he also grew increasingly frustrated as he seemed to be at a different level to the rest of his team, one step ahead and he was constantly creating chances that were spurned again and again. I’d build a team around him, I say! 
Wohlen was a sleepy enough town, but I did enjoy my day out here. Was well nourished with alcohol and did have a good time at the ground watching Wohlen FC play. All in all a good enjoyable day in little old Wohlen (the good weather helped too, it was a scorcher!)
La Blonde de Ch’Nord is brewed in Douai, a small city in the north of France by the Gayant Brewers.
A Bière de Garde (“beer for keeping”) is a strong pale ale traditionally brewed in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region in the North east of France. Originally brewed in farmhouses during the winter and spring, to avoid unpredictable problems, these beers are of a golden colour, and as the name suggests the beer is to be kept over a period of time once bottled (and most sealed with a cork), to be consumed later in the year. 
Very yeasty smell, a bit metallic, quite strong but nice all the same.
The Ardennes in northeastern France, close to the Belgian and Luxembourg border, is a sparsely populated region mostly covered with dense forest, small mountains and not much else. 
High fermentation and also re-fermented in the bottle, using local spring waters this beer won a gold medal at the Concours Général Agricole de Paris in 2007, just so you know, ok. 
A good bit of lacing present.
Tell is cheap supermarket fare from Coop, the large retail chain that one can see all over Switzerland. Sometimes when you live in a country where prices can be high when shopping it can be vital to get your hands on shit cheap beer, that’s important! 
Looks like there is a bit of sediment hanging around resulting in a darkish, not clear,golden colour. (perhaps I got a bad batch?)
Brewed by Park & Bellheimer AG Brewery from the small city of Pirmasens (pop:40,125) in the Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, near the border with France, and named in honour of St Valentine (The guy in the bottle!), patron saint of lovers everywhere, but I have no idea if he was big into his beers.
Should be served in a Weizen glass, that is if you have one. I dont! 
Nice creamy mouthfuls. Creamy. Not much standout taste though, very subtle flavours. Not really bitter or strong aftertaste.
A “Schwarzbier”, or Black beer, uses lager yeasts to ferment (as opposed to ale for a porter) and traditionally starts with an initial hint of roastedness, is light tasting, and has a clean finish, while a porter or stout for example is thicker and a lot more bitter in the taste. All this is important to know before trying these kind of beers least you be disappointed! 
On taste is very similar to porter, and very, very smooth. No real feel of the alcohol, at least initially. Nearly too smooth for my liking as I do like to feel some alcohol now and again, especially in a slow burner like this. No bitterness.