August 5 Fixtures

[Luke Imp]

I've seen us lose twice in the PO Final at Cardiff but win the Pizza Cup and Wembley. We never made it to the old Wembley.

 

[YEO YEO YEO]

I've seen us lose twice in the PO Final at Cardiff but win the Pizza Cup and Wembley. We never made it to the old Wembley.

Snap!

 

[Si Robin]

I've seen us lose twice in the PO Final at Cardiff but win the Pizza Cup and Wembley. We never made it to the old Wembley.

I was recording a pod last night and afterwards we were having a general chat about supporting Cheltenham and I said I felt really lucky in a way.

This is my 30th season, my first game being 2nd August 1994. Cheltenham were just about to start their third season in the Beazer Homes (Southern) Premier League having been relegated from the Conference in 1992. Before then, reaching the Conference had been our biggest achievement - finishing 11th twice. We'd also never been past the 2nd round of the FA Cup nor the Quarter Finals of the FA Trophy. We hadn't beaten a Football League team since beating Carlisle in the 1st round of the cup in 1933!!

5 years later we'd been promoted to the Football League, reached the 3rd round of the FA Cup for the first time ever and won the FA Trophy at Wembley. 3 years after that we'd won the Division 3 playoffs at Cardiff to reach the 3rd tier of English football, reached the 5th round of the cup, losing a tight 1-0 to West Brom at The Hawthorns, and had League matches on telly. It was quite surreal.

That was quite a lot, but in the 20 years since it's been just as great - we've had a few relegations, including dropping out of the League, but we've always bounced back better. We've won our first ever Football League title and had visits to the new Wembley (where we lost to an absolute worldy) and played at St James's Park, the Stadium of Light, Hillsborough, Pride Park, White Hart Lane, etc...

You tell that lad, 4 weeks shy of his 10th birthday, that the next 30 years would be the most successful in that little club's history on that day against a Man City XI - the only player of which who went on to do anything was Michael Brown - and he'd probably ignore you. But seriously, being a fan of a nothing club can be bloody good you know.

 

[leedsvaliant]

I was recording a pod last night and afterwards we were having a general chat about supporting Cheltenham and I said I felt really lucky in a way.

This is my 30th season, my first game being 2nd August 1994. Cheltenham were just about to start their third season in the Beazer Homes (Southern) Premier League having been relegated from the Conference in 1992. Before then, reaching the Conference had been our biggest achievement - finishing 11th twice. We'd also never been past the 2nd round of the FA Cup nor the Quarter Finals of the FA Trophy. We hadn't beaten a Football League team since beating Carlisle in the 1st round of the cup in 1933!!

5 years later we'd been promoted to the Football League, reached the 3rd round of the FA Cup for the first time ever and won the FA Trophy at Wembley. 3 years after that we'd won the Division 3 playoffs at Cardiff to reach the 3rd tier of English football, reached the 5th round of the cup, losing a tight 1-0 to West Brom at The Hawthorns, and had League matches on telly. It was quite surreal.

That was quite a lot, but in the 20 years since it's been just as great - we've had a few relegations, including dropping out of the League, but we've always bounced back better. We've won our first ever Football League title and had visits to the new Wembley (where we lost to an absolute worldy) and played at St James's Park, the Stadium of Light, Hillsborough, Pride Park, White Hart Lane, etc...

You tell that lad, 4 weeks shy of his 10th birthday, that the next 30 years would be the most successful in that little club's history on that day against a Man City XI - the only player of which who went on to do anything was Michael Brown - and he'd probably ignore you. But seriously, being a fan of a nothing club can be bloody good you know.

I always think how dull it must have been to support Man Utd. through the 90s and latterly Man City. Just turning up and 9 times out of 10 know you're going to win. The highs are pretty poor because there's so many of them.

When you support a lower league team, you really savour the highs because there are usually a lot more lows. You can't imagine the City fans showing the same level of exuberant joy having just won their 4th title in a row that we did when we got promoted at Wembley.

I'll never understand people who support a Man United or Liverpool when they live nowhere near the place. I assume they must just really struggle with failure and need the comfort blanket of regular success.

 

[Si Robin]

I think it's easy to support a club like that when you have nothing on your doorstep. I said to the lads last night, as I'm the oldest by quite a bit, if Cheltenham hadn't been promoted in 1999 I'm not sure they'd be going now. Neither had a familial link like I did when my uncles took me for the first time. They went along with their mates when we played a well known team.

 

[Super_horns]

I remember finding a programme a few years back from a Dorchester (had friends who lived there ) v Cheltenham game in 1992!

How times change.

 

[Bartonyellow]

I have lots of programmes of us in the beazer league. Playing glamorous teams like Gainsborough, colne dynamoes and Bedworth. All at our old ground with one stand and one terrace with a tin roof which leaked. It is quite a contrast to where we are now and have been recently.

Infact when we got relegated from the championship a few years ago that was our first relegation since 1977.

 

[Luke Imp]

I was recording a pod last night and afterwards we were having a general chat about supporting Cheltenham and I said I felt really lucky in a way.

This is my 30th season, my first game being 2nd August 1994. Cheltenham were just about to start their third season in the Beazer Homes (Southern) Premier League having been relegated from the Conference in 1992. Before then, reaching the Conference had been our biggest achievement - finishing 11th twice. We'd also never been past the 2nd round of the FA Cup nor the Quarter Finals of the FA Trophy. We hadn't beaten a Football League team since beating Carlisle in the 1st round of the cup in 1933!!

5 years later we'd been promoted to the Football League, reached the 3rd round of the FA Cup for the first time ever and won the FA Trophy at Wembley. 3 years after that we'd won the Division 3 playoffs at Cardiff to reach the 3rd tier of English football, reached the 5th round of the cup, losing a tight 1-0 to West Brom at The Hawthorns, and had League matches on telly. It was quite surreal.

That was quite a lot, but in the 20 years since it's been just as great - we've had a few relegations, including dropping out of the League, but we've always bounced back better. We've won our first ever Football League title and had visits to the new Wembley (where we lost to an absolute worldy) and played at St James's Park, the Stadium of Light, Hillsborough, Pride Park, White Hart Lane, etc...

You tell that lad, 4 weeks shy of his 10th birthday, that the next 30 years would be the most successful in that little club's history on that day against a Man City XI - the only player of which who went on to do anything was Michael Brown - and he'd probably ignore you. But seriously, being a fan of a nothing club can be bloody good you know.

I’m the same, been quite lucky (or unlucky in the PO’s!) that in most seasons something has happened.

I started supporting Lincoln in Keith Alexander’s first season, 2002/03 and in those 21 seasons:

6x L2 PO defeats (2x Finals)
1x L1 PO final defeat
1x NL Title
1x L2 Title
1x EFL Trophy
1x FA Cup QF
1x FA Trophy SF
1x Relegation

More recently we’ve had all the games against your Wednesday, Sunderland, Derby Ipswich etc types as well as the FA Cup run that ended at the Emirates.

But there were also 5 seasons in the NL where we finished 17th, 16th, 15th, 14th and 13th season on season so that was gradual improvement to the extreme. Not to mention having to offer 10 month contracts because we couldn’t afford one-year ones, so amongst all of that are the lows as well!

 

[GEORGE]

I have lots of programmes of us in the beazer league. Playing glamorous teams like Gainsborough, colne dynamoes and Bedworth. All at our old ground with one stand and one terrace with a tin roof which leaked. It is quite a contrast to where we are now and have been recently.

Infact when we got relegated from the championship a few years ago that was our first relegation since 1977.

I remember going to your old ground for a FA Trophy game in about 1970 or 71. My mates uncle was playing in goal for Bridgwater Town that day.