FA Cup Match One – Southampton 1 – Ipswich 1
Ipswich took around 5,000 supporters to Southampton.
And with a bit of luck we might have come away victorious. The BBC said this, when describing Mick McCarthy’s reaction.
“I just said to the lads, ‘well done, it’s the last thing we really wanted’ – but that was tongue-in-cheek.
“I didn’t want to lose, that’s for sure. Why can’t we have a cup run as well? I came down here and watched Arsenal play and Southampton were worthy winners.
It will hopefully be an interesting replay at Portman Road on the 14th.
Wayfinding In Southamption
Southampton, or at least the parts I visited seems to have a comprehensive wayfinding system.
This web site shows the design, which is based on similar rules to London. A similar system will be rolled out all over Hampshire. The Hampshire web site says this.
The project team responsible for the signage is learning lessons from similar work elsewhere, including the recent Southampton legible cities project and the Legible London scheme.
So are we getting a de facto standard for wayfinding all over the country?
I hope so!
T
Walking To St. Mary’s
St. Mary’s Stadium is not ideally placed for the main Southampton Central station, as this Google Earth view shows.
Southampton Central To St. Mary’s Stadium
It took me about twenty minutes and what slows the walk is the initial hill. If I ever go again, I’ll leave a little bit earlier and then have a cup of tea or a drink on the top.
At least St. Mary’s is one of the few grounds, where the Away supporters’ stand is closest to the train station.
But look at this enlarged Google Earth view of the area around the stadium.
Rail Lines By St. Mary’s Stadium
The South Western Main Line from Basingstoke and London comes into this picture at the top to the left of the two gas holders. Note how the lines curve to the west to go through the Southampton Tunnel under the centre of the city. The portal of the tunnel is just at the edge of the picture.
The rail tracks to the left (west) of the stadium are the route to Southampton Docks and the now closed Southampton Terminus station. Before electrification to Southampton in the 1960s, this station was the main one for Southampton and there was also another station at Northam, which was somewhere in the area to the west of the stadium.
Plans have been put forward in recent years to put a station at the stadium and also one on Southampton Waterfront. Some have been grandiose, but the City Council has safeguarded a route from the Waterfront to Romsey, Halterworth and Chandler’s Ford.
If Southampton Football Club stay in the upper reaches of the Premier League and decide to increase the capacity of the ground, I would not be surprised to see a metro link running on the line, with an interchange at say Eastleigh.
The route would also mean that passengers for cruise ships could get closer to the Cruise Terminals by train, just as they used to in the days of RMS Titantic.
It Was Beautifully Cold Outside Carluccio’s In Waterloo
I don’t mind the cold and I ate breakfast virtually by myself outside on the balcony at Carluccio’s in Waterloo.
To be fair, staff said that it was cold and would I like to be inside. But I wanted to watch the destination board and I was wearing my thick Puffa coat!
My Personal Big Red Taxi To Waterloo
I went to Waterloo on a 76 bus from near my house. It wasn’t busy and I was the only passenger at Waterloo.
Hackney to Waterloo is not the easiest journey unless you take a roundabout route via the East London and Jubilee Lines, changing at Canada Water. The alternative better route via the Waterloo and City Line is not available at the weekends. One of the things that would encourage me to vote for a Mayoral candidate, is if they backed longer opening hours for London’s forgotten line.
Bringing Home The Sunday Papers
I get The Sunday Times on a voucher. So when I moved here, I found a shop perhaps four hundred metres away that took them.
The about a year ago, a new Asian shop opened much closer that took the vouchers, so I changed my allegiance.
Then a couple of weeks ago, I happened to go past the second shop, just after the schools had chucked out. All around the shop young people were drinking cans of crap lager and smoking.
As my house is on the way back from the shop to an estate near me with a reputation, that sighting probably explains why there is a succession of beer bottles and cans on front walls down the road. I haven’t had any recently since my new garden with its berberis was completed. Some still enter my garden though and use it as a urinal.
So as I don’t frequent shops that sell alcohol and tobacco to minors, as the latter probably helped the premature deaths of my grandfather, father and youngest son, I stopped using the Asian shop.
Generally, I’ve been going to the Sainsburys Local in the Essex Road for my papers. But yesterday, I went back to the original shop and got third degree about why I don’t go.
I’ll probably still use the first shop again, but today, as I needed some other things, I took a bus to the littleWaitrose at Highbury Corner. The only problem I had was tip-toeing through the broken glass outside the pub that is on my route to the bus stop.
Broken Glass Outside The Pub
They really ought to tidy up after the customers have gone. Most days, I suspect they just leave this sort of mess to our excellent street cleaner.
My First New Year Resolution
Over two years ago, I said I was looking for a short-sleeved dressing gown.
I still am!
After just chasing several things on the floor with my sleeves, it’s time, I bought an ordinary one and cut the sleeves down.
It’s not as though, I can’t afford it!
The Anonymous Widower 