Drogs ⚽ Walsall ⚽ Refugees

Anthony McIntyre ⚽ As part of the Club Friendly Games, Drogheda United and Walsall faced off against one another at Weavers Park on a warm sunny evening in the first ever Trivela Cup.

Both clubs are owned by the Trivela group so the cup is pretty much a contrived affair - all in the service of a good cause which will result in an affinity between both clubs and their fanbases.

What surprised me most about it was the number of Walsall fans that travelled from England to watch the game, an estimated four hundred. The Walsall manager later commented:

The support is incredible. We haven't had a tour like this for a long time . . . So unbelievable support and we can't take it for granted because it's a hell of a long way to come to watch a game.

We had thought our Ultras were loud but in the decibel decider the visitors stole the crown. Enthusiastic and exuberant, they were packed in our side of the ground, and not the away stand as is the norm for visiting supporters. This was a friendly game and the fans of both sides lived up to that spirit, mingling and mixing throughout. Good promotion for the travelling English fans, who all too often have been let down by the enemy within - the racists and fascists who enjoy nothing better than kicking Johnny foreigner or abusing their own black players.

On the pitch the Drogs were as good as their opponents, competing fiercely for every ball, eking out any advantage. Walsall are a fourth tier English club and probably didn't perform as well as they should have whereas Drogheda played better than many might have expected. On the 75th minute the Drogs broke the deadlock, a penalty kick converted by Douglas-James Taylor, on loan to the Drogs from Walsall. With around six minutes left the scores were level, Drogheda failing to cover sufficiently down their right flank.

The home support thought their team had scored the winning goal in the final minute, a good effort, again from the sure foot of Douglas-James Taylor, only to have it ruled out for being offside. At least we didn't have to wait five minutes while VAR dithered and dallied before reaching the wrong decision.

That sent us into new territory: for the first time in my experience of attending Weavers Park, the match was decided by a penalty shootout which Drogheda won 4-3, Andrew Wogan in nets, the hero of the hour. His ability to block the first two spot kicks put the Drogs in pole position, which they never looked like surrendering. As the players stood in the centre of the pitch during the shootout we chatted and bantered with the Walsall fans.

Prior to the game I had been asked if I could help escort a number of Palestinian refugees to the match. Along with some others we met them outside the ground and brought them through the turnstiles as guests of Drogheda United. Many of them I had met on our weekly solidarity with Gaza vigil in West Street.

Club chairperson Joanna Byrne ensured that Weavers Park would be the most welcoming of venues, meeting us at the front gate and instructing Luke on the turnstile that a number of refugees would be coming through in our company on their arrival. Paddy managed to keep a row of seats free for our contingent of around 15. I sat and watched as two boys to my right, not yet ten years of age, became absorbed in the game. They stood up, craned their necks, moved their heads from side to side to follow the flow of play and protested vociferously at ever decision against the Drogs. I felt so proud of Drogheda United who were providing safe shelter and entertainment free of charge in a setting far removed from the genocidal situation that prevails in Gaza.

One of the Palestinian adults was fascinated by my Drogs beanie, inquiring as to the presence of the Turkish crescent. I explained something of the history, telling him that even to this day Turkish fans of Drogheda United still echo their support for the team on social media.

At the weekend in Drogheda a tiny hate gang had gathered along the quays to vent venom at and about the very children and adults who were sitting in our midst. Outnumbered many times by the counter demo, the message they would have received was simple: hope not hate. Hatred took a back seat last night in a stadium where each week the same message is blared out from the tannoy system: racism, bigotry and hatred will not be tolerated at Weavers Park.

The only thing hated at Weavers Park is losing!

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