I was sent to Ecclesfield Red Rose versus Swinton Athletic in November 2013, not only for the football match, but to meet football grasshopper Brian Buck who was attending his 11,000th match. Here is my interview-turned-article praising his achievement
Football groundhopper, Brian Buck, selected the County
Senior League match between Ecclesfield Red Rose and Swinton Athletic to be his
11,000th football match.
Brian watched his first match in March 1956 between
Cambridge United and Colchester United Reserves and since leaving school at 18
has targeted viewing as many games as he possibly can. He is now 62, and has
averaged four games per week during this period.
He recalls Fulham versus Santos in 1969 to be his all-time favourite
game and hasn’t missed a home fixture for his beloved Tottenham Hotspur since
the 1960’s.
Last week he had seen matches involving Enfield, Carlisle
and Hitchin as well as a youth fixture and selected Ecclesfield Red Rose versus
Swinton Athletic, an intriguing relegation battle at the bottom of the County
Senior League Premier Division, to be his milestone match, in a decision made
on Wednesday.
The match itself didn’t disappoint, with Jon Billups goal
giving the visitors a 2-1 victory and securing a vital three points for the league’s
bottom side in an entertaining encounter.
Buck’s parting words from the game “I’m sure we’ll meet
again”, certainly suggests he enjoyed the standard on offer, and he will
undoubtedly return to a future County Senior League fixture in the not-too-distant future.
The match report of the game itself is available here.
