Straight from the zoo to Easter Road, to watch the mighty
Dundee United take on Hibs.
The first time Sam saw United play they lost 1-0 at home to
Dunfermline so we were hoping for better this time. During the warm-up lots of shots were fizzing
into the away fans behind the goal, which didn't look good, an impression made
worse when we overheard one fan, when asked where he was going to sit, reply
"Behind the goal, it's the safest place."
It's always exciting when you get your first glimpse of a
new away ground, and this doesn't diminish when you get old, like Dad. Easter Road is Sam's second Scottish ground,
which is two more grounds than most Premiership-generation fans in England have
EVER been to. Easter Road is tucked away in the middle of dour stone terraces,
shops and churches.
Although the setting is old-fashioned the stadium itself is
modern, with four neat, large stands finished in Hibs' green and white colours.
The game wasn't great but United were clearly much the
better team and took the lead after half an hour. They had more chances to score but wasted
them all, and then manager Jackie McNamara decided to replace the best two
attacking options, David Goodwillie (yes, really) and Gary Mackay-Smith (G, G,
GMS!) with holding players, instead of going for a game-killing second.
It didn't pay off. Following a double sending off (one each
side) and a sixteen man brawl, the home team finally found a bit of life and
equalized with ten minutes to go. The match finished 1-1 and it was two points
lost instead of one gained.
Still, it was an entertaining afternoon of football, and Sam
had a thorough introduction into the complete lexicon of Scottish swear words.
Ace!
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