Not a gig guide

In a strange turn of events on Sunday, I was banished to the footie.
Very strange in the fact that other than being invited to a couple of games last season by a Leeds season ticket holder, I haven't been under my own steam for quite a while.
Mandy, of course had an under-lying reason, other than feeling guilty, she wanted me out of the way while she started the packing, and it transpired a bit of moving around.

Having been regularly to Spain for the last 6 or so years, I had occasionally mentioned going to see Real Murcia. They had popped up in conversation on holiday when I realised that they were playing Villarreal.

Was up nice and early to watch the Chinese GP and left a few laps from the end to ensure that I was OK for the noon kick-off. Having travelled into Murcia on a Sunday morning a couple of years ago I knew that the traffic could be quite (very) heavy. What I failed to take into account that when I left our apartment, Fernando Alonso was leading by quite a margin. This made the roads rather quite, the back road from the resort is a nice twisty country road, and of course, not having Mandy and the kids in the car, let me loose without the cries of I'm feeling sick. The C3, fresh out of the box, with only delivery mileage on it when we collected it from the hire company,  handled well on the back roads, but was out of its depth on the Motorway. However there is a long stretch of the A30 which has only an 80 km limit on it as it drops through the Carascoy national park. The quiet motorway gave me chance to catch the impressive view over Murcia,
which, normally being surrounded by Spanish maniacs, I don't always get the chance to fully appreciate. Absolutely stunning panoramic views.

The lack of traffic meant I had bags of time as I pulled up by the "Estadio Nueva Condomina", why don't all new stadia look as good as this? Capacity is around 31,000, ample for most clubs.

Did you know that Real Murcia hold the record (8) for the number of 2nd division title wins? No? Neither did I.

There is ample parking around the stadium, though I was a little worried by a few dodgy characters that were loitering around. Also impressive were the numbers of coaches that had come down the coast from Villarreal. I was reminded of a Weds v. Toon game a few years back when there were coaches all the way up Penistone Road from Hillsborough. I lost/stopped counting at 38 on Sunday.

How the mighty have fallen, possibly another Toon reference. Yellow submarine fans were sporting shirts with Capdevila, Cazorla & Coloccini, to name a few I can remember (and had heard of)

Having parked up I meandered over to the stadium, eventually completing a full lap in a quest to find the ticket office. Turned out it was right in front of me as I entered the stadium grounds, but was right by the section of the ground where the Villarreal fans were queuing to get in.

UPS security Guards were liberally dotted around the stadium

Note to self, brush up on pidgin Spanish next time you want to buy a ticket. Having said that, couldn't have got myself a better seat.

Though I was surrounded by Jocks & Scousers

Temperature outside the stadium was a decent 27 degrees, add to the mix Murcia were in the relegation dog-fight and that Villarreal would go into 2nd place with a victory, the stadium should have been a boiling, or at least a simmering powder-keg awaiting to erupt.

How wrong can you be?

Was disappointed that my new favourite player wasn't in fact called Mustacchio as I thought that I'd heard, but Musacchio.

A totally inept first half had me thinking if there had been a chance on target, when out of no-where Murcia took the lead. Villarreal's goalie clawing the ball back from over the line before the goal was given. The only light in a dull first half. Good decision by the ref who gave the goal straight away without consulting the linesman. The goalie clearly well behind the line even from my view at the opposite end.

Kike, scorer of the goal reminded me of the typical old fashioned lazy English centre forward, hardly broke into a sweat the whole game.

Villarreal being a goal down and desperate for the points, you would've thought they'd have come out fighting with all guns blazing......wrong again. Even with Murcia down to 9 men at one point they seemed lacklustre

Murcia spent much of the 2nd half wasting time, which in the end would be their own downfall. It's something that I've never understood in football. Being a goal up you'd want the game over as soon as possible, more on that later.

Several comedy dives and prat-falls into the second half, a Villarreal player went down like the proverbial sack of tatties, looked like it may have been an off the ball punch. Guilty party Matilla stayed on the pitch for an age, having been shown the straight red card, before leaving to take his place on the bench. Ignored by the linesman & 4th official, Mateo Vaquero (Matthew Cowboy, please insert your own joke) the ref had to trek across the pitch to send him down the tunnel. The game resumed with Matilla standing in the tunnel. Again ignored by the 4th official & linesman the game was stopped by the ref and Matilla, still arguing, shown the way to the dressing room. Do these officials have any authority?

Down to 10 men Murcia had little to do in holding back Villarreal, another comedy highlight was the shooting of a Murcia player, I couldn't see where the grassy knoll was, again another sack of tatties rolled all over the pitch, before the stretcher was called for and the now lifeless body was taken away for the inevitable post mortem. Hilariously, as soon as the stretcher bearer crossed the white line, the player miraculously cured by the hand of Maradonna, leapt Lazarus style to his feet and ran round the back of the goal, along the deadball line and up the touchline, to rant at the 4th official who wouldn't let him straight back on to the playing area. Despite a couple of breaks in play, Murcia had to continue with 9 men, but this didn't change the Villarreal tactics. They were pathetic. Murcia continued to waste time with a couple of late substitutions, both of whom were booked, the combined total of time wasting creating 6 minutes of injury/time added on. Thinking again on the number of chances in the whole of the game, scant, Villarreal sent an innocuous cross into the box, for Manu to bury the ball into the corner of the net with a pretty decent header, 35 seconds from the end of the game. Travesty.

Spain and the game could be summed up by saying Murcia had their pockets picked by Villarreal.

No time wasting, no added time, no added time, no goal. more importantly three points.

Award for best advert since.....Durex, the small family car, 

Farmer Giles

Marks out of 10 for the quality of the game - 1

Marks out of 10 for the experience - 8

Would I go again? yes.

For those doubting Frost*ies, to quote Max Boyce, I was there.