Gibbo's 92.: Stamford Bridge

- Ground Number 6

- 28/10/2009

- Chelsea FC 4-0 Bolton Wanderers FC

After scraping a victory away at Tranmere, and beating West Ham at home, we drew Chelsea away in The League Cup. Just by fluke, I was due to go down to London that week, so my decided to get two tickets in the Bolton end!

We set out from our hotel in Bayswater, and ended up at one of my 'favourite' tube stations - Earls Court. If you have never visited Earls Court, it is a traditional station, but a right pain in the arse! We eventually arrived at Fulham Broadway Station, and it was only a short walk to the stadium. I felt somewhat out of place in my Bolton shirt, as we were the only Bolton fans not to have arrived on the free coaches supplied by the club.

I bought my matchday programme for £3. It had a flattering picture of Joe Cole as the cover, and was full of interesting articles.

Queuing at the turnstiles to get into Stamford Bridge with my fellow cattle was a tedious experience. I had to open my bag 5 times for a search. I was frisked. I was asked for my age 3 times, and we were shouted at like we were stupid. Well, being Bolton fans 90% of us are stupid - but it's still not the point!

We finally got into The Shed, and it was a cramped, ageing area. This however worked to our advantage as we created a brilliant atmosphere, which even the Chelsea fans were shocked at. The free coach travel had obviously payed off... 2,000 drunk men had made the journey down, and the stewards had their work cut out.
The stadium itself was a lot smaller than I had expected, but it had quite a good feel about it. Unfortunately, it was yet another stadium which I could not get a mobile phone signal in.

The stewards at Stamford Bridge would have had a quiet evening if they weren't jobsworths. Somebody had brought around 50 inflatable beach balls, and the stewards insisted on chasing these balls around. It was just a pointless game of 'piggy in the middle' but on a large scale... and there was only going to be one winner!

Now, none of us had gone down to Stamford Bridge believing we could cause a cup upset. This was mainly due to the fact Gary Megson was in charge.

The match kicked off, and it was clear to see that Chelsea meant business. The Bolton fans were outsinging the Chelsea fans, and this was the theme for the whole evening. Salomon Kalou scored in the 15th minute, followed by a goal from Florent Malouda. Chelsea went into the break with a 2-0 lead, and that flattered us!

Well, it was half-time. Great! I could go and get a pie from Stamford Bridges' 5 star catering service. 'SCHOOLBOY ERROR' - as Hansen and co would say. Top-tip, never leave it until halftime to buy a pie if you are in a Northern football crowd. I resorted to buying a Yorkie, as this was all they had left. I demanded a full refund for my Yorkie bar, as I discovered it was melted. Some plank had stored the chocolate bars above the pie heater.

Along came the second half, and along came 'The Boltonian Conga Line'. We had long grown bored of watching the game, so we just decided to have a party.

In the end, Chelsea won the game 4-0, and none of us were too bothered! We were too busy singing and dancing. ♫ 4-0 down and we're louder than you! 4-0 down and we're louder than you! ♫

It had been the best away trip I had been on, and to this date it is still up there. I look forward to visiting Stamford Bridge again, but it will probably be when I have taken out a mortgage.