Day 8: 17 October 2009, Saturday
We set off bright and early today because we had a very exciting day ahead of us. At about 8:20am, we hopped in to TH’s Ford car and set off from Coventry, journeying northwards towards Manchester. The drive was very scenic and enjoyable, especially for me since I was a backseat passenger. As we left the big city behind, we saw large expanses of farmland with lots of sheep grazing the fields. It was nice to do a road trip because we don’t get to do that in land scarce Singapore.
After being on the road for about two hours, we arrived at Peak District. The entire national park spans 1,438 square kilometres and covers part of the counties of Derbyshire, Yorkshire, Staffordshire and Cheshire. I cannot remember exactly which part of Peak District we were at.
It was a chilly and quiet morning. Besides the three of us, there were few other people out and about. We first walked past a small village with some lovely cottages, which were made of stone and came with chimneys. They were exactly like the cottages I read about in Enid Blyton books when I was young. I could certainly visualise myself living in such a house at the countryside after I retire.
We followed the path through the village and soon reached the hiking trail. As we ascended the hill, a few trail runners passed us by. The cool weather certainly helped to make the run more pleasurable and less strenuous. If I had the good fortune of living here, with such a nice hill in my backyard, I figured I would come here to run pretty regularly too.
The scenery was similar to what we had seen during our drive earlier, with wide expanses of green fields covering the hills. We didn’t go very far as we were a bit pressed for time. We just wanted a little taste of hiking in the great outdoors, so we turned back after about 45 minutes. Admittedly, we didn’t do Peak District justice this time round; hopefully I’ll get the chance to do a proper, full-day hike in the future.
As we were leaving, we encountered a BASE jumper who had just finished packing up his parachute. We saw a group of them hovering in the air with their parachutes deployed. Apparently, they did this every week. BASE jumpers jump off from fixed objects like buildings, antennae (radio masts), spans (bridges) and earth (cliff), as opposed to jumping out of a plane. In fact, that’s where the acronym BASE comes from. The man asked for a lift to the starting point, where his car was parked at. It was on the way so we gave him a ride.
After that, we continued with our road trip and drove in a northwest direction towards Manchester, arriving at about 12:30pm. TH had done his research beforehand and found a car park that was located a fair distance away from Old Trafford. He didn’t want to park too close to the stadium as he was concerned that we would be stuck in traffic after the match ended. After parking our car, we grabbed a quick sandwich and coffee before taking a brisk walk towards Old Trafford.
We could definitely feel the matchday buzz increasing the closer we got to the stadium. We were soon surrounded by many other fans and even entire families decked out in red Manchester United jerseys. There were also lots of stalls selling unofficial scarves, paraphernalia and T-shirts bearing images of Man Utd players. We resisted the temptation to splurge here and continued walking.
Before we knew it, the iconic Old Trafford stadium came into view. The energy at the plaza in front of the stadium was even more electric. There was so much to see, and we wanted to take photos from every angle and capture everything that was going on. There were the iconic statues of Sir Matt Busby as well as the United Trinity of George Best, Denis Law and Sir Bobby Charlton. Then there the red bricks on the pavement with the names of club legends like Eric Cantona, David Beckham and Sir Alex Ferguson etched out in gold. We quickly bought the official match day programme, which was bundled with a copy of the latest Inside United magazine before going on a photo-taking spree.
After taking all the necessary photos, it was time to splash the cash. We headed to the Megastore to buy some official merchandise. The store was huge and it was packed with both merchandise and fans. Our One United membership afforded us 10% off purchases but we still had to exercise self-control as all the merchandise looked super tempting. Everything you could possibly think of was on sale here – keychains, apparel, mugs and even bedsheets. Just slap on a Man Utd logo on the item and voila, the selling price goes up by 100%. You can only imagine how much money they make from merchandise sales.
After the shopping spree, it was time to head to the stands. Our seats were located in the Lower South Stand, entrance S20, block STH122, row KK. We joined the throng of fans and slowly made our way to the entrance, with the excitement growing with every minute.
Finally, we climbed the last flight of stairs and stepped into the Theatre of Dreams. After seeing it on television and dreaming about it for years, I was finally here. KP was an even bigger fan than I was. Right in front of our eyes was the legendary football pitch, with the words “Old Trafford Manchester” in big letters on top of the stand across us. That was the final confirmation. We weren’t dreaming; it was real.
What was even more amazing was how close we were to the pitch. We were practically at pitch level, just 15 metres away from the sidelines. Not only that, we were very close to the tunnel, where the players would emerge and walk past us to get to the dugout. We couldn’t have asked for better seats for our first visit to Old Trafford! Indeed, the seats for my subsequent two visits in 2014 and 2015 were much worse as they were very high up and far away, so we were incredibly lucky this time round.
When we entered the stadium at 2:30pm, it was still relatively empty inside. Most of the fans were outside getting their beers and watching the ongoing Chelsea match on the TV screens. The Man Utd players were on the pitch doing their final training and warm-ups. Most of them were dressed in their green training tops and kicking balls in the centre of the field. An additional goal post was brought out on the left side of the pitch and Edwin van der Sar was going through his goalkeeping routines. They all looked relaxed and were laughing as they passed the ball around.
About 10 minutes later, the players left the pitch to get ready. The sprinklers came on and final preparations were made to get the pitch ready for the start of the match at 3pm. The 15-minute wait only increased our anticipation levels. Within a few minutes to kick-off, as if by magic, all the fans had taken their seats and Old Trafford was filled to the brim with 75,103 fans. KP, TH and I were the three fans in that figure.
At 2:55pm, everyone rose to their feet as the announcer’s voice boomed around the stadium. The players from both teams emerged from the tunnel to rapturous applause, led by their respective captains. The Manchester United and Bolton Wanderers players took their positions in a line, facing us, before proceeding to shake the hands of their opponents. Next, the gaffer himself, Sir Alex Ferguson, emerged from the tunnel. He was dressed in a long black buttoned coat and he was chewing his gum furiously.
The Man Utd starting eleven comprised of Gary Neville (captain), Edwin van der Sar, Rio Ferdinand, Michael Carrick (my favourite player in the current team), Jonny Evans, Patrice Evra, Michael Owen, Dimitar Berbatov, Ryan Giggs, Valencia and Anderson. It was a pretty strong line up, with Paul Scholes, Nani and Wes Brown among the substitutes. It was a pity we didn’t get to see Wayne Rooney as he was nursing a calf injury.
Finally, everything was in place. Mark Clattenburg, the referee, blew his whistle and we were off! It felt surreal to watch the match unfolding right in front of our eyes. We could hear every thud as the players kicked the ball, and also hear them shouting as they communicated with one another. We saw Gary Neville marshalling the right flank and sliding into tackles just metres away from us, and also Sir Alex prowling the sidelines. It was incredible.
The real-life experience was very different from what we see on television. On TV, you get close-ups, replays, commentary and statistics. Inside Old Trafford, you get none of that. There are no screens at all inside the stadium, so if you missed anything that happened on the pitch, there is no opportunity to watch it again. Without the constant change in camera angles, the real-life action also seemed much slower in comparison.
But what you get in return is an electric atmosphere that cannot be replicated at home. Very close to us, on our left was the famous Stretford End, or the West Stand. This was where all the hardcore fans were seated at. Almost throughout the whole match, they sang famous Man Utd songs and chants, providing the so-called 12th man support to the players. I felt goosebumps when the voices from the Stretford End faithful rang at full volume.
Barely five minutes had gone by when the first goal was scored. It happened so quickly at the other end of the pitch that we didn’t even know what happened, but the fans around us erupted in cheers so we surmised that the home team had scored. Apparently, it was an own goal by Bolton’s centre back Zat Knight after he deflected Michael Owen’s header into his own net.
As the match wore on, we overcame our initial awe and settled down. So when Antonio Valencia scored the second goal on the 33rd minute, we were better prepared. We tracked the action leading up to the goal and saw the ball go into the net. This time, we celebrated together with everyone else, unlike our delayed reaction for the first goal. It was a marvellous feeling indeed.
The second half was even better because Man Utd were attacking our side of the goal, towards the Stretford End. This was when the singing got even louder and the atmosphere inside the stadium was raised a notch. We got to see the legendary Ryan Giggs terrorising Bolton’s defence down the left flank, as well as taking corner and free kicks near our side of the pitch.
Man Utd were cruising until the 75th minute, when Bolton pulled one back via Matt Taylor’s header. Up till that moment, the excitement level had gone down a little but the visitors’ goal increased the tempo once again as Bolton pressed hard for an equaliser. In the 86th minute, Paul Scholes was introduced as a substitute for Anderson.
For the last 15 minutes, we were on our toes as we egged the Red Devils towards a victory. Heading into injury time, Sir Alex did his famous routine by going to the sidelines and tapping furiously on his wristwatch, putting pressure on the referee to end the match quickly. It was the reverse of “Fergie time”. After more than four tense minutes of added time, Mark Clattenburg finally blew his whistle. Phew, what a relief!
As the players and managers exchanged handshakes around the pitch, the fans showed our appreciation for a job well done with our applause. Chelsea had lost their match earlier and this victory brought us to the top of the table, one point ahead of the Blues. It was a good day. The only pity was that all the goals were scored at the other end of the pitch so we didn’t get to see the players celebrating in front of us. Nevertheless, it was still a dream come true to see Manchester United play at Old Trafford. The Theatre of Dreams, indeed.
Within 10 minutes, the stadium was empty. We tried to linger for a while to take more photos but the stewards chased us out. As we joined the mass exodus streaming out, we saw a crowd gathered at an area outside the stadium. They seemed to be waiting for something. We were curious so we went to take a look.
We saw a big bus and many luxury cars. It quickly became clear that the fans were hoping to catch a glimpse of the players as they made their way out of the stadium. The bus was of course, for the Bolton players. As for the Man Utd players, there was no need for team transport since they lived here, so they could all go home driving their own fancy sports cars. Many of the cars were Audis, which was not surprising since Audi was a sponsor for Manchester United.
After waiting for about 15 minutes, the players started to appear. One of the first was Gary Neville. Being the no-nonsense guy that he is, he walked straight to his car. Unlike most of his team mates, he drove a very humble hybrid Toyota Prius. I approve his choice!
Next, we saw Michael Owen with his wife and three adorable kids, followed by Dimitar Berbatov, who looked every bit as “bochup” (Singapore slang for “don’t care”) as his displays on the field. I don’t mean that in a negative way. It’s just Berbatov’s normal unhurried, nonplussed manner, which is often misinterpreted as being lazy or sluggish. I happen to think quite highly of his silky football skills.
The real excitement came when Giggs, John O’Shea and van der Sar came out and interacted with the fans. Many of the fans standing at the front of the barricades were kids, so it was nice to see the players acknowledge them and sign some autographs. I was hoping that they would come over to my side but they didn’t. KP had earlier moved over and he was managed to get autographs from the three players. So lucky!
By around 6pm, all the players had come and gone. The crowd dispersed and we made our way back to our car. We grabbed a quick dinner of burger and kebab at a restaurant before hitting the road again for the long drive back to Coventry.
Before we reached TH’s house, we popped by a supermarket to get some supplies. As we were leaving, we spotted garden fireworks on sale (because Halloween was around the corner). We never had the opportunity to play with these in Singapore so we decided to buy some since they were buy-one-get-one-free. We then searched for a quiet place where we could release the fireworks.
After driving for some time, we found a deserted open-air car park. It was 11 degrees Celsius at the time so it was pretty cold when we stepped out of the car. We followed the instructions and stuck the fireworks in the ground. KP decided to have a go at it first. After lighting the fuse, he ran for safety. A few short seconds later, the fireworks shot into the air before exploding in a burst of colour.
Just like little kids, we all shouted in glee when the fireworks went off. Honestly, it was so much fun. We took turns to set the remaining fireworks off so everyone had a go at it. This was a simple pleasure but it remains one of the most memorable moments from the trip that I remember clearly even till this day.
By the time we reached TH’s apartment, we were well and truly spent. It had been a most incredible day – hiking at Peak District, watching Manchester United play at Old Trafford and setting off fireworks. What more could we ask for?