I'm finding it hard to believe...we're in Hebburn: Hebburn Town 1-6 Dumbarton

No sooner than 2023-24 ends, 2024-25 begins - time being a relentless beast and all. The final game of that season just so happened to be the best, as I witnessed a usually tedious Zbrojovka Brno beat a hapless Kromeriz - who had already been relegated - 4-3. I realise 4-3 doesn't exactly make them sound hapless, but three of Zbrojovka's goals came in the first eight minutes.

Kromeriz were able to rouse a stirring comeback in the second half to their credit, but it wasn't to be enough, Nobody left the stadium happy, despite the victorious curtain closer, mainly because Zbrojovka had underachieved massively last season.

In any case, though I will occasionally follow the travails of Zbrojovka Brno (and their B-team) next season, a new job has allowed me the opportunity to explore further afield on a more regular basis. With that in mind, you can expect more variety in these blogs moving forward, as I explore towns, cities, stadia et al. in the likes of Czech Republic, Poland, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, and during the summer at least, the UK, as well as many others.

The curtain raiser for my season will be in the north east, with Newcastle providing my base for work before I return to the Czech Republic in August. One fixture that stood out to open proceedings was of course Hebburn Town v Dumbarton - a clash between English non-league and Scottish league, as the Sons of the Rock pay a visit.

From my limited research, the game seems to be a new annual pre-season fixture, having happened last year. Given the difficulty of understanding how teams in the Scottish League system compare to the English system, it's interesting that Hebburn Town emerged 3-2 victors last season. Technically it's also the Macron Cup, though I can't find a great deal of information on this particular tournament.

Before we continue, I also want to condense these blogs a little more, hence it will be split into three parts; 

• The standard nonsensical preamble you're reading now.
• The game, the ground, and any other business
• Five things you may not have know about team X.

I hope to have weekly blogs out every Sunday, depending on how busy my schedule is in between fixtures, and I genuinely hope you enjoy. 

The game, the ground, and any other business

As mentioned, these teams met a year ago, with Hebburn emerging 3-2 victors. Both teams went onto have immensely successful seasons, with Hebburn winning promotion as champions, and Dumbarton doing so via the play-offs. With that in mind, both sets of supporters were probably in more buoyant and optimistic mood going into this pre-season curtain raiser.

The ground is easy enough to get to using the metro - from the city centre you simply take the metro towards South Shields, then get off at Hebburn. From there, it's a short walk from the station to the ground, which boasts a fantastic bar. I didn't get a drink myself, and had overheard that a pint was £6, but there was no doubting the facilities were excellent.

The food was also excellent; an accidental chips in curry sauce having been misheard asking for chips and a coke. I was certainly not complaining, and it served as a reminder that if I want nice things, I should just ask for them.

The first half saw both teams try to settle into some kind of rhythm, and Dumbarton were quickest off the mark to do so. They took the lead around the midway point, before quickly doubling their advantage. Hebburn were able to halve the deficit before half-time.

The second-half was one way traffic in weather conditions I can only describe as biblical - you might even say the Hebburns opened (I wouldn't). Once Dumbarton got their third, the fourth, fifth and sixth soon followed. In the end, it was an absolute rout, which may have been harsh on Hebburn to an extent.

How much can you read into a result like this? Not a great deal really. Minds and bodies are still not up to match sharpness, and many will say it's just a chance to get to that level of sharpness. It was a thoroughly entertaining game, and a fitting preamble for the England game later that evening. Not quite the calm before the storm, but the storm before another storm I guess...

Five things you may not have known about Hebburn Town

Okay, so I'm aware I'll be covering more obscure clubs, hence you may not know a lot about any of the clubs I cover. That said, I hope to focus on the quirkier aspects of either the team, or perhaps the town, city, or region it finds itself in.

1. Hebburn Town were formed as the Reyrolles Factory works team back in 1912 - an engineering company that was once the largest employer on Tyneside.
2. Nicknamed the Hornets, their home kit resembles that of Watford, their nicknamesakes (if such a word exists). They've also had the likes of Bali Mumba and Dan Neil on their books in the recent past.
3. They won the FA Vase in 2020, beating fellow North East side Consett 3-2, even after going behind twice. Both goals in reply came within two minutes of Consett's, before an 82nd minute winner. Rather devastatingly for Hebburn fans, they were unable to enjoy their team's win at Wembley due to the game being behind closed doors.
4. Hebburn Town won the Northern Premier League Division One East last season by a solitary point over their closest rivals Stockton Town. Next season will see Hebburn play at Step 3 of non-league: the Northern Premier League Premier Division. They'll play the likes of Workington, Macclesfield, Gainsborough Trinity, and FC United of Manchester. To my knowledge, it will be their highest ever position, with the side having often troubled the upper reaches of NPL D1 East since the pandemic.
5. The closest Hebburn Town came to getting into Round One of the FA Cup was in 2011, where they were seen off by local rivals Gateshead 3-0. Whether there's any animosity between the teams, I've no idea, but the teams are only an eight minute drive apart, or a 68 minute walk if you fancy it.

NEXT WEEK: Gateshead v Sunderland