Saturday 20th July 2024 – Pre-Season Friendly – The Jakeman Stadium, Boston

“Is Boston in Lincolnshire worth visiting?”

Aside from the usual one or two word answers on TripAdvisor, there is a sensible response online to the question that says “it’s a true hidden gem, nestled in the south of the county, a stone’s throw from both peaceful coastlines and rural bliss”.  Whilst the review from the Official Visitor’s website may be slightly biased, it’s not a bad place to spend a Saturday afternoon if you are here to watch a game.

Visitors can marvel at “The Stump”, the tower of St Botolph’s church which despite its nickname, happens to be the tallest of any parish church in England, the market square is thriving before the slow down at lunch time and if the weather is good, a trip up and down the Witham is popular.  Or, you can head to the Eagle, just across the road from the station and enjoy pints of snakebite for £3.30 and 10 Jäegermeister’s for £5 (although the Aldi equivalent from across the road), which is the well trodden path I’ve followed today, along with a few dozen Kettering Town fans who are warming up for the Pre-Season friendly at the Jakeman stadium, named after North-East Lincolnshire’s most popular chest and throat lozenge, later this afternoon.

Sitting in the beer garden as various locals murder songs in a lunchtime karaoke session (god knows what time they must have started if they were up singing at 1pm), two fans on the table next to me sat down.

“Are you going to the game today Jack?”

“Yep”

“Why aren’t you wearing your shirt?”

“I’m too fat”

“Can’t you wear a flag instead?”

“Nah, I’m allergic to nylon”

The Pilgrims are preparing for their return to the National League after a remarkable season last time out that saw them promoted via the play-offs after finishing 6th and then beating Alfreton Town and Scunthorpe United on penalties then Brackley Town in the final, all away from home. Their recent history has been them bounced around Step 1 and 2, but it’s with renewed hope and optimism that with stability off the pitch, sustainable progress can be made on it.

This was my first visit to the new ground, having been to York Street when the club was still clinging to a place in the Football League after the financial issues they faced in the wake of the Steve Evans era,  The club’s former ground in the town centre at York Street is still there, being used in recent seasons by Railway Athletic, of the Boston & District League, surprisingly with the floodlights still in place.  

The new ground, opened in 2021, is located a mile and a half south of the town centre on the main road to Spalding, and is at the centre of a mixed retail and residential development, meaning it has plenty of fast-food outlets and NIMBY’s zealously protecting the spaces outside their houses come match day.  For today’s game there was little need for the curtain twitchers to be worried, with only a few hundred leaving the beer gardens in the town centre for football and parking was plentiful.

Every club has a famous fan or two, but at a non-league level they mean so much more.  It’s not hard for a someone in the limelight to pick the most popular clubs these days, thinking more about their social media following than who they follow.  But to follow a Non-League club, and be publicly proud of it, is commendable.  Boston’s famous fan is Sir Jonathan Stafford Nguyen Van-Tam, the former deputy Chief Medical Officer who was a trusted public figure during the COVID crisis.  Van-Tam is no flag waving fan.  He’s a dedicated supporter who thought nothing of dressing as a nun for the Pilgrims final away game of last season at Hereford. Non-League football needs more fancy-dress wearing famous away fans in my opinion.

The visitors from Kettering had endured their own long list of issues over the last couple of decades and currently found themselves recovering from a disappointing season at Step 3 last time around and ground sharing with Step 6 Burton Park Wanderers.

If you are making your first visit to the Jakeman, then get here early.  Not that the walk alongside the A16 is dull, and at times a tad dangerous with no pedestrian pathway but because the Ellenders bar is pretty decent. The walls are adorned with the history of the club, they serve their own beer (Pilgrims Pale) and there’s plenty of seating and big screens for those who want more sport to watch.  

The ground is still three-sided, with the south end laying fallow to grow a stand at some point in the future, although the leaning in lollipop floodlights are keeping a watchful eye on what’s going on behind the fence.  Covered terracing wraps around two sides whilst the Main Stand is as good as you’ll see at this level.

The sides room to the field with a bit of Kasabian and despite some early pressure from the home side, Boston were 3-up within 20 minutes thanks to goals from veteran Adam Marriott’s head, a pile-driver from Jacob Hazel and then a more regular tap in from the striker two minutes later.

Despite the status of the fixture, segregation was in place, with a the 34 (my count) Kettering fans separated from the smattering of Boston fans in the East Stand by what looked like a ground sheet for a tent.  It’s almost offensive to the spirit Non-League that such a measure was needed, or even thought of for a pre-season game against two sides who have no rivalry or local connection in a crowd of 500 or so.  Sense and sensibility is often lacking in our game.

The away fans had something to cheer in the 38th minute when Boston’s over confident attempts to play out from the back were undone by Kettering’s high press and Remaye Campbell was presented with a golden chance to slot home from 12 yards.

Three minutes into the second half and it was 3-2.  Kettering again taking advantage of a defensive lapse, and a Kettering trialilst took full advantage.

The final twenty minutes saw the usual volume of subs with various trialists given a run out but it wasn’t until injury time that the game was finally made safe, Tony Weston scoring for the home side.

As they face their first season back at Step 1, Boston can certainly be proud of what they’ve built off the pitch.  With no clear favourite for the league perhaps this could be a season to remember for the Pilgrims.