Un domingo doble

(20th December 2020)

The weekend before Christmas presented a final chance to watch football ahead of the leagues going on a two week winter break, so I came to the conclusion that the prospect of not being able to attend a match for a while would only be made better by watching another double-header, with the aim of also “ticking-off” another local ground in the process.

Following the success and enjoyment of my previous weekend’s two games in Marbella (featured in my article – “The Art of Football”), I scanned through La Preferente (a highly recommended website) looking for potential options. It’s important to remember that even though the date and time of lower-level Spanish fixtures get announced at relatively short notice (often only a couple of days before the game), you can usually predict when they’ll be, with the home clubs tending to keep the same time throughout the season. These are typically spread across Saturday evening, Sunday midday and Sunday evening, so if you base yourself in a city (or even a large town) then there’s bound to be a multitude of football matches taking place on any given weekend. Having access to your own transport is helpful, but I usually find that the local bus system is sufficient.

I wouldn’t be needing to meticulously plan out the journey in-between my games today though, as there’s only a 5 minute walk separating the grounds. The only downside was that I would be waiting a while after my first game had ended, but I found a way to keep myself occupied.

I arrived into the small town of San Pedro de Alcántara (unexpectedly located about 1km inland from the coast) at around 11am where it was already looking like a clear, sunny day. I started making the walk out of the centre and towards the neighbouring district of Nueva Andalucía, which takes around 25 minutes. Coincidentally, the quickest route for where I was heading to takes you past the football ground I’d be attending in the evening, but if you carry on further along the same road and round the corner, you’ll spot a different set of floodlights. They belong to the complex called “La Campana”, which is the home of 8th Tier CES (Centre of Education and Social) Nueva Andalucía and also CDF Banús from the same league, who are groundsharing here. I was watching the former today though, for a Málaga regional league third division game against Marbella’s AD Pablo Picasso CF (who I’d also seen the week before) in a midday kick-off. On paper, this match-up looked like it should’ve been a routine victory for the home side, who were sitting at the top of the table and unbeaten (with only 1 draw), whilst 1st from bottom Picasso had gained their first win of the season only the week before. However, nothing is ever won on paper as this match was to prove…

By this time, the weather was glorious with a completely clear and sunny sky, which added to the fact that the ground and game were far better than I’d anticipated beforehand. Considering that this is the lowest level of football in the region, it would easily be classed as a decent set-up for Step 6 of Non-League in England, I’d even say it was better than some Step 5 grounds I’ve visited. All of the facilities were on one side of the ground, including a good-sized covered seating stand, housing a couple of hundred seats in an assortment of different colours. The weird part was that the metal exterior of the stand had been fully covered in wooden board, I’m unsure as to why because it didn’t seem as though it’d make much of a difference, but it was practical. There was also a nice bar area, with a mix of covered and uncovered seating, plus some stalls set up beside the pitch barrier which proved popular with the locals who enjoyed their “cervezas” throughout the match.

What an entertaining game it turned out to be as well, certainly not what anyone in attendance or on the pitch would have expected, with the lowly away side holding their own very well and surprisingly having the better of the first-half. The hosts had the superior technical players, although they seemed to lack the robust, hardworking nature of Picasso, who were doing a lot of work off the ball. The first-half ended goalless, to the confusion of everyone present, particularly me. The away side had come closest to scoring, forcing the host’s keeper into a couple of saves, but you had a feeling that Nueva Andalucía would come out strong after the break. Only one thing was for certain, that this game had all of the makings for a tense finale.

During half-time I went for a walk around the perimeter of the pitch and, as I headed past the home team’s dugout, there appeared to be a few choice words spoken in a mix of Spanish and English, making it clear that the hosts were frustrated by the scoreline. Before my visit here, I had wondered if there’d be any form of English / International influence or foreign players at the club, with them regularly posting in English on social media and the district being an international hotspot, which was confirmed early into the game when I heard one of their players shout “oh, f*** off” after a sloppy pass. After completing my route around I made my way to the bar, opting for a refreshing €1 caña to drink in the sun before the match restarted.

The second-half also proved to be a close encounter but it wouldn’t remain goalless, as the hosts did eventually take the lead through Gigi with 64 minutes played, when he headed home from a free-kick. The lead was then doubled less than 10 minutes later through Vasquez, due to the away side failing to clear the ball after a shot was saved, with the Neuva Andalucía player in the right place to tuck in the re-bound. Pablo Picasso weren’t down and out just yet though and their perseverance was rewarded when Sarabia was able to convert at the back post with 82 minutes played, which at least gave them some hope. Both teams tried to score another goal, but to no avail, so the game ended 2-1 to the top of the table hosts.

After leaving the ground, I headed back towards the town centre of San Pedro to get some food and drink before the 5pm kick-off for the town’s main team, UD San Pedro. Since it was a Sunday, all of the supermarkets and shops were closed so I opted for a meal at a restaurant called Mr Gourmet Burger, where I had a very pleasant falafel burger and a milkshake to quench my appetite. After quickly polishing them both off, I had time for a pint before meeting up with my Dad who’d accompany me to this evening’s entertainment.

We made the walk back out of the town and to the Estadio Municipal San Pedro, where as usual, we had to complete a health declaration form and have our temperature checked, which actually proved to be accurate this time (after I was recorded as having hypothermia on a previous visit). The 5pm kick-off time gave us a great view of the early-evening sun and after taking some photos and heading into the main stand (which was the only stand open for this match due to repair works), the game was about to begin.

Unlike my earlier game, I didn’t have to wait long for a goal, with the hosts taking the lead after only 20 seconds played, when a precise through ball let Álvaro run through Guadix’s defence and shoot under the keeper into the net. They should have doubled their lead less than a minute later, when San Pedro found themselves in a similar position to before but the striker chose to square the ball to a teammate rather than shoot himself, with the away side managing to recover in the nick of time to clear. They wouldn’t be regretting the missed chance though, after a cross from the right hand-side was converted in the centre of the box by Kiko Carmona with only 3 minutes on the clock. Thankfully this didn’t lead to a landslide as might have been expected, particularly given that the away side were the bottom team in the sub-group and hadn’t won all season. A third goal would be added 20 minutes later, following a bursting run into the right hand-side of the box from Kiko Carmona, who shot across the goalkeeper into the low far corner of the net for his second goal of the game.

There’d be a further 2 goals before the hour mark, both in a very similar fashion to one another with the ball being pulled back into the centre of the box for an easy tap-in, firstly for Sergio with 42 minutes played, before Kiko Carmona completed his hat-trick after 51 minutes. That turned out to be the end of the goal scoring and even though the final score accurately reflected San Pedro’s clinicalness and overall dominance in the match, I did feel sorry for Guadix, who hit the woodwork twice and didn’t stop trying when it would’ve been easy to capitulate. In truth, there weren’t many talking points from the second-half of the match, with the result looking obvious, there being a lot of substitutions and neither side having any real urgency from that point on, but at full-time everyone was able to go home happy.

We headed back towards the town centre and made our short journey home, at the end of an undoubtedly long but rewarding day of watching entertaining and exciting local football. Since arriving in Spain, I’ve been trying to learn and observe from all of my visits to the variety of towns and football grounds dotted along the Costa Del Sol, both from a “Groundhopping” perspective and as someone who’s worked in football.

What this day and my previous weekend’s trip to Marbella have taught me is that I’d much rather watch the lowest levels of the game at a venue closer to home, than be spending more money and travelling further for a game at a high level. You get much more of a feel for the clubs and the people who make them what they are, plus the players who are playing with their mates rather than overpaid journeymen. I’ve been really pleasantly surprised by the quality of the football (and the venues) at the lower levels over here and can’t wait to get back to visiting my local clubs again, who’ve all suffered from the pandemic. It’s also great to see more of the town, support more bars, restaurants and experience the local culture that makes every place unique.

During my previous trips around European countries, I have tended to look for a balance between “seeing the sights”, having time to roam aimlessly and attempting to watch the main football club of wherever I’m visiting, which I feel has worked well, but this adventure has made me realise that the best experiences and the most rewarding memories can be found at the lesser-known clubs. Even once my current adventure comes to an end, I’m hoping that I’ll have the chance to explore more unique and interesting grounds worldwide in the future.

Chris Sharp

(All photos are taken by me, please can you give me credit if you wish to use my photos)