Barrow 'til I die!

Well, it's kinda inevitable, isn't it? My surname is Barrow, after all.

But tonight I'm thinking of Barrow AFC from Cumbria, who have just won the Blue Square North promotion play-off against Stalybridge at Burton's Pirelli Stadium to claim promotion to the Premier Division - only one step away from the Football League proper, from which they dropped in 1972. Hearty congratulations to the Bluebirds! "Barrow's goals-machine midfielder Matt Henney found the net in the 58th minute after the blue-and-whites surged forward," says the ecstatic North-West Evening Mail, promising seven pages of coverage tomorrow. The final result was 1-0.

I can't claim to be a week-by-week follower of my namesakes, but when I was a youngster I used to look out for their results, in the way that kids do. The other connection was that my mother had a nursing colleague called Mansfield. Her son, Guy if I recall correctly, was a couple of years older than me and also a football fan. So the bi-annual tussles between the Bluebirds and the Stags, sadly relegated from League Two this season, were occasions of friendly family rivalry - something it will be possible to relive again this Summer, after 36 years.

In any event, I shall definitely make sure I get down to Holker Street at some stage next season. 'Mon Barrow!
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