This week I've got some time off and I'm on a journey. Today I'm in Wolverhampton, to attend one of the great cathedrals of English football at Molyneux. Then I'm on to visit another storied old ground, Goodison Park, on Wednesday. Finally on Thursday I'm going to make the hop to Lancashire in the hope of catching Fleetwood Town in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy against Barnsley - though I haven't got tickets yet, so that could get interesting.
Tomorrow's venue, Goodison, featured heavily in Creed: The Rocky Legacy, which I watched at the weekend. The hero - Adonis Creed, son of Rocky's friend and rival Apollo - faces a title fight at Goodison against hometown Liverpudlian hero Ricky Conlan (played by real-life champion Tony Bellew).
I was impressed to see an English venue given such big billing in an American film. Particularly since it wasn't incidental to the storyline, or mere background; much is made of the fact that Conlan is on home turf and Creed is entering the lion's den. Goodison, that grand old lady of English football grounds, is as close to gentle as a football ground can be, in real life. But in the film, it's properly transformed into a boiling cauldron of fear and loathing.
I assume its prominence was in fact part of a deal with Bellew to secure his participation, especially since he is by all accounts trying to set up a real-world fight there.
Off out to see what Wolverhampton has to offer the man of ale, now.
Tuesday, 2 February 2016
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
