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| Boonyachinda Stadium |
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| The main entrance to Boonyachinda Stadium |
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| NT Stadium |
Police Tero 0 Nakhon Ratchasima 1
I had moved full-time to Minburi a couple of months earlier, and the top two levels of Thai football had resumed after the mid-season break. I was determined to start clocking up some new venues where I hadn’t previously watched matches.
My knowledge of the Bangkok bus system was improving. I knew the number 26 would take me within walking distance of Boonyachinda Stadium from Bang Bua BTS station.
The walk took me through local areas full of smiling faces and vibrancy, with Google Maps as my buddy. The last ten minutes were saved as a Tero fan told me to get on the back of his motorbike.
While not a fan of riding on the back of a motorbike, I liked his friendliness, and I’m always eager not to turn down such acts. I enjoyed beers outside with new friends. A Scarborough couple whom I know well, Tracey and Sean, support the home side.
Indeed, Sean and I travelled back from an away game with some of them from Nakhon Ratchasima in 2018. This time social media put us all in touch for a sociable drink.
It was an easy decision to go to the home open section as I knew Tero's more vociferous fans would also be there to create an atmosphere. Indeed, a group of farang stood at the front in the middle shouting non-stop. Admission was 100 Baht.
I initially thought they were Eastern European and perhaps friends with one of the imported players, such was their strange shouting. The following week, I found out they were from Scotland when I bumped into them at Samut Prakan City.
The match proved a tight affair. Tero had plenty of attacks but found themselves up against the excellent English Swatcat defender, Charlie Clough. A penalty three minutes into first-half stoppage time would decide the game.
The ball was near the edge of the box when a home defender made a needless challenge. Ghanaian forward Kwame Karikari stepped up to beat keeper Sinthaweechai Hathairattanakool from the spot.
Tero, overseas Brazilian striker Evandro Paulista, led the line well, but he and his team couldn't force an equaliser after the break in what had been a decent enough watch for a neutral. I enjoyed the experience and wished Tero well. They were a good bunch.
On my walk back, another fan offered me a motorbike ride, but I quickly got off. I just didn’t feel safe enough. Instead, I enjoyed strolling through the sort of area I had moved to Bangkok to explore before catching a bus home.
Police Tero 2 Port FC 1
Andrew, an old cricket mate, was in town and eager to take in a Port game. Ideally, it would have been a home match, but this was better than nothing. It was the final match of the season, and the venue had an emotional pull, as he told Steve and me.
Andrew is from New South Wales and set up rugby league in Thailand a decade or so earlier, with the nation playing its first full international at Boonyachinda Stadium. He told us a staggering story about how a rogue outfit usurped his work and took his funding.
We met on Soi Nana and had drinks along Sukhumvit Road as our friend explained that he was now the head coach of the Chilean rugby league and that they had a chance to qualify for the World Cup.
It was a grand old afternoon when time suddenly caught up with us. Eventually, I sourced a taxi from outside the Speakeasy bar on Soi 15. It would be touch-and-go whether we made it. Fortunately, we had a good driver with our former knowledge helping him, which saw us outside the away end as we heard the final strains of the King's Anthem.
While I love my Thai football experiences, I thought 200 Baht was extreme in the corner away section, exactly double the price of the home fans. The same policy was more or less in operation at every top-flight stadium.
As usual, the Port fans travelled in decent numbers for a 6pm kick-off, even though the team had been on a shocking run of form since the turn of the year, funnily enough, since I'd moved to Thailand, a point made by some friends! I guess the 3-0 home win a few days earlier against Nongbua had raised spirits.
Port's away record against Tero was poor. It continued in a game with little in it between the sides, a bit like an old Woodhead’s meat pie, as I said at the time, from my youth back in Scarborough.
The hosts took the lead shortly before the half-hour mark through Teeratep Winothai. They remained ahead until the seventy-sixth minute. Sergio Saurez got on the end of a set-piece move to level things up.
It was rumoured that it might have been his last game for the club with fellow Spaniard David Rochela. Suarez became frustrated throughout the campaign, not least, I sensed, with having the hopeless Nelson Bonella up front, an import so bad he didn’t even make the bench for the last few games.
I hoped Suarez would stay in a rejuvenated side the following season. Rochela was one of my favourites, but I thought his legs had gone and Port would probably release him, despite his length of service and previous quality and experience.
Sure enough, the defence let Port down. With two minutes of normal time remaining, Evandro Paulista scored the winner. No problem. We had a good night. Andrew loved the experience, especially hearing the Port female screamer near us. What a voice that lady has.
Our walk back wasn’t exactly along the same route as my previous visit, but it was fascinating all the same. We ended up down little alleys and finally along the side of the Khlong as friendly locals said hello.
We left Andrew to catch the BTS back into the city, while we headed home to Minburi by bus. That was the end of Thai League 1 for the 2021-22 season.
Police Tero v Port FC - Match abandoned at 1-0 after 39 minutes
Gary, a friend from Scarborough who was now living in Buriram, was in town for a weekend of football and socialising. We had already been to the afternoon League Cup game between Siam FC and AUU Inter Bangkok at the 72nd Anniversary Stadium in Minburi, the old home of Tero Sasana.
We picked Steve up near my condo, then arrived at Boonyachinda Stadium with time for a beer outside. I had come up with what I thought was a sensible plan, as we were still in the rainy season.
I didn’t wear any Port colours and suggested we sit in the home stand under cover for 120 Baht. I received no arguments! We got a good view of what we thought was an excellent attendance as the match kicked off in good conditions.
Port looked like a good side, with Negueba pulling the strings in midfield and wing-back Thitathorn Aksornsri constantly foraging down the left wing in front of us. Visiting keeper Worawut Srisupha kept out a long shot at the other end.
A long, low Port effort came back off the post before the referee was advised to go to the TV monitors, after he had turned down what looked like a nailed-on penalty for the visitors. Incredibly, he stuck with his original decision to the amazement of Lions players and fans alike.
Inevitably, after Port domination, the home side took the lead when Srisupha fumbled a low shot, and Jeong Woo-geun pounced to fire home on the half-hour mark. This was after a VAR check for offside.
Yodsak Chaowana of Tero committed a high challenge, which caught Negueba in the head. The referee initially showed a yellow card. He was advised to review his decision at the VAR screen. He changed his decision to a red card, reducing the hosts to ten men.
At this point, the official led the teams from the field as the rain began. It got heavier and heavier. It came in horizontally through the gap in the back of the stand. Within a few minutes, puddles formed on the pitch, and it was soon submerged. It was obvious that the game would be abandoned, so we decided to bite the bullet and make a run for it.
It was not straightforward as the road outside was not lit very well, and it was underwater. Steve was struggling with water in his glasses. I was in the water near my knees after failing to allow for a drop into the car park. I eventually grabbed my mate and assisted as we got back to Gary’s thankfully large motor.
Our driver had a tough task negotiating some flooded roads back to Minburi, with some incredible driving from others to watch out for. It was a relief when we were greeted at my local by owner Teaw offering us umbrellas. It had been a proper experience.
The match was rearranged for the last Wednesday of the month, from where the game ended, so Tero would be 1-0 up but playing with ten men.
Police Tero 2 Nongbua Pitchaya 1
A far less damp return was not long in the offing, but only after Tero played a couple of home games up the road at the Thunderdome while the pitch recovered. It included a 2-2 draw when the Port game was completed.
The Nongbua game was a special occasion. Two German groundhopping friends, Thorsten and Maren, joined me. They were on a two-week break attending their first-ever Thai games.
We met at Bang Bua BTS station and walked to Boonyachinda Stadium without finding anywhere that was obviously selling alcohol. Instead, we had a drink at the stadium and enjoyed free gifts and soft drinks from sponsors setting up outside.
Drinks continued behind the main stand, where I again guided guests. Once inside, we grabbed excellent seats for what was a decent enough encounter. The hosts took the lead in the twenty-seventh minute in a slightly scruffy fashion.
Ekkachai Sumrei returned an overhit cross low into the box from the other side. Fortunately, finding Marc Landry Babo. The Ivory Coast forward made no mistake, controlling and firing a low shot past keeper Kittikun Jamsuwan.
Islam Batran was denied for the visitors when a fizzing effort from the edge of the box was tipped over by Sinthaweechai Hathairattanakool in the home net. Chanukun Karin came close to doubling Tero’s lead in the last action before halftime.
A deflected Nongbua shot went narrowly wide once play resumed. They were rewarded when a powerful run ended with a touch of fortune. Barros Tardeli received a return touch from Batran before the Brazilian made it 1-1.
With eighteen to go, Tero regained the lead when a corner fell to skipper Issac Honny, who made no mistake from seven yards. Lesley Ablorh came close to extending the lead when firing just over the bar. I wasn’t exactly sure how Police Tero achieved it, but they were pulling off some excellent results.
They were difficult opponents and made the most of what they had, even if it wasn’t always completely pretty to watch. Fair play to them. At full time, we went out to the main Vibhabadi Rangsit road, where my friends jumped in a taxi back to their hotel in the city. I faffed about and waited ages for a taxi back to Minburi to meet my friends in my local bar.
My visit to
the capital worked out perfectly. My hometown club were playing
at the venue nearest to our Minburi condo. I arrived by bus, underground, and SkyTrain after heavy traffic had delayed me. This followed a quality experience, watching a game in the Thonburi League.
The main match of the day turned out to be a huge disappointment for the 2,000 away fans as Tero deservedly came from behind, thanks to their foreigners being better than Sisaket’s and then defending properly with the advantage of having a far better goalkeeper.
With Sisaket missing their foreign star player, Fillipe Veloso, who had been stupidly sent off the week before, they couldn’t find an equaliser, meaning their promotion hopes are in the balance after Pattani won, somewhere Sisaket still had to visit.
Despite the result, it was an incredible occasion, sitting with supporters I consider to be the best in the country, along with those of Port FC. This was why I went to watch both clubs, depending on my location.
I was desperate to arrive early so I got a ticket in the away zone, knowing it had limited capacity, and that Sisaket fans were likely to travel in large numbers, both from the northeast and the huge diaspora in the capital. I wasn’t wrong.
NT Stadium is basically the HQ of the country’s main telecommunications system, National Telecom and has its own rail station. Tero moved in there, sharing with Prime Bangkok from the start of the season.
It’s a lovely venue. An out-of-commission away end reminded me of Layer Road, Colchester, only it’s made of metal, rather than wood. I was in there once when it was rammed to watch Port in a vital relegation game, and it was no place for the faint-hearted, particularly safety-wise.
The beer garden behind the main stand had a duo playing live music, creating a good atmosphere, but the real party was going on further along. Sisaket fans congregated for picnics. Blokes prepared meals using big knives, while stalls sold beer and snacks.
Sisaket people set it all up, with the club even having a gazebo selling souvenirs. All very different from a Western experience. Lots of away fans wanted selfies with me and to know where I lived. They kindly gave me beers.
Their passion and support were outstanding, but they lacked a good team to cheer for. From outside, I could see that stewards were moving the segregation barriers to fit in more away fans, who were already taking their places.
When I eventually got in with my new friends, the section was full, despite them selling tickets without numbers. Tero were obviously keen to cash in. I thought the boards in the old away end might be taken down and we could stand there. Instead they gave us a third of the main stand. That too was packed out.
The noise and camaraderie were special. Even more so when Kittipong's header put the visitors ahead after six minutes. A minute earlier, the ball somehow didn’t go in for the home side, with goal-line clearances and the woodwork intervening.
Sisaket controlled the game until three minutes before the break. An attempted cross from Sampan Kesi was deflected, putting spin on the ball. Goalie Adisak didn’t meet it on the full. Time and again, he backs out of any situation where he might be injured, this time assuming Daehee Kwon might collide with him. The ball trickled into the net.
More beers arrived in the stand for the second half. Tero managed the game excellently. They’d replaced their coach during the week. They shouldn’t have been eight points behind Sisaket before play commenced, as they were a side containing many talented footballers.
And so, it proved. I thought they'd gone ahead with a free header around the hour mark that claimed the winner. The league website says Phattaraphon Gangsopa headed into his own net. After that, Sisaket tried to find a leveller, but they lacked invention, as they generally did, and even more so without the suspended Fillipe.
Isaac Honny nullified Adolf Koudakpo from getting anywhere near scoring, while Steeven Langil was largely anonymous. As usual, Pittipong and Kwon were the most likely to score. Tero deservedly hung on, despite being down to ten men for twenty minutes after Weerawat Jirapuksiri collected a second yellow card.
I headed away at full-time, grumpy. The SkyTrain and taxi got me home by which time I’d reflected on what an amazing experience I’d enjoyed. I would miss another Sisaket game, away to Kasetsart, again close to our Bangkok base, on the following Wednesday evening.
I would be flying north with my wife and preparing for the Chiang Mai International Cricket Sixes. Any bar showing it on TV would feel the benefit, while several cricketing mates could watch in bewilderment.
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