Wake up to the sound of kids on a trampoline just outside our windows. They’ve been going bonkers in the backyard for hours and it’s a bad hangover combo. Well due to our evening’s stupidity we’ve slept through the morning and are basically in the position of starting it all over again. We’re supposed to meet up with Adam at The Old Print Works in an hour to catch the England vs Sweden quarter-finals.

We take a taxi into town again and get dropped off at the train station where we grab some sandwiches from a Greg’s and load up on quid from a cash machine. The Old Print Works is another English style pub, more up scale than Travelers which does seem like a dive bar now by comparison.

The game has just started so we grab some pints and try to find a good viewing area. It is damned hot and humid in here. Sweat is rolling down my back, sheeeesh. People are fanning themselves with coasters. We settle in and watch the game unfold.

This game isn’t all that great either though. Sweden can’t get anything going really, England pretty much dominates. There are a couple of nice goals and 3 great saves from the English keeper but definitely not a historical match or anything. “You can’t put that in? You get paid thousands of pounds a week!”

Regardless, it’s fun to have watched it with some local fans. People were way more into it. When the final whistle blows, the bar puts on the song 3 Lions and everyone’s singing “Footballs coming home!”

Great band name: Sea Whores

We have a seat outside on the Print Works patio, sharing a table with a couple. “My wife is admiring your hair”, “Oh thanks, yeah it’s pretty curly”, “What is that Australian?”, “Nah, Canadian…” The wife has a fancy cocktail, I ask what it is. Gin and rhubarb. Can’t say I’ve had a gin and rhubarb before. Oh it’s nice. With some floating blueberries in it too.

After that badass Rugby League game yesterday we decided to hit up a local match that’s happening today. Wakefield Trinity vs the Catalan Dragons from France. We hop a cab over to the stadium. It’s 12 quid for the game. We get tickets and head through some very old school turnstiles. “This place is so Yorkshire. It’s so shit it’s awesome”, “It is shit, I love it”. Being the first Rugby League stadium I’ve been in I don’t really have anything to compare it to. “This isn’t going to be like what we watched yesterday. Look at this pitch. Total shit.”

We scan the area and spot some meat pies with the bar beside it. Looks like we’ll be posting up there. “Puke-a pies?”, “It’s pronounced Puck-a, not puke-a!” Pukka Pies come with mushy peas and you can doctor your plate up with mint sauce and some special sauce. It’s mushy delicious. “I’ll take a meat pie and some mushy peas, Love”, “Oh Peter’s Yorkshire accent is in full effect now. Does he talk like this at home”, “Haha Peter calls zero people ‘Love’ at home.”

While I’m doctoring mine up Peter and Adam are at the beer stand asking about drinks. “Well, it’s five Fosters for a tenner”, and they repeat back in unison, “Five Fosters For A TENNER?!” I’m cracking up over this. I guess we’ll be getting 5 fosters for a tenner then.

Ohhh it’s Daddy Cool giving out high fives! He’s so cool. He does a mean worm too.

The local dance troupe Dance Explosion gives the people in the seats a rousing dance explosion.

Meanwhile the sprinkler guy looks like he’s having the piss of his life

“Come on Trinity, you get paid dozens of pounds a week!” Adam’s a really funny dude, “I came up with a new chant, wanna hear it?”, “Of course!”, and then he proceeds with some choir boy sounding chant, “Triniteeeee, you are the team for meeeeeeee!” Lol, wtf. We all try it in unison, “Triniteeeeeee, you are the team for meeeeeeeee!” The old guys in front of us look back in disgust and we can’t help but laugh in their sour faces. They’re really into this game and don’t appreciate our shenanigans. This only makes it more funny. More Fosters? Yep.

Oh there’s gonna be a scrap!

For some reason the Trinity jerseys have spider-man on the front of them. I suppose this is better than the Planet Vapes logo on the front of the Catalan jerseys a bunch of kids here are wearing. Planet Vape kids.

These old guys in front of us area a riot. They’re so into it, analyzing everything in this haughty stance with their hands clasped behind their backs. Catalan makes a great return and runs the length of the field. One old dude is so pissed he throws his hands up and yells, “Where were you in 1942!!??” Haha wow. Not sure how WWII references translate to modern day rugby games but there it is.

Of course in response we let go a trio of “Trinity, you are the team for me!” and this old guy spins around with a death glare, haha oh shit. I think we might get in a fight!

At about the 4th round of 5 fosters for a tenner we start messing with the trinity chant according to the situation. Trinity is getting their ass whooped by this French team, “Triniteeee you have my scrutineee” and “Trinity, my allegiances have changed!”. But we’re all roaring when one of the Catalan players gets nailed hard and I throw out a very inappropriate “Catalaaaaaan, You need a cat scaaaaan!” The old guys actually liked this one. Maybe we won’t have to fight today.

Trinity gets smoked by Catalan. The caliber of play wasn’t nearly what we watched at Traveler’s yesterday but it was still fun to come check out a game, get some meat pies and mushy peas and 20 Fosters.

We leave the grounds while the sun is going down. Guess we’ll recoup at Adam (and Mandy’s) and make our way back downtown from there.

On the way back, Adam tells us that it’s his Mom’s birthday tomorrow. We get her a bottle of Boodle’s gin to celebrate and say thanks for the hospitality. Adam takes a pic of our presentation. We look like a couple of game show hosts. Tonight on Oodles of Boodles we’d like to congratulate our grand prize winner, Mandy!

Mandy makes me a gin and I sit outside with her for a bit. We’ve got a comfortable back and forth going now that we’ve sat out here for literally hours the past few days. “I really like you’re stories. You have a good perspective on things”, “Well, I just go with the flow”, “Well that’s it exactly, inninit?”

It sounds like it’s been a bit of a difficult time for her lately, breaking up and moving in w Adam. Now she’s in one of those awkward transition periods of life. We’ve all been there at some point. Just take your time and figure it out, a path forward will present itself. “I know I can do anything I like, just need to get through it. Maybe I’ll move abroad”, “Now you’re talking!”

We catch the end of the Russia / Croatia game over a few gins. Exciting stuff at the end with Russia tying it up to take them to overtime, then both teams scoring in overtime, and then into penalty kicks. A good save on either side but a Russian player misses one of his shots and they are ouuuuuut.

20 bottles of Fosters and a few gins should make for a nice base to get things started on another night out in wild wild Wakefield. Oh nope, we’re going to Leeds. Yaaas!