It was already week 2 for the National League and I was on the road to attend Oxford City FCs first away game of 26/27 in the southern reaches of Lincolnshire.
They've got a Wetherspoon's which would inevitably be my first port of call being as it's in the 2026 Good Beer Guide, I was scheduled to arrive around 11am, and I'm quite partial to a second breakfast.
Forget mobility scooters outside pubs. This was parked outside the Ivy Wall...
Sadly the pub itself is less photogenic than the horse and cart. The glass-fronted affair will disappoint anyone hoping for an ancient market town building or a wall of ivy for that matter.
The Ivy Wall (18-19 New Rd, Spalding PE11 1DQ)
Inside, it's one of those long narrow 'Spoons with lines of regimented tables and the bar towards the back. I reckon Tim Martin himself would be hard-pushed to identify some of the locations if faced with 'Where in the World of Spoons Am I' contest.
There is a separate room to the back which was proving popular with families and pushchairs, plus an outdoor patio where a fair few customers had settled despite the overcast morning.
The search for something a little bit different ended in the smart toilets, where you get a glass-fronted display of no-lo beers to peruse whilst at the urinals.
The guest cask ales on my visit were Hadrian Borders 'Northumbrian Gold' or Ilkley 'Ruby Jane'. The Northumbrian for me - a malty 4.5% ale, more brown than golden.
My breakfast wrap picture comes solely for the purpose of my continued grumble about the size of extra baked bean portions. 50/50 recently for me, as to whether £1.08 buys a decent size bowl or the thimble-sized ramekin.
Moving on, a short stroll round to the market place took me to the Red Lion hotel, complete with 'Jimi Hendrix Stayed Here' blue plaque.
The Red Lion Hotel (Market Place, Spalding, PE11 1SU)
The Red Lion is a smart 18th century inn with a seating area in front of it providing people-watching opportunities in the heart of the town. Hendrix's stay is the big claim-to-fame, his visit made during the Spring Bank Holiday in 1967 when the Barbeque '67 festival took place in the Tulip Bulb Hall. Hendrix reputedly hung out in the hotel bar with Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker, before sharing a bill with Geno Washington, Zoot Money, Cream, Pink Floyd and The Move, amongst others. Tickets £1.
The search for something a little bit different ended in the smart toilets, where you get a glass-fronted display of no-lo beers to peruse whilst at the urinals.
My breakfast wrap picture comes solely for the purpose of my continued grumble about the size of extra baked bean portions. 50/50 recently for me, as to whether £1.08 buys a decent size bowl or the thimble-sized ramekin.
The Red Lion is a smart 18th century inn with a seating area in front of it providing people-watching opportunities in the heart of the town. Hendrix's stay is the big claim-to-fame, his visit made during the Spring Bank Holiday in 1967 when the Barbeque '67 festival took place in the Tulip Bulb Hall. Hendrix reputedly hung out in the hotel bar with Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker, before sharing a bill with Geno Washington, Zoot Money, Cream, Pink Floyd and The Move, amongst others. Tickets £1.
Passing the busy outdoor tables, the marvellous tiled flooring in the doorway makes for a good first impression...
Which just gets better...
A rare outlet for Bass in this area, apparently.
The building looks big from the outside, although the public bar just takes up the front room with seating either side of the door, a dining room glimpsed down a corridor beyond the check-in desk.
If you don't fancy the Bass, Sharpe's 'Cornish Best' or Black Sheep 'Best Bitter' were available.
The building looks big from the outside, although the public bar just takes up the front room with seating either side of the door, a dining room glimpsed down a corridor beyond the check-in desk.
If you don't fancy the Bass, Sharpe's 'Cornish Best' or Black Sheep 'Best Bitter' were available.
A good pint of Bass in a cracking pub.
With a fair number of 'No Cask Ale' venues in the town centre, the remaining place that I really wanted to visit was the Priors Oven, achieving top pint-pot marking scores on the CAMRA website.
With a fair number of 'No Cask Ale' venues in the town centre, the remaining place that I really wanted to visit was the Priors Oven, achieving top pint-pot marking scores on the CAMRA website.
This was once part of the Priory of Spalding, the structure dating back to around 1230. With it's distinctive shape and vaulted ceiling, this bit of the building once served as a monastic prison, becoming a bakery in later years, then the first micropub in Lincolnshire in 2013.
It looks great, not needing many folks to fill it up with just four tables and a couple of stools at the bar.
There were three cask ales available: Humpty Dumpty 'Hathor' alongside 'New Mexico' pale ale or 'Dr Fox's Cunning Linctus' bitter, both brewed by local Tydd Steam.
All priced at £4 a pint and served on gravity from casks behind the bar.
The cask coolers must have been doing their job throughout the recent hot weather, as the New Mexico was on great form - a crisp hoppy pale ale.
All priced at £4 a pint and served on gravity from casks behind the bar.
The cask coolers must have been doing their job throughout the recent hot weather, as the New Mexico was on great form - a crisp hoppy pale ale.
With plenty of time on my hands, I strolled to the historic Ayscoughfee Hall which houses a small museum of local history and curios. Well worth a visit.
The gardens to the rear of the house were playing host to a festival with music and games and deckchairs, but sadly Shake It Off Stage, the Taylor Swift tribute act at 15:40 clashed with the football.
Probably not a line-up which will go down in history like the Barbeque '67, so I departed for the peaceful environs of the River Welland.
The gardens to the rear of the house were playing host to a festival with music and games and deckchairs, but sadly Shake It Off Stage, the Taylor Swift tribute act at 15:40 clashed with the football.
Probably not a line-up which will go down in history like the Barbeque '67, so I departed for the peaceful environs of the River Welland.
The riverside walk took me past some grand Georgian houses and Dutch-style architecture, leading me to another pub about 10-minutes walk from the town centre.
This one-time coal wharf used to be a boat hire centre from the late nineteenth century before being converted to a pub in the 1980's.
You get checked carpet, sofas and armchair and Notts County v Leicester City in the front room, the casual bit, then dining tables to the rear and side.
Fullers 'London Pride' or Timothy Taylor 'Golden Ale' on the bar.
Lots of cheery luncheon trade.
🕝Two-thirty - time to head to Spalding United's Sir Halley Stewart Field and join the throngs at the turnstiles.
Spalding United were promoted via the play-offs from the Southern League last season.
They've spent a fair bit of money improving facilities during their rise to this level, including the installation of a smart 3G pitch.
The club bar served a cask Batemans 'XB', the converted shipping container served cheesy chips, and picnic tables provided a spot to sit in the afternoon sunshine awaiting kick-off.
Dropkick Murphy's, AC/DC and Guns 'n' Roses made up a rock soundtrack on the tannoy system. Then someone gave a speech about this being the first game Spalding had hosted at this level of the football pyramid.
A bit like Tom Cruise before the World Cup final, but better.
They've spent a fair bit of money improving facilities during their rise to this level, including the installation of a smart 3G pitch.
Dropkick Murphy's, AC/DC and Guns 'n' Roses made up a rock soundtrack on the tannoy system. Then someone gave a speech about this being the first game Spalding had hosted at this level of the football pyramid.
A bit like Tom Cruise before the World Cup final, but better.
I'd love to provide all the details of Tyrone Marsh's goal for Oxford on the 40th minute and the controversy surrounding it. But that was the exact moment that I picked to pop to the loo.
Oxford City don't have enough travelling fans to provide a roar which can be heard in the gents, so I had no idea we'd gone 1-0 up until glancing at the scoreboard a few minutes later.
Spalding had enjoyed the lion's share of the ball during the first half and looked threatening, so it was tough on them to be behind at half time.
Oxford City don't have enough travelling fans to provide a roar which can be heard in the gents, so I had no idea we'd gone 1-0 up until glancing at the scoreboard a few minutes later.
Spalding had enjoyed the lion's share of the ball during the first half and looked threatening, so it was tough on them to be behind at half time.
The second half was a bit more even, both sides creating some good chances, leading to an exciting finish and a few nerve-wracking moments for City when the ball bounced around the box and could have gone anywhere.
Not as exciting as seeing Britt Assombolonga come on for Harborough Town a few days later in a Tuesday night home fixture for Oxford.
Good luck to Spalding for the rest of the season.
The town had made for a top lower league away day - sunshine, Bass and tulips...what more can I ask for?
Not as exciting as seeing Britt Assombolonga come on for Harborough Town a few days later in a Tuesday night home fixture for Oxford.
Good luck to Spalding for the rest of the season.
The town had made for a top lower league away day - sunshine, Bass and tulips...what more can I ask for?
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