Accrington Stanley will always be No1 for me, says Sky Sports cricket commentator David 'Bumble' Lloyd

EXCLUSIVE By David Lloyd
Updated: 00:49 BST, 23 January 2010

Cricket is my 商売／仕事 but my No 1 sport has always been football ― and Accrington Stanley is in my 血.

In my formative years, my dad took me to the old ground Peel Park every week. As a young thruster I had the honour of wearing the famous red shirt に引き続いて 追放 from the league and still belt out ‘On Stanley On’, the club song.

武装した with a house brick as a kid ― nothing naughty here, just couldn’t see over the 塀で囲む without standing on it ― the moment passed through the turnstiles was always magical.

Just the ticket: David Lloyd is delighted to be going to the Fulham game, a match that seemed ありそうもない when Stanley dropped out of the league 38 years ago

Walter Galbraith, the 経営者／支配人, produced a predominantly Scottish team ― every time he needed a new player he would go on a （警察の）手入れ，急襲 north of the 国境 ― with 今後s George Stewart and Englishman Les Cocker as the 焦点の point.

Stewart was a 広大な／多数の／重要な header of the ball while Cocker was the 教団 hero, who took 十分な advantage of 船ing still 存在 very much on the 協議事項. His party piece was to poleaxe the 対立 keeper.

What Cocker, who went on to coach England in the 1966 World Cup, 欠如（する）d in subtlety as a player, however, Stewart made up for in goals, 得点する／非難する／２０ing 136 times in the league between 1954 and 1958.

It was an 絶対の 悲劇 when we dropped out of the Football League four years later, 借りがあるing about £60,000. 財政／金融 might not have been there but a strong will to fight on was and my father-in-法律-to-be Wilfrid Wallwork 前線d the 初めの Save Our Stanley （選挙などの）運動をする.

When we started up again in the Lancashire Combination all our good players had long gone and although was only 16 was one of the better footballers in the town.

My playing memories as Stanley’s No 11 are hardly romantic. In fact, the 選び出す／独身 thing 解任する is this bloke nearly decapitating me in an away game at Prescot Cables.

Playing centre 今後, I was through on goal when he 切り開く／タクシー／不正アクセスd me 負かす／撃墜する from behind. The pitch was bone-hard and boy did I bang my 長，率いる as crunched into it. 結局 伸び（る）ing my breath, I 運ぶ／漁獲高d mysel f up, 膝s 捨てるd, and nose 破産した／（警察が）手入れする.

In those days you could 取り組む from behind, you could 取り組む 膝-high and you used to get some fearful kickings. 井戸／弁護士席 I did, anyway, because was so slight.

Way 支援する when: Stanley 船長／主将 （頭が）ひょいと動く Wilson reads the 法案 for a match that was never to take place after the club were 軍隊d to 辞職する from the league in 1962

But I was, theoretically at least, rewarded for my toils as a 半分-professional, with the 支払う／賃金-規模 meaning you got 50p or a quid but more often than not neither.

給料 were 選ぶd up after a match but the 長官 used to lock himself in his room ― we knew the sod was in there but he never made a sound.

My hometown adventure ended a couple of years later when I got transferred to Rossendale for an ‘公表されていない sum’. In plain English: nowt.

By 権利s, given my かかわり合い to Lancashire, Ii should never have been playing football once April （機の）カム around, yet I loved my time in the Combination and would still have a ‘do’ now if my 団体／死体 would 許す it.

I rema in an 熱心な 支持者 and will be 調書をとる／予約するd in for my pie and Bovril at half-time today.

十分な house: The scene at Peel Park at the 高さ of Accrington's 人気 in 1921

The fact we are 直面するing Fulham at all is only thanks to the generosity of another 地元の lad, Ilyas 旅宿泊所, the new 非，不，無-(n)役員／(a)執行力のある chairman, who made his money as a London financier.

大きくする ?

When we 直面するd our modern SOS earlier this season, over an 未払いの 税金 法案 of £308,000, publicised our 苦境 through Twitter and TV but it was Ilyas who （機の）カム to the 救助（する）.

I just hope we can get somewhere with this 延長するd chance. To me, it’s 決定的な that th e community has a football team and we don’t get behind them enough.

It’s a constant struggle to get more than 1,300 folks to go. 承認する, we are no 広大な／多数の／重要な shakes in the greater 計画／陰謀 of English football but this young team deserves our support and a lot of people have worked hard to get the club 支援する to where it is.

I am 絶えず ridiculed by my fellow Sky commentators but think we are a 広大な／多数の／重要な story and, at 7-1 to 勝利，勝つ, a 広大な／多数の／重要な price. So I’m having a tenner on it.

- David Lloyd was talking to Richard Gibson