Well wouldn�t you just know it, after a few weeks of respite from bad weather it�s sure to change when it�s my turn to have a weekend off work. Plan was to head to Inverness and do some shopping for Christmas and take in the trip down to Larbert to see the mighty ICT take on Falkirk.
During this season our travel plans to and from games have changed from rail to air by way of Flybe from Birmingham to Glasgow or Edinburgh whichever is the cheapest at the time of booking. Naturally, once these flights are booked that�s it, you have to go or otherwise loose out, a cancellation is not refundable.
We are due to fly up on the Friday prior to the match and we set off from the house just after 6 a.m. The journey was fine with no real problems, the flight getting into Glasgow in enough time for us to get the bus into Glasgow city centre for the 10:08 train to Inverness. We arrive at the B&B just before 2 p.m.. The weather wasn�t too bad either. However, during Friday evening it was bitterly cold, had been raining and also snowing heavily over the hills � which includes Slochd and Drumochter. Concerns about the state of the Awfulview pitch were also being muted by various sources, not least local TV and Radio.
Saturday dawned cold and wet but we still ventured south by rail to the match hoping it would survive a pitch inspection by the referee. We�d heard that the A9 road was suffering from the effects of snow at Slochd and Drumochter so we were grateful to be in the position of viewing this from the window of a train rather than a bus or car. Modern communication systems were put into action and info� on the state of the road was being passed to travelling fans (Guzz and Uncle Albert).
Where would we be without these things now? As our train departed Pitlochry we received to fateful call stating that the game had been called off due to a waterlogged pitch. There was no point in jumping ship at the next station (Dunkeld) so we headed into Perth to await the next service back to Inverness. This wasn�t for just over an hour so the time was spent doing a bit of shopping in Tesco�s instead. There was the option to have attended the match at St Johnstone, who were taking on Queen of the South, but we opted to head back and take up a seat in the Innes Bar and reflect on what might have been.
The weekend was still worth the trip though but it�s always a downer when there isn�t any footy to watch.
