Beware mess on the motorway | OneFootball

Tuesday will see a remaining small number of Carabao Cup final tickets allocated to Newcastle United fans, via the Pot 6 ballot.

Pot 6 consisting of a quite extraordinary scope of people, with that final pot consisting of all season ticket holders not yet sorted out and literally every member who as much as applied for a single ticket ballot for any of our Carabao Cup games this season.

If I was feeling pedantic, I would suggest the high demand semi-final against Arsenal should have been a lower consideration than, say, the less glamorous third round match with Wimbledon, but tis what it is.

I am sure that anyone who doesn’t at least fit this category can have no complaints, although someone somewhere will no doubt.

A period of snuffling around will follow as the ticketless explore corporate options, go brown nosing to anyone with any suggestion of being connected and look to beg, borrow and cadge any ticket going. For anyone finding success by hook, crook or ballot, the business of arranging travel, accommodation and logistics is about to come into play.

It’s a conversation I had some time ago when, having exited the Emirates on the back of a fine first leg success, me and the lads booked hotel rooms (with cancellation) from a North London pub. We didn’t do similar with trains as there’s a few variables to consider, so ultimately this ended in plan B. Take the car down.

Driving down is a steady option I’ve taken for a few London games in recent years, since the trains went ridiculous. The Just Park app gives you an option where people rent their drives out for a few quid, so choosing one at the north end of the underground line you want, is a fairly easy option.

For me, travelling on the day of the final is a non-starter, as you are a flat tyre away from potentially missing the game, so Saturday it is.

With Trafalgar Square out of commission there might be a bit of a party in Convent Garden and even if not, I’ve never been bored in London.

So, it’s an early start for me on the Saturday, which my personality dictates is planned now, well in advance. This meticulous planning has shown up an aberration for consideration that I thought worth sharing.

We’re planning on hitting the road about half nine on the Saturday morning, take a steady ride down there and break up the five or so hours.

***Readers, if you take only one thing away from the countless nuggets of wisdom I’ve dispensed down the years, let it be this, always check the other fixtures before you set off.

A quick glance at the lower leagues revealed that Sunderland are away to Coventry on that Saturday, with a standard 3pm kick off.

While this is bad news for Jimmy Hill’s statue, it’s also not ideal for Newcastle fans like me hitting the road that morning.

You might think “so what?”…but my car with three lads in it, all decked out in Wembley gear, might just be too open an invite for two coach loads of bitter mackems, where some characters decide they’re hard as nails when it’s 114 versus 3 or 4, and that it would be great craic for YouTube to let your tyres down or try to nick your ticket.

Even if this is over cautious, I’m still not sure I’d enjoy the vibe of walking into Scotch Corner or Wetherby services, just looking for a pee and a Costa, only to find it packed out with Pennywell’s finest.

So, I’ve planned this one out.

Just biff through the first few hours in a big session, then when the A1 and M1 split at Doncaster, they will edge west for their Championship scuffle, while we continue due south for our major cup final at the national stadium.

The clubs’ destinies diverging, in more ways than one.

I’d advise anyone beating a similar path to observe this kind of caution.

If this kind of occurrence repeats itself in the weeks and months ahead, don’t worry though, were we to win the Carabao Cup I have the feeling they’ll get very quiet all of a sudden.