Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 21:14 14 Feb 2025

2004.

I'm with a Doctor at East Hill Surgery in Colchester.

He asks me a bizarre set of questions.

I try and answer them best l can and with each answer his frown becomes more deeply etched.

After about the eighth question he says 'You are Gerald xxxxxxxx'.

I say 'No'.

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 21:03 14 Feb 2025

Anyway, I'm sure some of you may have had to do this yourselves.

I'm standing against the screen pushing my chest against it best l can and have followed instructions to put my head in a horizontal bar that had a semi circular groove. You put your chin in it.

They start cranking the thing in an upwards direction until l am aware of being stretched to the extent that my bone mass and spine begins to make crackle sounds.

Then one of them shouts 'STOP'....just in time before they almost hung me.

I step out of the torture machine and think they may have been reading instructions from their phones on how to operate the kit.

After a minute or so with the horizontal bar lowered by a couple of inches l get back on and 'CLICK'....it's done. And l think thank xxxx for that.

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 20:49 14 Feb 2025

After about five minutes two young and slim West Indian ladies who looked like they may have been twins rushed in and began to switch things on and twiddle with control panels.

They were clad in the kind of attire backing singers or dancers might have worn in a 1980"s MTV music video ...like Coconuts.

I handed them my sheet of paper with a barcode on and they took a while reading through it ...not that there was much on the thing.

I got the impression they were some form of contract staff and that they had stepped into this particular department for the first time.

TBC.

[Post edited 14 Feb 20:51]

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 20:40 14 Feb 2025

A couple of years ago my Doctor arranged for me to have a chest X - Ray at Colchester General.

When l arrived there was a big crowd waiting.

They were holding placards.

It was the radiographers, they were on strike.

They wanted me to sign a form which l didn't bother with, not that l disagreed with their plight, just that l was a little anxious and unsure if there would be anyone there to deal with my appointment.

I wandered into the Radiography department and there was no one to be seen.

I thought that perhaps it was like a photo booth and you had to work things out for yourself.

TBC.

Forum
Reply

M&T makeover
at 16:33 14 Feb 2025

The new ownership details of Maldon & Tiptree F.C. have now been filed at Companies House with a little twist in the form of a 25 year old officially in the hot seat.

This is often the way.

I'm looking forward to more 'breaking news' in the next few weeks!

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 16:21 14 Feb 2025

A real life story from 20 minutes ago.

Was in East Hill Surgery....the receptionist asked me how much l weighed.

My mind went blank - l said 'I'm in a bit of shock, my house has just subsided'.

She looked at me and said 'Shall l put down 11 and a half stone?'

I said 'Where are the scales, I'll give you a live reading'.

She pointed down the corridor, l jogged off and looked for the scales - no sign of them anywhere, so l did a second inspection and still nothing....went back to the desk and told her l couldn't find the scales....then l remembered, I'm around 11 stone.....l used to be 12 and a half until l cut out some bad habits ( l still have plenty ).

Anyway, l think my property has sunk by between 6 inches and 9 inches on the North West corner and the soil drain is crushed underneath.

I have had to redesign the way l live in the past 48 hours.

One of those big pounding drills is around £200 which seems like good value for the fun it may bring. The patio has developed little sight holes down underneath and it's not very nice in there.

The three inch concrete surround dates back to about 1968 so it's about time it was replaced.

I put a saw down through the cracks and realised my kitchen has been floating on air for a while.

🙂🙃🙂🙃🙂🙃

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 11:21 14 Feb 2025

By the look of things this thread had a record number of views overnight which suggests other time zones....?? Either way, l appreciate the time people are spending scanning through over a year's postings.

I thought it would be nice to hit 20,000 views some time back and was then going to cease operations at 50,000 but perhaps this can get to 100,000?!

[Post edited 14 Feb 15:41]

Forum
Reply

M&T makeover
at 22:20 13 Feb 2025

M&T have signed Gary Hooper.

63 goals in 90 odd matches for Celtic some years back.

Quite a statement of intent this acquisition.

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 18:34 12 Feb 2025

I negotiated the circuit that resembles Milton Keynes en route to Colchester's ( or Stanway's ) Stanes Park Retail Outlet mid morning.

For a few moments driving into the complex l did sense a hint of a city on the outskirts of a town.

Did a hike around B&Q and actually found what l was looking for.

Next stop Aldi. My first venture into this store and managed the self service without any mishaps.

Dropped off the carrier bag of supplies in the car and spotted a Greggs.

Made my way towards it when l saw a horse.

Only it wasn't a horse.

But a very big dog.

Went close up to inspect him.

Fantastic animal.

Went into what l thought was Greggs but found myself in a deli - quite European.

Should have gone to Specsavers.

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 21:34 11 Feb 2025

This is not my story. I wish it was. It was conveyed to a musician way back in the early seventies.

A male, around mid twenties is hitching back to London from the Cheltenham area.

After a few minutes a black car stops with a female in a white dress - a wedding dress. She is distraught. Her make up is running and so is she - from a twenty minute marriage.

Very little is said on the trek back to the capitol.

They arrive back at a pad in West London, perhaps Ladbroke Grove and Mrs X stays the night.

When the substitute husband wakes up in the morning she is gone.

Peter Brown wrote a song about it but l can't recall the title. I think he set it in Scotland.

Peter Brown wrote lyrics for Cream in the late sixties among others.

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 19:27 11 Feb 2025

So about 20 minutes later l arrive back in Lloyds Bank.

I say to the Cashier....'I ran back home and left the dog as the builder's had finished for the day'.

She didn't say anything.

Then l said....'And l ran all the way back too....not bad for someone who was told by Doctors he would never run again'.

Then she said 'Where do you live?'

I said 'In the Cornish pasty shop next door'.

She thought that was funny and laughed quite a lot as it happens.

If my old friend Frank Carson was still with us l would have emailed that true scenario to him...think he would have liked that and could have told it much better than l.

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 19:06 11 Feb 2025

I was in a rush today to pay by Bank Transfer for some vinyl records purchased in the mega sale of Bill Allerton's collection up at Omega Auctions in Scouseland.

I ran to Lloyds Bank in the High Street from Riverside Estate and took the dog ( who scares some folk ),

The Cashier said 'I don't think that's a guide dog is it' - l said, 'No, sorry, I've got builder's in and they are scared of him'.

Then l said, 'As it happens l've forgotten my card so will have to go back home'.

TBC

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 18:57 11 Feb 2025

That might be so Phil....

It was a strange name which stuck with me.

And here is another.

I was pushing one of my daughters on a swing in the top park ( Castle Park ). She was about two years old so this must be around 1983.

There was a woman calling her son. His name was 'Marmaduke'. I thought poor little xxxx being called that and l turned around to see him running towards her.

He looked quite normal as it happened.

So maybe Marmaduke is around his early forties now but likely changed his name 'cause l haven't come across him again.

[Post edited 11 Feb 19:08]

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 18:29 10 Feb 2025

ITV News Sport - Anglian division, amazing how they condensed down the highlights from Saturday's match against Walsall into about eight seconds, several seconds each for the Colchester goals and a view of what looks like a scene from Glastonbury in the monsoon season.

Unrelated to this is an announcement l once heard at Lords during a final when Essex were playing....'Would Peter Sensible return to his vehicle and turn the engine off'....and something from a newspaper around the time time ( at least 30 years ago ), 'Gavin Innocent found Guilty of theft'.....l think Gavin was of no fixed abode and wonder what became of him.

🙃🙂🙃🙂

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 16:06 9 Feb 2025

Many thanks to new visitors to the 'Tigers' thread ...not sure how you arrived here but hope any time you spend scanning all this stuff is worthwhile.

One of my favourite finds was the notebook for taking food orders that l discovered on the pavement on North Hill.

Another one was the note pad from a cleaner at an establishment in North Station Road which is supposed to be some kind of hotel but has regular visits from Essex Police....and the ambulance service.

It was fun to share some of the text from those finds on here.

I pick things up off the ground that l discover on dog walks - some of them, like a pair of 3D glasses are used in collage work.

One of the most interesting finds a few years ago in Castle Park was a phone belonging to a drug dealer that l managed to get back to him after tracking his moves a few days later.

Another discovery involved possibly saving the life of an individual along with a fellow dog walker while we took instruction over the phone from paramedics.

He was drunk, had taken a lot of substances and having an epileptic fit.

Forum
Reply

Super U's display promotion credentials in hard fought victory today
at 15:51 9 Feb 2025

I recall a conversation about a year ago with a coach from a Championship club who lives in Colchester.

He said one of Colchester's problems over about four season's was that they couldn't find a good left back.

Quite simple that. But now we have one and it's made a huge difference.

As for the Samson Tovide non movement in the transfer window l am curious to know what actually happened in the last 48 hours of that window - apologies if l have this wrong but it is my understanding that a fee was agreed with another club.

Surely you can't be flinging figures around in the final few hours ( minutes?? ) of that window?

Or can you?

And back to the conversation with the coach. It was his opinion that Colchester United's defence set up was flawed - and that over a long period of time.

Forum
Reply

Super U's display promotion credentials in hard fought victory today
at 20:02 8 Feb 2025

I should imagine Danny and Nicky Cowley might be looking at the league table tonight and may have set their sights on a top three place.

Anything is possible once you get into a winning run. There are no teams in this division for Colchester to fear.

Whatever happens between now and the end of the season we have witnessed a transformation on the playing pitch that was long overdue.

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 19:34 7 Feb 2025

Price tag on Swindon Town F.C. tonight is £12 million.

A bid of £6 million awaits.

Not sure what Colchester United may be valued at.

[Post edited 7 Feb 19:40]

Forum
Reply

Tigers at Layer Road
at 10:54 7 Feb 2025

This might be of interest to music fans....as l understand it 'Only a Shadow' by Martin Newell of The Cleaners from Venus ( Wivenhoe based ) has hit in excess of 10 million listens on Spotify!

The song was written around 1982 so it took a while to grow on people.

Fully deserved Martin!

🙂🙂🙂🙂

[Post edited 7 Feb 10:55]

Forum
Reply

January 2025 transfer window hopes & facts
at 19:41 6 Feb 2025

The club must have been confident of selling Samson for a decent fee in this window as they appear to have bought in at least one player too many now in attack....possibly two or three that are unlikely to feature much as the season moves towards a conclusion.

No cups to be involved in, not even The Essex Senior Cup ( which we should be trying to win! ) so likely a few of them will have to be content to make the match day 18.

I would estimate that quite a bit of money has been saved with the transactions that were completed in the past few weeks.

It's almost impossible to contemplate that Ben Goodliffe ( after his amazing start to the season ) would have been shifted out on loan.

It's rapid turnover of players these days and l have a bit of a job keeping up with it all.

The Cowley's will go flat out for a play off place no matter what.

Thank God they came to the club!

Please log in to use all the site's facilities

SparkfilmsTV

Site Scores

Forum Votes:	6
Comment Votes:	0
Prediction League:	0
TOTAL:	6