England’s superb victory in Germany on Saturday was something of a saving grace for football fans on a weekend that saw yet another tradition shattered.
Historically, before Sky and later BT Sport played havoc with the fixture schedules, Easter was one of the most gruelling parts of the season – sides playing Saturday and Monday – in a schedule that saw many a title won and lost.
Easter Monday is as big a tradition on the football calendar as Boxing Day – but perhaps the Premier League isn’t quite the superpower we all think, if it is unable to prevent its programme from being shut down to make way for international friendlies.
There is little doubt, though, that clubs further down the pyramid benefitted from being thrust into the limelight.
Unfortunately Storm Katie prevented AFC Wimbledon from facing Portsmouth before a bumper crowd, also losing out on the accompanying appearance money they would have received on Sky.
But the attendances at Kingstonian on Saturday and Sutton United on Monday indicate that there were plenty of people determined to get their football fix.
Ks have been scoring lots of goals at home and their game brought the visit of league leaders Hampton & Richmond under their former manager Alan Dowson.
Despite that, to see a crowd of 724 at Kingsmeadow – their largest for more than five years and around treble their usual gate – was welcome for a club who used to get those kind of numbers on a regular basis in their Conference days.
Sutton United, meanwhile, attracted their third four-figure league gate of the campaign, on this occasion 1,089, as Monday’s 2-2 draw with Whitehawk stretched their unbeaten league run to 20.
That number was swelled by casual supporters including a £5 offer to Dons season ticket holders after their game was called off, and those who turned up were royally entertained as United came back from 2-0 down and almost won it at the death, only to see Jamie Collins’ free kick pushed onto a post.
Little wonder that United’s gates are more than 50 per cent up on last season and, thanks to a generous early bird offer they have already sold 200 season tickets for next season.
And unlike Premier League fans, who pay up to 10 times more, you get plenty of games at 3pm on a Saturday and at least one Easter fixture.
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