PHOTO:
From left to right: Eddie Bunston; Terry Jones; Alan Adams; Alex Totten; Kevin Haldane

 
A quartet of football-mad fellers who support Haverfordwest County at the Conygar Bridge Meadow Stadium have also formed a second, and rather more unlikely, alliance as they have recently returned from their annual trek to Scotland to cheer on Falkirk AFC.
 
On this occasion though they weren’t watching ‘The Bairns’ at the Falkirk Stadium but were at the world-famous Hampden Park, watching Falkirk take on Hibernian in the semi-final of the Scottish Cup – and delighted that their team beat Hibernian 1-0 to earn a place against Inverness Caledonian Thistle, third in the Premiership,  in the final.
 

Real characters from different backgrounds

Kevin Haldane was born and bred in Falkirk and now lives with his family in Haverfordwest, where he works as a taxi driver and is still the proud owner of his strong Scottish accent.
 
He loves his football and much of his spare time is spent at the Conygar Bridge Meadow Stadium, working voluntarily behind the bar on match days and getting involved in the pitch preparations, making sure that all the white lines are completed to his own exacting standards. It was in a chance conversation in the club that the first Falkirk Trek was formulated.
 
Kevin is also the chauffeur on the 828-mile round trip and is joined by Alan Adams, Eddie Bunston and Terry Jones, who also play their own parts in helping out Haverfordwest County.
 
Alan’s soft Gloucestershire burr betrays the fact that he  is also an avid fan of Bristol Rovers in the city from whence he originally hails, admitting to disliking rival Bristol City with a passion but really too nice a chap to take that dislike too seriously.
 
Eddie, who is a Haverfordian with connections in Telford, doubles up as a Spurs’ fan and over the years has given yeoman service to the Bluebirds, whilst Terry comes from Fishguard and sells tote tickets on match days, as well as following Manchester United.
 

Lots of humour - and even more food!

But these other footballing loves are put apart at the Conygar Bridge Meadow Stadium and end route to Falkirk, where there was a great deal of good humour to make the trip bearable, along with the anticipation of a big footballing occasion.
 
They left Haverfordwest at 6am on Friday and had breakfast in Aberystwyth, followed by a stop for coffee and sandwiches in the Lake District. From there it was the long haul to Falkirk, where they arrived at the Premier Inn around 5pm before treating themselves to a meal and a few pints in the town’s bars.
 

Warm welcome and a great game

It was another early start on the Saturday as their taxi arrived at 8am to take them to the Falkirk Stadium for their hospitality package, which included a top-class breakfast, transport to and from Hampden Park and a good seat in the ground.
 
They were welcomed by Alex Totten, the former player and manager of The Bairns, and now commercial manager.
 
“It was a brilliant result for Falkirk,” said Kevin, “and we had a meal at the Beancross in the town, an ‘eat all you can’ breakfast the next morning where we had our money’s worth and then we were on our way home.”
 
Even then the football and eating wasn’t over because on the way back they made a short detour to watch Prestatyn Town lose 3-1 to Bangor City in the Welsh Premier League, had alfresco fish and chips alongside the lake at Bala, and were back in Haverfordwest by 7.30pm.
 
“We had a smashing time,” Alan told us and when asked if they would be off again soon added, “We have already booked the hotel for the final against Inverness Caledonian Thistle next month!”