Rugby's coming Holme(s)

Apologies for the corny headline.

I'd like to extend a big welcome to Holmes Chapel, who are touring Maine (of all places) this week, and who we will be playing at the Fairgrounds this Wednesday night.

For those of you who never went to school (in England), Holmes Chapel is a village located in Cheshire, which is a county in North West England. Despite being located right next to the oft-reviled cities of Manchester and Liverpool, Cheshire is actually one of the wealthiest counties in the country, since all the rich people who make a living in those cities prefer to live there. Indeed, according to the Index of Deprivation (wtf? Only in England.), Holmes Chapel is the 18th least deprived ward (electoral district) in the country. Not to shabby eh? What exactly it is they are not deprived of is not clear.

One thing they are certainly not deprived of is pubs, for a village with a population of just 5,669 (about the size of Millinocket) supports several "good quality" pubs, and no doubt a bunch of lower quality ones. Presumably amongst the better ones is the George and Dragon (you all remember St. George, right?) which I am told has been recently refurbished. Nice.

Holmes Chapel is of course situated at the junction of the A50 and the A54, which are roads that go somewhere else. At least one of them probably goes to the M6, which is also nearby. The M6 is, as you all know, the longest motorway in England, stretching some 226 miles all the way from Rugby (no really) to Carlisle, which is right next to the border with Scotland. Nicknamed the "Backbone of England", the M6 carries people and stuff from the heart of the country right to the edge of civilization, where they can transfer to horse and cart for travel on the mostly mud tracks that serve as Scottish highways. All this comes at a cost however, since the M6 was the country's first toll road, which was first imposed in 2003. It'll cost you roughly $6.50 to traverse the entire length, which is about the cost of one gallon of petrol (sorry, gas). So if that's too steep for you, you might want to take the "scenic" route and go through Holmes Chapel, and stop off at the George and Dragon for lunch.

Another nearby attraction is Swettenham Meadows, which is a swamp, otherwise known as a Nature Reserve. Covering over 21 acres, and full mostly of mucky flowers and bugs, a Nature Reserve is how posh people in England stop others from building houses near them. Just ask Baron Hewlett of Swettenham, who is described as a regular visitor of the "Meadows", and no doubt has a big house nearby.

Lastly Holmes Chapel is not without its famous (former) residents. Dean Ashton was a pupil at Holmes Chapel Comprehensive School, who went on to play football for Crewe Alexandra and Norwich City which are rubbish football teams in the English First Division. He recently moved to West Ham, who are in the Premiership, and took part in this year's epic FA Cup Final against Liverpool, which ended as a 3-3 draw, only to be decided in Liverpool's favor on penalties. Ashton plays along side Teddy Sheringham at the Hammers, who we all know served his best years with mighty, mighty Tottenham.

So, now that you know all about Holmes Chapel, come on out and make them feel welcome, and impress them with your knowledge of their tiny, non-deprived village. There will be a welcome reception tonight (Tuesday) at Gritty's at 6pm, and the game will be held at the Fairgrounds tomorrow, also with a 6pm kick off. After match festivities will be at Fore Play.