Football: Come on, you Whites!

With Heidi and Jack away, I decided to take in my first English top flight football match in 25 years.  The only available tickets in town were for Fulham vs. Aston Villa, so a day out in Fulham it would be.

Fulham's stadium--known by the wonderfully English moniker "Craven Cottage"--is as far south as one can get and still be north of the river, in a part of the city famous for its crap transport links.  As a result, even though I was going only 9 miles, I was facing 90 minutes on the bus with a slog on foot thereafter.  Fortunately, that slog would take me within slogging distance of two of London's top pubs.  I left home at 10:30 a.m. for a 3:00 p.m. kick off, to give myself plenty of time.

The White Horse, Parsons Green

My first stop, the White Horse at the tip of Parsons Green, is frequently rated on beer-geek sites as one of London's best.  I expected to be disappointed, because the raters on sites like that tend to be American tourists who never ventured outside of tourist London.

But I wasn't disappointed.  I loved the place.  At noon on Saturday the place was starting to fill and had a great atmosphere.  The main room was high-ceilinged, bright and airy; the side rooms were cozier, with dark wood paneling. The furnishings included large, plush chairs and sofas, spacious stables with benches, and inviting snugs.

The White Horse, Interior

The service at the bar was prompt and friendly, and the selection of cask ales on draft was as good as it was reputed to be.  The only minor complaint I had was that the the porter I originally ordered was off line, but in its stead I had a delicious Dark Star Brewery Over the Moon, a dark, hoppy mild ale.

By the time I finished my pint, the bar was getting crowded and I had a long walk ahead of me, so I took my leave.  I followed Kings Road for about a mile across Putney Bridge, where swarms of Aston Villa fans, visiting from Birmingham, were taking photos of the river.  It was still 2 hours to match time, but already I had passed two pubs that were so crowded they were turning people away, so I became concerned whether my planned second stop was going to happen.

Fortunately, the Bricklayer's Arms is off the main street on a little cul de sac, and although it was beginning to fill up with punters stopping in for a pre-match pint, they appeared to be beer-savvy locals rather than the traveling hordes.  And those beer-savvy locals have something good going, because this is a peach of a pub.

The Bricklayer's Arms, Putney

It's a small place, with a few tables in front of a horseshoe-shaped bar, a larger back room, and a snug little beer garden beside.  The decor was charming -- white panelled walls topped with molding, beneath a yard of worn, exposed brick, and in the rear room dark beams, vaulted like the ribs of an inverted ship.  Four friendly bartenders worked the small bar, and they managed to give prompt service even while answering question after question about the 10 cask ales they were pouring.

The beer was good, too. I started with a St. Magnus Ale from Highland Brewing Co., which was a big, malty beer nicely balanced with generous hopping.  I followed that the HBB from Hog's Back, a bitter with a slightly fruity hop nose, but generally very mild in flavor.  I finished with the Plain Ales Inndulgence, a dark porter dominated by chocolate and coffee flavors, but with an unfortunate sweet note marring the finish.

When the police descended on the place--four constables in bright yellow high-visibility vests, apparently conducting some prophylactic anti-hooliganism tour of the local drinking establishments--I decided it was time to head over to Craven Cottage.  The walking path took me back across and along the river, down a tree covered path through Bishop's Park, past the wall and tower of Fulham Palace.  Easily the most attractive walk to a sports stadium I've ever taken.

Craven Cottage, Johnny Haynes Stand, Exterior

Craven Cottage itself is small for a Premier League stadium--at a capacity of 25,700, it is slightly smaller than the Home Depot Center, home of the Los Angeles Galaxy--but what it lacks in grandeur it makes up for in character.  The oldest of the four stands, the Johnny Haynes Stand, is a protected heritage building dating from 1905.  Of course, this has its downsides--the roof, for example, is supported by columns that restrict the views in some 1500 seats, including mine.  But I was only seven rows up from the pitch, so even my restricted view was a fantastic view, and I doubt there is a bad seat in the house.

The game iself was largely forgettable, with only a handful of scoring chances.  Aston Villa largely dominated, and they opened the scoring with a gorgeous 60-yard cross field pass that Fulham defender Carlos Salcido misjudged, allowing Villa's Mark Albrighton to take the ball down and easily slot past Fulham  keeper Mark Schwarzer. Fulham, though, grabbed an undeserved equalizer in the 94th minute, off a deflected header from a free kick, much to the home crowd's delight.


With the game over, time for the slog back home. I had no post-match agenda, and I was tired, so after the long walk to Hammersmith tube and a quick stop at Waitrose for some food, I settled in for an evening with a good book.

Next up -- the Hampstead Heritage Pub Tour, Part 1!!