FOOTBALL FANS MAKE A VISIT TO BRIGG THEIR GOAL & THERE COULD BE MORE TO FOLLOW

All the talk of the town on Saturday (October 5) was the unexpected arrival of football fans from afar in Brigg town centre.
Local folk - and some police officers - looked on while Sunderland supporters stopped off on the way to watch their side play at Lincoln City. We gather some from Mansfield also stopped in Brigg en route to Grimsby Town's Blundell Park.
A couple of supporter-carrying coaches were parked near Wetherspoon's White Horse pub.
The footie fans took some liquid refreshment on board, which was no surprise, but also grabbed quick snacks, pies and sandwiches from various Brigg outlets. So this was an unexpected boost to the takings.
Among comments posted on social media by local folk was one suggesting it was good to see the town centre so busy.
Brigg has long been a popular lunch-time stopping off point for fans of various clubs on their way to games at Grimsby, Scunthorpe and Hull. Now we can add Lincoln to the list.
But how, and why, do they single out Brigg as a suitable stop-off point?
Is there some sort of supporters' grapevine through which information is shared? Or do they use online searches to find out about our town's array of bars and fast food outlets close to the A18/M180?
The biggest influx came in the early 1980s when Leeds United followers stopped en mass in Brigg on their way to an August second tier league game at Grimsby.
On that occasion the Black Bull saw most of the lunch-time trade in the pre-pedestrianisation era when the A18 still passed its front door.
Many Bradford City fans - also heading for Grimsby - stopped off in Brigg for refreshments a few weeks ago, and a few called in again in the evening on their way back to Yorkshire.
Looking ahead, we note that Barnsley will be playing at Hull City on November 30. Their fans have called in Brigg in the past (see picture below) on their way to Hull.
Aston Villa supporters from Birmingham have done likewise. Their team is now in a higher division than Hull but Birmingham City will be at Hull on December 21. So perhaps some of their supporter-carrying coaches will be looking to stop off in Brigg before heading north to the Humber Bridge.
Last Saturday, Sunderland lost 2-0 at Lincoln in League One, while Mansfield managed a late winner to see off Grimsby 1-0 in League Two.
A number of Mansfield Town fans used the railway line through Brigg to get to Grimsby on Saturday. They boarded a train at Worksop to go through to Cleethorpes station, helping to make it another productive day for the Saturday-only passenger train service between Sheffield and the east coast resort. The nearest railway station to Blundell Park is New Clee but no Sheffield-Cleethorpes trains stop there.