🔗 Share this article

Regarding the squad, management, and away fans of Truro City, the gruelling 914-mile round trip to Gateshead proved bittersweet in the end. Their lengthy coach ride starting in south-west Cornwall travelling the length of England to the north-east region yielded one league point plus complimentary drinks.

Truro drew the National League fixture two goals apiece at Gateshead International Stadium this past Saturday having led 2-0 by the 54th minute, during what is becoming a season of epic train journeys and unrelenting hauls up and down English A roads and motorways. Following strikes by Johnson-Fisher and Oxlade-Chamberlain, Gateshead rebounded through Kain Adom and, in the 70th minute, Frank Nouble.

“Opposition teams visiting us often fly in and stay overnight, making our coach travel less than ideal, yet with our extensive schedule, it’s our only option.” — John Askey

Already this term Truro have made a trek to face Carlisle for a 3-0 defeat covering 878 miles. Such is the club’s relative isolation, even their nearest away game is at Yeovil Town, around a two-and-a-half-hour schlep via the A30 to Huish Park, a 130-mile trip each direction.

Galvanising Effect from Extended Journeys

During the matchday the initial 90 supporters were treated to a £920 drinks tab, courtesy of the EFL sponsor, Sky Bet, the complimentary beverage fund equating to £1 per mile covered. At least the players were able to break up their journey with a pause at Derby's training facility.

Their chairman from Canada, Eric Perez, accustomed to long-haul trips as he frequently flies seven hours from Toronto to London, recognizes the difficulties confronting the club he acquired in 2023 with ambitions of “doing a Wrexham”.

The extensive travel has benefits too for Cornwall’s first professional football club, in his view. “I’m not going to say it’s a short journey, It’s a ridiculously long journey in context,” Perez told BBC Sport. “But what that does is galvanise our side even further – everybody spends time together, we are accustomed to journeying as a group.”

Loyal Supporters Endure Long Travels

One of Truro’s stalwart supporters, John Joyce, accepts the reality of extended travel but remains committed, despite the odd flight cancellation and exhausting rail journeys. He calculated the recent trip at roughly £400 in expenses and lost earnings, noting, “I worked for Nato in the last six years of my career in the navy, and it was a shorter drive from Brussels back to Cornwall than it is from Cornwall to Gateshead.”

Reflecting on the situation, after their Carlisle odyssey: “Truro's uniqueness as a club lies in the fans' unwavering support no matter what. Last term's promotion success so it was easy to get behind the players, but from what I know the fans never even moan and they appreciate what the players have done.”