Watford Play Bolton in The FA Cup

My one and only visit to Bolton was to see a football match! It was January 1970 and my favourite team was - and still is - Watford because it is close to my boyhood family home. When the draw for the Third Round of the FA Cup was made Watford were given an away game at Bolton. In those far off days the railways used to run "football specials" and I persuaded my younger brother Geoff to accompany me on the football special from Watford Junction to Bolton. I remember queuing at Watford's Vicarage Road ground to get my two tickets for the game and then going up to Watford Junction to buy our train tickets. In those days you bought little coloured cardboard tickets - usually a vivid purple colour for specials. On the big day my brother and I went up to Watford Junction and jostled among the crowd of supporters waiting for our special train on Saturday morning. It was a slow three hour journey as the train made its way north and crawled around Manchester towards Bolton. However, the expense and the long journey was worth it as Watford beat Bolton 2-1 to go through to the Fourth Round of the Cup. I remember leaning out of the train window as our carriage slowly pulled away on the return journey and seeing hundreds of other happy faces singing, shouting and waving football rattles! A happy memory for this Watford fan!