aston villa 2 v 2 stoke

It's a bitterly cold Saturday afternoon and we're at Villa Park to support the plucky boys in claret and blue as they take on the recently relegated Stoke.  A chilling wind swirls ice-cold sheets of rain across the ground. Hardly ideal playing conditions.

Stoke are well organised under the regime of new manager, Gary Rowett. They press hard and high, forcing Villa onto the back-foot much of the time. Half-time provides a welcome opportunity to retreat to the warmth of the stand and a hot cup of tea - the game still locked in a goal-less draw.

That doesn't last long. James McClean dispossesses a floundering Alan Hutton just two minutes into the second half and sends over a cross which is steered into the Villa goal by Joe Allen. It takes an inspired substitution and the introduction of a re-invigorated Jonathan Kodija to bring us to life.  He wins a penalty, scored coolly by Tammy Abraham after a long wait.

Our joy is short-lived. At the other end of the pitch the lack-lustre Ahmed Elmohamady concedes a needless penalty, which is duly converted by Benik Afobe. Villa do not give up, however.  With just six minutes to go Yannick Bolasie puts in a superb cross which is headed in by Kodija for the equaliser.

Not a great game by any stretch of the imagination, perhaps as a result of the inclement weather, but at least the unbeaten run continues. We just need to convert some of those draws into wins over the Christmas period to move closer to the play-off spots.

A very special Christmas present

Christmas photos are always magical because they carry special memories, but the photos above are even more magical for my family.  Let me explain ...

The young man dressed in the Santa suit is my son. He's twenty eight years old and learning disabled.  Twenty years ago I took him to his very first football match at Villa Park.  At the time he had a concentration span barely thirty seconds long, but he was absolutely enthralled!!  I took him to a few more matches that season and before very long we became season-ticket holders.

My son has learned so much from his regular Saturday outings. When we first started going to the Villa we parked about a mile away and often it would take me thirty minutes or more to steer him safely to the ground. The walks did him so much good, though. They helped strengthen his legs and correct his sense of balance, so much so that now I can barely keep up with him.  My son learned too the value of money. Much of his savings over the last two decades have been spent in the Villa shop!

And my son has learned something else as well ... the passion of sharing a football match in the presence of so many friends we've made at Villa Park.  You see, when he goes to the game he's just part of the crowd in the Trinity Road stand, cheering along with the rest like any other supporter.

This Christmas our son had a very special present. Villa kicked off their season at Stoke and came away one nil winners thanks to another blistering goal from Andreas Weimann.  A few days later I entered the weekly draw on the AVTV site and blow me down when I discovered I had won the very shirt Andreas had worn that day!

I don't suppose Aston Villa players are regular visitors to this somewhat meandering blog, but if any of them ever do please pass on this message ...

Thank you so much Andreas for your shirt - it made a very special gift for a very special young man this Christmas and when you come out to play at Villa Park just know he will be cheering your name!!