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For the players, staff, and travelling supporters of Truro City, the arduous return journey of 914 miles to face Gateshead proved bittersweet ultimately. Their lengthy coach ride starting in south-west Cornwall all the way up England’s spine to the north-east yielded one league point and a free pint or two.

Truro drew the National League fixture at 2-2 away at Gateshead this past Saturday after holding a two-goal lead 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. After goals from Dominic Johnson-Fisher and Christian Oxlade-Chamberlain, the hosts fought back through Kain Adom and, in the 70th minute, Frank Nouble.

“Clubs that come down to us, most of them are flying down and staying over on the Friday, so for us to have to do it on the coach is not ideal, but because we have so many long journeys, that’s the way we have to do it.” — John Askey

Earlier in the season Truro have made a trek to face Carlisle for a 3-0 defeat that clocked up 878 miles. Such is the club’s relative isolation, even their nearest away game is against Yeovil Town, around a two-and-a-half-hour schlep along the A30 to Huish Park, a 130-mile trip each direction.

Unifying Impact from Extended Journeys

On Saturday the initial 90 supporters to arrive shared a £920 bar 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 stop at Derby County’s training ground.

Their chairman from Canada, Eric Perez, accustomed to long-haul trips as he frequently flies seven hours long-haul from Toronto to London, recognizes the difficulties confronting the club he acquired in 2023 aiming to emulate Wrexham's success.

All this time on the road has benefits too for the region's first pro football team, in his view. “I’m not going to say it’s a short journey, It's an exceptionally long distance relatively,” Perez stated. “But what that does is galvanise our side even further – the team bonds during travel, we’re used to travelling together.”

Dedicated Fans Face Long Travels

One of Truro’s stalwart supporters, John Joyce, is resigned to long days of travelling yet stays devoted, notwithstanding occasional flight issues and wearisome train treks. He calculated the recent trip at roughly £400 in expenses and lost earnings, remarking, “During my naval career with Nato, the drive from Brussels to Cornwall was shorter than from Cornwall to Gateshead.”

Reflecting on the situation, following the Carlisle expedition: “Truro's uniqueness as a club is that the supporters get behind the team regardless of circumstances. Last term's promotion success so it was easy to get behind the players, yet the supporters rarely complain and they appreciate what the players have done.”