Blackheath hoping inactivity isn’t a factor as they travel to Caldy
BY GRAHAM COX
An already mixed season for Blackheath was frustrated further last weekend as their away National League One fixture at Darlington Mowden Park was postponed.
The Club were due to set off for the north-east on Friday afternoon but a frozen pitch at the Northern Echo Arena caused the match to be called off early.
With an extended Christmas break, it means Blackheath have played just one game in six weeks, a narrow 22-17 home loss against Moseley on January 8, as they prepare for another long journey tomorrow, this time to Caldy on the Wirral.
Caldy won 18-16 at Well Hall in September – one of nine defeats for the Club within a converted score this term – since then they have lost just one of their 13 subsequent matches, a record which has taken them to second in the table.
Blackheath have won just twice on the road in this campaign but they have been buoyed by the return of former skipper Markus Burcham.
The centre has played 208 times in Club colours, nearly 150 of them as captain, including a club record of 158 consecutive league appearances. He ended his career abruptly in the truncated 2019-20 season.
“I’m sure many people have found the pandemic one of, if not the most, challenging time of their lives,” said Burcham. “I really struggled to accept that my Blackheath career would finish due to Covid.
“Since then, I have moved to Bournemouth and essentially started a new life, but I’ve never been able to shake the feeling that I still have a loose end to tie up with a club that gave me many opportunities to grow and develop as a player, and as person, over the seven years I was there.”
Burcham has played five games for South West Premier side Bournemouth. He said: “It’s going to present a huge challenge, but it’s something I know I will look back on with huge regret if I didn’t take the chance to properly close that chapter of my life.’
“I’m not here purely for personal reasons either. I’m fully focused on helping the team finish as well as they can, and try to build something moving forward.”
PICTURE: CLAIRE JEFFREY