Your mates have gone to various Championship, Premier League and League Two games and your other half is going to a ‘London Fashion Week’ thing; what do you do? You turn to the internet, of course. Noooooo, not that sort of ‘the internet’, the useful one, that one that tells you stuff. The internet tells me Lowestoft Town are visiting Carshalton. One of the teams I’ve wanted to see for a while now are visiting a side near one of the best pubs in the South East. The Hope. And it’s got a beerfest!

Being a div, I can’t remember how to get to Carshalton.  The internet tells me I need to go to Herne Hill and get the train. Easy, it’s a short bus ride. “Next train to Orpington is at 13:04, calling at West Dulwich, Sydenham Hill, Penge East, Kent House, Beckenham Junction, Shortlands, Bromley South …”  Hmmmm … no Carshalton.  So, the internet can be wrong, maybe I should just look at pictures. Oooooookaaaaay … no time to get to Carshalton now.

I give the internet one final go. Beckenham and Bromley both have football teams and it turns out both have home games.  I chose Beckenham to see my newly found joy that is Fisher in the FA Vase. Unfortunately, I was engrossed in the aforementioned internet (not that internet) and missed the stop.

So, hello Hayes Lane. Last time I went to Bromley, for the first time in 30 years of going to football, I had to call on Sinjun and his Ambulance. A mate had a turn that wasn’t drink related.  They were very good. He turned out fine.  Well done.

Bromley’s club shop has a stash of old programmes, I thumbed through some Hamlet ones from the 1990s, some Lewes ones from 2003 but the piece de resistance was this beauty on the wall. Bromley v Romford in the FA Amateur Cup Final at Wembley in 1949. Bromley won 1-0. The drawn semi was at Highbury, the replay at Stamford Bridge, heady days. Hayes Lane may not be any of those but it’s still a great non league ground. Each side has a banked terrace, both ends covered, new main stand and an uncovered side stand with a view over the adjacent cricket pitch, which someone was mowing throughout the game, on a big tractor.

A bright first two minutes gave way to five scrappy ones. Welling 4-4-2, Bromley slightly more adventurous with Gareth Williams in the hole. He was finding that elusive space and Leon McKenzie was looking dangerous. The first shot worthy of the name came after 9 minutes. A short free kick from Bromley’s Waldren was thrapped a few yards wide by Marlon Patterson. Joe Healy was niggling away in midfield for Welling and deserved a booking within the first 20 minutes; it never came, despite much officiousness from the whistler.

The Welling fans were sporadically boisterous but were nearly silenced when the ball fell at McKenzie’s feet 5 yards out. He failed to get the ball out from under them and it was cleared. From another niggly foul by Healy, Patterson swung in a beautiful ball that any of three Bromley players near the penalty spot should have got a touch on. They didn’t and the ball drifted past the post.

Despite relatively even possession the meaningful attacks were largely Bromley’s.  Attwood and Cumbers were lively for Welling but Loic Pires’ wayward passing and hilariously failed attempt to trap the ball on the back of his neck, weren’t always helpful. But their first real chance fell to Pires on 38 after he was put clear down the left and cut in, fizzing a shot that the keeper did very well to tip round the post.

Welling’s Lee Clarke deserved a booking for tripping Ibrahima and then naughtily ruffling his hair, which incensed Joe Dolan perhaps more than it needed. The delivery by Bromley’s fullbacks was impressive, Patterson had already stood out but Udoji was as impressive when he got the chance, his cross brought a glancing header which Bromley would regret missing. They should have scored at least once by now, not that there were lots of chances but the ones there were had been good.

The half petered out with a clearance into the face of a small boy, a booking for Loui Fazakerley for shirt pulling and Waldren went down as if he’d been shot despite not looking like he’d even been tackled. 0-0 at half time, Bromley had shaded the possession and created most of the chances.

Welling came out after half time with more oomph but still weren’t creating many chances. The one they did get was blatant Maradona-ism, Lee Clarke was booked for the hand of Clarke. McKenzie shoulder barged Jordan Johnson to the floor off the ball without the ref noticing and was substituted shortly afterwards. A promising start to the game had fizzled out after his missed sitter.

With an hour gone Pires was hitting his stride and causing nervousness at the back. Bromley’s defence went to sleep, missed a cross, the keeper missed the bounce and Cumbers snaffled it. On the balance of this half, Welling deserved it. Welling celebrated and Cumbers got his song sung.

The keepers had looked a little dodgy, the kicking from both was wayward and in a short spell after about 70 minutes Dan Thomas had to head away a bouncy back pass, which to be fair he did well, and Bromley’s Tommy Forecast blasted a clearance against an onrushing forward and watched in horror as the ball looped back over him and fortunately over.

The deserved equaliser came on 83. Another sublime piece of delivery from Patterson was cushioned back across goal where Harwood headed goalward. Thomas saved but Harwood bundled in the rebound.

Bromley seemed happy with the point after that, Welling appeared to go for the win. A fair result but of no real help to Welling. Dartford moved away into 2nd with a win over Tonbridge, while Sutton’s 4-1 win over Maidenhead pulled them level. Bromley’s point drew them away from Farnborough and Dorchester into mid table.

The internet tells me that next week this game is an FA Cup game, on the evidence of this one there maybe a third between the teams before the week’s out.