Which non-league football clubs, mused Friday's column, played at the likes of Roker Park, St James' Park and Highbury? And before again treading those broad acres, news of an imminent departure from perhaps the best known non-league ground of all.

After years of uncertainty, Bishop Auckland now seem certain to leave Kingsway - home of countless stories, as many glories - at the end of the season. Then, however, they will be homeless.

Negotiations to sell the ground, leased jointly with the adjoining cricket club, are far advanced with both a sheltered housing developer and a wholesale warehouse.

The cricket club's annual meeting on Friday was told of progress at last, though it is understood that the cricketers will be staying put.

Football club chairman Tony Duffy admits that ground-sharing negotiations are under way, believed to be with one of their nearest and dearest rivals. "We haven't made a final decision yet but we are discussing terms with both parties. We hope to be leaving at the end of the season."

The famous old club's other difficulty is that they still haven't Football Foundation funding for the proposed 10,000 capacity new ground at Tindale Crescent, two miles down the road.

A meeting to seek support from Wear Valley District Council takes place tomorrow, though the council is already committed to supporting a similar, youth-based project at Bishop Auckland College.

"There's no reason why they can't support them both," insists Duffy.

Kingsway, the Bishops' home for 115 years, regularly drew five-figure crowds, the record the 16,310 who squeezed in for an FA Cup tie with Coventry City in 1952.

Now the average attendance for Unibond League games is under 200 and the ground, developed on just two and a half sides, has seen better days. "It will be a very sad day when we leave," says the chairman. "But in moving we're moving with the times."

Roker Park is, of course, the home of Stotfold FC in Bedfordshire. We wrote of it ("and so to Beds") in January 1996.

Until the football club bought the land in 1960, it had been a smallholding on Roker Meadow. "The name took us about three seconds to decide," said secretary Bill Clegg.

Six years ago, it was said to have 50 seats - "an exaggeration by approximately 50," the column observed - and floodlight pylons built from what appeared to be a giant Meccano set.

"It's boarded and battered. Apart from write graffiti, no-one's done anything to it for years," we said.

Now Roker Park boasts 300 seats, has underdone a major clean up and has a team which this season reached the last 64 of the FA Carlsberg Vase.

Unlike Sunderland, they have no plans to relocate. "It's a ground with real atmosphere," says Clegg - and there's only one Roker Park now.

THE others in Friday's question were St James' Park (Alnwick Town - and Brackley, added several readers); Highbury (Fleetwood Freeport); The Hawthorns (Brigg Town) and Victoria Park (Burscough, among others.) Forever letting his fingers do the walking, Tom Purvis in Sunderland ("a Yellow Pages ground hopper") points out that Larkhall Athletic (Bath) cut the mustard at Plain Ham, Wellingborough are at the Dog and Duck ground, Clapton at the Old Spotted Dog, Oldbury (Walsall) at The Cricketts and Blackfield and Langley of the Wessex League at the cautiously named Gang Warily Recreation Ground.

Peter Fox in Newcastle adds that Malmesbury Victoria of the Hellenic League occasionally come down to earth at the Flying Monk ground; none mentions the Giant Axe, where Lancaster City fans whet their football appetite.

We'd promised a copy of the Northern League's sumptuous millennium history for the first out of the hat: a winner at the end of the column.

ON Saturday to New Ferens Park, Durham, named after Alderman Cecil Ferens, who in 1950 gave land from his apple orchard for City's previous ground by the riverside.

Durham played Dereham, from Norfolk, for the right to host St Neots in the Vase last 16; the chap from the FA handed over a press cutting about former Aston Villa manager John Gregory's close ties with the Saints.

His dad, another John, had been the club's first full-time manager - £18 a week in the 1950s after a playing career which embraced West Ham, Scunthorpe and Aldershot.

Gregory senior ran three teams, washed the kit, ran the lottery, did the paper work, even owned the club van. Under him, St Neots won the Huntingdonshire Senior Cup 12 years in succession and reached the FA Cup first round in 1966.

Though they lost 2-0, the party went on until 3am. "I remember my mam going spare when he got home because he had me with him - I was only 12 at the time."

The Vase final is at Villa Park, where Gregory plans an emotional return when his Saints go marching - not if City, 2-0 triumphant, play like they did in the second half on Saturday.

ALSO in the lee of the stand at New Ferens Park was Newcastle United programme editor Paul Tully, wretchedly ragged in Friday's column after failing to crack the question about three Premiership players with the same surname as their club manager's Christian name.

He'd managed the Gerrards at Liverpool and the boys George at Ipswich, but couldn't link Laurent Robert with R W Robson, his Magpies manager.

Subsequently, Paul sent a splendid five-verse limerick in which "Tully" rhymes with "dully". Space allows only the first: There once was a gaffer called Robert Who signed a left winger called Robert, They knew that his name Was roughly the same But his staff couldn't think of the answer.

Bobby Robson's decision to authorise use of United's hotel on wheels to take Tow Law to their Vase 5th round tie at Lewes owed everything to his two and a half hour "question and answer" session on Windy Ridge in November.

It was the wondrous night, as we reported, when Mrs Robson rang United chief scout Charlie Woods at 10.30pm to ask where on earth the old feller might be. In truth, he was still going strong at midnight.

"Everyone greatly enjoyed it and no-one more than myself," wrote Bobby in the Boxing Day programme against Middlesbrough. "Clubs like Tow Law and the people who support them are the lifeblood of the game."

The clincher? "The pies and peas were absolutely terrific."

Patrick Conway, Sunderland programme contributor and Durham County Council libraries, arts and museums director, was at Durham City, too. As ever more these days, the conversation turned to the munificent Niall Quinn.

Patrick had asked big Niall ("an absolutely lovely fellow") if he could help launch a lifelong learning scheme at Spennymoor. A gaggle of adoring young ladies was in attendance.

"They were giggling and chattering away like young girls do when Quinny just told them to wise up, listen to what was being said then they could have their autographs afterwards.

"After that you could have heard a pin drop. There can't be a better man in football."

What else? John Briggs noted Barry Venison's classic during the commentary on the Boro-Man United game - "If Middlesbrough don't win this one the ground will be half-empty for the rest of the season". What happens, asks John, if it's only half full?......A website called Mediawatch picks up the Hartlepool Mail's contribution to the debate over whether footballers should wear gloves: "Gloves are for puffs"....Ralph Petitjean from Ferryhill responds belatedly to Bulldog Billy Teesdale's claim to be karaoke's answer to Billy Fury - "like a bull elephant breaking wind through a comb."

...And finally

THE winner of a copy of Northern Goalfields Revisited, the Northern League's millennium history, is Peter Britcliffe from Hart Village, Hartlepool.

Mr Ron Hails, another gentleman of the borough of Hartlepool, today seeks the identity of the sportsman who played football and cricket for England, rugby for the Barbarians, held the world long jump title for 21 years and, if that weren't enough, was invited - the giveaway - to become King of Albania.

More of the all-round good guy on Friday.

Published: 29/01/02