It was the Louie Barry show on Saturday vs. Peterborough

Some games of football are rubbish; most are likely forgettable. Some are even occasionally good. Rarer still – some are absolutely perfect and send you home buzzing. Saturday 25th April, Stockport County vs. Peterborough, was one of the rare ones.

For a start, it was genuinely sunny and warm. People wearing short-sleeve replica shirts wouldn’t be regretting it by the time the second half kicked off, for once. Second – the early kick-off had miraculously provided a banging atmosphere (when it’s usually the opposite) – the crowd were well up for it from the first minute. So much so that even conceding first (again) to an early goal (again) couldn’t puncture the mood. If anything it helped – the crowd knew the team could get back into it, and they certainly did.

The third ingredient was Louie Barry getting first start for County since the end of 2024. Bumped between ill-fitting Championship clubs, Barry returned to County – the team were he just *fits* – in January but has been returning from a long term injury, making sporadic appearances across April. Barry is absolutely beloved by County fans, and for good reason – no one else can shoot as accurately as him, and no one else actually shoots as much as him!

It wasn’t long until he pulled County level with a nice finish in front of the away fans. Cue the first cheers of the day.

It was to get better though – not long after half time and Barry struck again, this time in front of the Cheadle End…

2-1 up. Job done? Not a chance – 20 minutes later and Barry finished the match with his first career hattrick:

The Louie Barry show was complete. Never fall in love with a loan player, they say – hopefully he won’t just be on loan much longer!