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Regarding the squad, management, and away fans from the Cornish outfit, the arduous 914-mile round trip to Gateshead was a mixed blessing ultimately. The 12-hour bus journey from Cornwall in the south-west all the way up England’s spine to the north-east yielded one league point plus complimentary drinks.

Truro drew their National League match two goals apiece away at Gateshead on Saturday after holding a two-goal lead by the 54th minute, in what is turning out to be a campaign defined by long travels and tireless road trips up and down English A roads and motorways. Following strikes by Johnson-Fisher and Oxlade-Chamberlain, Gateshead rebounded through Kain Adom and, in the 70th minute, Frank Nouble.

“Opposition teams visiting us often fly in and stay overnight, making our coach travel less than ideal, yet with our extensive schedule, it’s our only option.” — the team's manager

Earlier in the season the club undertook a journey 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, a roughly two-and-a-half-hour drive via the A30 to Huish Park, a 130-mile trip each direction.

Unifying Effect from Extended Journeys

On Saturday the first 90 Truro fans to arrive shared a £920 bar tab, courtesy of the EFL sponsor, Sky Bet, the complimentary beverage fund representing £1 for every mile travelled. At least the players were able to break up their journey with a pause at Derby's training facility.

Their chairman from Canada, Eric Perez, accustomed to long-haul trips since he regularly 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 Cornwall’s first professional football club, 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 – everybody spends time together, we’re used to travelling together.”

Dedicated Supporters Face Long Trips

One of Truro’s stalwart supporters, John Joyce, accepts the reality of extended travel yet stays devoted, notwithstanding occasional flight issues and exhausting rail journeys. He estimates Saturday’s trip cost him around £400 in costs and missed income, remarking, “During my naval career with Nato, the drive from Brussels to Cornwall was shorter than from Cornwall to Gateshead.”

As Askey said, after their Carlisle odyssey: “Truro's uniqueness as a club is that the supporters get behind the team regardless of circumstances. Last term's promotion success made it easy to back the squad, but from what I know the fans never even moan and they appreciate what the players have done.”