By Leipziger
July 25 2013

So with the regular league season safely negotiated, it was down to the business end of the campaign.

Leeds had managed to stay ahead of Bristol in the hunt for fourth place in the Championship table and would therefore be our semi-final opponents in the playoffs, Nottingham meeting Bedford in the other tie.

Before taking on Leeds though, it was back to Bedford at the end of April for the semi-final of the British & Irish Cup. Both teams already knew that the winners would host Leinster A in the final, the Irish side having won their own all-Irish last four game against Munster's second string the previous night.

Goldington Road was a little warmer than it had been for the league clash back in November but the famous slope was still as big.

The first half saw the hosts kicking downhill but in a 40 minutes dominated by the boot, it was the Falcons who went into the break ahead, 0-6 thanks to two Jimmy Gopperth penalties.

Jonny Golding and Noah Cato scored tries in the second half and at 3-18 up the game should have been over, but Jordi Pasqualin's yellow card on a rare appearance helped Bedford launch a late fightback. Two tries from the Blues brought them back to 15-18 with seconds to go, but the Falcons managed to see out the win and keep alive hopes of a league and cup double.

Off the pitch, the day also saw the birth of the 'Bedford sandwich', which is grilled chicken breast, mushroom and melted cheese in thick crusty bread, home-made of course. Lovely.

Several coaches left Kingston Park early on the May Day Bank Holiday Monday bound for Headingley, while another few hundred independent travellers assured the Falcons of raucous support in Leeds for the first leg of the Championship semi-finals. For some fans, this day will forever be associated with the pre-match 'Hedgegate' incident. You had to be there.

Dean Richards sprang a selection surprise with Tane Tu'ipulotu starting for the first time since January, and the Tongan almost got on the end of a Gopperth dribble early on. Leeds were however the first scorers with former Falcons academy centre Fred Burdon isolating Alex Tait at full-back and letting in Stevie McColl for an unopposed converted try.

Kicks put us 13-3 down, before Ally Hogg scored on the corner and the Falcons managed to level the game by half-time.

Two more penalties from Gopperth gave the Falcons a 13-19 lead but Joe Ford equalised with his boot and in the dying seconds, Ryan Burrows ran in a try on the far right that left Geordie fans stunned.

At 24-19, it was a second defeat in three games but still only the second of the season. Mind the away fans still had a good time, and some made it home a bit later than expected and had to pay for it at work the following morning.

It made for a tense return match at Kingston Park, but with the backing of over 6,000 vocal supporters, the Falcons managed to turn around the tie and seal a place in the final. It was a big relief.

The win also prevented the B&I Cup final being a very depressing evening, and though Leinster A lifted the trophy with an extra-time win, there were bigger fish to fry.

The final stop on the Championship Magical Mystery Tour for 2012/13 was a third visit to Goldington Road, this time on a Thursday night for the first leg of the Championship final. Pubs around the ground were packed with fans of both sides, and the anticipation in the air was almost tangible.

Over 4,500 packed into the ground and though the away supporters may have been outnumbered, we were not demoralised by not being allowed to bring flags in. Many just brought the material part and found large twigs in the makeshift South Stand to fly, until they inevitably snapped.

No tries were scored on the night but a 9-18 win, from a 3-12 half-time lead as we kicked downhill in the second half, was more than satisfactory with a return at KP still to come.

It was at full-time that the real fun started however. Those Falcons fans staying over in Bedford colonised The Cricketers pub along with some who weren't, and were unable to find a hotel. The beer flowed and there was plenty of talk about what the Premiership might bring, if everything went well in the second leg. The only twinge of disappointment was that we would miss some of the more 'real' rugby grounds such as Bedford if promotion were to be won.

For some, the night moved on to a kebab shop, about all that seemed open in Bedford at 12.30am, and then a late train back to London and the surprisingly difficult task of getting a taxi home. But it was a special night.

The mystery tour, which began in Bristol and went via London, Birmingham, Jersey, Ireland, the Welsh Valleys, Leeds, Plymouth had ended in a third visit to Bedford, one of the loveliest grounds I've seen and one with real character.

Would there be a repeat in 2013/14? Well, if you don't know how the second leg of the final at KP turned out then you might want to check you're on the right website.

The new season's travels begin in Northampton next week with the Premiership Sevens. Can't wait.