It’s been a week of very different sporting experiences for yours truly, writes blogger Andy Toft.

Following last week’s blog on cricket I decided to sample a bit of leather on willow first hand and escaped to Worcester’s New Road on my day off.

With the office engulfed by talk of the race for the play-offs and coming hours after Liverpool’s horribly tense Champions League win against Chelsea this was the perfect antidote to football fever.

And I was not alone in seeking solace from our country’s chief sporting obsession.

Having parked up I immediately bumped into Sporting Star columnist John Lalley who was enjoying a brief break from fretting about Wolves.

New Road may only be a short hop from Molineux and The Hawthorns but in sporting terms it exists in a completely different universe.

As if to illustrate that John was carrying an old kettle, brought along to keep him supplied with tea throughout the day.

That’s certainly something you wouldn’t see on the South Bank and it was the first of many great contrasts between our two national sports I was to revel in during the day.

One of cricket’s enduring idiosyncracies is that it is built around meal-times.

Consequently I had made my own body-weight in cheese sandwiches to keep me fortified during an arduous day of basking in the sun, reading the paper….oh yes and watching a spot of cricket.

The intervals between sessions of play are of course not the game’s only curiosities.

What other sporting venue would allow you to bring along a dog, use your own garden furniture instead of the seats provided and invite you onto the field of play during the breaks with the only proviso being that you use a soft ball?

Imagine Wolves or Albion fans bringing their own deckchairs to Sunday’s play-off game and enjoying a half-time kick around on the Molineux pitch.

I eventually left New Road – more picture postcard than sporting venue – refreshed and ready for a return to work.

And I was particularly looking forward to a trip to London for a tour of the new Wembley stadium.

The visit was arranged as part of the build-up to Kidderminster’s FA Trophy Final against Stevenage this weekend.

A record Trophy crowd of 80,000 fans is expected and I can guarantee they are in for an absolute treat as the stadium is simply spectacular.

It may have gone over budget and missed every deadline but the end product was worth all the rancour.

Even with 90,000 empty seats and the sprinklers on it was a breathtaking sight.

Like most sports fans I can’t imagine a better viewing experience than watching a cup final there with a packed house.

There again a day at New Road might run it close.