Red hot Mayfield in coach blaze drama

The Mayfield in flames

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Mayfield players and supporters got an unexpected surprise on the coach trip on the way home from York on Saturday - the coach went up in flames.

Ten minutes after embarking on the journey back to Rochdale, passengers noticed smoke rising from beneath the back seat and out of the rear engine compartment. The driver was alerted and an orderly evacuation of the vehicle quickly took place.

With the passengers all safely accounted for, and at a safe distance in a lay by across the road, the back end of the coach erupted in flames - at one stage the flames reaching about fifteen feet in the air.

Two fire engines arrived to deal with the blaze along with several police who oversaw traffic control.

Stranded at the side of the road, the players and supporters found a petrol station around half a mile away where they purchased refreshments and staged an impromptu roadside party.

The police praised the the responsible attitude shown by the group.

Club president Barry Edwards said: “In all my years travelling to away games I’ve never experienced anything like this. There was an alarm going off on the coach and we thought it was because the door was not shut properly but within minutes the coach went up in flames.

"We still don’t know the cause of the fire but we are just all thankful that nobody was injured, it could have been much worse.

"I need to praise my lads for the way they behaved calmly exiting the coach and making sure the women and children were safe.

"I’d only just been saying to my dad that the team was red hot today but this is not what I meant."

The Club has expressed its thanks to Ingleby’s coaches of York, whose driver stopped and offered a lift and took the group back to Rochdale.