I ate all the pie — and it was worth it

THERE is no more expensive pie in football than at Kidderminster Harriers. But was it worth £4?

Matthew Chambers finds out . . .

IT IS a long drive to Kidderminster when you’re operating on an empty stomach.

Planning ahead is key to eating well at unfamiliar away grounds. But the Saturday-morning starvation heading down the M6 was in order - to leave room for what promised to be a giant undertaking at Aggborough.

The price of the Harriers’ prized cottage pie hit the national headlines last month when it topped the rich list - the most expensive pie in football.

In fairness, nobody needs to remortgage their house to fork out an extra quid-and-a-half on top of what fans are used to paying out. The portion was massive, as promised.

Whether it is actually a ‘pie’ or not in the strictest sense is open for debate. It has no pastry and you can’t eat it with one hand (it comes with a spoon).

But it does taste good, and I just about finished it. The mashed potato topping had a lovely cheese crust and there was plenty of gooey filling, with mince that had obviously been cooked out properly by catering chief Brian Murdoch (73). More seasoning was needed, though.

Far too often, football fans are short-changed by soggy pastry products with fillings hotter than the

surface of the sun and with less taste than a cardboard box. Yes, I’m talking about you, Plymouth Argyle.

Even at £4, I reckon this was comparatively good value. Bring on the Latics version. Perhaps a little blue cheese on top?