In terms of clichés, When Saturday Comes is up there with the best of them.
Home or away, with almost military precision we fill our backpacks with our supplies for the day. Or since bag checks were introduced one or two of us use our multiple pockets for the odd things we might like to bring into the ground. Like a purchase from Riverside Poundland for our dogs or cats and maybe even from a certain aisle at Morrisons – sssh!
Many MFW readers go to matches with family members as I am well aware. Apart from taking my children to games against Crewe and Dagenham & Redbridge – the latter in the FA Cup – I have never really been able to do that although long before we had the dogs, Sue and I went together to the Premiership play-off final against Birmingham at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff and managed to have a great day out despite the result.
We also saw the FA Youth Cup games against Forest and Chelsea together for the princely sum of two quid each. I went solo to the second leg of the final at Stamford Bridge.
But what do family members experience when we go to the game and they don’t?
We all have different perceptions of this so these thoughts are purely my own.
I’m a very grumpy guy on matchday whether we’re chasing promotion or enduring an ignominious relegation as we are this time around.
I wake up even earlier than usual and I’m all over NewsNow to find out the latest nonsensical gossip. I can’t stop myself. I mumble, mutter and take no notice of the microcosm of the world around me.
Any request to make a cup of tea, help out with the dogs in some way or *what’s happened to my shoes* are completely ignored. I’m that much of a pig. But Sue knows this and pities me because she knows where my focus is. It’s always been that way.
After my pre-match rituals off I go. She thinks “thank Jeez I’ve got rid of that miserable ba$tard for the afternoon”.
She always follows the match courtesy of Chris Goreham and his guest of the day on Radio Norfolk while claiming it was better in the days of Roy Waller. We agree to disagree on that one.
When I come home she knows exactly what mood I will be in as she’s followed the game on the radio but things have improved this season as I knew we were onto a hiding to nothing from the very start and on my return, after a couple of dry exchanges all is sunshine and light indoors.
I can no longer be bothered to discuss the minutiae of the game with her and the retort is consistent: “I don’t know why you carry on wasting your f*cking money on that shower of $hit”.
You can take the girl out of Armes Street… etc 
That notwithstanding, a defeat can ruin a whole weekend for an entire family. Been there, done that, unfortunately. Particularly when en route to Butlins Ingoldmells for a cheapskate week’s break with my ex-wife and children and during the drive there we lost 2-1 late on at Leeds in 1995 to virtually relegate us and I almost put the car in a ditch.
It’s not that I’ve lost my level of passion but more that any expectation I have ever had has dropped off the scale.
I expect nothing so I am rarely left disappointed these days.
The folks I feel sorry for are the ones with young children who take them to Carrow Road with a sense of anticipation. If you go with “Uncle Dave” or whoever you will have both seen it all before but explaining just exactly why we lost to a couple of children under 10 must really be quite difficult.
In my experience things like ‘we’re useless because the owners don’t care’ are very difficult to explain to those still in junior school – and who are our supporters of the future, of course.
But I’m by no means an ingrate. My uncle Pete, sometimes with uncle Joe if Pete could get him out of the Duke of Edinburgh in time, would take me to Upton Park and players I saw there included Martin Peters, Sir Geoff Hurst, Sir Bobby Moore, Jimmy Greaves, Sir Bobby Charlton, George Best, Denis Law and even Sir Stanley Matthews.
What memories Pete and Joey gave me and I’m sure there are many parents and grandparents out there who will one day hear the phrase *thanks, you took me to see Ronaldo when I was a kid*, or something equivalent to that.
Right now I reckon that if your children or grandchildren want a Liverpool or a Man Citeh shirt for Christmas you should buy it for them.
I wouldn’t have said that at the start of this season.
Morning Mr P, tactfully stayed away from the current top of the file discussions, wise .
What more can we say. I was lucky enough to grow up in the days when it seemed much safer, plus having parents who wanted me out of the way. I was allowed to cycle into Watton, catch the bus to City old bus station and rundle my way down to Carrow Rd. Where I had to me my dad’s cousin who I had to enter the ground and stand within River End. Age 10 and a squidge. Never had the confidence to allow any of my children to undertake such a journey, even when living in the City, now it would be Dereham.
The great players Norwich always stayed with me and getting to see other more famous players, as some of who you mentioned made me feel honoured. When Martin Peters signed for us I was uncontrollable in my excitement, I was a married man with kids by then. But can you imagine how I felt when I got a job of decorating a couple of rooms in the man’s house, I went out and bought a new white Bib & Brace along with some new white plimsolls for interior wear, funny how it didn’t go unnoticed
I listen to my youngest, wax lyrical about Ronaldo, Sterling Salah and Maddison, as good as they are I can not drum anywhere near that excitement if any of those I mentioned Maddison does spark a little something.
I have no one to thank for taking me, but will thenow past Cousin for saying he would meet me, wasn’t long before he didn’t want the hassle of a kid at the matches, but carried on telling my parents I was with him, when I was in the South Stand and finally my home in the Barclay.
Cheers that stirred some momories
Morning Lad
Yes I wrote this to get away from the heavier stuff that’s been going down lately!
I was allowed to go to White Hart Lane with some mates as soon as I went to secondary school but never before then so I would have been about 11 or 12 at the time.
I’ve stood on the River End too, probably as early as 1987, although you must have been quite a veteran by then. I moved to Blofield in 88 or 89 and always drove.
My mate Slim knew the security guys at the Clarence so we always got a free park. I’ll never forget Carl’s alsatian – you wouldn’t have wanted to get wrong with either man or beast, not that we ever did!
Perhaps getting back to Dereham might be a bit problematic after a night game – I’m only guessing as I’ve never done it.
I like your story about Martin Peters. I never met him but a few guys I know have and all have said you couldn’t have met a nicer man.
Cheers
Back to Dereham … Have done a few night games, you have to be pretty sharp to get across to the station, to get the last bus. A coach company run a bus to and from games, but unless I was told wrong they would like approx £100 upfront for the season in advance. Normal games (is there such a thing) a 3 pm kick is a doodle to do. But games are few and far between now, as the pension doesn’t allow for many. Which at this moment I am not too bothered about,
Thanks for that Lad – I thought it might have been a bit hairy!
Anywhere without a railway station is very difficult at night.
In the City I can – at a push now as I’m 65 this year – walk the three miles home from the ground but if I’m at Mundesley I couldn’t get back home by public transport at all.
Sums up the mood well Martin.
My seven year old grandson used to be happy in a Pukki shirt, now talks about Mason Mount!
The younger generation are not as tolerant of inertia as our generation have been.
Hi John
I think youngsters relate to Mason Mount cos he’s a young guy who has done so much behind the scenes and none of it self-publicised either. Somebody for them to as aspire to be I guess and I’m not too sure if NCFC has too many of those.
Inertia is a very good descriptive word in this case.
Cheers
Martin, I couldn’t disagree more with your last line about Citeh and Liverpool. Don’t buy your kids anything to do with them; being a Norwich supporter should give you a far healthier outlook on life in general (although looking at some post match forums, I struggle to support my point!).
My wife and daughters have no interest in football and, I’m pleased to say, my post match demeanour rarely betrays the result and how I’m actually feeling. The only family member I ever get to go to the game with since my dad died is my brother. It’s always a pleasure to go with him but as in our adult life he has lived in Nigeria, Argentina, Chile, Brazil, USA, Dubai and Panama (anyone who doesn’t like economic migrants should speak to him, he’s loved being one), he has never been a regular match chaperone.
Hi Don
The payoff line was meant to be tongue in cheek as in give to the rich while simultaneously depriving the poor, who the status quo dictates deserve nothing.
No way am I going into the issue of economic migrants on a public forum such as MFW but your bro must enjoy an extremely interesting life.
I’ve a fair idea what industry he might work in because it seems pretty much akin to that of MFW regular Alex Bain who will probably be along later.
It would have been difficult to pick up a streamed game in Lagos 20 years ago 🙂
Cheers
20 years ago it was suprsport showing early premiership games even back in the early 90’s all from the South African TV I was in Portharcort and many bars advertised 5he games.
Yemen another of my work places in the early 90’s from BEin sport before the Gray/Keys era
Blimey
Around 2002 I had to walk two kilometres to Bar Sport in Llucmajor to watch PL on a tiny [for those days] TV screen!!!
I must say the locals loved it though, almost as much as the Sunday La Liga games which ALWAYS featured either Real or Barca.
Walking home in the dark could be challenging.
Hi Don
Economic migrant that’s me to a tee Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Egypt, Israel, Qatar, Nigeria and few more in between all after I left the RAF where I got to see many places.
Sounds like an exciting life. Following City must have been a challenge at times
Supporting City is a challenge wherever you live 😉
BBC radio mostly except when they started to put games on TV.
Most over seas TV companies had good coverage even back then the UK were behind times then
In France in the pre-satellite days I found the quickest and easiest way to get the results was to find a phone box and call a mate back home – once he’d gone out and scribbled down the City and Spurs results for me and his son delivered the [bad] news!
Missed this earlier – back in the day I’m not sure either Gabon or Equatorial Guinea would have had national sides!
They do now though, which is the important thing!
Hi MP. Great stuff. I love Butlins. We did Skeggy again last year, the first time since 1975. We had a good enough time, but it wasn’t as great as I remembered. Barely saw a redcoat and saw hide nor hair of a toffee apple. Reckon the puppet man was the same guy though. Ah, nostalgia…
But nostalgia is what it’s all about. Today’s experience is tomorrow’s nostalgia. I wonder what we’ll feel nostalgic about from this current City era? The glories then humiliations under Farke? The tight-pursed ownership? The mountaineering sporting director? The fact it was the last time we were in the Premier League perhaps? What memories will 2022 conjure up for you?
Hi person of Trunch
When we went to Butlins they were renewing some of the chalets to the point they were tearing whole rows down in the height of the season. Lovely not but the kids didn’t care.
As for any nostalgia for this season I think I’ll file it somewhere between G for Grant and R for Roeder, two files I have never revisited since I created them 🙂
Cheers from the Mundesley/Trimingham *border*
I guess my Mum is the reason why I support Norwich. There are a couple of reasons why this is the case. Both my parents grew up in Suffolk and in my Mum’s case quite well into Suffolk. However, Mum came from a sporty family and her brothers would have grown up supporting Norwich as Ipswich and Lowestoft would have been amateur clubs at the time and Norwich were Division 2. The second reason is that although my Dad watched the 1959 Cup run he was quite happy watching Lowestoft for his football fix. Thankfully my Mum was an early follower of retail therapy and loved any excuse to hit the shops of Norwich in the 70s, often with her sister. This meant that my Dad, my uncle, me and my cousins all went to Carrow Road. We were lucky, Norwich rarely lost at home in my early years. We won promotion in my first full season, we avoided the drop in dramatic fashion in year 2 along with a trip to Wembley, another promotion and Wembley trip was followed by a prolonged spell in the lower reaches of the top flight, the sort that modern Norwich fans sneer as they say how lucky we are to be relegated. Our matchday routine used to be governed by my Dad working Saturday mornings so it was always just about the football. I did have my first independent trip at the age of 15 as my school mate booked me onto a coach straight from school in Lowestoft to an Ipswich v Norwich midweek cup match. Unfortunately he didn’t tell me that it was the Ipswich coach but I had the last laugh as Justin Fashanu scored with a fine header to salvage a draw on a day when the buzz word seemed to be Zombie. Future fans? Well despite scoring a lovely volley at Carrow Road, my youngest has no real interest in football. My oldest is a fan. Again he was lucky, although his first matches were in the bleak years on the late noughties he was getting into the game just in time for our League 1 season, he was able to see some good seasons and key matches. Our routine for home matches is rather mundane but away matches always saw us follow a similar pattern especially in London with a Nandos often finishing the day and being the location of where we heard about Farke being sacked. Pre-match is usually pub based including the dash to 3 pubs in Downtown Stoke with 2 home fans prior to our crunch match in 2019. My son is a Norwich fan and has a disdain for the big 6. In my day I would cheer on Liverpool in a European Final but my son will always cheer on the likes of Ajax or Dortmund over the ESL6. The club have been good at engaging with the under 12 fanbase, do they miss a trick when it comes to the Inbetweeners? Is there more to offer to the 16-25s who don’t live in the city?
Hi John
A lot of that resonates with me, it really does.
Just about every male in my birth family were either keen footballers, cricketers or more often than not both. Dad was Royal Engineers middleweight champion and after the war apparently a very good amateur who was offered a chance to try to go pro but in 1946 a job was a job so he turned it down to join the PLA Police. He never regretted his decision.
I was the only Penney/Yeowell to become a half decent tennis player though 🙂
Closer to home I believe we all go through stages of life as a football supporter.
Going with family [male only back in my formative years] as a kind of tiny, going with your own little gang in your early teens, starting work and meeting different folks in pubs or wherever and going with them and then before you know it you have your own children, the world of gang mentality has seemingly passed you by and you end up with your new-found matchday mates wherever you happen to sit.
*When I’m 64* had a point to it I guess!
Thanks – great comment.
Hi Martin
Back in the mid 1950’s, when my mother and I were living in Langley, I used to catch the Cullings bus (anyone else on MFW remember them?) and walk from Ber Street to the ground. After the match I would go to my grandmother’s house in Park Lane and spend the night with her. As canary lad says, it all seemed much safer in those days.
With what is going on in Ukraine it seems almost self-indulgent to be depressed about the state of football in general and Norwich City in particular but it is hard not to be.
Never mind, next up we have the visit of those renowned purveyors of exiting football and their charismatic manager to look forward to.
Hi John
I stayed at my Grandma’s in Forest Gate [London E7]every day in the school holidays until I was around eight and then Dad gave me my own key to our house in Chadwell Heath. One of the original latch-key kids I guess but Dad worked shift and mother was 9-5 so I wasn’t often on my own for more than a couple of hours and always with Stormy the Boxer dog as a minder so I hardly felt neglected.
It really was safer then [60s] and at least where I lived neighbours looked after one another so there was always a door you could knock at on if yo had to.
Burnley? I can’t wait mate. And we’ll have them at least twice next season as well 🙁
Cheers
Like most City fans I have learned to take the good times with the had and vice versa. I’m only a sporadic attendee at matches as I have spent most of my working life, and now my retirement, in warmer climes. I kept in touch with the club through the Pink Un paper which I subscribed to for many years, and from numerous locations. My favourite players are too many to list, but it contains all the usual suspects from 1961 (first match I attended in person) until the present day..
On a side note, I am sure when listening to Radio Norfolk many years ago the great late Mr Waller mentioned that his name was in fact Royd.. But my memory may be faulty on this occasion.
Hi Roger
I occasionally worked in warmer climes myself but only for all too brief periods although we did enjoy a finca pequena in rural Mallorca for about seven or eight years. It was unsustainable to retire to for reasons I won’t bore you with so we’re shivering in Trimingham and/or the City for the rest of our lives. Could be much, much worse of course.
As I had a couple of good mates on Radio Norfolk back in the day and used their wooden hut/bar-restaurant on Surrey Street quite a few times I’m surprised to tell you that I never met Roy Waller so I’ve no idea what his given name was.
Royston would be my natural guess, but equally that could be wrong.
Cheers
Hi Martin
My 2 eldest sons have seen quite a few city games in different areas of the ground and were there for the Ekuko against Leeds but they have never wavered in their support for Spurs even going so far as wearing a Spurs shirt in the lower Barclay with much abuse.
My wife being a ManU supporter and second team Sheff-U so had lots of banter over our 43years together she will watch all the teams on TV but never Loserpool no matter who they play.
My youngest is another Spurs supporter followed his brothers, were as My middle son will accept a poor performance the oldest and youngest gets very irate blaming the Ref/VAR and everyone 8n the team both can’t understand why more monet isn’t spent on team building butshut up when I mention our owners.
Over all we are a sports mad family Cricket, Football, Rugby, Athletics and hate a close season when there isn’t much to view or have differing opinions on but that’s what it’s all about opinions if they were all the same it would be sad.
Hi Alex
I think growing up in the 60s as we both did at various stages during that era the concept of *sports mad* was always there – it just wasn’t called that back then.
My previous generation were truly sports mad and I certainly took that to an even higher level but my own children have no real passion for the beautiful game..
Both were on Norwich Penguins squad as youngsters and Josh is a very able tennis and table tennis player. He always follows City from a distance and has been to a couple of games with me as an adult but his heart isn’t really in it in the same way that way mine is. He always wishes us well though.
Take away family, rock/new wave sport & the dogs and I’d have no life at all.
Cheers
Brilliant piece Martin, really made me laugh out loud.
And we need some of that at the moment and I don’t mean laughing at our calamitous defending or lamentable midfield or powder-puff attack. (Teemu excepted)
I don’t go often these days sadly, disability and cost i’m afraid.
But your piece did bring back some great memories of going in the late sixties with dad and then with my mates Harry or Terry. Or both.
Going with dad was funny because when he got round Carrow Road corner he really speeded up
( excitement I said which he always denied. It was a barefaced lie) and my little legs struggled to keep up. I used to get so grumpy if we lost.
Park the bike at Harry or Terry’s and then a bus to Bracondale and get to the ground just as it opened so Harry could have a pie or two !! None for me sadly as my mum didn’t want me to spoil my tea.
These days Harry is as slim as ever, sadly the same cannot be said for me😂.
I don’t know if youngsters at 11-12 go to football on their own these days but we had great fun, and it was a different time.
Then came 1971/72 and who made a comeback after a year out ? or as I called him that Great Glory Hunter…. Dad. To be fair to dad he had a small holding which took up a lot of his time but he then became a season ticket holder for years.
I went, work allowing, home and occasionally away games religiously until Marty got me playing football in 1978 which I did until 1988 and then returned week in week out to support the boys for the home games.
I was so lucky that me and my wife could then see the best ever Norwich City teams for those brilliant 6-7 years in the EPL. I was with Dad for one of these games and he miss-understood the announcer so dad thought Ian Crook was preparing for a big EPL game by walking around the pitch in the Captain Crock costume mucking about with the kids !!! 😂 Captain Crook !!!
By then our routines usually at the Pineapple in Trowse included a pre match drink I am pleased to say. Nowadays it is The Iceni, if I can get a seat !
And when I have gone recently it always invokes those memories of Dad and Terry who are both sadly no longer with us.
Hi Tim
I’ve so many memories like yours as well. I remember the Pineapple too and I would go in there whenever I drove up from Buckhurst Hill. After 100 miles+ I needed a pint. Long gone now of course as are the two pubs from my day that were really close to the ground, the Kingsway and the Clarence Harbour.
Rough ‘n’ Ready may be the title of a Jeff Beck album but it also summed up those places to perfection and I’d add the Mustard Pot and the Ferry Boat to that list in the old days. The Iceni does not appeal to me and if I have a pre-match beer these days it’s invariably in the Ribs, which is on my walk to the ground and I usually know a few fellow yellows in there.
When I was 11-12 there were no pie restrictions on me and fair play to him, Dad would always give me more than enough kite to make sure I could enjoy myself and have enough for bus and tube fares too. In retrospect he wanted to make sure I got home safely, which as a Copper was a situation he would have been more aware than most.
Was it better going then or going now?
Then for me, and for so many reasons.
Thanks – I really enjoyed reading your comment.
I think it was very safe at home games Martin. You had to be sensible and avoid the idiots. But I had no interest in scrapping, all I wanted to see was the football.
Away from home it was a lot more dicey at times, we even had to cut out any talking on the way to some games (Old Trafford for one) especially with our accents 😂 This was the seventies and I cannot brush under the carpet that there were big problems with hooliganism in those days.
Twice I was headbutted but on both occasions the perp came off worse, No 1 was “detained” by mate Harry and given to a very handy Police Officer and No 2 was attacked in the South Stand by his fellow West Ham fans who wanted no trouble and were not willing to be kicked out. And I wasn’t hurt at all really.
I always went with my friend Glenn to away games who was a few years older than me and a few other older ones and sometimes the odd younger lad.
The older ones really looked out for us which was great. Sometimes Glen or Tim drove but mostly we went on the club coaches, where the great Lil and her friend Pat would be.
I stopped going away in the late seventies when I started playing, Imagine my shock when I went to Anfield in 1993 ! Supporters mixing with no trouble, well to to my eyes anyway.
Two-Team scarves shocked me as much as Garlic Bread did to Peter Kay’s dad !
We have seen in recent days, Chelsea at home where some coward punched an elderly gentleman and Wolves away where it seems some of their fans are stuck in a time warp like Sam Tyler and think it is still 1973.
And a few years ago at a Cardiff away game poor Marty got stuck in a conversation with a home supporter who came across as a budding Jack the Ripper.
So sadly this behaviour is still out there.
The Ferry Boat was one of my drinking places and as you say Martin, Jeff Beck got it spot on ! I know what you mean about the Iceni, I only go because it is cheaper than most.
But on balance though the football, especially under Farke and Lambert/Culverhouse, is a better product I preferred the older days. It was always within my budget and if you could suddenly be available to go on the day because of work changes was brilliant.
The atmosphere was amazing on special nights in those at Carrow Road like Norwich 2 Crystal Palace 1 in 1973 to escape relegation or the League Cup semi-final win over Manchester United around that time.
But let us not forget the year we finished 3rd in the EPL our home attendance for Middlesborough was around 13,000. But then the atmosphere for that 1-0 win over Aston Villa that season was brilliant.
So you have to say that the regular support now is amazing.
I just hope this season has not put too many of the supporters off continuing their support. Something D & M need to keep in mind.
Some Championship grounds like Birmingham, Coventry etc look like waste grounds, where a half time chat to the person next to you has to be done by semaphore, I would not want to see that at Carrow Road that’s for sure.
It’s emotive stuff isn’t it?
The only place I’ve been really scared is Molineux as I’ve mentioned a couple of times on MFW before.
I’ve had a few punches vaguely thrown at me in the old days and chucked a couple back but I would never get involved in that kind of crap. Dad was a hard man, I wasn’t.
Man Utd were dreadful in the 70s and 80s and Chelsea too – remember the *Headhunters* and their business cards?
Two-team scarves bring out a certain reaction in me. Maybe a good souvenir for a youngster’s first match but to see grown adults sporting them confounds me and that’s being polite.
I never spoke with Lil beyond *hello* but we’d always exchange a cheery wave when we passed in opposite directions on our way to different stands in the ground – her scarf with all those pin badges on it was quite special 🙂
My good memories will hopefully continue to outweigh the bad.
Hi Martin;
My grand-father took me from an early age. My Dad passed away when I was 5, and I remember spending a lot of time with my grand-parents. We drove in, with Mum and Nanny being dropped off for the shops, before parking on Carrow Hill. I remember all the cars parked “end on” so more could be accommodated! We then walked to the ground, sometimes meeting his mates at either of the 2 pubs on the King Street end of Carrow Bridge (now both long gone and blocks of flats).. In those days the River End was open, and just a mound with railway sleepers. We youngsters made our way to the front, and sat with legs through the top bars of the pitch-side railings. I was there for the cup games against Sheffield Wednesday and Leicester when the crowds were (I think) over 35000!! And to think, that the Anglia TV gantry was also there and open to the elements.
The drive home was always interesting dependent on the result; much like today I suppose, but we did win a few games then!
Grand-dad then got a seat (season ticket) in what’s now the City Stand, and I was deemed old enough to “progress” on my own to the Barclay.
There were a few seasons when my physical support wavered as I tried to play football myself, but I can remember being thrown-out of Vicarage Road before kick-off on the day we were first promoted to the top flight. My mate and I were wondering what to do for the afternoon when a friendly copper said we could just pay again and enter at the turnstile! Some chance of that nowadays!!!
Those were great times; thanks for bringing back the memories.
O T B C
Hi John
Love the Watford story – let me know what you got hooked for some time!
I can remember the Kingsway on Carrow Bridge but not the other one.
I only ever played at Sunday League standard myself so I never had that problem!
Cheers
It was all very innocent….sorry!!!
The weather pre-kick-off was awful…very heavy rain, and the NCFC supporters were allocated the open uncovered terraces. We noticed about half an hour before kick-off that a couple of Watford fans had placed a pair of gold and black balloons on the centre spot. Someone amongst the NCFC support somehow found a yellow and green pair, and a friend and I said we’d take them out, on to the pitch. That was no problem, but we were nabbed by a copper before we could get back onto the terrace and ejected. As we re-entered the stadium, I can remember the NCFC fans charging towards the covered end where the Watford fans were. It emptied very very quickly!
A lovely tale.
I doubt anybody would make it as far as the centre spot these days even before the game, let alone during it 🙂
Unfortunately some/most of our mid-field don’t appear to move too far from it once the game has started!!
John:
Surely all of our current midfield 🙂
I can remember it soo clearly even now John.
Seeing the poor Watford fans exit right…sharpish.
We stayed where we were, as I was with my Uncle, Aunt and cousins, and got well and truly soaked !
Great day though.
Once Dave Stringer scored that goal, the weather was very much a secondary concern for us all I think!
O T B C
I really wish I’d been there – it must have been quite a celebration. Stringer didn’t score often but he got a couple of important ones!
Morning Martin hope all is well.
Funny what sticks in the memory. I can vividly remember that Leeds goal filtering through. I can even pinpoint the exact part of the road I was in (back of my dads car with my younger cousin, he a Villa fan) on our estate, and indeed the exact expression my cousin gave me (disbelief and shock) when the radio flicked to (I think) Carlton Palmer scoring a late winner.
Couldn’t tell you where we had been for the day or what we had been doing…!
Needless to say that as a 14 year old and experiencing my first relegation, my mood was far from pleasant that afternoon!
All the best
Hi Martin
I guess that would have been the first relegation of your then 14-y-o life.
I wonder what you would have thought back then if you had known how many more times you would have to suffer the same feelings as an adult and that here in 2022 there are doubtless a few more in the pipeline.
We’re all good, thanks.
Cheers
So really, its you lot then! You’re all the reasons NCFC are on this downward spiral!
You’ve all got nine days to begin a new matchday regime, some of you might want to attend wearing your other half’s brightest floral hat – and that’s just the blokes – several of you should bring bags of boiled sweets and distribute them lovingly to the gathered multitude.
But ALL of you need to do stuff differently … pretty please!
OTBC
Hi Kev
I never go anywhere without sporting Mrs P’s floral hat – even in the depths of winter.
Okay that’s a lie – she doesn’t even have a floral hat in the first place tbh.
As for the boiled sweets my aunt Connie used to work in the Trebor factory in Canning Town but she’s been gone for around 30 years now so I’m unlikely to get further freebies I’m afraid.
So it’ll be Levis, official black NCFC jacket and Nikes for me I’m afraid.
Cheers 🙂