Never been much of a football fan, probably not a popular statement on this blog but there you go. Never been able to give the name of my team, never chatted about the game with the lads at work the next day and no knowledge of fixtures, team members and league positions....couldn't even tell you the captain of the England squad. My brother on the other hand could tell you the entire history of Kettering Town, i guess you have it or you don't....i don't but not one to be closed minded and dismissive i have been to a few games in my time. My friends at school were all Liverpool fans despite living almost 200 miles away from Merseyside, never understood that but they were happy to drive or get the train from one end of the country to the other every week so on a handfull of Saturdays i tagged along. This was in 1985/86 so things were a bit different to the fully seated, family friendly and expensive stadia of today. I went to Anfield twice and barely saw the ball, i was too busy trying not to fall under the feet of the surging crowd. I spent most of the game looking at the floor trying to judge when the steps of the terrace were going to appear and swallow me up or when the running crowd would part and a stomach high piece of fence would stop me in my tracks with several thousand damp fans pushing me through it like a cheese wire....this was the Kop. Leicester had a similar set up and all i remember of West Ham is being crushed up against a fence for almost an hour and the same again against a very large police horse. Nottingham Forest was a miserable, wet and cold affair and i can't remember any score, team member or any other statistic that are the mantra of any football fan worth their season ticket. I do remember the roar of the crowd and the songs of the fans. The whole place knew every word and intonation with a passion. It was this passion that i was impressed by but couldn't for the life of me understand how football could raise such a reaction from so many people...
When i was in Argentina a couple of years ago i had to go and check out a match at Boca Juniors, if it's a crowd experience you want then i suggest you head to La Boca and even if you have no interest in football at all like me i think the hairs on the back of your neck will still be standing as you leave La Bombonera...i have no idea of the score or much recollection of who played but the crowd was amazing.
Never thought i'd write a blog post about football and Iain if you read this before Saturday (any Saturday in the season will do) i hope we win!!
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Just to prove my big brother's point, I think you'll find the Forest Liverpool match was 1-1, with Ian Rush scoring for Liverpool, and Franz Carr equalising for forest. I also remember the first time I stood on the Kop with Jono - it was Liverpool 2, Oxford 0, with John Barnes scoring a great free kick at the Kop end, and it was £2-80 to get in - those were the days!!
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