Herts seasider's Page.
Herts is a super guy who has a great sense of humour. He is also honest and open and different. After all, do YOU know anybody who has changed loyalties to a down-and-out side like Blackpool! Heheheh. What Herts doesn't realise is that Blackpool are one of my favourite teams too. You see, they and Stoke City have a common bond. That bond is the greatest winger England has ever seen...the late Sir Stanley Mathews. Only those who have actually seen him play [and I count myself lucky to have been one of them] can understand the genius of the man. My finest recollection of the great man was watching the '53 cup final against Bolton Wanderers. Not for nothing was it called 'The Mathews Final.'
So Herts, me 'cockney sparrer', in recognition of your loyalty to your team, you have a place in the annals of Awagshire. Here is Herts' favourite piece.
A
GLORY HUNTER IN REVERSE?
BECOMING
A BLACKPOOL FAN
Herts
Seasider January 2002
As some of you will know
from my name and posts, I’m a Blackpool fan and proud of it. But, it has not
always been the case and this is my story.
I was born in Edmonton,
North London and from the hospital window, you can see the lights of White Hart
Lane. And so it came to pass that I was a Spurs fan and my first game was
against Leicester City with Spurs winning 3-2 thanks to a hat trick by one Jimmy
Greaves. I was hooked and spent my childhood and teenage years following Spurs
around the country and Europe winning cups and having a great time.
At the beginning of the
80’s things changed for me. Firstly, I got married (To an Arsenal fan would
you believe) which meant that Saturdays needed to be spent on other things and
money spent on footie needed to be restrained. In addition, Football was
changing, TV was starting to dictate things and money grabbers were moving in. I
remember paying £4 to see a league game on Saturday and then £6 for a mid week
European game. I was starting to become disillusioned with Spurs and the game.
My wife’s family came from
Chorley in Lancashire and her father, who, sadly, I never had the pleasure of
meeting, was a Blackpool fan and I found myself becoming more and more
interested in them resulting in a weekend away at Torquay to take in a game. The
football was crap but it was honest and further trips were planned whenever they
came south as well as occasional trips up to Bloomfield Road. Blackpool was now
tying in my affections with Spurs and soon I was looking more for pool’s
results.
The last 2 or three years
have brought this to the fore. Relegation a couple of years back was
heartbreaking and the start to life in division 3 could not have been worse
especially the 7-0 result at Barnet when Blackpool hit rock bottom. As you will
know, things turned around culminating in the most amazing day – Saturday
26/5/2001 at the Milstad Cardiff. Now I’ve seen FA cup and European finals
with Spurs but nothing compared to this, the occasion, the atmosphere and 15,000
Pool fans going absolutely potty, it was wonderful.
Football is about days like
that, not your Prawn Sandwich brigade or your armchair fans or your greedy money
mad people running the game or your coaches of “Hastings Reds” on the M6
every other Saturday. It’s about honesty and effort and dreaming and hope and
being together. It’s about things like AVFTT and 2view and the people on
there, mostly genuine folks having fun, caring about their team and having,
often forlorn, hopes for their team. Its about meeting people like BasilRobbie,
Bedford, Stevenage, Walthamstow and many others, having a drink and a laugh and
sharing our love for the game and this team.
I live in Waltham Cross,
Herts and have 2 teenage daughters. This season, I hope to get up to Bloomfield
4 or 5 times and will try to get to as many away games as I can (got me Hudds
LDV away tickets !). No where as near as many games as most of you but I try.
I wasn’t born in Blackpool
nor have I been to hundreds of their games but I consider myself a Blackpool fan
and am proud to be so.
The title of this story is
Glory Hunter in reverse. Most fans that do change their clubs do so to a
“bigger” team. I didn’t and I am so happy with my choice.
That’s my story. Thanks for reading it.
Regards,
Herts Seasider
A Cockney Tangerine if that’s OK.