A lot of folk will obvs have split ties because of geography - growing up in one area and having an allegiance to City for any number of reasons - which I can totally understand. I have met and know brilliant Blues who are local to somewhere other than Manchester.
But I do consider myself lucky that I grew up in the shadow of Maine Rd and came to City as my local team as a kid (though it didn't always feel that way in the 90s), and I live down the tram line from the ground now, so I don't have to have split loyalties and I don't have anything to prove to anyone who thinks City fans are newbies and glory hunters unless they can recite the 1998 youth side backwards.
I keep a bit of an eye on how the Rags are doing simply because they are a Manchester team - at least nominally - and I do have Rag friends, relatives and colleagues, for which reason I did once go and watch FC United in their early days to see what was happening.
I will watch Arsenal on telly because the Mrs is a Londoner and that's her family's team, but the kids hate them and the Rags - to the point of rubbishing the first to their mum's face and ignoring the latter completely. Years ago, on freebies, I sat in United and Liverpool home ends when Ronaldo was in his pomp and when Torres was in his pomp and felt so little I have no memory of either game.
Only other side I go and see is the Sunday league U15s my mate coaches. I have been tempted to watch Maine Rd FC on days when we aren't playing simply because they are local to me and are not a rebel club, but a club formed by blues in the fifties, but have never got around to it. I can see plenty of circumstances in which I could end up watching a League team as a neutral, and I can't say the price of tickets for Greater Manchester's lower league teams isn't attractive, but I'd never pull on another League team's shirt.
But I do consider myself lucky that I grew up in the shadow of Maine Rd and came to City as my local team as a kid (though it didn't always feel that way in the 90s), and I live down the tram line from the ground now, so I don't have to have split loyalties and I don't have anything to prove to anyone who thinks City fans are newbies and glory hunters unless they can recite the 1998 youth side backwards.
I keep a bit of an eye on how the Rags are doing simply because they are a Manchester team - at least nominally - and I do have Rag friends, relatives and colleagues, for which reason I did once go and watch FC United in their early days to see what was happening.
I will watch Arsenal on telly because the Mrs is a Londoner and that's her family's team, but the kids hate them and the Rags - to the point of rubbishing the first to their mum's face and ignoring the latter completely. Years ago, on freebies, I sat in United and Liverpool home ends when Ronaldo was in his pomp and when Torres was in his pomp and felt so little I have no memory of either game.
Only other side I go and see is the Sunday league U15s my mate coaches. I have been tempted to watch Maine Rd FC on days when we aren't playing simply because they are local to me and are not a rebel club, but a club formed by blues in the fifties, but have never got around to it. I can see plenty of circumstances in which I could end up watching a League team as a neutral, and I can't say the price of tickets for Greater Manchester's lower league teams isn't attractive, but I'd never pull on another League team's shirt.