For my entire school life the "followers" of these ***** took the piss, going to a greater Manchester primary school out in the sticks, I was the only City fan in a class of 30, 29 being rags.
My dad recalls, and still mentions it to this day, me approaching him as a very young nipper asking "dad why do we support City?"... he said " what do you mean?".... I said "well everybody else at school supports Utd". He goes on to say "what everyone???".... I said " yeah everyone but me".
This was the mid 90's and he was taken aback by the fact I was the only blue in a class of 30, yet being a 30 min drive from Manchester's centre. I remember going to school after County had beat us and getting the piss ripped out of me, I was Jimmy Grimble essentially. I got to secondary after this and there was a small group of us blues who stuck together, derby defeat after defeat, after defeat, after defeat, we still wore our City shirts under the school uniform the next day to reveal them at lunch time footy. We didn't give a shit, City were a cult and Utd were the establishment, the *****, the team every sheep supported. We were the rebels, the team that always lost and fucked things up.
The more Utd won, the more me and my pals backed City, it literally was a cult, a big fuck off to the ***** taking the easy ride. Don't get me wrong some of my best mates were Utd fans, they tried to sway me "just support Utd mate, come on, its easier" and I swear to god that was verbatim. I never gave in despite our shite. The difference was that I went to City at the very least, every home game. Those red ***** never went, they used to go mental because they got to watch it on tele, meanwhile I was being escorted every other weekend down to the Platt Lane by my dad. A man whose passion hasn't changed now, since the 1970's and throughout the shite.
Even now, whilst we're so much better than them, drilling everyone at home, being 10 points clear, expanding our stadium, building the biggest academy in the world. I cannot bring myself to take the piss, I never want to be like them, I've taken more flack than any follower of another club in English football but yet I cannot bring myself to stoop to their level, I think we're better than that. I feel uneasy seriously ripping anyone else, even them.
I remember being sat there in the second half of the 06/07 season having not scored at home for a succession of games, everyone was fucking fed up, it was the worst football City had played in decades and the stadium was growing quieter by the second because of the complete and utter disillusion, yet I remember sitting there thinking "I'd rather be like this than be like them ".
