Why you supported our wonderful club

My grandad and my dad so I had no choice. They both took me in the early 70’s and that was that. The old man’s 86, still goes to every home game with me. He was on the phone last night talking about the Cardiff game for over an hour. He’d been to the game, recorded it and watched it twice and then wanted to talk about it. Fair to say he’s not lost his enthusiasm for City.
 
Moved from Motherwell to Ardwick in 1970. My older brother decided he'd be a rag so naturally I took the opposite view. When I started going to games regularly in 83 he became a convert. He has worked at the swamp for getting on for 20 years, I'm still not sure if he is a closet rag or just working against them from the inside.
 
Like so many, I was taken as a child by my father.

But I'll tell a little story I have done before about the coda to it.

My father went constantly from his boyhood to the mid seventies until the family moved south when I was little. So I didn't get quite the same experience, it was going to visit family that I would be taken to games ("I've put up with it for 40 years, I don't see why he should get away with it"), so throughout the eighties I would go to occasional games. It was always a wonderful treat.

Into my adulthood I'd still make the trek north to see City. Not often, maybe a couple of games a season, and more usually to City away matches in the south in those days when you could get tickets for them.

My father as he got older stopped going more or less. He had grown out of the habit of it, though would watch on TV and still was very much a blue.

Come 2011 and City reached the cup final. A friend of mine was a member of the Sussex FA and they got tickets to such things, and knowing me as a City fan asked if I wanted them. Obviously I did.

So I rang my father and said that it was 30 years since he first took me to a game, the FA Cup 3rd round v Crystal Palace (January 3rd, 1981). He didn't remember. I then said that year City had reached the cup final, and we watched it at home. Wouldn't it be nice, all those years later to watch it together again?

"Oh yes it would. That would be nice. Do you want to come down and watch it with us?"

"I could dad. Or you could come with me to Wembley".

I will treasure that long silence for the rest of my life. And what a day we had. The turning of the circle - son taking his father to football.

I love my Dad for introducing me to City. And though I don't go remotely as often as many on here, I do go. I'm there on Saturday, I'm up for the Spurs league match. All because he took a little boy to Maine Road, wide eyed in the North Stand, wondering who this lady with a bell was, watching Joe Corrigan patrol his six yard box and do shuttle runs across it.
 
My Auntie married David Cross, so In the '82/83 season My dad and I went to most of the home games that year, some of them for free. He made 31 appearances and scored 12 goals.
 
My mothers side of the family, from Denton.
As a kid I'd go to my Grandparents and listen to stories of my mums 3 brothers and her Dad following City up and down the country, often going missing for days after a City win (probably locked up for fighting or being drunk as they were all military men). They often hitch hiked to most away games in the 50's and 60's. When one of them acquired a car, they had a routine of driving up to the Streford End, and having a pee up the wall before they set off for the game, and in 68 they didn't come home for a nearly a week after winning the League!
I learnt to read by going through Hundreds of old football programmes my Grandad kept in a suitcase, and it was my Uncle who took me to my first game in the 1973/74 season, aged 10 against Chelsea which we won 3-2.
I also went to Old Trafford at the end of the season, watching us win 1 nil, the infamous Denis Law back heal. My Dad was a Cop and he sneaked me into the scoreboard paddock, along with dozens of other kids, and I've not missed a derby match there since!
Ironically my Dad was a closet Red, he never went mind, but when my father in law passed away, some 16 years ago, my Dad took over his City season ticket, and has been going ever since. So 4 generations of blues have followed them now. Attend games with my Sister son and father, along with 8 other friends, including my best mate who I met at Infant/junior school 50 years ago. He was a Cockney and Arsenal Fan, but soon became a blue and has followed them with me ever since, travelling from Stretford and Urmston on the 53 bus as a youngster to Maine Road, great days.
 
I lived in Hulme not far from Maine Road as a kid in the early sixties. We could hear the roar of the crowd on occasion when playing in the street. I never went to a game then as my dad wasn't interested in football and I was too young.

We moved to Wythenshawe when they pulled all the pre war houses down and the kids talked me into playing football on the green ( Grass was in short supply in Hulme so it was a novelty lol) I started to become interested in football but had no real affinity to any club. I then read an article in the paper by Malcolm Allison. I was mesmerised by this charismatic man talking about how City were the underdog and he wanted to see every kid going to school with a City scarf around their neck rather than a United one. City kind of became my club then, although I hadn't been to a game then.

A while later me and my sister had been playing up as kids do so my dad stopped us going to the Saturday morning pictures, the minors of the ABC .I bumped into my mate Noel who asked why I wasn't at the pictures. When I told him he said, " Why don't you come to the match with me?" He was a City fan and my dad, against all odds, relented, after a great persuasive speech by Noel and let me go to the match. It was City v West Brom and we won 5-1. The rest is history. So thanks Noel Hurley if you are reading this and thanks to my dad for letting me go, what a ride it has been.
 
Henkeman said:
Like so many, I was taken as a child by my father.

But I'll tell a little story I have done before about the coda to it.

My father went constantly from his boyhood to the mid seventies until the family moved south when I was little. So I didn't get quite the same experience, it was going to visit family that I would be taken to games ("I've put up with it for 40 years, I don't see why he should get away with it"), so throughout the eighties I would go to occasional games. It was always a wonderful treat.

Into my adulthood I'd still make the trek north to see City. Not often, maybe a couple of games a season, and more usually to City away matches in the south in those days when you could get tickets for them.

My father as he got older stopped going more or less. He had grown out of the habit of it, though would watch on TV and still was very much a blue.

Come 2011 and City reached the cup final. A friend of mine was a member of the Sussex FA and they got tickets to such things, and knowing me as a City fan asked if I wanted them. Obviously I did.

So I rang my father and said that it was 30 years since he first took me to a game, the FA Cup 3rd round v Crystal Palace (January 3rd, 1981). He didn't remember. I then said that year City had reached the cup final, and we watched it at home. Wouldn't it be nice, all those years later to watch it together again?

"Oh yes it would. That would be nice. Do you want to come down and watch it with us?"

"I could dad. Or you could come with me to Wembley".

I will treasure that long silence for the rest of my life. And what a day we had. The turning of the circle - son taking his father to football.

I love my Dad for introducing me to City. And though I don't go remotely as often as many on here, I do go. I'm there on Saturday, I'm up for the Spurs league match. All because he took a little boy to Maine Road, wide eyed in the North Stand, wondering who this lady with a bell was, watching Joe Corrigan patrol his six yard box and do shuttle runs across it.
Click to expand...
Made my eyes water a bit that mate. Lovely stuff.
 
Thanks to my departed dad and his dad.

Once we had moved away from Manchester back in the 60's the highlight of my year was going back to my grandad at eastern circle in burnage at Easter, where he would give us all the old programs from the games he had been to that season. And my dad would splash out and take us to watch City in the main stand very posh, I think it's was 70p a ticket !. In the souvenir shop/house we would buy our scarf.
Every week grandad would post down to us in kent the football pink , that help keep us in touch with City as the London press didn't really report on us and we only saw a few minutes highlights if City were playing a London club
I was lucky enough to two tickets for the final Maine Road match so I took my dad, we parked by the bus stop where grandad would get of and than went for a quick drink in I think it was the Vic after the match in burnage. There my dad said grandad went to the first Maine Road match and here we are at the last.
All our kids are City so now into our 5th generation.
At Easter we could walk into Maine Road on the Friday before the match and get the players autograph and chat with them in fact Tony Book was the time I had heard someone swear lol.
My new partner as she was than soon to be my Mrs, after me telling her of our family history with City and what a great family club it is , she wrote to City asking what the club could suggest she gets for my than 54th birthday ......well City sent free of charge a signed Sergio card with happy birthday on it !! Made me feel like a little kid again.
What a great club we have...
It's easier now to get about the country so my lads are lucky as we come back home for as many games as money and time will allow, I think we have been up 5 times this season...

Another quick story my mum would tell us that if City were at home midweek her school would finish early as it was in the car park of Maine Road, I know if I look at old photos I can see it in the back ground ..
 
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City were playing at home the weekend my Uncle Matt came down from Whitehaven and wanted to go to the match! God knows I owe the fixture compiler a lifetime's debt of gratitude. And of the two Bukta footy shirts in the shop window of Eddie Phillipson's sports shop in 'Apper'ay in the 50's the sky blue just appealed way more than the other wretched one.
 
Henkeman said:
Like so many, I was taken as a child by my father.

But I'll tell a little story I have done before about the coda to it.

My father went constantly from his boyhood to the mid seventies until the family moved south when I was little. So I didn't get quite the same experience, it was going to visit family that I would be taken to games ("I've put up with it for 40 years, I don't see why he should get away with it"), so throughout the eighties I would go to occasional games. It was always a wonderful treat.

Into my adulthood I'd still make the trek north to see City. Not often, maybe a couple of games a season, and more usually to City away matches in the south in those days when you could get tickets for them.

My father as he got older stopped going more or less. He had grown out of the habit of it, though would watch on TV and still was very much a blue.

Come 2011 and City reached the cup final. A friend of mine was a member of the Sussex FA and they got tickets to such things, and knowing me as a City fan asked if I wanted them. Obviously I did.

So I rang my father and said that it was 30 years since he first took me to a game, the FA Cup 3rd round v Crystal Palace (January 3rd, 1981). He didn't remember. I then said that year City had reached the cup final, and we watched it at home. Wouldn't it be nice, all those years later to watch it together again?

"Oh yes it would. That would be nice. Do you want to come down and watch it with us?"

"I could dad. Or you could come with me to Wembley".

I will treasure that long silence for the rest of my life. And what a day we had. The turning of the circle - son taking his father to football.

I love my Dad for introducing me to City. And though I don't go remotely as often as many on here, I do go. I'm there on Saturday, I'm up for the Spurs league match. All because he took a little boy to Maine Road, wide eyed in the North Stand, wondering who this lady with a bell was, watching Joe Corrigan patrol his six yard box and do shuttle runs across it.
Click to expand...
Great story mate...
 
My dad was a Yorkshire man so he would watch both teams when he could ,mainly City. When I came along he took me to Old Trafford for my first game but it was sold out, he didn't want to disappoint me so we jumped on the bus to watch City reserves.I was at the next home match and I was hooked .Dad also became an avid blue and detested the reds until the day he died.
 
blue b4 the moon said:
Made my eyes water a bit that mate. Lovely stuff.
Click to expand...
Same for me,lump in the throat time.
Dad first took me and my younger brother in the 1965-66 Division 2 promotion season,and then I started going with my school friends 4 years later.
So it was bringing the wheel full circle when I started taking my Dad to matches in the mid 90s. His birthday is early December and it was difficult to know what to get him as a present(he was in his late 60s by then and had all the material things he wanted).
So I would buy tickets for a home match near his birthday and then pick him up from Alkrington and then take him back home after the match. And then do the same a few weeks later for a Christmas present.
So thanks Dad for taking me to City matches in the 1960s.
 
My Dad didn't really give me a choice in the matter. We moved away from Manchester when I was 4 and was the only City fan at school. I started High School the same year United won the treble and City were in Division 2, but its all been worthwhile looking back. That was just character building.
 
I went to school in Bradford in the 80s and wanted to be different as everyone else supported Leeds United. Bradford City or Liverpool at the time. As a Smiths fan, I read articles in the music press that Johnny Marr was a huge City fan, so decided to follow his path.
Having worked shifts for most my life, I didn't actually get to attend a match until Arsenal at home in 2009 (the infamous 4-2 Adebayor celebration game) and have been hooked ever since.
Yes, I know I'm a JCL !!!
 
I'm born and raised in Stretford. Surrounded by United fans, including Aunts / Uncles / cousins.

Was disgusted by the sheer arrogance of them all ... even in those days (70s & 80s), when Liverpool dominated, everyone would tell me United were the biggest club in the world, it's every kid and professional footballer's dream to play for United, even the Liverpool players secretly wish they played for United, George Best, Bobby Charlton, at the start of every season every other team just looked at their fixture list to see when they'd have the honour of playing at Old Trafford, before every FA Cup draw all the lower division teams would say they just hoped to draw United for the honour of being eliminated by them and telling their grandkids one day that they were on the same hallowed turf as United, as soon as United were eliminated from any Cup everyone who knew anything about football was sad because that competition was now devalued, when United did manage to win anything they were "back where they belonged", anywhere you went in the British Isles you'd be surrounded by people who had never even visited Manchester / laughed at northern accents but were "lifelong United fans" ... etc ad infinitum. (Could go on forever).

Couldn't stand their sheer entitlement / cockiness / patronising / glory-hunting.

So became a City fan and dedicated myself to hating United and everything they stand for.

Have never regretted it ... although for many years it felt like a bit of a curse. Now we get to watch Vinnie, Merlin, KDB, Sergio, etc ... it's become a wonderful blessing !
 
Lived in Hull - but sky blue was the school team colours and my mum bought me the school kit (this was in 1968) I didn't know who played in sky blue but found out and the rest is history - used to get a trans pennine train into Victoria to watch City, now travel up from Hertfordshire so its never been easy to watch city. My son now is a blue of course but so much easier as I do all the fetching and carrying and paying !! He's 15 seen us lift the FAC, league cup 4 times and took him to Shalke this year - so easy how lucky he is to be a blue but tbh all the football of the 80's and travelling make it so much sweeter now !!
 
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