Football legend Bill Shankly once said, “Some people believe football is a matter of life and death. I can assure you, it’s much more important than that!” He was one to exaggerate a little was our Bill, but the essence of what he said still rings true.
Most of my family were Evertonians, and coming from that neck of the woods, it seemed natural to follow them loyally. I did for a few years, and I remember my father taking me to my first football game (everybody remembers those don’t they,) at Goodison Park when Everton played Burnley in 1965. The Toffees won 1-0 that day, thanks to a Derek Temple goal I seem to recall. I don’t remember much more about it.
My dad was a Burnley supporter, so I guess he had ulterior motives in taking me to this particular match! At the age of ten, I didn’t know anything different, but slowly but surely Ipswich became a part of my heart, and by 1969, I had already changed allegiances when my big cousin was convinced Ipswich would be relegated. I had a bet with my know-it-all cousin that they wouldn’t, and it coincided with the departure of Bill McGarry and the arrival of Sir Bobby Robson. I won the bet and the rest is history!
My love affair with Ipswich Town continued to grow, and the more people wrote them off, the more committed I was to their cause. I slowly witnessed the development of Ipswich Town under Robson, and by 1978, I was well and truly hooked. I was now 23, and already frequenting bars with my mates. One of them was a bookie, and I got odds of 10/1 on Ipswich winning the FA Cup that year, after we defeated Bristol Rovers in a 5th-round replay 6-0 at Portman Road. I guess knowledgeable punters would say they were poor odds, but I never went into betting shops so I didn’t have a clue.
What a wonderful final that was, and on grey depressing days I often look back at that match and try to renew the sensations that engulfed me at the time. That summer I moved to Norfolk so I could get to see as many games as possible at Portman Road, and in 1979 I found myself in Lowestoft so that I could take in even more home games, as the chef where I worked was an Ipswich supporter, so he would give me Saturday’s and Tuesday free! I have watched the Blues playing all over the place over the years, and in Europe competition too, when a certain Marcus Stewart scored our solitary winner one night in Luxembourg! We are all addicted to football. It is in our veins.
This football sojourn lasted throughout that season before I moved to pastures new for working reasons. I had always wanted to live and work in Ipswich but it was not to be, and even now, I do not get to see as many games as I would like, having moved to the Netherlands in 1990. I rely on ifollow these days to see all the live action, but I admire massively all those loyal supporters who travel the length and bredth of the country to watch the Blues. I may not be there in the flesh but I am in spirit and I remain a true blue through and through, and not one day goes by when I don’t find out what is happening to the club I have loved for more than half a century. It really is that special.
