Community Shield 2013 – Manchester United vs Wigan

 

Up at he crack of dawn with a bacon butty in one hand and a can of Magners in the other? It can only really mean one thing! Football is back! We played Wigan in the community shield at Wembley and the day will more than likely be remember for events that took place away from the football rather than the match itself if I’m honest.

Travelled down with a couple of mates and my kid brother and got started early on the booze. Got to the ground about an hour prior to kick off and made our way straight in. Must admit, walking down Wembley way I must have seen about 10 Wigan fans and that was it so the atmosphere outside the ground seemed to be one that resembled a home game more than anything. Anyway, got to my seat and I quickly realised I was surrounded by either south stand wankers or cockneys!! The type that only travelled about 20 minutes to get to this match and therefore it wasn’t too much of a big deal to them…not big enough for them to get off their arses and support the team anyway. So after about 20 minutes of being told to sit down I decided I was moving. Ended up behind the goal in the United end with a load of local lads refusing to sit down and refusing to keep quiet. Finally a bit of atmosphere and a chance to sing and get behind the team.

 

Robin Van Persie bagged 2 goals, Carrick was as majestic as always in midfield, Wellbeck ran his socks off, Vidic commanded the defence and new boy Wilfred Zaha was hugely impressive. A lot of talk prior to kick off was our Valencia was no longer going to be wearing the infamous United number 7, which has caused a lot of rumours to fly around that we are bringing someone in. Personally I would say that Zaha should be given the number 7 as he brings everything that that kit requires. Excitement!!! I think he has all the potential to be class.

 

 

One thing I couldn’t get my head around however was looking to wards the managers area and not seeing Sir Alex, and I think that’s something that’s going to take a lot of getting used too. Having said that however, I think David Moyes has done a fantastic job this pre-season and if we don’t bring any players in during the transfer window then I’d still go into this season very confident that we’ll be up there fighting for honours at the very end.

Strange events took place after the match, non stranger than my mate Jeff stopping in the middle of London complaining that his chest had gone tight on him. This led to him sitting down outside a shop on a high street and taking his top off, whilst sitting their in agony. It’s not often you see a speeded up process of how a person becomes homeless but I’m pretty sure any passers by would have been convinced Jeff had fallen on hard times. The fact we filled a plastic cup with some lose change and planted it infront of him probably didn’t help however.

 

A good 15 minutes later and Jeff had managed to throw up behind some pub, point out the fact his vomit had blood in it and we was back in the car on route to Manchester. On route back I couldn’t help think that for all its fame and glory and being world known for ‘the home of football’ Wembley isn’t half a shit hole! The ground might have fancy seats, leg room, 2 giant HD screens and a roof but its missing a lot of heritage and atmosphere and just feels flat!! Give me Old Trafford over that shit hole any day!

Can’t really complain though, had a top day, got a little drunk, sang songs I’ve wanted to sing all summer, jumped around and celebrated and got the result we wanted. Swansea away next for the Reds to kick start the league season! Lets see what happens…

 

 

Up the Reds!

Jonny

Pre Season Tour 2013 – Shell Island, Wales

“This is a family resort!!””

 – Jack Herd

So as Manchester United set off on their tour of the eastern hemisphere me and my mates went on our annual camping trip to Shell Island in Wales.

The week didn’t start off looking promising, We’ve had weeks and weeks and weeks of sunshine, with warnings all over the news about level 4 heat waves and so on and what happens? The second I book time off work for a little break we get warnings of thunderstorms and floods all over the country. Sods law.

However, I’m happy to report that whilst the majority of the country was hit with thunderstorms, and whilst an awful lot of people were left stranded in Manchester due to lightning hitting Piccadilly train station, me and my friends were all sat in glorious sunshine drinking away and having a quality time.

This was our 5th year in a row to Shell Island and you really could tell. We’ve all become experts (or so we’d like to think) on everything camping so much so I seem to have even gone a little bit camp recently?

Our days were spent drinking away and taking the piss out of each other and our nights were spent watching the sun set and all sat round a camp fire with our alcohol and our guitars. As relaxed as it gets and not a thunderstorm in sight. There’s a lot to be said for sitting back all day and literally doing nothing.

As you can expect with a group of lads, the majority of our conversations were football related. Why haven’t Man United signed anyone yet? Why are we constantly being told of rumours that never amount to anything? Why don’t we just break the bank and bring Ronaldo home??

Anyway, I’m home now and back to normality. Sat here in my room, listening to some Oasis as the rain bounces off my bedroom window. Living in Manchester my whole life, I’m almost certain I’ve spent 90% of my life in rain?? I’m almost immune to it now.

Back to work this week, and constantly job hunting. Anything to kill off time before the football season starts again! Not long now though.

Next stop, Wembley!

Up the Reds!

Jonny

2012/2013 Season Review

2012/2013 Season Review

 

 

“Nobody can deny that here, behind the windows of Manchester, there is an insane love of football, of celebration and of music.”

– Eric Cantona

So where do I start? In some ways I am your stereotypical Mancunian and I say that with a great deal of pride. I love my football, I love my music, I love my piss ups. I tend to walk around with the typical Manc arrogance that often is associated with us lot. However all this is down to a potentially typical 90’s upbringing in Manchester and not through choice. I know this because almost everyone of my close friends who I have known an awful long time, speaks how I speak, dresses how I dress, listens to what I listen too and see’s what I see. The only difference between us is that now I have decided to write a blog. None of my close friends blog, in fact, I’m almost certain that the only ‘blogs’ my friends are aware of are the Joe Blogs jumpers their Mum’s bought for them growing up in the 90’s from a precinct up the road in their local area.

I have wanted to start a blog for some time now, I just never knew how to get one started or even what to write but if people on my facebook can get a way with publishing every little step, noise and shit that their beloved new baby born can make then I think I can get a way with writing what I’ve been up to with my week. Who knows, you might actually enjoy reading this. If not, that doesn’t matter. You can go look else where for your fix. I’ve set this up for selfish reasons as I want to improve my writing. and I want to document my weeks so I can reflect back on them at a later date, possibly 10 years from now, and laugh at how hectic and stupid my life was at times.

So, I feel its only right I explain a little about myself and I think the best way for me to do that is to explain what I have gotten up to over the past 12 months or so. I am a life long Manchester United fan and with that I’ve potentially just lost any remaining people left still reading this blog. I have a season ticket in the Stretford End at Old Trafford and have done for a number of years now. I travel to as many away games as possible and I pretty much let football dictate my life. I plan my weekends around it, I spend my wages on it and often I waste my time on it. For example, I once travelled for 5 hours to a lovely place called Norwich, which is not exactly a place that was on bucket list to visit before I died, to witness the worst performance of last season where Manchester United didn’t even manage a single shot on target and a game which we lost 1-0. The only positive about this trip was I we could pull over on the A-roads for a piss at anytime, after 8 or so cans of cider when you’re needing a piss round every bend this is a God send believe me. But even then, that didn’t seem to make the long journey home that night too exciting for us. Especially considering I had work at 6am the next day. But that’s what I’m like. Its who I am, I make the majority of my decisions around when and where that team are playing at the weekend. So much so that my calendar does not really start in January like everyone elses. It starts in August, at the start of the new season. August will no longer be 2013 to me. It will be 2013/2014 and the new season will be under way.

Last season however, was one I shall never forget. Some highlights including traveling all the way down to Southampton to witness Robin Van Persie bag a last minute winner and a hat trick to send us all back home on the train back to Manchester singing his name in tune of ‘Seven Nation Army’ by the White Stripes (After 5 hours straight of this on a train, drunk with many other Mancs this still wasn’t boring to us). Another highlight, despite the loss, was the Real Madrid game at home. Personally believe we were well and truly screwed over in that game however the atmosphere that night at Old Trafford was unbelievable. Once again, Robin Van Persie’s wonder volley against Aston Villa at Old Trafford to seal Manchester United’s 20th league title. And finally saying goodbye to Sir Alex Ferguson who retired from management at the end of the season.

That last home game at Old Trafford was unlike anything I had ever witnessed. I’ve grown up having never seen another Manchester United manager other than Sir Alex. I feel closer to him that I do any of my Grandparents and I personally believe he has influenced me far more than any other 70+ year old that I know. The day I found out he had decided to retire, I was walking through the warehouse at work and one of the blokes I worked with ran over and dragged me towards the radio. Around me was a large collection of middle aged men including my supervisor and my boss. It seemed nothing else mattered at that time, work seemed irrelevant. After it was announced there was a strange silence across the warehouse, almost as if someone had died to which one work mate of mine disrupted my shouting out ‘END OF AN ERA’ which is was.  That last home match of the season was a perfect send off. The atmosphere in the stands was unlike anything I had ever witnessed and the memory of Sir Alex entering Old Trafford as “The Impossible Dream” played out across the stadium speakers still gets me a tad chocked up.

Football wasn’t the only thing on the agenda last season though. I also went to my fair share of gigs, Non greater than a trip to London to see the legendary Manc band The Stone Roses play live t Finsbury Park. Just like with away games at football, nothing can describe the feeling of immense pride you get walking through a town or city, knowing you’re there to support your local team, or your local band, and everyone in that different town/city that you’re in knows that’s why you’re there.

I think the main life changing thing that happened to me last season though, was the relationship that I am still currently in. Before her my life was split 50/50  between getting drunk and going to the football, or getting drunk and going to a gig. So much so that the majority of the dribble you have read so far in this blog was true at one point but things are changing, I’m changing. I feel so more and more each week. The laptop this blog is being wrote on was a gift from my girlfriend, and the fact I’m even attempting to write a blog is something that 12 months ago I’d have pissed my sides at. I don’t want to get all soppy but I can fully admit that she inspires me more than anyone else I’ve ever met and has opened my eyes over the past year.

I think what I am basically trying to get at here as that although I often admittedly give it the ‘Big I Am’ to anyone and everyone gullible enough and willing enough to listen, the reality is I want better for myself and hopefully if I keep this blog up you’ll all be able witness these changes as and when they happen.

By the end of it all I might have a change of job or I might have a change of address. Won’t have a change of football team though. That will never change,

Looking forward to next season to start.

Up the Reds!

Jonny