Not Sunderland born but follow the lads.


Status
Not open for further replies.
My daughter - born and raised in Portsmouth/Havant. What a day she had yesterday, pissed off to Cyprus for 5 months and her first night spent with a load of random Sunlun fans in a bar celebrating.
 
Inherited family curse since 1990 for me, like my dad before me both born and raised outside the NE. My Dad's brothers all support Chelsea. Their first game was at the Bridge together, my dad walked away from that game Red and White.
 
What's your story? How did you become a lad?
It started in the early 90s, with another team, Manchester United. Here in Canada at the time they were the most accessible, along with Liverpool and Arsenal I'd say. I watched back then and basically cheered for Manchester United by default. My favorite player at the time? Steve Bruce.

I watched casually throughout the decade when I could, but then, for quite a few years I wasn't really able to watch much. Fast forward to a few years back and right around the time I moved out, got a TV, and I'm eager to start following it again, Steve Bruce starts managing Sunderland. I start watching them out of curiosity - and it stuck. Found them fun to watch, became addicted to the passion that came from following this club with rollercoaster ups and downs and it just got under my skin. Coming here helped too.

I knew this was my team, for sure, for life, when I grew past my support of Steve Bruce and wanted him sacked for the sake of the team just like so many of you here did. Kept following the Black Cats since and haven't looked back.

I actually admit that I still have a soft spot for Manchester United out of the 'top' teams (not as much now that Fergie's gone) but it's more just a sentimental thing that won't go away, whereas my interest in Sunderland has turned into actual love. The built in rivalry with Newcastle helped too, I couldn't stand them back in the day.

I hope to visit someday - just getting to see them in the preseason against Toronto FC felt like a dream come true. That's my story :)
 
Born in Kent, but have lived here for more of my life than I've lived anywhere else.

And as it turns out, great-grandfather x14 built Hylton Castle. So technically many people on the SMB are my villeins or serfs or whatever. The English Heritage people get really arsey when I start talking about moving back in though.
 
Born in stoke (unfortunately) parents from durham. Old man moved down stoke for the pits. Immediate family all live down here now. All family sunderland fans. Supported the lads since my dad took me and my 2 brothers roker park as bairns.
Get to about half home and away games a season.
Can never get accused of being a glory hunter.

We're you in the Harbour View with some Stoke lads this season?
 
Mum and Dad both from Sunderland, dad in RAF ,born somewhere in Lincolnshire. Mum took me to donny rovers as a nipper, brother took me to roker park when I was old enough. First game safc 2-4 liverpool - never looked back. Love Sunderland but never lived there (here I suppose).
 
Not me bud no. I was on a stag do so didnt go the game. My brothers and old man could have been though. How come?

I was talking to some Stoke lads in the pub pre match who had said quite a few Mackems and Geordies had relocated to Staffs to work in the mines. One of the group who was with his little lad then flashed his SAFC badge and said he and the lad were Sunderland fans.
 
I told this story before but it crops up alot when Sunderland fans hear my accent at matches or in the pubs.

My Dad who has since passed away (a Leeds fan) and my Mam (a Man United fan) bought me any amount of different football jersey's growing up ranging from Bayern, to Barca, to Ajax to Man United etc but because there is a such strong United following in Ireland they were the club I grew up liking! "Until" the summer of 2000 when my dad and I were walking along a beach in Majorca, when an elderly gentleman from Sunderland stopped us and we were chatting away, asked me who I followed and I said "well kinda Man United because my mam's always buying me their kits" so he said to me why don't you pick a team that you want to follow and make your own choice with a chuckle at the end. So I thought nothing more of it there and then, until I got home and for whatever reason I wanted to know more about Sunderland. By the end of that summer I had decided I would follow Sunderland and my dad being the great man that he was got his brother Johnny in England to sort out a kit for me by hook or by crook. In the summer of 2001 I got a signed message and the full Sunderland kit sent over from Bobby Saxton!

I was in the crowd Wednesday night, for the first time since my Dad passed away in November (I was at the derby win)

I'll be forever grateful for that elderly gentleman! It made the hours drive to Dublin airport, the flight to Liverpool, the drive from Chester to Sunderland the Wednesday morning, the drive back to Chester on Thursday morning and the flight back to Dublin Thursday night effortless.

I got to see Sunderland beat Everton 3-0 to stay up, to relegate Newcastle and to sing and shout with 46,000+ red and white's on a summers evening.

You can't put a price on that!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Back
Top