Nick Reed

Why Blue?

Why, why, why!… All I can really remember as a youngster is Mick Channon’s windmill arm celebration, the great strip colour and that I didn’t know anyone else who supported them.

I was an Englishman living in Scotland and so clearly had to support an English team; Channon I think had a lot to do with it. During the moderately successful times you don’t tend to ask why you support the team you do, but during dire times, such as those we are currently sinking in, I find myself wondering ‘why?’ so much I get distracted at work!

Bottom line is that there is no real answer – I didn’t have a game that I was taken to and I didn’t have a relative who also supported them – my dad is a Rotherham fan – there was no way I was going to support a team from the lower divisions!

One lasting early memory was when I managed to pursuade my dad that it would be a good idea to watch the 1981 FA Cup Final – in Scotland we could only see the Scottish Final and my dad drove us to a hill in Fife in his old beat up Volvo and we plugged our little black and white portable telly into the car battery and watched the final standing up on a hill in Fife with the telly on the car roof (good times, crap replay)!

So there we have it – Qu. ‘Why Blue?’ – Ans. ‘Don’t know really’! I have no regrets though – I am glad I didn’t choose Man Utd – it would have been too easy and no-one takes you seriously when the team is successful.

I hope if nothing else this ‘why blue’ acts as a catalyst to kick start our season and the rest of our lives!

First printed in: MCIVTA Newsletter #461 on