Being Blue

Distant Toffee Fan

I became a Toffee fan exactly 20 years ago when i had the privilege of spending a short part of my life in Liverpool while my dad was working as a doctor at Alder Hey Hospital. It was 1987 and i was drawn instantly to the blue half of Mersey.

When i returned to India the following year,i lost track of what was happening to the team as we didnt have cable at the time.My only news about the game came from friends who were still in Liverpool ,via the phone.From what i heard,i was sad to hear of our decline.

When we did get cable, there was hardly any football shown in India and even that was confined to matches showing Man Utd or Arsenal. As the viewing audience started to appreciate the quality on show, many of them became followers of the clubs that were on top of the league.

These fans continue to grow each year and we get to see almost every league game now (although Man Utd, Chelsea and Liverpool still get preference for live games!).

My mum has become a huge fan of the club too and often watches games on the telly when i am at work and texts me the scores. My girlfriend (who is now my wife!) also joined the fan club and is now a fan.

When i got married last year,family friends from Liverpool came down for the wedding and even baked my wedding cake with an Everton emblem on it which i proudly displayed to all the invited guests.

I dream of one day visiting the ahllowed grounds of Goodison Park (if that's where we still are years from now!) with my wife and family to watch us playing the Dark side from across the park.
Over the last 20 years there have been a lot of ups and downs for me as a Toffee fan (more downs than ups actually!) but that's what makes my love for the club grow each year. There have been terrible losses but it's the victories that stay in my memory for a longer period of time. Wins over Arsenal (a la Rooney), Man Utd (thanks, Dunc), Liverpool( thanks Campbell, Cars, AJ) still make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

So as I continue on my long journey as an Everton fan, I am very thankful for the opportunity to be part of an elite group of people... long may our great club tradition continue!
Santosh Benjamin, India

6 June, 2007