Paddy Crerand poses for a pic.

'This is like Christmas all over again!'

Wednesday 20 May 2020 13:59

Our supporters' clubs are the lifeblood of Manchester United, and will help to spread the Foundation's work during the COVID-19 pandemic. In January, we sent reporter Joe Ganley to a pre-lockdown tribute night at Old Trafford to investigate what makes them so special...

It’s a crisp, cold Friday night, and all is quiet around Old Trafford. Just a few swag sellers hawk scarves, as tourists snap photos and commuters criss-cross the forecourt, ready to begin their weekends.

It’s not so hushed in one small part of the grand old stadium, however: the walkway beneath the Sir Alex Ferguson Stand, where a steady stream of fans can be seen advancing towards the three-tiered behemoth’s entrance.
 
There’s no game on (United are due to face Norwich the next day) and this lot are clearly not here for a first-time visit. Wearing typical smart-casual clothing, they look as comfortable in their surroundings as if M16 were their own personal fiefdom; a home away from home.
 
If you didn’t know better, you might peg them as a permanent part of the furniture; unable to tear themselves away from the site of decades’ worth of euphoria.
 
There’s reason for that, for these chosen few are no less than the beating heart of the global Manchester United following, that stretches from Stretford to Sierra Leone. And tonight they’re here to receive but a small token of the club’s appreciation, at the 2020 ‘Thank You Dinner’ for the supporters’ clubs.
Alan Keegan addresses the audience inside Old Trafford.
It had been a difficult week. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Reds had gone down 3-1 to Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City just three days earlier, but what’s first apparent — as we go through the necessary security checks outside the old United Road stand — is how high spirits are.
 
Old acquaintances are cheerfully rekindled, as fans whose paths have crossed reconnect. For these fans are the roaring furnace that powers much of our fan base, helping Reds from far-flung fields get to their beloved Old Trafford year after year, rain or shine, in good times and bad. United legend Paddy Crerand is one of them. The Texas Reds greet him instantly, to ask how he’s doing. Now 80 years old, Paddy’s warmly taken by the arm and escorted up the escalators towards the Manchester Suite, where tonight’s event will take place.
 
Fans are presented with gift bags upon entry. “This is like Christmas all over again!” jokes one happy recipient. Inside, the eyes are immediately drawn towards the room’s ceiling, where waves of United tricolours sway over proceedings.
 
‘Hungary Fanatics’, ‘High Peak Reds’... Honolulu was probably in there somewhere too, if you had time to make an exhaustive search.
 
But with a free bar and buffet, not many took that option. The pints roll in by the bars at either end of the room, as fans check their tables and get to know those they’ll be closely sharing the evening with.
Almost every area of the table plan catches the eye, via a bewildering array of impressive juxtapositions. Reds from North Devon and Vietnam sit side by side; fans from Krasnodar and Kiev mingle with those from Bangladesh and Belfast. In front of a giant wall mural of Marcus Rashford, guests search for their own supporters’ clubs in a display of the top 100, ranked by their number of official members.
 
Opposite that, photographer Andrew Baker is kept busy by Reds requesting photos with each of the Treble trophies, which are proudly on display.
 
With everyone seated and the beers flowing, the familiar voice of Old Trafford, Alan Keegan, takes to the stage, going around the room and soliciting swirls of applause for the great and good. “Let’s hear it for LA... Korea...! And, finally, Middleton... Where are Yorkshire? We almost had to get a translator in for you lot...” he deadpans.
 
There’s a massive round of applause for Norma Worton, the secretary of the Leamington Spa branch, who’s introduced as ‘The Queen of the Supporters’ Clubs’, after over 45 years of involvement since her branch was first set up in the ’70s. Norma later tells us that Paddy Crerand had ribbed her with the sentence: “When I last saw you, you had black hair!”
 
There’s a moving speech from Manchester United Foundation’s John Shiels, who thanks the guests for the immense backing their support lends to the club’s charitable work in Greater Manchester, before Keegan invites the event’s star attractions to the stage, to huge cheers: United Women manager Casey Stoney and Champions League winner Ji-sung Park.
Ji-sung Park and Casey Stoney were the guests of honour for January's supporter event.
Their first job is to orchestrate a game of ‘goal or miss?’, as a series of in-game clips are shown on the various screens around the room, with fans having to put their hands on their heads when each video is paused if they think the footage will lead to a goal. If they don’t, the hands go on the ol’ derriere. It’s all good fun, eliciting plenty of laughs and, in the final round, one of the Shenzhen Reds, Runnan Shao, emerges triumphant.
 
Stoney and Park are fascinating speakers, and even the former’s admission that her early hero was Ian Wright goes down better than expected with the hardcore. Admittedly, her admission that “beating Liverpool” was her best moment as United Women manager so far didn’t do any harm, in that respect.
 
Park recalls his difficult start in Europe with PSV Eindhoven: “My first season was actually very, very terrible,” he admits. “I got booed more at home matches than away ones! But Guus [Hiddink] waited for me to adapt to European culture and the European football style and then the fans were behind me, which I incredibly appreciated.”
 
The South Korean admits he didn’t understand a word of what Sir Alex Ferguson said to him during their first phone conversation, but remembers being reassured when the Scotsman later reminded him that Ruud van Nistelrooy had joined from PSV and “you’ll be the same as him”. You could still feel the warm glow it had clearly given him all those years ago.
2008 Champions League winner Park spent all evening chatting with Reds.
It’s a fascinating interview, with Park’s comic timing a delight. “Will we see you become a manager one day, Ji?” asks Keegan. A few milliseconds is all the former player needs. “No!” he laughs. Is he still friends with Carlos Tevez? “Yes,” is the answer, though they never speak because there’s no Patrice Evra around to translate for them anymore!
 
Comic Danny McLoughlin keeps the fun going with a freewheeling set — including a nice bit of Gallic repartee with Geoffroy Fisher of MUSC France — but it’s away from the stage that the real pleasure of this evening takes hold.
 
We speak to Rav and Stuart from Perth, Willie Carroll from Carlow, David Herman from Austin, and Abraham from Sierra Leone, among many others. Everyone has a story; a unique tale of how following United has enriched their life and continues to do so. Charalambos Loizou from Cyprus was born in Whitefield before leaving the UK 35 years ago. Emotionally, he tells us: “My best ever feeling was returning to Old Trafford with my son recently. We sat next to each other for the Liverpool match.”
 
It’s just what the soul requires, after a disappointing week for the first team.
Clubs from all over the globe were represented at the event.
You remember that being a Red stretches across your life so much further than last weekend, next weekend; this season, next season.
 
The Edinburgh branch conclude proceedings, leading the room in a rousing rendition of Spirit in the Sky (George Best remix) and Keegan suggests we all decamp to the Nags Head in town for a few supplementary refreshments. 
 
We finish the evening sat with ‘Queen’ Norma, who regales us with 35 years’ worth of stories from these events; of all the players she’s encountered; of how support for the Reds has, in her branch alone, spread all across the country via familial links.
 
It’s an apposite way to end what’s been a beautiful night for all concerned, full of warmth, humour and joy.
 
Our wonderful supporters’ clubs are the fire that keeps much of what’s great about our fan base going, both home and away, as this fitting club tribute has made strikingly clear. Long may they thrive; long may we celebrate them.

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