Myself and Drew went down to the ground last night to assist Pritch with a spot of painting (well Drew painted, and i made the brews…badly!!). Once again it struck me what a special Club we have here at Witton. To see Pritch and Mrs Pritch putting so much effort into painting the changing rooms and doors etc just makes you feel really humble. On top of that Nige was down there signing Paul Donnelly, and he brought him over to be introduced to us (well not to me as i was ragging Drew’s car to Tesco to get some milk and sweets!).
We have a real living legend in Pritch, the Club’s record appearance holder, and he still finds the time to spend his nights at WP doing menial tasks. Then you have Nige, who is Witton through and through and always has enough time to stop and speak to you - despite the fact that life must be pretty hectic for him right now!
But we also have people like Mike Mosely (Hi Mike, i know you’ll be reading this!!). A bloke who left the Club that he loves, but still found the time to come and play for the Supporters Team before he left. He still keeps in touch, and he hurt as much as we did when we failed to go up. Witton is a special Club that remains in the hearts of people like Mike.
Then i remember the charity game v the Vics fans at Christmas. About 17 of us bone fide Witton fans got to pull on that famous Red and White and raise £1500 for charity. Fellow Witton fans came down to support us, aswell as Nige, Pritch, Mose, etc etc. Another reason why it’s great to be a Witton fan. Apart from the scoreline that was one of the best footballing days of my life!
So we’ll have a new team to cheer on next season, with new songs to make up, and new player profiles for me to write in the program! New friends to make, and fresh memories to create. And the best part of it is that we, as supporters, play as much a part in the success of our Club as any player or official does. It’s been said before, and it may sound cliched, but Witton really is a unique place to be. We’ve been kicked in the teeth time and time again, but we keep on smiling. We keep on turning up with the same hopes and expectations each August, only for my Dad to be proved right once again in April as we crash and burn in glorious fashion!! Once again we’ll spend wet Tuesday nights at Frickley, and Matlock, and Buxton. We’ll have our annual stop-over in Whitby (providing the fixture list is kind to us!), and instead of trips to Lincoln, Leek, and Stamford, we’ll be going to Gigg Lane, Leigh Genesis, and Nantwich.
The truth is that we should be looking forward to life in the Blue Square North, and i’m still amazed that we aren’t. I think certain people owed it to the fans to have given it one last try. One bloke had the guts to take on that challenge though, and in Nige we must trust.
However, the Club is lacking one vital ingredient at the moment. GE, once again i urge you to reconsider. Like Nige and Pritch you are Witton through and through. We need people like you to represent the rest of us who don’t have the qualities that you do.
It’s going to be an interesting season, but with the many different characters we have cheering the team on from the terraces i see no reason why we can’t enjoy this season more than any other.
As always, ONWARDS AND UPWARDS!!!
