I think I've said pretty much most of this before on other threads but......
My grandad was one of those who was involved in the building of Roots Hall. He was never one of the leaders, but he was there nevertheless. He'd used to attend at the Greyhound with his sons - my dad and my uncle, and was very good friends with both Frank Gill and Frank Walton.
As things often do, once family gets in the way, going to matches tends to go by the by for a while, so my dad didn't go much in the 60s, having a young family, qualifying as a chartered accountant and running 3rd Southchurch Scouts took up far too much of his time. I was born at home in Wenham Drive, just a stone's throw from the ground.
Anyway, my first football memories are of watching the 1970 Leeds v Chelsea FA Cup final on the TV with my dad, and I guess things just developed from there. I know I was at Bill Garner's last game for the Blues, so I started going around the 1971/72 season.
It was just me and dad to start with, I was always a Daddy's girl so enjoyed time on my own with him. We'd sit in the East Blues, in the front row of the seats of that block nearest the North Bank, and so Dad could pour half time bovril from his flask and we'd share a cup.
I remember being fascinated by the North Bank and watching "Knees up Mother Brown" going on in there.
After a season or two, Mum and my younger sister started coming along for some games so we'd all sit there. That didn't last too long and by now, my best friend (who was the daughter of one of Dad's oldest friend) and I had season tickets in the North Paddock. Dad would take us and we'd meet him at the end of the game. I remember the season ticket books where you'd tear out a ticket from the book at the turnstiles.
Occasionally I would go on the wonderful South Bank to watch, I think that may have been cup games.
I remember away games with Dad at Colchester, Swindon, Bournemouth amongst others.
The mid 70s were "my" time, "my" team - and this was compounded by the arrival of Dave Smith and the first Meet the Blues type open day that I remember in August 1976 on the pitch at Roots Hall. Happy times.
Of course, as time moves on, so does your life - and I continued going until the start of the 80s. By now I was heavily involved in the local Leo Club (younger version of Lions) and didn't have the time to go anymore. I'd met my first husband and he had no interest in football at all. I'd still follow Southend's luck in the press and that, but stopped going.
It wasn't till my Dad picked up going again himself (as he was also very involved with Lions) in the 90s, and then started to take my son that I returned to my spiritual home. And that is what it felt like, returning with them to sit in the West family stand, and subsequently the South Lower really did feel like coming home.
With a season ticket again myself from the late 90s, I was soon hooked again. My marriage floundering, I discovered ShrimperZone and found a whole group of Southend fans that I could talk football - and just about any other crap - with. SZ was my saviour through a very difficult time, and some of the friends I have made here have been huge supports through that period,
@Cricko and
@Tinks in particular.
And, of course, then I met Kev. Kev had been a Chelsea supporter from young, when they lived in London - "when they were crap", as he says himself. When they moved down here, he'd been coming to Southend and was part of the old North Bank crew, more or less at the time when I wasn't coming. We discovered this mutual Southend United connection, our first date was to Millwall away in 2010, and our second was to Colchester away a few weeks later.
Thanks to
@TrueBlue , I was invited along to the Shrimpers Trust board meetings, and soon became involved there. Still attend with my dad who is now 82, though I'm not sure how much longer he's going to be able to, but still, my Club, my life.
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