Forest Fan In Exile

Well my 3 years of being forestfaninvegas are almost at an end and as I sit here a very nice room in the MGM Grand, I decided to share my feelings about what it is like to be an exiled Trickie Tree.

Going to the City Ground is, for me anyway, a journey that evokes feelings that only Forest fans can understand. We have a history, a tradition and a former manager that will go down in footy folklore as the greatest there ever was. So what has it been like these past 3 years being unable to take my every other Saturday trip over Trent Bridge – in all honesty totally rubbish!

The beer in the pub before the game, the wander down Trent-side, the ever so friendly ticket person on the turnstile were replaced by early mornings and a cuppa on the sofa whilst listening to the match via the wonders of the internet. I read many people complaining about 12:45 kick-offs, but for me that was a 4:45 am start – not a good plan after a night on the town. As much as NFFC are not know for their passionate support and care for their fans, Forest World became my lifeline on a matchday and I even got used to the ramblings of Colin Fray and John McGovern. Having stood and sat in the Trent end for many years, I know from experience that watching the mighty Reds can be a nail biting experience at the best of times, but Colin and John have strange knack of making the most stressful time, ten times worse. John McGovern may have been one of our best players and certainly one of the best captains the club has ever known and he obviously has a passion for the club, but he is not going to set the world alight as a commentator/analyst. The strange thing is, I will miss his dulcet tones come home game against Orient. I am not tempted to listen to the radio whilst sitting in my Trent End Upper Tier seat, but along with Colin, he has become the voice of Forest, the voice of home.

The internet, amongst other things, had made the world a much smaller place and being 5000 odd miles away is not quite has hard as it once was. I can read the garbage that is published in the NEP every few days, I can read the Telegraph sentence on a Monday morning and most importantly I can read and join discussions of Forest Fans world-wide on forums like this and others.

The last 3 years of my life have been a roller coaster ride of emotions. Relegation, the ginger year, and now at long last, an air of optimism radiates from the club. We are a great club, with the greatest supporters and the finest traditions and I cannot wait to be back in the fold, feeling the passion, the love and the pain of my fellow fans. Will I miss the early mornings, the Colin and John commentary, hell no, but hey this was Vegas baby!



Vegas