| Never has a fan base deserved success more 13:22 - Apr 26 with 2925 views | Asa |
Before the match yesterday I was pondering the number of recent meaningful games we had in a generation.
No promotion and one relegation in the last 20 odd years. Even in the relegation season, we went down with a whimper. It wasn't really the case of having significant or do or die matches. Aside from blowing being top of the league at Christmas to scrape into the playoffs, failing to do our bit and benefitting from a result elsewhere, we'd been starved of any joy.
Even in that one season, the only one since at least 2005, in itself 18 years ago, we lost to our deadly rivals and had to watch them benefit from Middlesbrough's bloody bus breaking down and unsettling their own Wembley preparation. They yo-yo'd their way to parachute money galore. Not one of those season did ITV digital collapse, such is our luck. They should be on another planet to us. Norwich City - we're coming for you!
Last night was incredible. Everywhere I looked were people I knew. People I'd trudged out of Carrow Road with after being humiliated yet again. People I'd seen get angry on the way out of yet another, less than 10,000 in the ground, pathetic home defeat. People I'd spent 10 hours on a coach with, getting home at 4am, only to see a Town team that didn't even care. People who'd stopped going to Portman Road after 20, 30, 40, 50 years because of Evans or McCarthy or Lambert or a gutless, spineless squad full of players who cared nothing for our club.
Last night these same people were hugging, kissing, falling over seats, singing songs with all their heart. Some had tears running down their faces. Plenty were hugging their kids who've never known anything other than stories of past glory, with no previous memories of their own to enjoy. Well they do now!
For us fans on the coaches, Mark Ashton climbed aboard to thank us all for our support. The man who epitomises everything the club is now from the owners, players and management. Humble, grateful, hard-working, talented, motivated, ambitious and never satisfied with standing still.
On the pitch, the most likeable bunch of pros ever to wear the blue and white. Decent footballers, but even better people off the pitch. Players that our community has fallen in love with. Players who have fallen in love with our community.
For every Town fan whether home and away, season ticket, hundreds of miles away, overseas, we all have our stories of why we fell in love with the club and we all have plenty more about misery, humiliation, frustration, desperation and not being able to see when the good times would be back. 30,000 in the third tier. 5,000 going away on a Tuesday. The rest scattered around the UK and the globe breaking EFL iFollow records continually. We deserve this team.
This team is not just incredible. They are laughable levels of brilliant. How the hell can you take 37 points from 39 during the hardest run of the season, with the pressure that involves, battering teams left, right and centre, whilst never looking like conceding. Going to close rivals, in their own stunning runs of form, and destroying them.
For all those years of misery and wondering why we bother - this is why!
A promotion party at Portman Road to make memories for the old and new generations is now entirely likely.
Here lies the Banter Era. Long live the Town!!! [Post edited 26 Apr 2023 13:37]
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| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 13:26 - Apr 26 with 2831 views | SomethingBlue |
Saturday is going to be so epic, I just hope the team delivers one last time. Pretty much everyone I've ever known with an Ipswich connection seems to be wheeling themselves out for this one, whether they have a ticket or not! | |
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| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 13:36 - Apr 26 with 2684 views | Vic |
Great piece Asa. Nicely done.
It's what this lass talks about right at the end
(Warning - your room will get dusty when this plays!) |  |
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| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 13:39 - Apr 26 with 2645 views | markchips |
Very well written.
We need to get it right on Saturday but this is a team on a mission and I expect they will complete the job they started. | | | |
| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 13:42 - Apr 26 with 2598 views | keighleyblue |
| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 13:26 - Apr 26 by SomethingBlue |
Saturday is going to be so epic, I just hope the team delivers one last time. Pretty much everyone I've ever known with an Ipswich connection seems to be wheeling themselves out for this one, whether they have a ticket or not! |
Last night was incredible but yes it will - hopefully - be epic, although I will be wheeling myself in front of my laptop screen rather than travelling down to Suffolk :) |  | | |
| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 13:43 - Apr 26 with 2589 views | Tractor_Buck |
Poetic. Sums up my feelings perfectly. I wasn't there last night but lived it vicariously through friends that were and it just seemed that everything clicked, just as it been for most of this season.
On your point about the wider fan base can I offer my son as an example. Born in 2003, he's been around almost the entire length of the Banter Era and has only know Towen achieving the square root of FA. He's never wavered, never even entertained the idea of adopting another league team throughout his childhood. They're his team. He's studying at the Royal Veterinary College at the moment and it's a bloody good thing his end of year exams are a few weeks away, as right now he can't concentrate on anything other than Saturday.
I've been around long enough to see a couple of trophies etc, but him? No, nada, nothing. He's one of the people I feel the best for at the moment, and yeah it's 'only league one' but we look like we're finally on our way, and in the process of repaying all that faith over all those years. |  | | |
| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 13:50 - Apr 26 with 2548 views | artsbossbeard |
CAVEAT:
This only applies to fans who didn't sing about Mick being a peado at Brentford and/or had any part in the Magilton Out spreadsheet.
They can F off. |  |
| Please note: prior to hitting the post button, I've double checked for anything that could be construed as "Anti Semitic" and to the best of my knowledge it isn't. Anything deemed to be of a Xenophobic nature is therefore purely accidental or down to your own misconstruing. | | Poll: | Raining in IP8 - shall I get the washing in? |
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| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 13:56 - Apr 26 with 2467 views | soupytwist |
| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 13:43 - Apr 26 by Tractor_Buck |
Poetic. Sums up my feelings perfectly. I wasn't there last night but lived it vicariously through friends that were and it just seemed that everything clicked, just as it been for most of this season.
On your point about the wider fan base can I offer my son as an example. Born in 2003, he's been around almost the entire length of the Banter Era and has only know Towen achieving the square root of FA. He's never wavered, never even entertained the idea of adopting another league team throughout his childhood. They're his team. He's studying at the Royal Veterinary College at the moment and it's a bloody good thing his end of year exams are a few weeks away, as right now he can't concentrate on anything other than Saturday.
I've been around long enough to see a couple of trophies etc, but him? No, nada, nothing. He's one of the people I feel the best for at the moment, and yeah it's 'only league one' but we look like we're finally on our way, and in the process of repaying all that faith over all those years. |
My son's the same - born in 2002. I got two half season tickets back in December, just in case. After the Charlton game he said to me that we'd had season tickets at times when we'd have been happy to see 6 goals at home over the course of a month, let alone in one game.
He's coming back from university in Sheffield so we can both go to the Exeter game. I won't be able to keep it together if we manage to clinch promotion on Saturday. |  | | |
| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 14:33 - Apr 26 with 2263 views | Bobby |
This is a tremendous piece. Brought a tear to my eye. | | | |
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| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 15:43 - Apr 26 with 1990 views | gainsboroughblue |
I wish people would stop throwing dust around.
Amazing post. |  |
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| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 15:47 - Apr 26 with 1936 views | Dyland |
| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 13:50 - Apr 26 by artsbossbeard |
CAVEAT:
This only applies to fans who didn't sing about Mick being a peado at Brentford and/or had any part in the Magilton Out spreadsheet.
They can F off. |
And to ones who wanted rid of McK mid season. Short termists can fook off. Everything ridiculous about football fans (old and new tbf). |  |
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| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 15:48 - Apr 26 with 1908 views | Daninthecampo |
Great Post
I think I've not watched 3 of our games this year on tv which has been great seeing this team develop this year and I can't wait to watch us promoted on Saturday But I'm sad that I was unable to see this team play live at Portman Road this season.
Not been in the UK for 4 years But 'm going to have to fly back next season just to watch them play, glory hunter i know! | | | |
| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 15:50 - Apr 26 with 1903 views | Churchman |
There’s not been a better post than this all year.
I must get the dust in this house sorted out. The last 19 hours it seems to have built up to ridiculous levels. |  | | |
| Lovely sentiment Asers on 15:55 - Apr 26 with 1850 views | Dyland |
The Curse has not been lifted yet though. Let's keep taking it a game at a time. On to Saturday and Exeter.
COYFB | |
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| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 15:59 - Apr 26 with 1805 views | BanksterDebtSlave |
It is and reading that is a beautiful thing Asa. |  |
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| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 16:09 - Apr 26 with 1743 views | ITFC_Forever |
Well said Asa.
We'd better not bloody screw it up now... |  |
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| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 16:28 - Apr 26 with 1669 views | BlueandTruesince82 |
FFS. I'm sat here at Euston waiting on the train trying not to weep after reading this.
I don't get to as many games as I'd like, I'd have given almost anything to be there last night or Sat but reliving it all via Twtd is still getting to me.
I support town because the old man (step dad) did, I spent most of my youth living among the sister staggers so the "banter" at school was always firece. Rarely did I get taken to games "too far" was the excuse, cheap C### was the truth. I never got to experience the songs, the chanting, the life of loving a club. Even the odd occasion where we went to a game I'd be told to be quiet, not make a scene. It's bloody football I'd think to myself. Given where I grew up, given the man was an @r$€hole I could easily have said sod you pal, I'll follow Norwich like my mates but that's not football and not once did I waver.
Well I'm making a scene now you miserly old git and I dont care if half of London sees me, despite your oafishness I've followed town through thick and thin, it's my club and I lover her. A promotion in 92, another in 99 and a brief European foray are all I've had to celebrate. Other than that it was reliving past glories I wasn't alive for on VHS.
When Evans came I was relieved, we could have been lost forever, I was full of hope and expectation as I'm sure we all were but was given nothing but a slow slide into obscurity. League winners, FA Cup winners, UEFA Cup winners, it shouldn't happen to a club like that but it did, I watched it all season after season of mediocrity and then a black hole of league 1. Who'd have thought that would be our salvation. I knows it's not done yet but it's so close I can taste it, smell it feel it and its amazing.
It's taken all day today to sink in. Probably just because work is busy. There is another Town fan in the office and a Nodge fan too who has actually been v graceful over the last few weeks but this feels amazing. Yes it'd only L1 and yes we need to back it up and stay up next year but with gamechanger in place it really, REALLY feels like the good time are comming back. COYB
Allez Allez Allez..... |  |
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| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 16:46 - Apr 26 with 1593 views | Hereford_Blue |
Brilliant post.
My son has started going this season - lucky sod has managed to miss most of the banter era and now gets to see us being brilliant every time we play. |  | | |
| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 18:34 - Apr 26 with 1420 views | jontysnut |
| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 15:59 - Apr 26 by BanksterDebtSlave |
It is and reading that is a beautiful thing Asa. |
Lovely. My dad is 92 and hasn't been for a while. However he sounded about 80 years younger when I spoke to him last night, not heard him so lively for ages. Lord knows what he'll be like on Saturday if all goes well. |  | | |
| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 21:10 - Apr 26 with 1232 views | Asa |
| Never has a fan base deserved success more on 18:34 - Apr 26 by jontysnut |
Lovely. My dad is 92 and hasn't been for a while. However he sounded about 80 years younger when I spoke to him last night, not heard him so lively for ages. Lord knows what he'll be like on Saturday if all goes well. |
That's incredible to hear.
There are plenty of people who don't get football and each to their own, but there are very few things that have the power that it does to emotionally take people places that would otherwise be inexplicable.
Let's hope you have an even more enjoyable discussion this weekend. | | | |
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