TRUE BLUE STORIES

Gorm Singsaas Andresen

Almost every little kid in Norway supports an english football club. So when I was about five years old my father decided to buy me a kit for my birthday. He went to the largest sportsstore in Oslo and asked for a Liverpool kit. This was in their early prime (mid seventies) so the kit was sold out. But the guy in the store had a better idea. He told my father that there was this other english club who had won the league cup the same year and probably would win the league the year after. Why not buy this one? My father did.

I loved the sky blue kit. No white shorts back then. It was longsleeved with big collars and umbro-logos down the side. I always used it in PE at school although I had to take some stick. Because I was surrounded by red shirts. Both U**** and Liverpool. Nobody I knew supported my club. 20 years later I'm not alone. I've got you guys in MCIVTA. But City remains a disapointment, even though I have some personal highlights:

• The win at Swansea televised in Norway (83?). And the one against U*** where Tony Henry scored.
• Seeing City play in Oslo in the summer of 89. All the players had hangovers and could barely move.
• 5-1 ticking in during the Norwegian match of the day.
• Calling for the results against Huddersfield. Listened to the recorded results over and over again.
• Being able to brag about Kinky at my job at the sportsdesk in a Norwegian tabloid.
• The first half against U*** (93?) when Quinny scored a brace. Watched it in Bergen with an ugly red friend of mine. I almost turned violent in the end. Wanted to smash his face in.

It's tough even in Norway to support our beloved club. The misery never ceases.