May 2013 is unlikely to be a time that is remembered with great fondness by the Blue Army. Mick McCarthy had taken over six months previously and very effectively steadied a listing ship which had subsequently limped into 14th place in the Championship, backed by average crowds of 17,500 and with DJ Campbell top scoring with ten goals.

But I have cause to remember May 2013 very well as for the first time I was told by my much better half that I needed to take our then four-year-old son to a birthday party.

It was at Bridget’s, a house that I could walk to in less time than it takes Angus Gunn to take a goal-kick. The day of the party arrived and the various parents supervised their very excited children playing games in the garden.

A cup of tea was served but what was this? It came in a Norwich City mug. It quickly became apparent that Bridget was from Norfolk and a big fan of the Canaries. Conversation flowed and I heard all about the tragedy of the 1985 Milk Cup when she was left behind as the rest of the family set off for Wembley.

There was a very short discussion about which other trophies Norwich have won (1904 Norfolk and Norwich Hospital Cup, if you are interested) before we were interrupted by the need to sing Happy Birthday.

A few weeks later, I allowed my own blue and white allegiances to be revealed, a little unsure of the reaction there might be. But it was made clear an unexpected friendship had been forged between families. Everyone in the village was sad to see them move back from rural Oxfordshire to Norfolk a couple of years later but our families have kept in touch.

Fast forward to the first derby match for a few years and we had all secured tickets; Bridget and her now charming and intelligent 15-year-old daughter Lucy in the away end, myself and my son in the West.

An enjoyable breakfast was had first with the away fans comfort-eating, convinced that Conor Chaplin et al would run up a cricket score.

We walked to the ground, with any yellow and green kit well concealed. We proceeded round the back of the South Stand before reaching Portman Road. By this time away fans were walking in from the station with many wearing what looked like matching scarves, singing rather unpleasant songs.

We said our goodbyes and watched as they walked the last 100 yards or so to the away end, running the gauntlet of 'banter' being dished out by some home fans.

After the game they were forced to walk back to the station, even though their car was in totally the opposite direction. With no effective segregation on the bridge they had to endure bottles being thrown in their general direction and Lucy had a number of vile and unrepeatable insults hurled at her, presumably by people who had waited half an hour or so for the away end to empty. They eventually reached their car safely. It saddened me greatly to hear about this part of their day.

Many would no doubt write this kind of incident off simply as the passion of the Old Farm derby etc. However I do think it is possible to do rivalry in a much better way than this.

The shared foodbank initiative from the weekend being an excellent example. In the past I have had the pleasure of representing Punch Drunk, a group of ITFC supporters who would play against a team of opposition supporters in the morning before the main match. This included several fixtures against Norwich. I am sure many of you reading could think of other things.

With our amazing away support and being non-season ticket holders my son and myself have had to sit quietly in home ends at Cambridge, Charlton and Oxford in recent years. You quickly realise that the opposition fans are not really any different to yourself. They just happen to have been born in a different place and so support a different team.

This applies equally to those born in Norfolk. I think it is quite possible to want Norwich to lose every match they play without actually hating their fans or the city itself.

Merry Christmas to all!

BanksterDebtSlave added 17:24 - Dec 21 A good read and I concur.
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TheBoyBlue added 21:04 - Dec 21 As someone with several Norwich City supporting friends, I completely agree. I love the edge to the day, but it should just be pantomime for a few hours. No one should feel in danger. It'll be as bad when we go up there, which is sad.
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bazza added 21:17 - Dec 21 Just to point out, large swathes of town fans were sent round and into the path of the Norwich fans leaving, and had to stand and wait while Norwich fans were herded to the station, and the abuse they were shouting and the gestures they were making were disgusting, and the fans only wanted to get home, mostly families and young children.. it’s almost like people want to paint town fans in a bad light.

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Guthrum added 08:59 - Dec 22 Agreed. From the geneology I've done, old families in Suffolk and Norfolk are more closely linked than they are divided by the Waveney.
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PortmanTerrorist added 12:53 - Dec 24 "Nice" piece but passionless. Passion of course should never equate to violence, but have no sense of the hostility I feel toward the people I grew up with in Norfolk, including the majority of my own family around Derby time. They feel it, I feel it but get none of that from this dispassionate overview of a derby match. Made me think of Klopp's comments about the Anfield support this past week. It does make sense given you seem able to sit quietly with opposition fans, but you must understand that separates you from the supporters I recognise, including myself. Good on you for that, but I know what happens to me when I have tried that, and it does not end well. So please do continue to enjoy following our amazing Club in your own way, as there is a place for all, but never downplay how fervent our support can and should be, as it has always been part of who ITFC are....was not that long ago we were consistently recognised as the loudest away supporters (and there was never any violence) until MM put paid to that. We are back now and we are loud and aggressive and that's the way I personally like it....think Klopp would like us too.

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ElephantintheRoom added 08:11 - Dec 27 Good read -it’s not long ago that friends supporting either tem could go together and not be herded away from where they wanted to go.. Segregation, jealousy and daft kick off times have all contributed to the problem of deranged idiots screaming abuse. Maybe the carpetbagger will try a few right-on USA initiatives… I’m sure this Neanderthal behaviours is c0mpletely alien to them.

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