Hello once again!Underhill here we come!
Whatever your thoughts and memories of last season's performances, players, results and opinions it's time to wipe that slate clean, Underhill here we come!
A big 'Hello' to you all once again as we step back on that nine month rollercoaster we call following the Arsenal. Thanks for all your e-mails and opinions throughout the Summer, although it is near on impossible to answer you all I really do appreciate them and with your phenomenal passion very evident I respect all of your thoughts even if sometimes I don't agree with them! That's football I suppose, the one and only universal language.
Barnet has become a kind of opening day party in recent times, a time to meet those you haven't seen for a couple of months, catch up on the summer gossip surrounding football and personally and of course the opportunity to get that football fix that we all miss in the close season!
Like all summers, this one has seen the departure of some of our squad including a total legend and for me personally the greatest player I have been lucky enough to witness.
Rather than be disappointed however, I've said it before and I will say it again. I support Arsenal Football Club, not one player. Players, managers and staff will come and go throughout my life but whatever happens my passion for the club will remain as intense as ever. Without TH we would not have enjoyed the incredible success, have witnessed some of the wonderful football or seen some of the greatest goals over the last few years. For that alone I say Thierry, thank you and good luck.
I also wish the best of luck to Jeremie Aliadiere. A player that has been so unlucky with injuries I believe that we finally saw glimpses last season of what he is capable of.
Gentlemen.........start your engines!
Finally in 'Supporters Club Week' on Arsenal.com I thought I would bring to you a a more lighthearted look at some of the more interested days following our team based on the experiences of members of the Maidstone Arsenal Supporters Club!
Of course, there are many of you out there that have 'enjoyed' nightmare journeys too, it would be good to hear your stories so drop me an e-mail.
1) Norwich away League Cup replay mid nineties starring 'Frank' (& girlfriend!)
By this stage of my Arsenal supporting 'career' I was starting to seriously hate any occasion where I was forced to miss a game. In fact, I was already a good five years or more into a period of non missed games that has lasted until today.
Back in the days of league cup replays I had booked a week's holiday with my girlfriend in an idyllic cottage right up in the Highlands of Scotland, during the football season yes, but of course, in a totally Arsenal free week. Or so I thought.
Reading the programme before we took on Norwich I looked for the potential replay date...........great! Tonight's match was SO going to be a draw.
Ten minutes to go we were one-nil down, of course I wanted us to equalise but I also wanted us to go on and get a winner! Wrighty slammed one into the roof of the net at the North Bank end and the inevitable became reality.
My girlfriend wasn't really into football (it was never gonna work!!) and I didn't tell her my predicament, nor the fact I had actually purchased two tickets for the replay, just in case!
Come the night before the game, open roaring fire crackling away, a glass or two of red wine and the moment had come to reveal the news. Looking back starting with the line, "There's something I need to ask you" probably wasn't a good decision!!
Dressing it up that it really wouldn't take that long, we would have nice night out in Norwich and a night out in Edinburgh on the way back seemed to help slightly even though I was seriously stretching the truth.
So, 7am the following morning we set off and a full 12 hours later we arrived in Norwich! A total nightmare, no longer could I dress it up. My, "I'll make it up to you" lines just didn't seem to wash!
A spanking three-nil victory later and of course at least one of the travelling party was 'well chuffed'!
Watching the highlights on the TV in our dodgy Norwich B & B probably didn't help our relationship, nor the one hour 'night out' in Edinburgh and arriving back to our cottage at midnight the following night.
But we were in the next round............and that was far more important!
2) Lens away 1998 starring 'Fisty' and 'Jill de Builder'
Lens is not very far from Kent, in fact it is easier to get to than many of our domestic away matches. When Fisty and Jill left Maidstone on the morning of our first ever Champions League adventure, little did they know what was in store!
All was going well until halfway between Calais and Lens Fisty's car coughed and spluttered and grinded to a halt on the hard shoulder. Staying with the car would mean missing the match, this was simply not an option!
Thumbing a lift proved successful although (Fisty's words not mine!) the five young ladies that picked them up were so awful that not even Jill was interested!
Destination achieved Fisty missed most of the game anyway trying to sort things out on his mobile phone (unsuccessfully), after the game they were both faced with getting back to their car, an extremely difficult feat when they didn't actually know where it was!
Thumbing a lift back proved more problematic and involved numerous offers including a couple of French boy racers who informed them that France only had speed limits, "when there were police around. But tonight there are no police"!
Fisty admits he thought his time had run out!
They eventually found their car at 5.30am and decided just to try and get some sleep. They were awoken by a tap on the window from a policeman who proceeded to help them get a tow truck.
The car was left at the garage and next on the agenda was a taxi to a hire car before heading back to the UK.
The following week Fisty headed back to France to collect his car and a total nightmare had come to a close............except that is the bill. The whole adventure had cost him in the region of £2500.00.........more in fact, than the car was worth!!
3) Amsterdam Tournament 2000 starring 'Frank'
Being asked to be 'best man' at a friend's wedding is always an honour. During the football season becomes a dilemma!
On this occasion the chosen date fell on a Friday but I had already heard rumours that it was a weekend where we may well be playing in a tournament in Amsterdam. These trips have become pretty regular these days but as this was the first occasion it was one I just didn't want to miss.
The tournament was confirmed and the fixtures (like this season in fact) fell on a Thursday and Saturday. Not on the Friday, a chance too good to miss.
Travelling out on the Thursday morning, writing my speech as I went, my thoughts had already turned to the following morning's flight home. Never in my life had I longed so much for a flight to be on time!
Having enjoyed the delights of Amsterdam's Thursday nightlife I awoke Friday morning a nervous man! I needn't have been, the flight was spot on time and my wedding duties were achieved in fine style. Only after the ceremony when the groom said to me, "It's a shame you were forced to miss the Amsterdam tournament" did I realise I hadn't actually told him. With a wry smile I replied, "I haven't".
The wedding hangover was eased by flying back out on Saturday to take in the 2nd match but even that proved trickier than ever when a lorry overturned on the M25 and I was forced to get a later flight. Sitting there with my engine off however, I thanked my lucky stars that the delay was that day and not the previous one.
4 European flights, 2 European games and a wedding back in the UK, all in 3 days................it just HAD to be done!
所有的一切都将重新开始，正如弗兰克所说的，过去的那些往事不必再提，巴奈特，我们又要见面了！
