Why am I still a Saint?

By Emma B
April 10 2007

A companion piece to Richard Slater's "It Hurt's" article of a couple of weeks ago, Emma B asks the question; "Why am I still a Saint?"

 

The journey back from Newcastle on Sunday was a wonderful opportunity for me to do some thinking (not as much as I was expecting, thanks to some stellar driving by my parents, but still over three hours worth).

Now, I appreciate that a lot of this has been said before by lots of people, and it’s rather long and dull, but I’ve never really sat and written what I think, so please indulge me.

My main train of thought was, simply, why? Why do we follow this team all over the UK and into Europe? Why do we feel so passionately about something we have so little control over? And why oh why are we STILL doing these things?

I first started watching the Saints a year or so before we were relegated, while I was still at middle school. I thought I’d marry Tim Rodber, and was too shy to say hello to Harvey Thorneycroft in Safeway. I still have a poster autographed by Budge and Frank Packman in my bedroom at home. Liking the Saints was never cool – not with the Cobblers playing in play-off finals and everyone supporting Manchester United, but I loved the whole thing – the game (even though I didn’t understand it), the players, and the places (yes, even West Hartlepool).

As I got older, I realized that my love for the Saints was about more than just a schoolgirl crush on Tim Rodber. I learned the rules (well, most of them), learned about the opposition (Bath were no longer the ‘posh ones’, they were the ones with the amazing backs), and became more bothered when we didn’t win. I guess it’s getting on for fifteen years since I first went to a Saints game, and my life has changed a lot since then. I’ve been to university, lived in Texas for 9 months, got two degrees, and moved away from Northampton. Apart from my family, the Saints are about the only constant thing in my life, which I imagine is the same for a lot of people. I think that’s the answer to my own question, in a way. If I didn’t watch the Saints, I really don’t know what I’d do. It’s not even as if I wasn’t exposed to other sports when I was little. My parents traveled the country following Northamptonshire’s cricketing exploits, and I went to watch the Cobblers at the County Ground. Obviously something about the Saints attracted me, and kept me interested (believe me, it’s hard to keep a girl interested in anything through her teenage years). The Saints were like family. I saw more of the team than I did my own grandparents. Over the years a relationship developed, albeit a very one-sided relationship. Players came and went, success came once, near-success came several times, but on the whole mediocrity was the thing.

Then, all that changed. The overriding feeling that I was supporting a good team capable of greatness became a feeling that we were slowly slipping the wrong way past average. Looking back, the warning signs were there a long time ago. One has to wonder whether we’d be in this position now if Ronan O’Gara hadn’t missed those kicks back in 2000. There sometimes seemed to be a bit of a ‘yes, but we won the European Cup xx years ago so we’re obviously not a bad team’ mentality amongst both the fans and the club. We also seem to suffer a bit from a supposition that money can buy success. Now, money is very important, but it’s got to be spent in the right way to be of any use. It’s all very well having a wonderful stadium and 5 superstars on the pitch, but it’s not much good if that means you can’t afford anyone to play when they get injured.

I still love the Saints. I drink my tea from a Saints mug, I wear a Saints scarf to keep me warm, and I try to educate my friends about the obsession I have. However, somehow that love has changed a bit recently. Something’s wrong with my beloved club, and it seems to be more than just a run of bad luck. I know there’s no quick way to fix things, and wonder if this season will finally be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. It certainly seems to be the season that has made the supporters turn on the players, coaches, and chairman with more ferocity than I’ve ever seen before. But alongside all that is a commitment that we’ll stick with them no matter what. We’ll be there next season, whether it be Bedford or Bath, Carlos or not, and we’ll sing and wear the shirt with pride.

Over the last decade or so a lot have things have changed. The Saints are still here, but aren’t the same team I started watching all those years ago (I’ve moved on in the husband stakes too, Christian Labit’s my man now). I don’t want to feel like I’m supporting a worse than average team, I don’t want to feel like the players don’t care, and most of all I really don’t want to go to Exeter next season. But, if I have to, I will. And I reckon a few of you will too.

Still don’t really know why though…