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 Friday
21 October 2005 By Richard Huggan
This Sunday a dilapidated Newcastle United meet bitter local rivals Sunderland at St. James’ Park in a match that is undoubtedly the most important since the departure of Sir Bobby Robson. But then, you don’t need me to tell you that. So to take a break from the same story you will see in every local and national newspaper, let alone internet column, I thought it might be apt to delve deep into the Newcastle-Online.com readership’s conscious and uproot the feelings on the only real rivalry our beloved football club has. Basically, what are your thoughts on Sunderland AFC and their fans and what does this match mean to you? I find myself in a very strange boat as far as the Black Cats are concerned, coming from two separate families who followed two separate football clubs, though my allegiances are obviously firmly with the Magpies. Even the awesome legend of a man I was never charmed enough to meet was not enough to draw me into the Red and White legion of the Tyne/Wear football divide. However, I am sure that if Joseph Larkin was alive when I was born then I would not have been given a choice in the matter. You see, he was a rare sort my Granddad, Sunderland AFC to the core, but with a mysterious soft spot somewhere for Newcastle United – most likely born out of a love for sport: football in particular. I am proud to say that I am carved from the same ilk, albeit in the opposite manner entirely. Granted, I don’t wrestle people at fairgrounds and I’m not as tough as old boots, I haven’t been a whisker away from playing for Liverpool FC or fought in a World War: but I hope I’m at least like him in spirit: and there’s plenty of time left for a bit of wrestling or, God forbid, another War. For me this football rivalry is definitely not just a simple matter of geography or location, I cannot bring myself to hate our nearest rivals – I even find it hard to hold anything resembling disdain for them most of the time. Yes I hate losing to them and of course they can become tiresome in their resentment of all things black and white, but are they really that bad, or even that different, from us? Perhaps I could blame my approach on there still being a lot of Sunderland left in my family, my Uncle followed the same path as his father and my cousin is as diehard a Mackem as he could be, hailing from Lancashire and still residing there. Home or away, Crewe or Chelsea, he’ll be there. I think he even “hates” Newcastle as well. If any of these fragments had remained in the North East I doubt I would have escaped the clutches of the “dark side”. My Dad’s side of the family is a different matter entirely. Completely Tyneside working class, nobody has moved any great distance away and I don’t think there was ever too much thought given to NUFC, at least not that I’m aware of, certainly nobody was Toon daft. That’s probably the reason why I didn’t see my first Newcastle game until I was six, and in the most fair-weather period of recent times too: the 7-1 victory against Leicester to emphatically propel us into the Premier League: coincidence? Probably not… But that’s how I got here today, thanks to fair-weather support and where I was brought up. Is that really how simple this all is for other people? Do you despise the Mackems simply because of their location? Maybe you’re exiled South of the river have been taunted unstoppably for years on end by Sunderland fans? Perhaps the fascination with 2-1 victories boils in your belly? You might feel annoyed by the fact that they seem happier to see us lose than their own team win? Just why do you feel about them the way you do? These are genuine questions and I’m hoping to get genuine responses via the feedback form at the bottom of this piece, the best ones will undoubtedly be published on the main page. The odd thing is that Sunderland as a football club aren’t really that different from Newcastle, it makes the venom all the more fascinating. Both clubs have a rich tradition and relatively successful histories. Both clubs have large sets of loyal fans and play in fantastically large stadiums, both great landmarks for the North East. We’re all descendants from distinctly lower/working class roots and we both have jokers for chairmen. There are probably a lot more as well; could it be as simple as familiarity breeding contempt? Perhaps this rivalry is better off left unexplained in order to preserve its identity. It is certainly something I would rather see become stronger than weaker, I pray it doesn’t ever end. Indeed this is the only game so far in a so far hellacious season that I have genuinely looked forward to weeks in advance and this could also explain why I like to see Sunderland doing relatively well. I hope for a cracking match come Sunday with oozing passion and fire and a resounding victory for the home team, my team, but then I hope Sunderland recover from it. My black and white (very slightly pink, maybe) blood came about in a bastardised and diluted fashion, but here I am, season ticket to my name, away trips under my belt and tearstains on my cheeks from years of magical football frustration with NUFC. I’ll be in the Gallowgate on Sunday screaming bloody murder at anything wearing Red and White and for just ninety minutes I might dislike Sunderland as much as some of you do. Heaven forbid if we lose, then it might remain for a tad longer. Other than that, though, I wish Sunderland all the best this season and I genuinely hope they stay up – for this horribly backwards state of mind I suppose I have Grandda Joe to thank. But for Sunday: Howay the lads, let’s give their boys one hell of a beating. © Richard Huggan
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