<aside> ⚠️ Warning: This page only exists to share how much of a football geek I really am. I could talk about it forever. And I’ve tried to show some restraint for now!
I consume a lot of football content, follow a number of teams, and collect a bunch of football memorabilia. This page is a snapshot of some of this stuff!
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Unlike a lot of people, I actually have three teams across the world that I follow closely. That can be seen as a bit unusual but there are good reasons for it. Read below:
Wellington Phoenix
Being based in Wellington, the Phoenix are my home team who I’ve supported through thick and thin since literally day one. They were only established when I was 18, which meant before that, I had no local team to follow so I had to look overseas...
Liverpool FC
When I was in my teens I was obsessed with playing football. Morning break, lunch time, after school, weekends etc. And in doing so I ended up in a lot of circles where I would be asked which EPL team I supported.. and I didn’t have an answer. People told me I should pick a team, but how do you just pick a team, seriously? Rightly or wrongly, my method drilled down to the fact that most kids my age supported Manchester United, and when I asked them why, it was normally “because they win”. I didn’t vibe with that at all, so much so that I decided that I would pick one of their rival teams. I nearly picked Manchester City, but the history of Liverpool really spoke to me, as did Steven Gerrard’s incredible abilities on the field!
FC Barcelona
Actually my first proper team I supported was Barcelona. I was 11 or 12 and didn’t have access to watch any football, apart from the Spanish League which popped up on ESPN in the early 2000’s, and I fell in love! The playing style was of course incredible to watch, but it was a certain Ronaldinho who just absolutely changed my relationship with football. He was an absolute genius and still remains my favourite player of all time.
<aside> 👕 I’ve picked up a number of different shirts/ jerseys / kits over the years, and it’s turned into a slightly dangerous obsession.. 👀
I’ve attended some pretty amazing games in my time, here’s the ones that really stand out:
New Zealand 1 Bahrain 0 November 11, 2009
NZ had never been to a World Cup in my lifetime, and now we were only one game away from making it - played in front of a fully packed Wellington crowd. I was in the end where all the action happened: Rory Fallon’s towering header from a corner, and Mark Paston’s penalty save that brought tears to my eyes. An absolutely epic night that will probably go unmatched for the rest of my life.
