Earning your Stripes

[Triggaaar]

Bolton away in the FA Cup, think it was 1992.

I was at that one, standing in front of the white line

 

[AnotherArch]

One of the worst as a result & knowing we really are in a dire state was the 4-0 thrashing at Northampton, extremely angry at the team considering the support we took on September 28th 1996.

The only saving grace was I had three of Frankie Dettori's horses in a lucky 15 they day he did the magnificent Seven...

I remember that for the loud and passionate song by our fans on the way out -"sh/t team, no pride".

 

[lawros left foot]

Bolton away in the FA Cup, think it was 1992. Woke up on the Saturday morning, wife asks if I'm going to football? Told her it was away at Bolton, she said go if you want, I don't think she realised actually how far Bolton is from Burgess Hill, so off I went in the car on my own and we lost. What a miserable day out that was! Home to Walsall in the Auto windscreen thingy in the early 90's on the most bitterly cold Tuesday night I ever experienced at the Goldstone. We were winning, but just couldn't wait to go home. Just for a laugh, I said to my mate, 'Come on Walsall' who promptly equalised and confined us to another half an hour of exposure. He wasn't happy.

I remember the Walsall game,the coldest I've ever been in my life I think,and I've been to the Artic and Antartic.

 

[el punal]

Stood in the East for years at the Goldstone got soaked hundreds of times
Went to Carlisle mid winter in freezing rain about 22 of us and slept on a bench in Carlisle in a bus shelter
Went to both cup finals and quede for friggging hours for the replay ones.
Was at Hereford
Went to all matches in the 82/83 cup run home and away
Play off final v Notts County and Bristol City
Matches at Priestshit
Matches at Withdean
Countless marches and demos
First ever match at Amex Sussex Senior Cup final
Season ticket holder whole of Amex time
Etc etc etc

22 of you sleeping on one bench in a bus shelter! My God sir, you have definitely earned your stripes.

 

[Mancgull]

I went to that, and we either went in front or drew level at one point Raphael Meade scored and the usual he'e on speed song came out...

Think we lost 2-1

Yes, 2-1. I was there in the Bolton main stand as my father in laws employer sponsored Bolton and he got free tickets. Made the mistake of jumping up when Meade equalised. Then McCarthy I explicitly hand balled in the penalty area. As the penalty went in I had numerous people turn round to ask me what the score was and why McCarthy had forgotten the hand ball rule. Happy days?!

 

[Psychobilly freakout]

3-0 I think.

Yep your right, it was truly abysmal football, and from that moment when the whistle blew I knew we were in deep trouble. I was so angry with Archer already, but that game made me angry at the squad for the first time, purely the worst collection of players ever to wear the stripes...

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Brighton 1-5 Stoke on the final day of the 2005/06 season. So bad it was funny. Rooney (Adam) hat-trick, We ended up doing the 'ROO-NEY! ROO-NEY!' chant. Doug Loft came on as sub for something like the last 20 minutes, scored with a pitiful daisy-cutter of a shot and promptly got awarded MoM. Don't think the team bothered with an end of season lap of honour that day, or if they did, nobody hung around to watch it

This was my daughter's first game, although she had been to lots of reserve games before that. She was ten at the time but was not put off and is Brighton through and through. I was so incensed by this showing that I would have given Mark McGee a good talking to had she not been with me - I didn't want to set a bad example!

My oldest son's first ever game, too. He remains a big Doug Loft fan, to this day, and is adamant that he would have thrived under Gus.

For balance, his brothers 'debut' was the 8-0 win over Northwich.

 

[Ernest]

Went to all matches in the 82/83 cup run home and away
Etc etc etc

Not many of us can say that, Newcastle away mid week, Sunderland away mid week after the Semi Final win, one away League win at Swansea which again was mid week and then 30000 GLORY seekers turn up at Wembley

 

[Brian Fantana]

Play-off Final 2004 - lived with my parents in Cambridge, and not old enough to have a driving licence. Had tickets to the game with a mate, but no way of getting there easily (couldn't get hold of any train tickets). Left home at 3am to get a coach to Brighton to pick up an official supporters coach to Cardiff, and did the same journey in reverse coming home. Eventually got home at about 4am the next day.

 

[topbanana36]

Hartlepool away in October/november, dreary dreadful place.

 

[Quinney]

Newcastle away midweek, early 90's, only got to see 1st half due to over zealous police officer. And that was after travelling up for the original game that was snowed off as we pulled into Newcastle station. 2 trips to Newcastle for 45 mins of football.

 

[Taybha]

The only outright mental thing i can recall was deciding to go to Blackpool midweek in the middle of a petrol strike in a ford cortina mk2 , as a postman for whatever reason we were deemed essential workers so could fill up opposite the sussex county with petrol , made it there ok no worries , think we got back on the thursday afternoon , ahhhhhh the impetuosity of youth .

 

[atfc village]

Flew back from Sydney, and did Plymouth and Carlisle away within 4 days. Made it on to the front page of the Argus for that. Slow news day obviously.

I remember when at Uni I went to Darlington, Scunthorpe & Doncaster away games. We lost all three and didn't score a goal. Would have been 96-97 I think

Darlo was 2 0 i know i was there ,but a good turnout of Albion.

 

[DarrenFreemansPerm]

Torquay United away, pre season friendly. That was crap.

 

[Stumpy Tim]

Darlo was 2 0 i know i was there ,but a good turnout of Albion.

I think Darlo was the one where Ormerod took a goal-kick and the wind blew it back off for a corner

 

[Driver8]

When I lived in Kent I made a last minute decision to drive on my own to Hereford for a Freight Rover (or whatever it was called that season) game midweek, in the snow.

I can't remember the score but I think we lost.

Edit: just checked 10th Feb 1988 and we won 1-0!!

 

[atfc village]

Blackpool New Years Day with The Shots 6 am start 6 0 defeat getting soaked on The Kop at Blackpool. 9 of us at Hartlepool on a Tuesday Night having bunked off School and getting home at 5am to go to School next day . 10 of us chased around Turf Moor on a Tuesday night having won 2 1.
9 Years trawling round The Ryman League,where all sorts of loons would turn out for fun and games when Aldershot came to places like Canvey,Leighton Buzzard ,Witham ,Billericay and Chertsey.

You know what? I wouldn't change a thing.

 

[The Modfather]

December 1990

Bloody freezing. 500 mile round trip. Plastic pitch. Ex-player hatrick. Oldham 6 - 1 Brighton. Car break down on way home.

Good shout. I have never felt so cold in my life

 

[Guinness Boy]

Carrow Road 1989, two days after my eighteenth birthday in the Auto Windshields Cup or Zenith Systems Cup or whatever the JPT for second division teams trophy was called at the time. Either a Tuesday or Wednesday night. I think there were 42 of us there and we lost 5-0. The night Rotty (RIP) got spoken to for wee-wee problems for anyone who remembers, We spent most of the second half doing the conga round the away end taking it turns to wear the Norwich City knickers some bloke had bought from the club shop on our heads.

Other notable incidents that night; getting asked for ID in the first pub we went in to and being able to produce my real passport and get served. Walking in to a totally random pub afterwards and finding Doc Talbot already in there. Getting the last train back to London and having a water fight. Walking all night through London to get to Victoria from Liverpool St while slightly inebriated. Crashing out in the check in bit of Gatwick Airport until there was a Brighton train.

All character forming.

 

[Quinney]

Leeds Utd away, same day as Hillsborough tragedy. Fell asleep on train home after a full session. Went in and out of Hastings, ended up in Brighton with no train home. Got train up to Gatwick to stay the night in Airport. Got home 9.30 on the Sunday morning. My mother wasn't impressed thinking for some reason I'd got caught up in the tragedy rather than watching us loose 1-0 at Elland Road.