Here's To You, Dad...

The day has arrived… the day we thought we'd never get to...

The day to say a fond farewell to our 2nd home,  where we've sat for 50 years, through brilliant times, bad times, and traumatic times, in all weathers, to be where we belonged, amongst our fellow Blues.

Thanks to Dad, we were all born Blues and our Dad and our brother always went to the matches but, in 1975 (or thereabouts, my sister and I finally persuaded Dad to take us as well...  to Goodison Park!

We came, we saw, we were hooked!! And never looked back! It's where we actually stood on the terraces in our student days, when we couldn't afford to pay for a seat! Eventually, we progressed to season tickets and that was it.

We've got some amazing memories we'll never forget... the Bayern Munich semi-final game before we went on to win the European Cup-Winners Cup, Bob Latchford's record-breaking 30 goals in a season, great cup games, great derby matches, even horrendous relegation battles!!

In season1984-85, I won a competition on local radio for a tour of Goodison, a 3-course meal and tickets for our game v Manchester Utd. Sis and I went, had an unforgettable day... we beat them 5-0 and we then went on to win the league title.

Some fans think that winning silverware is the be-all and end-all... it is lovely, but it's the icing on the cake. 'Going to the match' is all about who you go with, who you chat to, the journey you make with the hope of a great result, the highs and lows of every single game, and the memories you make.

Time to make new memories in our new stadium in August. Our only wish is that our Dad would have been here to see the send-off today... and he could go to our new ground. But here's to you, Dad... we've kept going through the years to keep your blue flag flying. I hope we've made you proud. 

NSNO, Onwards and Upwards. So long Goodison, thanks for the memories... it's been a blast!!! 

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