So Proud

[ex-montrosesaintee]

So the boy has gone from Saints fan to Saints 'daft' this season. He is 12, and just started at the Academy. As some of you know, he doesn't get the easiest time, being autistic.

He came home from school today, and announced that he had been asked to go on a school trip in October, to Sunderland. They would be given a guided tour of the Stadium of Light, and then watch the Man Utd v Sunderland game.

I said 'wow, brilliant, you'll LOVE that!!' Genuinely excited for him.

He said 'don't be silly dad, I told them I couldn't go because Saints were playing Inverness Caley Thistle at home'

Beaming with pride

Edited August 26, 2013 by montrosesaintee

[PerthSeany]

Thats great! Also shows hes enjoyed himself quite a lot going to the saints Saints games with you as well!

Edited August 26, 2013 by PerthSeany

[Plastered]

Great post.  I'm no expert, but perhaps the inevitable ups and downs that go with supporting Saints might help him cope better with other down moments that come along his life.  Good luck to him.

[slambrother]

Touching story, sometimes amazes me how loyal kids can be at such a young age. Felt it the other week after the Minsk game when I turned round to see my thirteen year old in floods of tears and devastated at what could have been. A couple of weeks on I told him we'd have to cut down on the matches we were going to because I was skint for him to say that he'd be happy to take us both with his birthday money he'd saved up!

Just goes to show how important saints commitment is to making football affordable for families with young children. Instilling this sense of loyalty at a young age is such an prudent investment in our future fan base.

[cristo]

The boy is a legend already, a fan for life.

My oldest son lives with the same condition and was probably just slightly younger when I took him and his young brother to their first game. He will be 29 next month and still goes as often as he can, as does his 26 year old brother.

Won't be long until they're taking me to the game! Enjoy every moment, and don't be too upset when he starts going on his own and doesn't need Dad anymore!!

[rik2304]

Superb 

[Broon]

Loving this thread. Makes you proud to be part of a great club.

[sjfc.spl.09-10]

Once a saint always a saint

[Edstar101]

Don't know about you guys, but going to a game now isn't the same unless I have my lad with me (he's 9).

 

I want to share the ups and downs of each game with him (not that he sits with me.....goes down the front with his mates...NOT the front at scoreboard end...not yet anyway!!)

[ex-montrosesaintee]

Clearly I've run out of daily 'likes' to click all the responses, but thank you all. I hope the European games and general positive vibe around the club makes more youngsters 'saints for life'.

[rik2304]

Don't know about you guys, but going to a game now isn't the same unless I have my lad with me (he's 9).

 

I want to share the ups and downs of each game with him (not that he sits with me.....goes down the front with his mates...NOT the front at scoreboard end...not yet anyway!!)

Exact same scenario with me. He likes to sit a bit closer so he can here me shouting and make sure I dont swear.

[ex-montrosesaintee]

Exact same scenario with me. He likes to sit a bit closer so he can here me shouting and make sure I dont swear.

I don't think he'd forgive me if I went without him. He complains when I shout too much, so we sat next to Ghostie on Saturday, now he has a new concept of shouting.

Football is his 'obsession' as an ASD sufferer, so he is like a human encyclopaedia of football. He knows everything about every player (almost like a photographic memory). He concentrates so intensely too, it's great. He gets bored after 5 minutes at the cinema, ha ha.

[LethamChippy]

Great wee story that, fair play to the wee chap. Is he a season ticket holder?

[ex-montrosesaintee]

two season tickets being purchased on Friday. Sold a guitar today to fund it. Some things are just too important to miss eh.

[LethamChippy]

two season tickets being purchased on Friday. Sold a guitar today to fund it. Some things are just too important to miss eh.

 

 

Excellent, fair play to you for that. Out of interest, how much is a season ticket for him?

[LethamChippy]

you are in luck

 

his is free

 

 

Prices for 2013/2014 are:

Stand Price MAIN STAND   Executive Padded £360 Adult £330 Senior Citizen* £195 Aged 13 - 16 £185 Age 12 and under ** Free of charge

[yahoorsir]

• That's brilliant Montrose Saintee and must make you really proud.

 I remember my oldest, who was about 5 at the time when Alan Main left saints to go to Livingston. He  was devastated and pulled together all his Saints kit and scarves from his bedroom and walked to the front door to put it in the bin. As he got to the door he burst into tears and said "I can't do it dad"..

[Edstar101]

Exact same scenario with me. He likes to sit a bit closer so he can here me shouting and make sure I dont swear.

 

Ha! Yeah, I get grassed up to his mum if I happen to let any expletives slip out when he is in earshot (usually as he appears to mooch money for sweets / drink / hot dog or whatever).

 

Had my wee lasss (5) with us at the Ross County game as well. Usually drop her at her grandparents and they take her to Noah's Ark or something. They were away that weekend though and when I asked Millie if she wanted to come to game with the boys, she was really excited.

 

She actually seemed to enjoy it, well, what she saw of it between 200 trips to toilet!! I reckon she will become a regular attender as well soon enough

Edited August 27, 2013 by Edstar101

[Smarmy Arab]

So the boy has gone from Saints fan to Saints 'daft' this season. He is 12, and just started at the Academy. As some of you know, he doesn't get the easiest time, being autistic.

He came home from school today, and announced that he had been asked to go on a school trip in October, to Sunderland. They would be given a guided tour of the Stadium of Light, and then watch the Man Utd v Sunderland game.

I said 'wow, brilliant, you'll LOVE that!!' Genuinely excited for him.

He said 'don't be silly dad, I told them I couldn't go because Saints were playing Inverness Caley Thistle at home'

Beaming with pride

Heart warming stuff MS! I remember being similarly minded as an 18 year old, nothing would keep me from Tannadice. I know a saintee with Aspergers is knowledge and his thirst for all things St Johnstone is unquenchable.

[Jad]

Thanks for this post. It actually brought a wee tear to my eye. So good to have a post on here which is positive about being a supporter instead of the many/point scoring ones.

You should all be proud of your kids especially if they have other obstacles to overcome. I work with clients who come into the library who have additional needs and it is great to see the ones who have a great love of their football team. Quite a few of them go to the matches with carers etc.

Never too young to support your team, my first game at Muirton was when I was 3. Doesn't feel like it was 52 years ago. My dad took me and my big sis to all the matches. Dad passed away a few years ago aged 91 but I still shed a tear of pride in Saints at our recent Europa games just thinking about how he would have loved to have been there. So glad he brought me up to be a Saintee.

[ex-montrosesaintee]

I think this all points to the fact that nearly every long time Saints fan remembers going as a kid.  If my dad hadn't taken me to the footy from the age of 5, i would never have actively chosen to become a fan when i grew up.  Once a Saintee, always a Saintee is very true, and applies equally to any other club.

 

It underlines how important it is for Saints to have the Ormond stand and u-12s free policies - in 10 years time these kids will be coming alone, and in 20 years time, bringing their kids.

 

It means that a downturn in support numbers has a knock on for the next generation, because folk aren't taking their kids.  

[Edstar101]

Aye, my grandad took me along to Muirton from about the age of 5, when playing tig in the terracing and trying to smash stuff on the ice rink roof (before a random stranger gave you a cuff round the lug and chased you away) was more of interest than the football.

 

At some point though, your attention turned towards the pitch, and that was that, you were hooked.

 

I really do feel sorry for kids now though that will only ever experience the sterile environment that football has become. Yes, a lot of the stuff that happened was pretty bad, but football was all the more intriguing and colourful for it. An away day to Airdrie, or Ayr, or Falkirk, wasn't just a comfy car ride and then a game of football....it was a crusade, it was throwing yourself into the great unknown, at the mercy of whatever the day threw at you

[Lincolnshire no More]

I've being going to games for longer than I can remember.What i can remember from my earliest memory of a match was that it wasn't my first match...if that makes sense. I spent most of my childhood out of Perth and went to Boghead to watch Dumbarton but there was never any doubt that Saints were my yeam.

 

 

Anyway this is a great thread.

[andrew]

The video of the pitch invasion v Motherwell shows my son, who has a disability, running onto the turf. That cannot be bought and will live with me until I either die or lose my memory. I joined in and was wandering around the pitch choked. Puts the pettiness and childishness on here firmly in perspective. Sitting at poty night having dinner with the manager. Muirton suite singing after promotion v Morton. Meeting players, going to Stirling Uni to watch training. Playing in Europe. All priceless!

[AthensSaint]

My two boys are die hard saintees and that was with the catholic school pressure.