The Sunderland expat who will never forget his days at Roker Park - the stadium that 'overawed' him
‘My grandad took me to my first ever match at Roker Park’
A former Sunderland man has shared memories of going to Roker Park - and how his family are now honorary Mackems in Australia.
Marc was there and said: “Some wonderful memories. I was never going to miss the last game, even though I was living in Northampton at the time.”
“My grandad took me to my first ever match at Roker Park on 1 January 1974. It was a Second Division game against Notts County and we lost 1-2 and we stood in the Roker End.
“As a six year old I was overawed by the ground. Thus began my love/hate relationship with the football team that has been part of my life ever since. Since then I’ve stood in every part of the ground.
“I can say I was there and saw the now legendary moment where Gary Bennett decided to caress David Speedie’s neck.
“Through the years I’ve well and truly made Mrs Hall an honorary Mackem even though she’s an East Midlands girl. So, I made sure that we were back in the Roker End, where it all started.
Mrs H, my old school friend and Best Man , Andrew Turner and of course me. It was a bittersweet experience, knowing that I would never again get to stand on the terraces and I have a genuine memory of thinking about my grandad, Ted, who had passed away some seven years prior and who would tell me stories about watching Raich Carter or Charlie Hurley
“I’ve preserved the ticket stubs from that game and for a long while they were in a frame on the wall in our house in Northampton. Now, they are still in a frame but in a storage box, still not unpacked since Mrs H, Master H and I emigrated 19 years ago.”
Marc kindly dug out those ticket stubs and shared photos of them, and he now plans to hand on the Sunderland baton to his son Tom.
“I’ve told Tom (Master H) all about Roker Park and its history. If SAFC have blighted my life it seems only fair I should pass that down through the generations. He took his very Australian girlfriend to Sunderland and the Stadium of Light last month to watch us beat Spurs and now she is also a convert to the red and white cause.
“She said she couldn’t believe the noise and the passion in the ground. She also said that everyone around her at the game was very friendly. A pity that neither of them were alive to hear the Roker Roar. If they ever have children then they too will be Mackems in spirit if not by birth.”
Marc is a former Argyle House and Monkwearmouth College student and remembers getting his first pay packet when he was on a YTS placement at Brian Mills in 1983.
We would love to hear from other expats and their Wearside memories. Get in touch by emailing [email protected],uk