Singapore Fan Gets Free Look Round Highbury

Today of course there is nothing strange in seeing visitors from South East Asia at the Arsenal; it's a massive market football clubs are looking to bleed dry in the same way they have bled the fans on their own doorstep.

This letter comes from Gunners Magazine Volume 1, Number 12 which dates it at the begininng of 1995/1996 season.

It's a sign of the times of course but no shop staff would allow any fan to have a peek round the ground these days. Nope, pay your money like the rest of us!

I wonder if the writer, Lau Kok Gim from Singapore, is still a fan?

The magazine, by the way, boasted 52 pages and cost 2 GBP, unlike today when it costs 3.50 GBP and has 100 pages.

Oh Rocky Rocky, Rocastle

I missed Rocastle's Arsenal debut. I had gone inter railing round Europe as one did in them days but I saw most of his games that season. And the next. And the title winning season. And his last game for the Arsenal.

Don Howe was the manager who gave Rocastle his debut and in the following programme against Aston Villa he said 'I was very pleased with David Rocastle's first team debut last Saturday. David gives 100%, has lots of skill and he's a good tackler.'

Americans like to say they remember where they were when JFK was shot. I remember where I was when I heard Rocky had been sold to Leeds United. I was in England and had a job driving a seven and a half ton truck which got a flat tyre outside the Clock End!

I got talking to a security guy there, top fella, who helped me get it fixed and of course inbetween him turning nuts and bolts I pummelled him with questions. I asked if any players were leaving. 'Rocastle' he said. I was gutted and stopped helping him. Why? Why were we letting one of our best players leave?

I was at Elland Road a couple of years later and we gave him a massive reception. He then moved to Manchester City and we again travelled in numbers to support an average team and Rocastle got another impressive reception from us.

None of this stuff like Robin Van Persie etc get today. We felt Rocky never wanted to leave.

Rocky was one of us but he had gone. Left the Arsenal.

Unfortunately I never got to see him when he was playing in Malaysia and I have now forgotten when it was I heard he had died.

Players die all the time. From my era the likes of Paul Vaeseen and Tommy Caton have moved on but with no disrespect to those two Rocky is still remembered. Against Reading recently the 12th anniversary of his passing was marked by the loudest cheers of the day.

None of the current crop will be remembered in such a way as Rocastle. He left the Arsenal 20 years ago, many of our current support will never have seen him play. I did and I felt a shiver down my spine as the Rocky Rocastle chants echoed round the bowl with that simple image, the thumbs up, on the large video screens.

My 3 year old son has a Rocastle t shirt and he wears it proudly. Often it is his first choice to wear. Rocky was my era. He was there when George Graham turned an average team into a great team and he was a huge part of that metamorphosis. It was clear he loved the Arsenal and in return we loved him. He seemed genuine, unaffected. He had come through the ranks and during 1991/92 when we played some explosive stuff he was at the heart of it with fellow South London boys Michael Thomas and Ian Wright.

Some Familiar Names

If a football programme could be described as epoch making it is surely this one. The issue for the first game of the 1983/84 season against Luton Town perhaps marked Arsenal's arrival as a club with an eye on the bottom line for one.

It was our first real decent programme and the season marked the first time we changed the front cover picture every game. There was a new editor in place and a whole range of new features prompting Miller and Lerman in their excellent book Arsenal FC The First XI Official Programme Guide 1946 - 1993 to describe it as 'an instant hit with the fans'.

There had been nothing wrong with the more traditional approach but the previous seasons had certainly seen the quality of the programme fall behind clubs like Leicester City and Aston Villa whose colour packed issues were well received by fans and collectors alike.

Some familiar names get name checks in the programme. Jerome Anderson was introduced as resident disc jockey; he went on to become a high profile agent and his involvement with Blackburn Rovers is well documented. He got his break spinning tunes at Highbury!

On the reserves and youth page there is a picture of Terry Burton while the final paragraph says 'Youth players to watch are imposing centre half pair Martin Keown and Tony Adams'...prophetic words indeed. Adams was to make his debut later that season at home to Sunderland and had a reasonable career I think!

A very young looking Paul Johnson gets mentioned on the Fanfare looking forward to a busy season with the Travel Club which he ran so efficiently. Today he arranges the travel stuff of the first team, not the fans and also has the subs stretching after games. I was jealous of him then when I travelled to away games and I am jealous of him now!

The Junior Gunners was entering its first season and the mascot was a seven year old lad named Daniel Quy and it looks like he is still involved with the club on the travel side! Eee, last time I saw him lad, he were wearing short trousers etc!

Then there is the front cover of Tony Woodcock. Wearing a red shirt with blue sleeves. Were we worried? Remember, this came the season after our away shirt was green with blue sleeves! So, were we worried this was to be our new shirt? Damned right we were. At least until we read it was a one off for the Boys Brigade Jubilee against Aberdeen. Boys Brigade eh?

My Home Debut

This was the first time I made my way to the Marble Halls. I went with my old man who I am sure did not enjoy the experience one little bit and from my point of view I can't remember too much either!

I know we stood on the North Bank. I know West Ham wore white and I saw Clyde Best play keepy upy. And the highlights were shown the next day on The Big Match.. And the game ended 0-0.

Beyond that I remember zilch.

The win at West Bromwich Albion last Saturday marked my 39th anniversary...