I was born into a Workington supporting family, but when I was old enough to start going to games there was no-one regularly at home (top of Whinlatter Pass) that could drive and take me with them to games (dad could drive from being in the Army in WW II, but hadn't driven in nearly 30 years, and didn't have a car). My Carlisle United supporting cousin (same age as my dad) had kids who were mostly coppers and firemen, and were all season ticket holders in the West Stand at the back, so they used to start taking me to games in the 1975/76 season. I subsequently became a Carlisle United fan. So, all my family that I'm in regular contact with are Reds fans, and I'm a Blue. A few of the fans at Reds know this, and on the whole the banter is friendly and accommodating. However, even my own uncle occasionally grumbles at me about being a Carlisle fan, and will bring up Reds "Deselection" from the Football League. "Carlisle wanted us out to nick our fans" is the chorus to that, usually.
To sum up, I'm a Carlisle United fan from the middle of Cumbria and one of many not originally from Carlisle, I'm sure. I've not experienced any nastiness about being a Blue when I'm at Reds. I was at the Reds-Barrow match where it "kicked off" but it was such a small fracas that I didn't even know about it until later. In the last couple of years, I've started going to the occasional Reds match with my brother, who runs the Sponsors Bar at the club on match days. I've now got a bit of a soft spot for Reds, so if I was to have a second club, it would be Reds.
So, why this little meander into the red and away from the blue? Well, it wasn't that long ago that Carlisle were plummetting towards being in the same league as Workington, and now we're again experiencing troubles on and off the pitch. Yes, it isn't good to be having a bad season again but by the same token we should not forget that things have been much worse. I do understand how such a statement can get the backs up of some Carlisle fans. History is history, and all the matters is the present and the future. Sport is a great example of that valuable life lesson. Every season a team starts afresh, facing all the same battles and perhaps some new ones. Just as this is seen as New Year by some, so we must also look at this month as the chance start afresh and secure our Tier 3 position for another season. Time is running out - but that doesn't mean that the fans and employees of the club should run out.
I was at Cheltenham on Saturday, and at least there was some fight being shown by the players that day. Silliness led to us finishing that game with nine men, but we still had two great chances in extra time to win the game. Our inability to score from around the six yard box this season will be the real reason for our relegation, should it happen. However, we now go into our last game with a chance. Provided we win, we only need one of possibly three teams above us to stumble. Admittedly, Hartlepool are relatively safe due to goal difference, but we could catch even them!
We are Carlisle - believe in it, and it can be possible.
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