In most threads on REO there seems to be the odd negative post or a little bickering (or worse I guess). I'm hoping that this thread will be full of positivity and fond memories.

So, what stared you off as a Swans supporter? When did you first start barracking for our great club? What are your early memories of your time supporting the Swans

I have a friend whose young son is a 5th generation Swan supporter. It's in his very DNA. For me it was literally random chance.

I grew up in rural Victoria. Dad wasn't a footy fan. No influence there. My favourite color has always been red. Not really sure why. But as an 8 year old your favourite color is an important thing. Anyway, in 1980 I bought my first packet of Scanlens football cards as I shuffled through the cards, I came across this one.

IMG_2214.JPG

The guy looked friendly and most importantly for an impressionable youngster, the team's jumper had red in it. Thank goodness I didn't pull Tim Watson, Kelvin Templeton, Robbie Flower, Bernie Quinlan or, Heaven forbid, Trevor Barker!!

From that day and that card "Digger" Round has always had a soft spot in my heart and I've been a Swans supporter ever since.

I feel I am now pretty well versed in the relocation saga (and the Swans history in general - I own and have read many books that detail the club pre-dating my support - I have a passion for all things Swans especially our history) but at the time of the move, I had been supporting South for 2 years and as I lived in rural Victoria, I never attended a game. Dad worked every weekend so travelling to Mebourne to watch the footy was never an option. In fact, at the time dad wasn't a footy fan at all (he is now and his allegiance is to the Swans - in fact the very first game we attended together was on September 24, 2005).

From memory, prior to the 1982 season, footy matches were only televised in the country as the match of the day. South rarely got that, so my Swans viewing was limited to channel 7 Sunday Sports highlights and ABC highlights (so proud when Wayne Carroll was awarded the ABC Mark of the Year!). I think the night series might also have been televised around that time (or perhaps the year the Swans moved in 1982?).

I remember having to sit in the hallway with the transistor radio, in front of the heater, wearing my Swans beanie and scarf and jumper (I still have all of them - though he shorts and socks of the time are long gone) listening to the Swans matches with crackly static. In the country we didn't get every game broadcast on the radio either, so sometimes I even had to listen to other matches waiting for them to go "around the grounds" for a score update. Worse still, all too often I would finish the broadcast in tears because my beloved Swans had lost - and I expected a thorough taunting at school the next day! Hard as the only Swans supporter in a small country town.
So my memory of the relocation was that, suddenly my team was on TV every second week! We had a first up win against Melbourne. We had a night premiership soon after. So at that time, the trauma endured by hardcore South diehards was a blessing for a young boy. Now I feel deeply for the South supporters, players and the club and what it had to endure and overcome. But the relocation probably heightened my bond and love for the club which means so much to me today.

To me Sydney and South Melbourne are truly one team. Almost every team has moved at some stage of their existence. Mine just moved a little further.


I'm sure there are many wonderful stories out there of how RWO members came to support our club. Please share