Our FA Cup first round tie at home to Altrincham on Sunday will be a major milestone for lifelong supporter Jeff Young. It will mark his 1,500th consecutive game watching the green and whites!
His unbelievable run started in 1987. The last game he missed was in January of that year and that was a challenging 640 mile round trip to Bath City.
His record includes a 500 mile round trip to Worcester for a mid-week cup replay plus a 428 round trip to Corby, again mid-week, for a game which ended up being abandoned due to fog with the Spartans losing 2-0!
Jeff has not restricted his involvement with the Spartans to daunting journeys and consistent home attendance. He also spent ten years on the Supporters Club Committee and serving for a couple of years on the club’s Executive Board.
In 2004 he became Match Secretary which he now combines with being the Kit Man.
Jeff first started supporting Blyth seriously around the time of the 1977/78 FA Cup run. In fact there is a FA Cup theme running through his record. His 1200th consecutive game was the Cup tie against Blackburn Rovers in 2009.
Is 2000 or more games on the trot possible?
Jeff is pragmatic saying: “I’ve got no real target. It’s the old football thing of ‘one game at a time’. We’ll see. It’s just great to be involved with the club. It takes up all my spare time. I enjoy it – I wouldn’t do the jobs I do if I didn’t. I’m first and foremost a supporter and if I can help in any way on top of that I will.”
Congratulations Jeff!
A fuller version of the interview with Jeff will appear in the Frickley game programme next Tuesday.