The Fifth Column
Lazy mug
You should support your local team then and not a big club!
Just joking. However I will say that IF things had worked out just slightly differently, i.e. if Crawley's rise up the leagues had coincided with our in stint in Gillingham (or even us losing at Hereford), then their rivals could have been us and Sussex's league support could have been irrevocably split between two clubs.
I know that's one of those hypothetical "what if?" statements, that no one can prove or deny, but it's worth bearing in mind and makes our current position all the better.
Ooh it gives me shivers just thinking about it now but way back in the dark days when we were at Gillingham and going out of business was a real prospect and genuine threat I recall having a conversation with my wife about who we would watch if the Albion went bust. We considered Crawley and I even recall looking at my watch one time after driving to Crawley to see how long it would take to get there from my house! I feel dirty even typing those words! Also considered Charlton for no other reason than Palace hate them and they were being very supportive towards us at the time. Another option was going to Selhurst and supporting the away team but the thought of giving Palace my hard earned cash was unbearable and depressing. In the end I think we agreed that another Albion would likely rise from the ashes and start all over again in the lower tiers of football and that we would watch them whatever division we were in. Fast forward several years and we are on the cusp of something special, promotion would cap off an amazing turnaround and rebirth of this amazing club of ours and I'm relishing every single minute of this season.
