August 2002 at home to Gillingham 2-0
We are over 100 years old, we have never won the English Premier League or the F.A. Cup, but we have won the league cup 3 times, 2 of them in the last 5 years. Our famous Ex Players include Gordon Banks who was the goalkeeper when England won the world cup in 1966 and Gary Lineker who played many times for England. In May 2002, we were relegated from the English Premiership into the English First Division.
We hope that despite our financial problems caused by our relegation and the building of our new stadium, we will get promotion this season. as our manager Micky Adams says, "Keep the Faith ". In August 2002, we moved from our old ground at Filbert Street to our new Walkers Stadium. It has a capacity of 32,000. Its a great new stadium, just like a mini Wembley stadium.
In late August 2002, I attended the new ground for the first time. I wrote the text below on my return home, and it was used by LCFC in a later matchday programme.
From the first time I went to see City in John Sjoberg's testimonial at Filbert Street, I have always had Leicester City in my blood. I have seen good times like the Larry May Day at Orient when we won and then waited in the coach park for what seemed ages to find out that we were champions, to a return visit to Orient on a late season game when we were 3 down in no time, when for the only time in my life I think I saw a City team not trying in what turned out to be I believe Jock's last game, a cold 0-0 at Wrexham on a Tuesday also comes to mind. These things to me are what watching city means, having missed out watching the glory O'Neill years in person, but still cheering like mad at the TV. But all that said, what I saw on Saturday was like landing on another planet.
I was sat in the corner of the family area P3, in what should in theory be the worst views in the ground, but the view was superb. I love the post horn gallop, and to hear a longer version of it was a treat, but I think the other music ( was it the theme from an old spice advert from years back ? ) as a build up to the post horn gallop was great, futuristic inspiring music which smoothly lead into our traditional and much loved theme tune. I must admit, I was close to tears. I kept looking out at the scene in the sunshine, the singing from ALL of the ground, the superb ground and I was thinking , Is this really Leicester I am in ?.
Then I thought of all our financial worries and I thought, this club can not be allowed to die, we now have so much for the club to live for with the ground and the crowd. To allow this to die would be criminal. I hope for good times in a few years, and imagine if we can survive, prosper, pay for the ground and get the extension to 38,000 built. We now have a home to be proud of, and it made me so proud to sit there as a City fan amongst 28,000 friends.
Leaving the ground, I couldn't believe as I looked up the ground towards Aylestone Road. The whole of the road, the roundabout and everything was just a tide of City fans going home happy, it looked like Wembley way on cup final day.
Please excuse me if you think the above rambling are of a madman, but actually they are just the views of an exiled fan, seen through blue slightly tear filled eyes, just hoping that the future will be what we want, just to have a future, and hopefully a very noisy fun filled one in front of 38,000 fans in the sunshine.
2011.
The above was the first time that we had been to a game at the ground, but we had been inside it previously on an open day one Sunday. Large queues that day and then we walked around the edge of the pitch that had no grass and was just a base. Players at tables back in Filbert Street signing autographs for fans. A good day then back to York on the train.