A group of 150 Southend United fans hired a ‘party boat’ to take them down The Thames to their match away to Sutton on Saturday, and they soon noticed that an American tourist called Evan was sitting quietly by himself, so they asked him if he was OK. It turned out that he had got on the boat by accident and thought he was doing a sightseeing tour of London
They instantly adopted him as a new Shrimper, got the beers in, and even gave him a ticket to the match that ended 1-1. If you kept hearing the chant ‘Evan is a Shrimper’ on the radio – now you know why!
STORY:
GUARDIAN – Accidentally boarding a boat packed with beer-swilling football fans would be some people’s idea of hell.
But Evan Johnston, a 21-year-old student from Arizona, said he “had a blast” after inadvertently joining a boat trip chartered by 150 Southend United supporters before their National League game at Sutton United on Saturday.
“I had originally planned to board the river cruise boat for the Hop-On-Hop-Off tour, which I assume was located on the same dock,” Johnson told the Echo. “The cruise would last an hour or so and then I planned to spend the rest of the day touring central London.
Andy Ward, one of the Southend supporters on board, told the Echo: “Someone on the boat told me a young lad was on the wrong boat and I just wanted to make sure he was OK. When I found him he was drinking and dancing with other Southend fans and even though you could see he was nervous everyone was just trying to make him feel welcome … He said someone gave him a match ticket but was unsure whether to go. I said to him come with us.”
The boat docked at Blackfriars Pier and the fans, their number swelled by one, caught a train to Sutton, where Johnston had an authentic taste of a football supporter’s life
One of the things I’ve been very upfront about on CarlsBlogs.com from the very beginning is that I’m becoming an obsessive soccer fan and there’s nothing I can do to stop it. Been like this for years now and I’m finally starting to get a decent understanding of players and rivalries and all the reasons people actually care.
For me it’s a relaxing start to the weekend. That’s where things started. I get up most days around 5am and I like having something to bet on in the morning with my coffee. A lot of American fans can relate to this.
But it’s also a really easy watch. The running time with no commercial breaks is delightful. 90 minutes of game time is super easy to plan around. You can hear the opportunities developing in the announcers voice which makes it super easy to pay attention to opportunities while they’re happening in real time.
It’s truly an enjoyable experience to sit in the dark on my couch at 6:30am on a Saturday morning and bet a 4-team same game parlay.
That said, the most alluring part of soccer fandom is the inherent camaraderie that comes with your club. I’m still finalizing loyalty to Everton but I can’t wait to learn the songs and wear a scarf and one day make the maiden voyage to get loaded at the local pub with the lads and be apart of that vibe. Even at a severe discount via being an outsider. Even without any connection and long-considering the severe unlikelihood it happens in the first place, I simply can’t wait to pregame a match with the boys and make friends. That’s going to be the best and most rewarding part of following a club in the first place.
Which is why I thoroughly enjoyed this story of some random American tagging along with a group of lads to get hammered at the local pub. And what a remarkable turn of events no less. Missing a train stop or getting on the wrong ferry or a Metra headed to Blue Island when you need to get off at 99th… that absolutely fucking blows and finding out in real time is the worst. So nice save being able to link up for an unlimited amount of beers with the local populace vs. having to pay triple for an Uber you didn’t want in the first place.
It also reminds me of the time(s) I worked with a couple English guys and it was awesome. Those guys don’t really do shit but they’re a great time and they pay for the drinks a lot. They’re also always telling stories and busting balls and leaving work early to socialize and network over stiff drinks in the industry.
Those are some great guys and fond times from a better Corporate America era. I don’t know what peak times were but 2015 compared to 2025 is no comparison. We had the good Blackhawks and Theo’s Cubs and way less violent crime and a functional mayor and just an overall better time to be a man about Chicago doing shit.
Now I’m watching soccer and selling my wife’s hand cream on a small farm 50 clicks west of Wrigley Field.
Of course I want to have a couple beers with the lads.
Sue me.
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