I have been a Central Coast Mariners fan ever since their inception in 2004 into the new national football league named: The A-League. Granted, l was only 10 years old, and wasn’t focused on them that much, but l went to the occasional game and really enjoyed it. As l played football from ages 6-16, l started attending games regularly in the 2007/08 season and l was enthralled at how this small team for my region could compete on a national scale and almost win the Championship. Losing to the Jets in that season’s grand final hurt, but l knew, with a lot of others that success was not far away for this overachieving and great football team. In the next few seasons, l grew as a person and as a fan. I had a free ticket for every home game due to the club’s fantastic system where if you’re a player for any local football side you can gain access to home games for free. A luxury that l did not want to waste. I was suddenly a huge fan in season 2011/12 when we made the Grand Final again and faced the mighty Brisbane Roar at Suncorp Stadium. [...]