Matchdays

Q: OK, basics first. Who are you and how did you get involved with Guildford City? 

I'm Matt, a Southampton supporting second year student at the university of Surrey.When I first arrived here, I spent my weekends travelling to watch the Saints, but I became annoyed of the cost and the time it took up.

So along with two flatmates, we decided to check out the local teams. We came to a Guildford for a few matches and also a couple of games at Aldershot. 

Our house this year is much closer to the Spectrum, and I now have my car up here so it makes getting to matches a lot easier. We got some more people from our course interested and have been to a lot of games this season, making friends with other supporters and making ourselves known! 

We met Andy and Ian at Dorking away early in the season and decided to form a supporters group, merging the 'SDACS' (Saturday Drinkers & City Supporters) and the 'Southway Supporters'. We decided we'd make ourselves look silly by taking flags, chanting, and even taking kazoos. 

We finally came up with 'The Sweeney' at Banstead Athletic, and since then our numbers have increased. We're gradually persuading more students to matches, and a recent spate of City-scarf sightings on campus has prompted us to form the SweeneySoc (an official, partially university funded society that will help us promote the club to new students). 

Q: The reasoning behind The Sweeney theme tune that the players run out to at home matches has already been outlined in a previous programme, but it seems a lot more than just that. How do you think the club will benefit from the whole phenomenon? 

At the Banstead match, match day DJ and stand-up comic Andy asked if I could find the theme tune for The Sweeney. However, it really didn't cut the mustard, so to speak, so I decided I'd have a go at rearranging it to sound more like the sort of thing you hear as teams come out all around the country. Over the next couple of days I dragged Joe and the other Matt into the recording studio and we came out with the finished product, including two saxophone lines and a screaming guitar solo at the end.

Joe and I later went in to record the vocal parts, putting on lots of different voices in an attempt to capture the 'crowd' sound.

It all turned out very Monty Python however, and we decided to stick with just the music! It was first played at the famous cup victory over Carshalton and we haven't lost since it's been played. 

If anyone is interested the lyrics are as follows: 

"The City, the City; we all go to the Spectrum to watch...the City, the City; we all followed the Guildford City..." 

I believe that the new found moniker, theme tune and flag has given a more obvious supporter presence at home matches (something that was desperately needed). It also gives us something to 'belong' to, and will help to keep people interested when they come to watch the City. It has definitely been a talking point and we hope that the splash of colour and noise we provide will cause people to sit up and take notice of the club. Of course, I hope it inspires the players too! 

If we can keep up the support we've had this season by introducing new students to the cause, then we can help to recreate the great support we had at the FA Vase game against Vosper Thornycroft FC earlier this season. 

Q: What do you believe to be the top priorities for Guildford City FC to enable the club to grow, prosper and progress beyond the CCL?

First and foremost we need supporters. More people will help the club grow, and we are constantly trying to recruit more people into The Sweeney. Of course, a new ground would be amazing... one with a pitch conducive to good football and a home to call our own. This would also help to raise the

profile of the football club in the local area, and thus attract more people! 

A few of us will be away next season on a placement year (Stu's even hoping to go as far away as Denmark!) so we will only be able to make the occasional game. But two of the newer Sweeney members, Dan and Dave, seem committed to the cause and hopefully they can carry on the work and introduce even more people to football in Guildford. Combine all that with Lofty's mouth (and wit...), Chris' pub-finding pedigree and Doug's inspiring thinking... The Sweeney shall be unstoppable!