As a Newcastle supporter, I looked forward with some trepidation (based on other North East real life supporter programmes shown on Amazon Prime) and worried that it was potentially going to show the fan base in a poor light. How wrong could I be. It's a delightful (although sometimes short on game action - presumably a licensing issue) look at what it takes, and what it means, to support Newcastle Untied. What it means to the city, what it means to the area and more importantly what it means to the supporters of a club that has been without real success for many many years.
The backdrop is the Championship winning season under manager Rafa Benitez, who had stayed with the club despite relegation the previous year, to continue his "project" and continue to build the club back to where it should be, striving to compete against the bigger clubs (in terms of financial muscle), and bringing hope back into a long suffering fan base who have the club, its players and the city, at it's heart.
It's wonderful to meet the central characters and their weekly rituals and brings back memories of my own rituals when I was fortunate enough to be able to go to matches on a regular basis. Their obvious love for the city and the club, is a joy to behold and even now, as the club is battered with wave after wave of bureaucratic red tape, financial constriction and league interference in preventing the club being overtaken by new management, that love shines through.
This film is unable to rely on game time footage and instead focuses on the people to whom the club means everything. It certainly proves the comments from Mr Jock Stein (ex-Liverpool manager) that "Football without fans, is nothing". The footballing hierarchy would do well to remember this.
A must watch for every Newcastle United fan, and fans of football generally. A glimpse into the pride and passion of supporting your club.
