Hello. My name is Anthony and i’m a New England Patriots fan. Apologies about that – we probably would never have got on in the long term. Best we don’t become friends. I’ve been very kindly asked to write an entry about being a Pats fan, and my thoughts for the upcoming Wembley game in October. Very well…but if I hear one mention of Super Bowl XLII, i’m off!

How about some background to start you off. First really got into the NFL about 10 years ago after being introduced by a friend in the States. He’s a Pats fan as well, so he sort of coached me into the role of supporting them. Wasn’t the best season to do it, as we were awful – coming bottom of the AFC East with a record of 5-11. I wasn’t having the most fun to be honest. Being introduced into a sport where your new team lose more than they win is never great. However, the effect it had on me was one which had me supporting for them as the underdog. By the end of the season I was converted! My team was confirmed and I was going to do my bit to help them move up the table. Enter Tom Brady…

What followed was 3 Super Bowls in the space of 4 years and the Pats becoming one of the most well known teams in the UK due to their success and their exposure. Don’t get me wrong, I loved all the wins. It’s always better to win a Super Bowl than…not. However, as I met other NFL fans I would get the same response. “Who do you support?” “The Pats!” “Glory Hunter!” It did hurt a little bit as it seemed they thought I was into them for the wrong reasons. I imagine it’s how genuine Manchester United fans felt in 1999.

Just to get one thing straight – i’m not the biggest NFL fan you’ll find. I do love the sport and watch my team whenever I can. I recreate games on Madden and prove that we CAN win every game. You won’t find me watching all the analysis shows or visiting NFL.com every single day though. I like to think i’m a few steps up from ‘casual fan’ and a couple down from ‘hardcore’. I’m at a stage where i’m more than happy to spend over £100+ for a ticket to watch an NFL game at Wembley every year. Would have happily spent far more than that on the game taking place this year though. In October, a dream of mine finally comes true. I am going to see the Pats live and playing a regular season game. A couple of years ago, had you asked me, I would have said the only way of that happening would have been to buy a plane ticket. I’m so thankful that the NFL have decided to go down this route of showcasing their sport to a wider audience. I’m also thankful that it’s only taken until the third year to bring the Pats over!

This October then, for the third year running, the four of us (including the two you see regularly posting here) are descending on Wembley to have ourselves a great time! How did it all come about though? I wish I had some exciting tale about me having to sell my first edition copy of The Beano #1 in order to be allowed in. Nothing like that though. Andrew sorted it all out. All I did was wait for the text to confirm that the tickets were ours. I’ll be honest though, that wait was pretty tough. Knowing that it’s not in your hands (I was at work) and that you’re not able to do anything about it. It reminded me of when a friend was trying to sort us out tickets for Glastonbury 2004 and spent all day trying to get through on the phone. I even tried for a bit on my break, but to no avail. In the end, we got lucky with getting tickets from those who had cancelled in the second ticket sale. So many different emotions, from excitement to dispair to joy. That was just to get into Glastonbury. This time it’s to watch my team.

If you’ve not been to an NFL game at Wembley before, it’s something you should do. It’s a brilliant stadium with great facilities. You only have to walk a couple of metres to find your next bar or toilet.. Very useful. The event itself is done as close to a real game as you can hope for. They know that the majority of people who go are fans, who know how the game works and just want to experience it as it normally is. Sure, we get some celebrities down to toss the coin and a rock/pop band to play us in, but after that it’s down to the regular game. All the ‘well you’re new to the NFL, are you?’ can be sorted out on the TV coverage. From what I understand, these games are helping to bring in new fans who have never seen a game before. As long as that’s the case, I hope they continue. No, forget that. I hope they continue anyway, even if it’s doing nothing to help the sport. I’m selfish like that!

So we’ll be having fun then. Who cares about the result! Well…me. It’s always nice to leave with a win. It certainly helps prevent any moments of getting laughed at. What do I think about our chances? I’m going to go down the conservative route of saying ‘ask me nearer the time’. I’m also going to go down the basic response route of saying ‘it depends on Tom Brady’. It does, simple as that. He seems to be almost there, despite a slight shoulder injury picked up in a recent pre-season game against the Redskins. It may well be that it was due to having been out the sport for a while. We’re all rusty when we start back, so hopefully he’ll be back to his usual self as the season starts. Would have quite liked to have kept Cassel, as he was damn useful for us last season. In fact, his usefulness seems to have worked against us but I wish him the best at the Chiefs. Simply put, as long as Brady remains fit and does what he does best, along with a solid performance from the defence, we should finish top and head into the playoffs. Will we go all the way? Far too early to say, but we have shown many many times that we’re a constant force in the NFL.

So there we go then. A new season starts and for the next few months I have to go through the usual rollercoaster routine we all do. Whoever you support, I wish you the best of luck in your upcoming season…unless you’re Eli Manning and there’s less than a minute left…