I’ve been going to Old Trafford once a year for the last 5 years. I’ve been a Manchester United fan for as long as I can remember. But nothing can compare with last night. The night of my first Home Manchester United match. The story starts about 6 weeks ago. I bought my ticket on July 16th and received confirmation on the 20th. I would be going to Old Trafford to watch Manchester United vs Newcastle! I almost cried, I was so happy. I couldn’t stop telling people. As August began, I got an email saying my ticket had been sent. More good news. So I flew to England, spending 7 days with my wonderful family awaiting the big match. Saturday, 2 days until the match, still no ticket. So I ring up the Ticket Office, I speak to Steve, and they apologise profusely saying there is a duplicate and that I should pick them up before the match. Sunday, just over 24 hours left, I travel to Manchester. 1st stop: Old Trafford. The taxi drops me off just outside the Munich Tunnel, commemorating the lives lost in the Munich Air Disaster on February 6th, 1958. I make my first purchase within 1 minute: a “protest” scarf protesting the owners, which is yellow and green for the colours of Newton and Heath FC manchester United’s first name. Then I purchase my programme for the following day. There’s only one more thing I need before I’m ready. A shirt. One of the new ones. So I stride into the Megastore next to the East Stand(which has more part to play in this story). The shirts are displayed across this amazing spectacle of Red and white. I go over and I see it, FLETCHER 24, XL. Mine! I then take another 45 minutes going round looking at other things buying a United training shirt, Manchester United logo sterling silver ring, and shorts. I leave the stadium fresh with the knowledge that I shall return. Monday morning, 800 am, 12 hours until kick off. I throw on my newly acquired FLETCHER 24 shirt, raring to go. I see the family some more, and then half 4 I get on the tram with 1 other fan and an employee(lucky sod lol) at Old Trafford. I was on my way. The tram terminated at Piccadilly so we all exited at Piccadilly Gardens to connect to Old Trafford. There were hundreds of other fans on this tiny platform. So many, I missed the first tram. So the second tram was mine. Me and my companions(unfortunately they remained anonymous) boarded our glory bound chariot joined by our fellow Reds in scarves. The announcement is made: “All trams terminating at Old Trafford”. A cheer goes out! 2 stations left and we will be there, I pull my aforementioned “protest” scar from my pocket. I’m ready. We arrive. Droves of fans are moving forwards. I practically run(until I meet a group of Bobbys) towards the stadium in excitement, until I reach the traffic lights and the true extent of fandom is realised. The hundreds of fans behind me shrink in comparison to the thousands in front of me. People selling scarves and programmes, rings and badges, pictures and trinkets, fans everywhere. I reach the stadium, time for my ticket. I produce my Nevada Drivers’ Licence as my photo ID and they hand me the best piece of paper in history. Something I’d wanted for 15 years. Waited for 2 months for. The ticket. MANCHESTER UNITED vs NEWCASTLE UNITED, 16th August, Kick-off: 800 pm. I had it. So I strove to find my seat. The ticket office was near the West Stand(the infamous Stretford End) and North Stand. So I walked looking for E32. But before that, I see a crowd of fans and a coach. Could it be? Unfortunately not, 20 minutes for Newcastle’s team. So I moved on, South Stand. Where was E32? There it was, the East Stand. I had been dropped off there 30 hours previous by the taxi. I was there. I presented my ticket, through the turnstile, up 4 flights of stairs(running) and I find E333. My section. I ran up the seven steps in the section into the mid-evening air and there in front of me: the great expanse of the 75,000 seating football Colloseum, Old Trafford. Specifically the world famous Stretford End. I could see the fantastically green pitch, the West, North, and South stands, the away supporters, everything. Even parts of the City of Manchester. I went back into the stadium, put on a bet, bought a sausage roll and Diet Coke, and went back to my seat: Row 14, seat 101. For the next 50 minutes I sang along to Glory Glory Man United with the other fans as they rushed to their seats, watched the two teams train, had a crowd to crowd argument with the Newcastle section, and prepared for kick-off. 800: the crowd is buzzing with expectation, when the announcer came onto the loudspeaker, “WELCOME TO THE HOME OF MANCHESTER UNITED, THE THEATRE OF DREAMS, OLD TRAFFORD!!!” Cheers, chants, clapping, excitement ripples through the stadium as the teams appear from the tunnel. They lined up as the announcer boomed out the teams amid boos and jeers for Newcastle from the United fans and cheering and clapping overshadowing the Newcastle fans for United. KICK OFF! The match was underway. Manchester United dominated until the 15th minute when Newcastle’s attack and subsequent corner were stopped by Edwin van der Sar. In the 30th minute Paul Scholes orchestrated a fantastic attack resulting in a fantastic goal by Dimitar Berbatov who bulleted the ball past Steve Harper. The crowd went ballistic, including me. “SCORER FOR MANCHESTER UNITED! NUMBER 9! DIMITAR BERBATOV!!!”. The crowd, spurred on by my section being next to the Geordies, started a chant “WHO ARE YA!” Since they had been bragging about being “Championes” for being promoted. They responded with chants of “USA!” Because of the Glazier family who are the out of favour owners(protest scarves)and trying to put off Wayne Rooney after the World Cup, so the response was “GOING DOWN! YOU’RE GOING DOWN! YOU’RE GOING DOWN! WHO ARE YA! YOU ARE GOING DOWN! YOU’RE GOING DOWN!” And so on. That shut them up, but not as much as the event of the 41st minute. Nani ran up the wing, like he does, pulling in three defenders, who didn’t see the onrushing Patrice Evra. Nani threaded the ball through to the Frenchman who put it across to Rooney who failed to put the ball into the net, bouncing it off a defender, but it fell to a United player and it was in the net! CHEERS rang around the ground that it almost silenced the announcement “THE SCORER FOR MANCHESTER UNITED! NUMBER 24! DARREN FLETCHER!!!” Does that name and number ring a bell? Just 30 hours before I had purchased a new AON Manchester United shirt with FLETCHER 24. Looks like I knew. Halftime: 2-0 to United. During the second half United dominated again, but Rooney struggled to reach form, so Chicharito was brought on amid thundering cheers, which had started since he had begun training on the sideline. But in the mid 70 minutes, something happened. Another substitution. A man walked toward the line wearing the number 11 amid riotous cheers. The reason he was cheered is because he is a legend, and he showed his legendary status in the 71st minute. He shot from just outside the box and it beat Harper at his far post to make it 3-0. “THE SCORER FOR MANCHESTER UNITED! NUMBER 11! RYAN GIGGS!!! The game was officially over. The only other events in the match were Joey Barton being typically Barton and getting a yellow card, plus some pathetic decisions where the ref gave Scholes and Fletcher yellow cards for nothing. In the 82nd minute came the announcement “THE ATTENDANCE AT OLD TRAFFORD TODAY: 74, 811!” A sold out stadium, but obviously some of the Geordies knew what would happen. I left the stadium just after the whistle, after the cheer and clapping for a successful day out. I left the stadium amongst all the happy United fans, bought another scarf, the matchday scarf, and returned to Bury. That was the best day of my life(so far of course lol). An absolutely brilliant occasion. The best way to have my first Old Trafford match experience. I can’t wait to go back:). Come on United!! GLORY GLORY MAN UNITED!!!!!