If you look at the calendar you will see that Christmas Eve falls on December 24, but for 1,000 Luton fans, or ‘Ambassadors’ as we are being called, that day is actually today, December 1.
I say that knowing that, after nine long months without going to a football match, that I am one day away from going again is a similar feeling to being a kid on the eve of the big man whizzing down the chimney and doing his thing!
So much has changed in the nine months since I trudged away from the DW Stadium in Wigan in awe of that incredible save by Simon Sluga. Things are different on the pitch with a change of manager and players that I have been unable to watch live in person, but of course it is a totally new world off the pitch.
Health questionnaires, temperature checks and social distancing are things I would never have dreamt of associating with going to a football match, but ultimately they are a small price to pay for the reward of actually sitting and watching talented players like Rhys Norrington-Davies and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall in the flesh, rather than on a computer or TV screen.
I guess I’m not going to fully appreciate what this will entail until I have experienced it for myself, but in my role as the host of the Luton Town Supporters’ Trust Podcast, I’ve been able to question The Lutonian’s Hatters reporter James Cunliffe on these things, so I have a bit of an idea on what to expect.
Whatever it all entails, and it is going to be different there’s no getting around that, I can’t help but feel excited and have a sense of anticipation that I probably last felt on the day of the Middlesbrough game that started last season.
It isn’t just that I’m going back to football for the first time in nine months, or that I get to see talents like Dewsbury-Hall play live, but also what was once a completely normal and regular part of my life returns for an evening at least, which is much-needed in these restrictive times.
The experience will be different and the atmosphere a little stranger, although I’ve been through the FA Trophy and Checkatrade Trophy times, so that won’t be too alien to me, but ultimately the game won’t have changed and my feelings for the team I’ll be watching certainly haven’t.
Hopefully, all 1,000 people invited to the Kenny get the most we can out of the experience, but more importantly, everyone is safe throughout and this can open the door to the gradual return to that normality we all crave.
It’s an odd experience returning to a limited capacity. We had it over here in the US as MLS returned in August with state-mandated limits. The first couple of games with 3,000 at FC Dallas felt more like the old Tuesday afternoon reserve games at the Kenny where a couple of hundred people sat about awkwardly distanced in complete silence.
Hi. looking forward to tonights game and feel honoured as selected for the game. Come on you HATTERS.