Relegation Celebration

thevolley09
Sep 14, 2015
1 min read

Being an invested sports fan can be emotionally, mentally & spiritually exhausting when things aren't going well for the club/franchise you love. The money pissed away on jerseys & other merchandise could have bought you a bedsit on the fringes of Auckland City, & the time wasted away in the stands & in front of the TV could have been better spent watching the lawn grow around said bedsit.

But, we love it. We’re suckers for punishment. There’s no thrill like willing your team to win/avoid embarrassment. (The second part is increasingly important in the new social media age where you’re an instant target, in real time, when your team gets tuned up).

I've been a New York Knicks, & Auckland/NZ Warriors fan for 20 (rough, long) years, so I know a little bit about losing. It's lucky we don't have to deal with relegation in either the NBA or NRL, or both of my teams could very well be playing their 2016 seasons in the lower divisions.

I’ve watched the Knicks get swept in the first round of the play-offs, & I’ve seen the Warriors get pumped by 50 points. More than once. (& this list could be so much longer).

But, here's a fan who went through the emotional rollercoaster of facing relegation.