Next Generation of Saints Supporters

[Sunshine Saint]

Last year when watching AFL 360 I laughed when I heard Gerard Whateley refuse to put on a Tigers hat and scarf as his daughters were still up and that they would be watching the show. He said that he had put a lot of work into his daughters being Geelong supporters and wasn't going to do anything to muck that up.

After further questions from Mark Robinson, Whateley said that in his house, if you don't barrack for Geelong, Santa doesn't come.

In the lead up to the 2013 Season what have you done in the past, or still are doing in order to make sure that your children, nephews / nieces / cousins, friends etc barrack for St Kilda?

 

[Sunshine Saint]

When we moved to Melbourne for three years on business, when my daughters were 4, 6 and 8, my principal aim was to have all three of them, as fanatical Saints supporters by the time we left Melbourne.

The first key was of course bribery. After leaving home (no mother in tow) we would stop at the local shop, where the girls , of course sworn to secrecy, would fill up a large bag with lollies and junk, to keep them happy throughout a match, they didn't yet know, or understand. This was the great start I needed to get them to willingly go.

My eldest (8 at the time) after the first match, desperately wanted to call out like all other supporters. Only problem was that she didn't know what, or when to call out. After assuring her, that calling out "BALL" was more than sufficient for 95% of the time, I spent the first seven or eight games, holding her arm and squeezing it each time, she was to call out "BALL". Yes she was my trained parrot, but soon got the hang of it. I then moved on to the other two, with further arm squeezing and their fanatical yelling of "BALL" until they were right in their element amongst the supporters.

Very pleased to say that with girls now 16, 18 and 20, that they are all life long Saints supporters.

 

[Persevering Saint]

The first thing my daughter ever saw on TV was Nick Riewoldt during a footy match. When she was still a baby, needing to be wrapped, we got a Saints Members scarf, inverted one end into itself so that it became one long sock, and then would put her into it - it was really easy to do, very warm on cold nights, really snug and comfy, and further perpetuated the indoctrination.

She has a series of toys we rotate in her bed for her to sleep with, and one of the most beloved ones is Sainter-Bear.

 

[SaintsSeptember]

When we moved to Melbourne for three years on business, when my daughters were 4, 6 and 8, my principal aim was to have all three of them, as fanatical Saints supporters by the time we left Melbourne.

The first key was of course bribery. After leaving home (no mother in tow) we would stop at the local shop, where the girls , of course sworn to secrecy, would fill up a large bag with lollies and junk, to keep them happy throughout a match, they didn't yet know, or understand. This was the great start I needed to get them to willingly go.

My eldest (8 at the time) after the first match, desperately wanted to call out like all other supporters. Only problem was that she didn't know what, or when to call out. After assuring her, that calling out "BALL" was more than sufficient for 95% of the time, I spent the first seven or eight games, holding her arm and squeezing it each time, she was to call out "BALL". Yes she was my trained parrot, but soon got the hang of it. I then moved on to the other two, with further arm squeezing and their fanatical yelling of "BALL" until they were right in their element amongst the supporters.

Very pleased to say that with girls now 16, 18 and 20, that they are all life long Saints supporters.

I never got my two oldest children to get very vocal, but my 8 year old is great at yelling "MILNEY" when Milne kicks a goal. I shudder to think what the Collingwood supporters are teaching their children at the same time.
( He's funny we took him to the base ball and he randomly yelled out "HIT THE BALL" really loudly when everyone else was quiet during a pitch which resulted in probably the nicest hit of the day and the guy on second base getting home).

All of them wave the flag and clack the clackers and get a lolly every time StKilda kick a goal.

 

[Sunshine Saint]

I never got my two oldest children to get very vocal, but my 8 year old is great at yelling "MILNEY" when Milne kicks a goal. I shudder to think what the Collingwood supporters are teaching their children at the same time.
( He's funny we took him to the base ball and he randomly yelled out "HIT THE BALL" really loudly when everyone else was quiet during a pitch which resulted in probably the nicest hit of the day and the guy on second base getting home).

All of them wave the flag and clack the clackers and get a lolly every time StKilda kick a goal.

Got to love the incentives of lollies, to make them more determined for the Saints to get another goal.

 

[saintkildaman]

Got my best mate to support the Saints.. Took about a year having the Saints as his 'second' favourite team.

 

[SaintsSeptember]

Got to love the incentives of lollies, to make them more determined for the Saints to get another goal.

"more determined" or "vaguely interested".
Used to like it when the littlest was only about five, I'd pick him up and wave him around while he's waving his flag and wearing his StKilda scarf hat.

 

[Sunshine Saint]

Years ago when I was a primary school teacher, I used to let out the kids who barracked for St Kilda first, then the kids who liked St Kilda, then the rest. Amazing what wonders incentives can do.

 

[Defacto]

soon as my son and daughter were born i signed them up. also signed up the missus (she's a freo supporter when football tickles her interest, usually around finals).

scheme of things cant really justify the expense/afford it, given we live in perth and only get 1 game. but happy to do it to support the club

 

[adambrown]

My wife and i are currently pregnant with our first child due in early april and it already has a saints jumper, bibs, jump suits, scarf, teddy, beanie and booties. Poor kid will not have the option of barracking for another side, the brainwashing has already began.

 

[Saint Bostriots]

My whole family is Saints, My Girlfriend and her parents are Saints (probably why I got with her).
Now that we've been together for so long she now doesn't like the football and won't watch it because I barrack too loud.

On the up side at least I can watch the game in peace.

 

[Persevering Saint]

I told my wife last night that the NAB is only a month away, and without hesitation, she looked at me and asked, "Will Lenny be playing?"

 

[Saint Christopher]

I told my wife last night that the NAB is only a month away, and without hesitation, she looked at me and asked, "Will Lenny be playing?"

Does she have a sister?

 

[Defacto]

My wife and i are currently pregnant with our first child due in early april and it already has a saints jumper, bibs, jump suits, scarf, teddy, beanie and booties. Poor kid will not have the option of barracking for another side, the brainwashing has already began.

congrats mate!!!!! nothing more exciting and rewarding than having your own children. so much joy in buying their first footy/jumper etc.

advice: watch the in laws and relatives like a hawk. my in laws are constantly trying to sway my son to norf. my usual response "will norf still be around by the time he watches footy?" seems to fire them up pretty quick

 

[bubblegoose]

congrats mate!!!!! nothing more exciting and rewarding than having your own children. so much joy in buying their first footy/jumper etc.

advice: watch the in laws and relatives like a hawk. my in laws are constantly trying to sway my son to norf. my usual response "will norf still be around by the time he watches footy?" seems to fire them up pretty quick

Agreed, congrats on the pending Saint, Adambrown.

Defacto is correct though. My 2 were members from birth, fouth generation Saints supporters. They were spoiled with an unprecedented string of winning games. Hardly ever seeing a losing game.

Yet, when my son was a little fella & he came back from daycare singing the Richmond theme song, he wasn't allowed into the house until he promised not to sing it anymore

When my daughter decided she'll start following Geelong as a friend of hers barracked for them & they were winning GFs. She got back into line immediately when she discovered that only St Kilda supporters get chocolate ice cream for dessert

Also, as SS mentioned earlier, a Malteezer for a loud cheer after a goal usually keeps them paying attention. No cheer, no Malteezer!

Tough love works.

 

[adambrown]

congrats mate!!!!! nothing more exciting and rewarding than having your own children. so much joy in buying their first footy/jumper etc.

advice: watch the in laws and relatives like a hawk. my in laws are constantly trying to sway my son to norf. my usual response "will norf still be around by the time he watches footy?" seems to fire them up pretty quick

Thank you, my in laws and wife are actually Collingwood supporters and their back yard was Victoria Park growing up but thankfully there not really into footy or else we might have had a major issue.

 

[Persevering Saint]

Does she have a sister?

Sorry man. Just a brother.

 

[Persevering Saint]

suddenly missing karmafree.

 

[Saint Christopher]

Sorry man. Just a brother.

Such propaganda, tricks and bribery would make any evil dictator proud. Strength through bribery and manipulation, I completely endorse it!

I, however, have a sad story….

I have a lovely wife, three amazing kids- two girls and a boy.

The kids’ jumpers were bought months before they were born. They also had footballs and scarves in red, white and black. I had a footy made for my son, still a hazy ultrasound image at the time, with his name on it next to the number 35.

I played them each vision of Nicky W, Rooey, Lenny and Banger when they were about two.

I taught my daughters to say, like parrots,

“He has a big engine,”

when I asked,

“What does Robert Harvey have?”

The kids now– well, they tend to stay away from me when stkfc is playing…

“Dad, you get too tense.”

And the sacrilegious,

“I hope stkfc does not make the finals Dad, so you won’t get all mad and got to Melbourne a lot.”

The jumpers? Unworn, brand new, live in my closet for maybe a nephew, a niece, a grandchild or midget relation….sigh. The kids have not shown the slightest bit of interest despite my pleas and bribes. When stkfc is on tv the entire family vacates the premises.

When asked if they would wear the jumpers just to appease me I get blank stares….why would they want to do that???????????

Son loves swimming and tennis and designed his own website at age 8. Daughter 1 just won a gymnastics scholarship. Daughter 2 is doing an open universities course, age 16.

You will understand they are huge disappointments to me!

I blame the culture up here in Sydney. It is so shallow!

Meanwhile, my cousin has just had a son and he managed to convince his wife to name the child Archer….my cousin is a Kangaroos member.

The horror, the horror.

There is hope though, my sister-in-law has a one year old who looks like CJ.





(congrats to you and your wife AdamBrown.)

 

[Persevering Saint]

So much love for that post, Chris.

 

[Fred]

My kids didn't follow the footy as we didn't live anywhere they could get a grounding by going to games. My daughter started following carlton for some reason but has now become a sainter.

There's a swan and a magpie amongst her kids, a couple that I've no idea who they follow, if anyone but the youngest two have been sainters since birth. My son has lived in NSW for many years and follows some heathen code I'm unfamiliar with as do his kids.

 

[Sunshine Saint]

Agreed, congrats on the pending Saint, Adambrown.

Defacto is correct though. My 2 were members from birth, fouth generation Saints supporters. They were spoiled with an unprecedented string of winning games. Hardly ever seeing a losing game.

Yet, when my son was a little fella & he came back from daycare singing the Richmond theme song, he wasn't allowed into the house until he promised not to sing it anymore

When my daughter decided she'll start following Geelong as a friend of hers barracked for them & they were winning GFs. She got back into line immediately when she discovered that only St Kilda supporters get chocolate ice cream for dessert

Also, as SS mentioned earlier, a Malteezer for a loud cheer after a goal usually keeps them paying attention. No cheer, no Malteezer!

Tough love works.

It does sound like you should be preparing a basic handbook for new Saints dads on what to do to help your children keep the faith. Instead of another stuffed toy after a birth of a child, you could receive a kit with your very practical ideas.

You would have to be careful that it doesn't fall into Collingwood hands. God knows there are enough of those buggers already.

 

[Sunshine Saint]

Such propaganda, tricks and bribery would make any evil dictator proud. Strength through bribery and manipulation, I completely endorse it!

I, however, have a sad story….

I have a lovely wife, three amazing kids- two girls and a boy.

The kids’ jumpers were bought months before they were born. They also had footballs and scarves in red, white and black. I had a footy made for my son, still a hazy ultrasound image at the time, with his name on it next to the number 35.

I played them each vision of Nicky W, Rooey, Lenny and Banger when they were about two.

I taught my daughters to say, like parrots,

“He has a big engine,”

when I asked,

“What does Robert Harvey have?”

The kids now– well, they tend to stay away from me when stkfc is playing…

“Dad, you get too tense.”

And the sacrilegious,

“I hope stkfc does not make the finals Dad, so you won’t get all mad and got to Melbourne a lot.”

The jumpers? Unworn, brand new, live in my closet for maybe a nephew, a niece, a grandchild or midget relation….sigh. The kids have not shown the slightest bit of interest despite my pleas and bribes. When stkfc is on tv the entire family vacates the premises.

When asked if they would wear the jumpers just to appease me I get blank stares….why would they want to do that???????????

Son loves swimming and tennis and designed his own website at age 8. Daughter 1 just won a gymnastics scholarship. Daughter 2 is doing an open universities course, age 16.

You will understand they are huge disappointments to me!

I blame the culture up here in Sydney. It is so shallow!

Meanwhile, my cousin has just had a son and he managed to convince his wife to name the child Archer….my cousin is a Kangaroos member.

The horror, the horror.

There is hope though, my sister-in-law has a one year old who looks like CJ.





(congrats to you and your wife AdamBrown.)

Chris thoughts are with you. Even from the best of families some kids can go astray. You would just hope that as they mature, the work that you have done, appears deep from within their consciousness.

Otherwise there are the grand kids to work on, when they appear. You will now have more time and resources to make sure, they don't get away.

 

[joop]

My sister is essendon, her husband is Carlton but being Albanian doesn't follow footy that much so I made a good effort to buy a stkilda dummy and scarf before my nephew was born. Was a good sight backpacking through central America and getting tagged in a photo with him wearing both. My sister has tried to convince him to the bombers but I think I sealed the deal when I took him to an afl store and bought him a saints footy. Then taught him the catch phrase, saints are the best chuck out the rest.

My girlfriends parents like to think our kids will be hawks supporters, I kindly pointed out that they will piss n shit enough that they don't need the hideous colours to match.

 

[Kildonan]

suddenly missing karmafree.

I am worried about Karmafree. He is never far from my thoughts.

My partner has 5 children, 2 from her first marriage who grew up mainly in SA, so it comes as no surprise that one of them (the eldest) follows the Crows. Despite living far away from us near Mackay Qld with her fiance she still manages to take credit for Adelaide's rare wins over us. The other 4 kids all follow the Saints. In fact they all still live with Karen and I - their ages range from 30 (the 2nd eldest) to 22, 20 and 18. The middle three are fanatical Sainters while the youngest daughter is not so interested in the football as she is in the very fit looking players .