The Future Supporter Base - Building a Baby Roo

How did/does/will the club selection process work for your children?

  • It's the Roos or the highway

    Votes: 19 95.0%
  • Let them choose freely

    Votes: 1 5.0%

  • Total voters
    20

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Jun 21, 2016
2,432
5,806
Australia's Most Haunted Town
AFL Club
North Melbourne
Other Teams
Adelaide Giants
With the membership tally reaching 45000 this year it has been a tremendous effort.

Obviously an important part of keeping the membership base afloat and building it is converting our children into future members of their own volition one day.

I have a 2 year old who is well on her way to becoming a future Roo member.

Attended her first game this year and is a signed up Junior Joey and hasn’t stopped talking about “Went to the footy” and “Go Roos” and “I hit the Crows man on head with the flag”. She was so excited to don her scarf and lanyard.

It was never going to be up for negotiation. It was “Let the brainwashing begin” from the moment she could comprehend things.

However, this was not the case for my beginnings of my allegiance to the NMFC.
It was a very fickle beginning in the mid 80’s as a young lad.

Having no family VFL allegiance at the time my father asked me one day who I barracked for. I said “North Melbourne”. Being the first he’d heard he said “You’re only going for them because they’re on top of the ladder”.

He was right at the time but just to prove him wrong I said “No I’m not” and the love affair grew from there and I’ve barracked for them ever since and became a member in early adulthood to ride the “terrifying lows, the dizzying highs and the creamy middles” to quote the great Homer Simpson.

How have you gone/going with the conversion rate?

Have you tried and failed?

Is it a non-negotiable for your kids/future kids?

Or will you/do you let them choose?

Were you a family brainwashed Roo or do you have another story how you came about?

And do you remember your first game or that of your children?
 
I was a Roo from birth. Originally I'd go with my Kensington raised grandma plus my mum and aunts. Dad was playing Amateur footy every Saturday so I'd sometimes opt to watch him play instead but his team had the same club song so afaik it was the same club (but it wasn't, despite being close by and having the name North in it).

My days at VFL games began around 1970, aged 2, and the impression Arden St and the North crowd and players had on me from our reserved seats in Row C of the outer wing tin shed area obviously had a profound and everlasting effect.

The finals and grand finals year after year in my first decade of life solidified it so by the time the 80's arrived and I was trusted to catch the train to the games myself with some mates, I'd become an absolute fanatic.

My kids haven't missed a game in Melbourne since birth (helped by the fact they were born in October and November) and they had, and will forever have while under my care, no choice in the matter.

Both love North and I hope they will forevermore.
 

longyroos

All Australian
Apr 6, 2009
645
2,831
Destination Club
AFL Club
North Melbourne
My now 10 year old son had a very real very freighting flirtation with GWS when they first entered the league.

It took some harsh words and constant ridicule to ensure he stayed. Not helped by others who said "let him barrack for who he wants". Get stuffed he is my son and will follow North.

DO NOT LET IT HAPPEN. He can switch basketball teams every time someone gets traded I don't care but AFL you stick with it.
 

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My 13 year old was given a choice when he was younger due mainly to the fact that his mother and I weren't together. It took work to make him decide on a side, work in the form of complete and utter saturation. Taking him to games, driving the 30 minutes just to have a kick on Arden Street. Merciless taunting of 'my tram beat your team', whenever North beat his 'other side' in Richmond.

He now hates Richmond about as much as he hates the Scum. He'll be a lifer.

The 9 month old had no choice, she had a membership as soon as I could organise it.
 
Jul 19, 2014
2,620
11,566
AFL Club
North Melbourne
Other Teams
GRM, Williams
My two girls are North supporters but not really into footy. They'd come to three matches a year. But when they were young I calmly told them (as if it was normal), that if they didn't barrack for North they had to live at the bus stop. Harsh but I am saddened by the number of mates whose kids follow other teams.

Note: I never ever said that when the ice cream truck's music was playing that it had run out of ice cream
 
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Mar 16, 2001
23,964
55,788
Melbourne VIC
AFL Club
North Melbourne
Other Teams
Wales, Eastwood, West Ham
I chose North Melbourne as an adult (coming from Sydney and UK-born parents so zero interest in any teams growing up). Then I got together with a third generation Collingwood supporter. Passion for footy was something we had and have in common, but it has made the children issue more difficult. Both the boys came to games of both clubs and were members of both from birth, and when they were old enough they could choose. We got one each. I/North got the one who likes football the least. Oh well. It's an extra membership for the club and an occasional presence beside me at games when there is nothing better for a teenager to do. And maybe in future a bit more again, the ox is patient.
 

jess_1804

Club Legend
Aug 21, 2013
2,501
6,826
AFL Club
North Melbourne
I personally had no choice in the matter. It was barrack for North or run the risk of being disowned by my father :rolleyes:

For my own children I've struck up a deal with my husband - if it's a girl she'll support North and if it's a boy he'll support Carlton. Whether or not that rule will stick once their old enough to decide on their own is another thing, but we've got a girl due in a month so I'm already one up on him :thumbsu:
 
My little girl (just turned 2) absolutely loves footy. Watches it on the TV with me, does a little north melbourne chant and looses her mind when the song comes on. I don't think I have to worry about her changing teams when shes older. Got another in the oven right now which will hopefully be the same.
 

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My kids feel sick at the thought of barracking for any other team.

I think it has something to do with when we sat them down and showed them some videos of North Melbourne teams of the 90s playing.

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There was no choice in our family when growing up. Not that I remember ever considering changing teams... why would you?

One of my sisters started barracking for Fitzroy as a teenager, partly as an act of rebellion and partly because she had a thing for Brad Gotch. She came back into the fold later on and no longer has a thing for Brad Gotch.
 
I had no choice back in the day. Similarly, my daughter has had no choice.

I am very thankful that it fell this way - NMFC has been a huge and important part of my life. And it's already had a positive affect on my little girl, who discusses footy at school (Grade 2) and flies the North flag fearlessly.
 
Apr 7, 2013
14,016
22,170
Cairns
AFL Club
North Melbourne
Other Teams
Atlanta Falcons
My boy is a member from birth, hes 3 and now my girl(7) wants to be too so she gets all the junior joey/harveys heros gear each year lol My wife is from Czech Republic and is a now rusted on NM supporter who loves Benny Brown. Looking forward to moving back to Melbourne and getting a good family membership. Sigh.

Both will be saddened when they hear of Boomer not going on as we always used to chant Boomer, Boomer, Boomer whilst punching the air when he kicked a goal. Sigh.

BTW, my old man barracked for the shinboners all his life and whilst my sister barracked for Collingwood, 'the boy' had to barrack for the Roo's. Non negotiable really.
 
My father was a filthy *bombers supporter but a great man. He gifted me with the freedom to choose my own football team.

When TOD Jr was on the way, I swore I would never make the same mistake he did. :thumbsu:
 
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discomute

All Australian
Aug 20, 2016
613
1,635
AFL Club
North Melbourne
Other Teams
Australian Boomers
Gees, I am the 1% here

Just found out I will be having my first in March. She can choose who she wants, but since both parents are Roos, I doubt it will go any other way.

Of course... when I was a bub, I could not resist the lure of the King, Arch, and especially Winston Abraham. So I left my entire Bulldog family, which I have not heard the last of... so if one of them gets a paw in... ah well.

Certain sides would be forbidden. Like Essendon. Adelaide. Hawthorn. But overall I would be pretty easy. If she wants to support someone else whilst living under a bridge, she can.
 
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