00:00 My name is Ron Spraggett and I've been a Crawley fan since 1958, before many of you were born.
00:05 And how are you feeling right now because Crawley, they're going to Wembley for the first time ever,
00:12 it's incredible isn't it? It's absolutely wonderful. I thought my lifetime memory
00:16 would be going to Old Trafford. We went to Old Trafford and we almost made it,
00:20 the last kick in the game and we just missed out. So I thought that was going to be my
00:24 lifetime memory but now I never thought we'd be there but we are, we're going. And have you got
00:31 your ticket already? No I haven't got a ticket yet. Well unfortunately I've got a big family
00:36 and they all want to go so we're looking for about 20 tickets so hopefully we'll get them all together
00:42 and we'll make some noise. Can you remember the first game you saw and what made you fall in love
00:47 with Crawley Town Football Club? I don't know, I mean it was at the Old Town Mead which was a dump
00:51 as you know and we stood on a muddy bank you know. There was a little stand but it was all moth
00:56 eaten and golden, there was woodworm and everything. But I always remember in those days we played in
01:01 red and white hoops and I remember the only one I can remember was a bloke called Randall.
01:06 I think he was centre forward but you know I think it was way before Johnny Mags and things like that
01:11 you know but yeah I think that's my first memory of Crawley Town and we went from Longlea right
01:18 through the Southern League and all those sort of places. It's been wonderful, it's been
01:23 a wonderful experience coming here to this ground you know it's a lovely ground. We could do a new
01:28 stand over there of course, that's where I sit over on the east stand over there but
01:33 we've got a lovely view and hopefully these owners will put a bit of money in there, let's hope so
01:37 anyway. Yeah absolutely, I mean it's been an incredible season from the start, I mean considering
01:42 what happened last season. At what point did you think we're going to do something special this
01:47 season? We could get to Wembley. To be honest, I hope the club don't reveal it, I mean all season we've been up and
01:54 down to be honest we have. We've saved our best performances, been away games plenty enough
01:59 and I only started to realise we may do something when we went to, where was it we went to, before
02:05 the Wrexham game, Mansfield, that's the one, that's when I thought hello I don't know something
02:10 might happen here. And when we came Grinsby last week you know I saw a group I thought this is a
02:15 different team, this is a different team and for the first time ever I haven't got a favourite player.
02:22 Really? No they're all wonderful, I mean the goalkeeper frightens me at times, oh he does
02:27 frighten me but what a character you know and Horsey Green, he's all blimmin' Horsey Green, but I mean
02:33 I always remember the past of Danny Bormans and all though, the players like that and John, but
02:38 now I think they're all good and the only good, the real strong thing about this side now, when
02:43 they make changes the players that come on are just as good as the one that got off and I can
02:48 understand why they're disgruntled and not picked in the first place but Scott's doing a wonderful
02:54 job, he's done a wonderful job for us and I just, I laugh at when Swindon to be honest because I
03:00 don't know if you remember but when we got Scott from Swindon they all said good riddance, good
03:06 riddance and you're tough, you're cruel, you're gonna suffer under him and I just think so God
03:10 help you Swindon, where are you now and where are we? He's just, the relationship he has with the
03:15 fans is incredible. That's the thing, that's the secret, I don't think we've ever had a manager
03:20 that's related to the fans like he has, I mean yeah they come round and do a little bit but no
03:25 Scott is, you can see it's genuine, it's not put on, it's genuine, he loves those fans and we love him.
03:31 Yeah absolutely. I haven't met him unfortunately, I'd love to meet him but no I haven't met him.
03:37 Come Sunday, walking up to Wembley Way, up to Wembley, what will that mean for you? Everything,
03:44 I've got 20 of my family coming with me and friends, they're all coming with me and I think
03:50 we'll be a colourful sight hopefully. Realistically what are Crawley's chances of winning do you think
03:55 on Saturday? Well when this first happened we all said if we get the Wembley that's the day up
04:03 for us, we don't care what happens then, we thought we get the Wembley and that's it because we were
04:07 expecting to play in Dongster Rovers and we should have been playing, I mean they blew it,
04:12 they threw it away but now we're playing Crewe, all right we've never been in Crewe and all that
04:18 but there's always a first time and I think we're going to be favourites now. The way we,
04:22 I mean we didn't just play Dodgers, we tore them apart, we embarrassed them, I mean 8-1
04:28 and we were unbelievable, we didn't recognise them. I mean a word about Danilo Orsi,
04:34 he got the hat trick on Saturday, he's been great all season. He's been great all season,
04:37 he hasn't always got the service he deserves but that's the way it goes, you can't have everything
04:42 but as I said I don't want to pick a favourite because they've all done well and when you
04:47 consider most of that team were non-league last year, what it must have meant to them,
04:52 I mean they were playing on small little grounds last year, here they are, they're going to go to
04:57 Wembley, what must it mean to them? What did you think over the summer when you saw the signing
05:02 Scott was making, there were a lot of names a lot of people didn't know about, were you fearing the
05:07 worst? Yes we were, yes we were because all the star players went to Gillingham, but the only one
05:14 I'm very sad to see go to Gillingham was Glenn Morris, I was so sorry he went there, I mean as
05:20 I say the goalkeeper, what a character, he frightens the life out of us, he does, but he's obviously
05:26 playing to a plan though, it's obviously Scott's plan. Yeah absolutely, I mean that moment in the
05:31 first leg when the ball came up and he touched it, it was incredible wasn't it? Yeah excellent,
05:36 so how long have you lived in Crawley your whole life? No, we moved down in 1958, I was born in
05:43 Burma in London, so of course my other team is Millwall, but yeah I was born in Burma in London
05:50 and my father, when the war was declared, my father moved us down to Carshawton in Surrey,
05:56 and I lived at Carshawton until I got married, I married a lovely girl and we're still married now
06:01 and 68 years this year. Really, it's Sylve is that right? Sylve, that's right, she's lovely,
06:06 yeah got a lovely family and thanks to her she's brought them up well, I didn't do it, she did it,
06:11 we still got the family and they're all very close which is nice. And are they all Crawley
06:15 Town fans? Oh yeah absolutely, well they're all going to be at Wembley, I've got to tell you this,
06:20 my middle son lives in Spain now and when we got to the playoffs he immediately booked his seat
06:28 to come over for Wembley, he was so confident he booked his plane ticket. Really? Oh yeah,
06:33 oh wow, what's his name sorry? Peter, yeah he booked the plane ticket, I thought oh
06:38 we're going to go to Wembley, oh well never mind, so he's booked it, he's always so confident,
06:43 so he's coming home from Spain, we're all going to Wembley. Oh wow, it'll be an amazing experience.
06:48 It'll be fantastic, it will be, I still can't believe it really, but it'll be lovely. I mean
06:55 if we don't win, we don't, but what a wonderful day out and then the team, my worry is I'm not
07:01 going to keep the team together and keep Scott, we've got to keep him because they'll all be
07:06 after him now, I mean everyone will be after him now. Yeah, yeah absolutely. But we just got to
07:11 go home, but enjoy the day. Enjoy the day. Exactly, enjoy the day. Excellent, brilliant,
07:16 thank you very much for talking to me. You're very welcome. Cheers.
