The first meeting of the Didsbury & Withington branch was held in January 2010.
At that first meeting, board members Alan Hargrave and Steve Pagnam answered questions on many topics such as the new ground and the trip to Korea. Members of the Trafford, Leigh, Stockport and Tameside branches also came along to lend their support and ideas. It was a successful evening and the branch was up and running!
A second meeting took place at the end of February 2010 and there was another good turnout, with Alan Hargrave, Roy Soule, Joe Yoffe, Carlos Roca and Jerome Wright attending and answering questions on the season so far. It was agreed attending an away game as a branch would be a good way to get to know each other and a mini-bus to the game against Buxton away on 6th March 2010 was planned.
The Buxton trip was a success and the branch was now firmly established. A further branch away trip to Boston was organised before the end of the season. A website was set up (www.fcumdidsbury.com) and the branch emailing list was used to help organise and coordinate travel and meeting up arrangements for the several branch members going to the Hamburg and Belfast friendlies that summer.
The branch went from strength to strength and throughout 2010 and 2011, running buses and organising transport to selected away games – sometimes joining the Tameside or Stockport branch bus and sometimes remembering to pick up branch members along the way! A 35 seater branch bus went to that special night in Rochdale returning back to the Red Lion to celebrate until the early hours. Cup fever gripped the branch and there was another large turnout for the trip to Brighton equipped with several homemade flags (including the now immortalised “Meet the owners”).
In between arguing over which pub to meet in and branch flag designs, the branch have managed to run the FC United Minithon, sponsor games and players, pool together to buy Community Shares, attend club events and promote FC United in the local area. In July 2010 the branch cooperated with the local MP for Manchester Withington, John Leech, who tabled an Early Day Motion in Parliament on fan-owned football clubs. At the end of the 2011/12 season the branch got in touch with a local school to arrange bus trips to the final two home games. The kids loved it and further trips are planned in the future.
The branch choose a ‘goal of the season' winner at the end of season awards night each year and we also organise a Real Ale Trail every June to raise money for the Development Fund. The first one in 2010 proved a great success, taking in the likes of Batley, Dewsbury, Marsden and Slaithwaite. We organised a further Real Ale Trails in 2011 and 2012. The event seems to get bigger and better each year and over £1000 has been raised for the DF from t-shirts, donations, raffles and football cards.
The branch has gathered many members along the way in the last few years and not only does it have members from Withington and Didsbury, we also have members from the surrounding areas and indeed, due to studying and work commitments, all over the world! We usually meet in the Red Lion pub on Wilmslow Road in Withington and meetings will be advertised on the FCUM website as well as on our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/groups/fcumdidsbury). We're always looking for new members so if you live in the area please get in touch, come to a meeting or a match with us and you will be made welcome.
