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Everyone has a double

Every, day, except Sundays and Bank holidays, footsteps are heard approaching my front door. More often than not a rattle of the letter box reveals the usual brown envelopes, Mr Benyon-like tax forms and other unwelcome junk mail. However, Wednesday is certainly a day to look forward to with eager anticipation - it is the day when the postman delivers my Burnley Express!

The postman who walks at a brisk pace around the close can be seen almost running on Mondays with a cheery smile from ear to ear. He is Gary the fanatical Watford supporter who has, of course, had much more to smile about during the last two seasons than I have. We converse regularly about events in both our divisions and forthcoming fixtures which will affect our teams. There are occasions when I have made myself scarce but he has inevitably attempted to communicate with me, e.g. by writing on my Burnley Express '5+6=11!' and 'You can't even beat Luton'.

There are a variety of reasons for which I forgive him but the most important one is because he is a Glen Little look alike. He is not quite as tall but his facial features suggest that he may be Glen's long lost second cousin twice removed.

Gary's last visit to Turf Moor was in January last year when he remarked on how good the beer was in the Mechanics. This was of course Watford's last trip to Burnley when Chris Waddle showed Graham Taylor how to play football. It was a pity that Graham Taylor didn't pass on a few tips about management. It was also a coincidence that this was the first time that 'Glorious Glen' had been picked to play in Waddle's first team and what a difference he made.

A few weeks ago Joan and I were returning from the Bournemouth game at Turf Moor when I felt a tap on my shoulder just as I was walking down the steps at Watford station. It was Gary the postman who was returning from Crewe where Watford had been playing, so we gave him a lift home. The following Wednesday was a dreadful day. Everything was drenched except my Burnley Express, which Gary had carefully placed into a plastic bag.

Goodness knows what I would say to him if we were in Division One again and reached the play-offs, Burnley v Watford - DREAM ON!

Barbara and Joan Watson
April-May 1999