RIP Fella! Really sad news
I had no idea Batch, from the thisis days?
Horrible news and a horrible day. But I feel I should clear this one up. Back in the MyOnlySwindon days none of us had met Kingston Robin, so we jokingly decided that Sutton Red was performing him as a character act.
This went on for a while until the real Kingston Robin turned up on a train from an away game (I forget which) and he became and still is an active member of the London Reds.
As was Sutton. He was a class bloke, I've many happy a memory of going to games with him and he was at every meet up to watch us on telly in the capital. Too many stories to share but my favourite is this.
Late on in the Di Canio season, I went to a home game, these outings usually saw me stumble home at some ungodly hour but on this occasion, I had promised my then partner I would get the first train back post-match and turn up at a reasonable hour.
This I attempted, hot-footing it at full time to Swindon station.
Unfortunately, there was an issue on the trains and we crawled into Reading after about two hours with no chance of getting to Paddington. I stood alone and forlorn on the platform trying to work out when the next train to Clapham Junction was while fielding increasingly hostile calls from home.
Just then another delayed Paddington bound train from Swindon stuttered into the station.
'Oi OI'.
I turned around to see Sutton leaning out of the window grinning at me while clutching a half-consumed six pack. He, me and a couple of others drank these and more as we navigated our way back to South London's most populous rail terminal.
After that, things get hazy but I do have a vague recollection of being asked to leave The Falcon in Clapham Junction after Sutton and I stood on barstools to inform the, largely uninterested, Saturday night patrons of what happened in 1969 on 'League Cup Final Day' through the medium of song.
I finally staggered in circa midnight slurring my insistence that 'it wasn't my fault, blame the trains' and 'my mate [Sutton] said you could ring him and he would vouch for me'.
She didn't take me up on this offer and was distinctly unamused.
I was though. As I was every time I was in fortunate enough to be his pressence.
Sleep well my friend.
