Jack and Loz at the Cottage - Blog 207

Football is just a game. Except it isn’t.

Football brings people together in a way that few other things can. It’s a sport and other sports have passions and rivalries, but supporting a football team isn’t like being a cricket fan or a rugby fan or having a favourite tennis player. Supporting a football team is a way of life and when you pick your team or, more often than not, it picks you, you join a family.

The Fulham family is smaller than many but the bonds are strong. One of the most memorable things about our day at Wembley 4 years ago, is that 40,000 seats held most Fulham fans. Nearly all of us were there to witness our Club triumph. Together.

And so when we lose a member of our small, special, unique Club, it really hurts. And that’s what happened on Saturday. We never met Paul Parish but we know he was a lifelong Fulham fan, father and grandfather. He was one of the Fulham family and we are all devastated.

It happened very suddenly. One minute we were cheering Mitro’s goal and the next the fans in H6 were frantically summoning medical help and Marek Rodak was stopping the game. The medics were there in an instant, with the Blackpool duo leading the way. We have no doubt they did everything they could and, at first, the news seemed to be positive.

After a long, anxious break, the match continued and Fulham fell apart a bit, in that way they sometimes do. But that doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter if Joe Bryan is better or worse than Antonee Robinson, it doesn’t matter if Seri will get back into the side, it doesn’t matter who was at fault for the goal.

What matters is that people tried, and helped and prayed. What matters is the heartfelt sympathy of Tom and Tim and the other players who have taken to social media to express their condolences. What matters is that the Fulham family overseas feel this loss as much as those of us closer to home. There is, of course, a wider football family and they, led by the Blackpool fans and players, have offered their sympathy too.

So football is just a game but it’s a game which means a great deal to a huge number of people. And whilst the result of the match isn’t important, the sport which has brought Fulham fans together is. A tragedy puts things in perspective and, viewed through the prism of a lifelong fan’s passing, football is very important indeed.

John Donne wrote, “Every man’s death diminishes me for I am involved in mankind.” And how much more we are affected by the death of one of our own.

Our thoughts continue to be with Paul’s loves ones. Their dignity is humbling and inspirational. We hope, as shocking as events were, that there is some comfort in knowing that when it happened Paul was at his beloved Craven Cottage with his family and the Fulham family and that we were all celebrating Mitro’s 28th goal of a record breaking season. And when we are promoted, because we will be, that achievement will be dedicated to Paul, and the other family members we have lost.