Introduction

Sometime around 2003 my brother introduced me to the PC game Championship Manager 01/02 which is my favourite video game of all time. Never a sporty child, it took a video game to spark my interest in football. Even then it didn't do much; as the years progressed, my football knowledge remained stubbornly stuck in July 2001. Leeds Utd are one of the best teams in England. The SPL has a genuinely world class player in Henrik Larsson. Thanks to my increasingly distant and specific knowledge of the game, I don't discuss football with anyone. Football exists only in my head - Cherno Samba, Taribo West, and various made-up Greek players are my Ronaldos and Zidanes.

Then in 2007 I discovered Fantasy Football and suddenly I was forced to bring my tragically game-informed football knowledge up to date. With a bit of money at stake, I took it seriously. I started watching Match of the Day and Soccer Saturday to identify the movers and shakers in the EPL. And it was only at this point that I slowly became a football fan. But something was wrong.

Every football fan has a favourite team, surely? I come from a Hearts supporting family. And support them I do, especially last season when our young squad played with an integrity that softened the blow of inevitable relegation. But I only see a couple of games a season, and my focus on Fantasy Football means that Scottish Football takes a back seat. I think I've always been quietly envious of real football fans, turning out week after week to cheer on their team while I'm stuck at home praying for Jonjo Shelvey to get some fantasy points so I can pull ahead in my private league.

So in May, when a story started doing the rounds that Albion Rovers were offering a season ticket on a pay-what-you-want basis (from as little as £11) I knew I had to pick one up. I live a 20 minute train ride from Coatbridge and actually watched a cup game there with my dad last November (as a Deveronvale fan... another family favourite). I was impressed by the scheme, and appreciated the chance to be able to nip across on the odd Saturday afternoon if I didn't have any other plans. My friends David and Alex also parted with £11 for the privilege of becoming season ticket holders. As the season approached our excitement grew. Alex and I bought the home strip (David's hunt for a scarf continues... can anyone help? This one seems a little excessive...) and we decided that we needed to attend as many games as we realistically could.

And so this is the journey that led me to where I am now: An Albion Rovers season ticket holder who never would have looked twice at the team were it not for the pay-what-you-want scheme. Not a real fan? I'm not sure. A new fan, certainly. What is a real fan? Hopefully I'll be able to better answer this question at the end of the season. For now, I'm looking forward to blogging the whole experience.