The presenter on Zamora, Mitoma and Keegan’s eggs, before her new FFT column
James Andrew
How did you become a Brighton fan?
I was born in Brighton. I moved to Jamaica with my parents when I was eight – while we were there, we could only watch Premier League football, and Brighton were far from the top flight back then! But I came back to England aged 15 and lived with my cousins, who are mad Albion fans. When the Amex Stadium opened in 2011, I got a job giving out match programmes, and I would always hang around to watch the games.
Do you have a matchday routine?
If I’m going along as a fan, I’m one of those people who likes to get there ridiculously early – three hours before kick-off. It always annoys my mates!
Who was your childhood hero and did you ever meet them?
My favourite footballer as a kid was Steven Gerrard [below]. When I first started working at BT Sport, he was part of our punditry team; I met him and remember saying to myself, ‘Oh wow, that’s Steven Gerrard’ – I was absolutely buzzing.
How has football changed since you were a kid?
Living in Jamaica, football was sitting on the sofa and watching it on TV with my dad, so I’m very fortunate now that I get to go to games pretty much every week. Working in football, it’s hard to go to matches and not think about them professionally. On a working day, I look at who’s starting; how many changes from the last game; who’s left out? Even when I go as a fan, it’s quite hard to switch off, but it’s a complete contrast from when I was a kid. It’s really special.
What do you like most about going to a match?
The tribalism of it all – the chants, the pettiness, the ridiculous things fans shout to each other from an away end when the home fans are nearby. Then obviously you can’t beat the feeling when your team scores and you and your mates just absolutely lose it.
What’s your favourite goal that you’ve ever seen live?
Brighton against Crystal Palace at the Amex: Florin Andone didn’t get many for Albion, but he scored our third in a 3-1 win with an amazing solo run from his own half, which was unexpected. I was sitting on that side of the pitch where he ran down the line, so I had a brilliant view of it.
Who from your club’s past would you immediately bring back to play for the current side?
Bobby Zamora – an absolute legend. His era was when I started to properly get into watching Brighton, and he was an unbelievable goalscorer; a Brighton hero to the point where my cousin’s email and password for anything had to be ‘Zamora 25’.
Who’s your current favourite player?
Kaoru Mitoma [bottom right].
