Today’s match v Bradford Park Avenue is being attended by family & friends of Andy Cole who passed away in July after a short illness after he had suddenly been diagnosed with brain cancer.

The match ball has been sponsored in Andy’s memory by Dave Cestaro a lifelong friend who has travelled from Northern Ireland to be here today.

Andy was an important member of the Stan Army, both home & away, & could normally be seen on the terraces along with his pal Ali. Although his first love was Fulham, Andy had been a devoted Stan fan since his 1st match on 15 October 2022 when the Stan beat West Allotment Celtic 4-1 at home & he was both a season ticket holder & a regular passenger on away coaches. One of the most memorable nights for him as a Stan fan was seeing the club win the Senior Cup at St James’ Park & the above photo demonstrates how much it meant to him.

Heaton as a whole was important to Andy & he was famous for looking after & planting flowers in the lane behind his house. His Hawaii themed garage bar was also a sight to see. Andy taught French & German throughout his career including at George Stephenson & Whitley Bay High Schools & pupils included Far Corner member Sam Henderson & Kit/First Team Operations Manager Joanne Forster.

Last season Andy travelled on the team coach to the Bradford PA away match in the FA Trophy & during the journey the coach door blew open just in front of Andy’s seat. It was an enjoyable trip despite the match being played & narrowly lost in near hurricane conditions. Last Easter Monday, Andy travelled by train to the Ashington match with myself & Ali struggling to keep up with him on the walk from the station to the ground as Andy was always keen to visit new grounds & add them to his database. Sadly, Andy’s last Stan match was the final match of last season at home against Hallam which he watched from the press box & enjoyed the half time hospitality just as much as he enjoyed the complimentary sweets when he happened to travel to away games in my car. Due to illness, Andy was unable to attend this year’s Senior Cup final, but he followed proceedings closely.

I hope you will all take the opportunity today to remember Andy & all the good times we had with him home & away following Heaton Stannington.