As the Portsmouth coastline disappeared behind us we wondered what we were sailing into. This was our boldest footballing pilgrimage yet; one that would involve a six-hour crossing to a country where we didn’t speak the language and it didn’t speak ours.
Still, as the old saying goes, football is a universal language and we were in search of a good conversation. Poetic bulls@£$% aside, we were two Leicester City fans making our first trip to Normandy to show our support for a club unlike our own, despite modest beginnings.
Stade Malherbe Caen was founded exactly 100 years ago in 1913 but was an amateur club until 1985. Named after Norman poet Francois de Malherbe, the club has bounced between France’s top two divisions in recent years. The club’s fiercely loyal support believes Malherbe to be a top-flight club and is endlessly restless when they aren’t there. Sound familiar?
My interest in the club began while studying for a degree in Journalism. Wanting to specialize in football like the rest of the world and his brothers, I decided I would attempt to gain a good knowledge of all major European leagues. I figured the easiest way to do this would be to pick a team and chart their progress. Interests in Schalke 04 and Chievo Verona fell by the wayside but it was Malherbe that stayed with me. Chosen purely because they wore the same colours as FC Barcelona, a club I have followed since I was seven (a story for another day), Malherbe had captured my attention.
Filbo Spirit 