Dam Good

COLERAINE FC had an interesting order from the Club Shop a few weeks ago as a package was sent to a town just outside Amsterdam…

A recent delivery was sent to Erin Gromme who lives in Holland and colerainefc.com went digging to find out the reason why a parcel was dispatched to mainland Europe.

Communicating with the club via e-mail, Erin explained that her father Jim Payne was a former youth player with the Bannsiders and his wish was to see his grandchildren wearing the Blue and White Stripes one day.

“My dad (Jim Payne) is from Coleraine and he played in the youth team,” she said.

“He moved to England with his mum but he always missed Coleraine and the club.

“Recently his old friend (Frankie) contacted him through Facebook as they played together when they were young.

“Nowadays my dad lives in Bali and I live with my family in Oostzaan which is next to Amsterdam.

“Both of my kids play football every day, they love it and two years ago we went to Northern Ireland for the first time to see where my dad is from and we enjoyed it.

“We bought a Northern Ireland jersey and they wear it with pride and it so nice to have the reactions of other people in Amsterdam when you wear a shirt like that as people come to you and ask about it.”

After receiving their delivery, Erin revealed that she has plans to be guests at The Showgrounds in the near future with her children.

“Because of the contact with my dad’s old friend, he wanted to buy the Coleraine shirts as a gift for his grandchildren,” she added.

“He would love to see the kids in a Coleraine shirt like he wore the jersey when he was young and I love that idea also.

“I cant wait to see the kids in it and they will wear it a lot because they play football every day.

“Next year our plan is go back to Ireland for a holiday and we want to visit Coleraine FC then.

“Football is a big part of our lives and here’s hoping we can get to The Showgrounds.”

We hope your children enjoyed their package through the post and we look forward to seeing you on the Ballycastle Road soon.