Following Newcastle United, for 22 years now there’s been a fair share of horrendous results, performances and trips around the country.
So to try and nail one game, one moment where it was the lowest point following this headache of a team was a tough challenge, for all the wrong reasons.
There was the 1-0 and 0-0 vs Aston Villa which both all but secured Newcastle’s relegation to the Championship, 6-0 defeat at home to Liverpool (which was very close to making it) or one of the many derby defeats both home and away I’ve had the pleasure of attending.
However, after a long process, one sprung to mind which gave me goosebumps and sent shivers down my spine at the mere thought of that game, the 3-1 defeat at home to newly-promoted Bournemouth.
It felt inevitable
Walking to St James’ Park the city was eerie quiet with little sign of football life with many people hibernating inside pubs or leaving it as late as possible to get to the game such was the apathy and unwillingness to attend games during the 2015/16 season.
Steve McClaren was on borrowed time and the fans had no interest in giving him any additional support. They wanted a win and a good performance. The end result? A dire, embarrassing and unsurprising performance.
A Steven Taylor own goal set the tone for the remainder of the match as he stuck out a hanging leg giving half effort block a Josh King cross, only to divert it beyond the helpless Rob Elliott.
However, this was not the worst part of that sequence as not one person seemed to care. The players walked back to the centre circle with their heads down, nobody being accountable and all while being circled with a chorus of boos from fans who paid their hard-earned money to watch such a disrespectful display.
The players just didn't care anymore
It is more than just a football match for a lot of people. They go to work five days a week all for a release on a Saturday afternoon with their friends, family and 90 minutes watching their beloved team.
Therefore, what happens when that begins to become a hindrance in your life? You start to become demotivated for life and can question what’s the point if your happiest time of the week is replaced with the lowest time? You begin to vent your frustrations at the people causing this.
For me, a way of doing this was to just sit. Just sit and do nothing but think why do the players put fans through this? Why do players not understand what they are doing to fans, working-class fans who sacrifice great things to watch them?
Answers were not forthcoming on March 5th 2016 as Bournemouth added s second in the 70th minute, queue unprecedented boos around not just St James’ park, but Newcastle Upon Tyne as a collective. It was louder than the cheering of some goals which have been scored during my time.
The second goal was even less impressive as Matt Ritchie (now at Newcastle) slipped through King who was allowed to walk around Taylor and Jamaal Lascelles with neither interested in making a challenge.
When the ball hit the net I was filled with a sense of emptiness like there was nothing more this club could do to me now to make me feel any more pain. The feeling of knowing you are going down and the club you were once proud to call your own is now your biggest embarrassment.
A club and fanbase which couldn't be further apart
Your football club is supposed to reflect you as a person, what you stand for and how you deal with life but that 2015/16 Newcastle United team could not have been further away from representing a single Newcastle fan.
A city known for its working-class background and heritage was miles away from what was happening between those white lines with a team filled up of overpaid, lazy and clueless players.
No player is summed up by those three words than Emmanuel Riviere who was hooked at half-time and should never have been brought to Tyneside. Unable to win headers, hold the ball up, run in-behind, score goals or pass the ball. The Frenchman was someone you could not wait to see the back of as he had a leisurely stroll to the bench whenever taken off.
When Ayoze Perez scuffed one past Artur Boruc it was a muted celebration from both player and fans as the inevitable was in the air, another loss on Tyneside and the players sending thousands home having ruined their weekend.
No less than 20 minutes later the Cherries rubbed salt in the wounds as Charlie Daniels sent St James’ Park into pandemonium and erupted a melting pot of emotion towards the team and McClaren.
Fans walking out, shouting, climbing over seats and leaning over barriers as they clamber to get closer to the ones who had hurt them the most, their beloved football team had let them down. Again.
Struggling to see the light at the end of the tunnel
When you are consistently let down by the same person, in the same way, it may be perceived as insanity to keep going back. However, when I walked out that stadium on the full-time whistle there was no doubt in my mind I hated Newcastle United and everything they had become during the 15/16 season.
However, was I going to be back there for the remainder of the season? Not a chance in hell I would miss a minute of action despite being at my lowest in my time watching Newcastle United.
Despair, complete emptiness, fatigue and feeling nothing could ever get worse, but it does, it keeps getting worse and more draining. That’s probably the best way, to sum up, an average life of supporting Newcastle United at their lowest points.