Robins go down again but Paul's hooked now (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Robins go down again but Paul's hooked now

Paul Hanlon, 12, after Swindon Town lost Ref: 99720-2A YOUNGSTER who watched his first Swindon Town match says he is now hooked on the Robins despite the disappointing result.

As reported in Saturday's Adver 12-year-old Paul Hanlon headed off to the County Ground to lend support to the Loud and Proud campaign.

His uncle, Lee, 23, of Greenbridge, is a dedicated Town supporter and he was hoping Paul might prove to be a good-luck charm.

But while the result did not go the way they wanted, with the Reds falling to a 2-1 defeat against Port Vale, Paul, a pupil at Headlands School, was taken in by the atmosphere.

And his day out was made complete when the Adver arranged for him to meet Town boss Iffy Onuora.

Paul, of Penhill, said: "It was great and I really enjoyed it, especially the first half.

"The crowd made more noise than I expected and I sang some of the songs but I was a bit shy.

"I will go again, I'm a Swindon Town fan now.

"It was good to meet the manager, I've never met a manager before.

"I hope he can change things around for the team him and my uncle were talking about it and he seems confident."

Lee, who works at Zurich, was also upbeat despite the defeat.

He said: "There was more noise in the County Ground than I had heard in a long time. The crowd were really good, the campaign had obviously made a difference but it wasn't to be on the day.

The man behind the Loud and Proud campaign, Rob Tuck, was also pleased the team had managed to attract another supporter.

Struggling to speak after spending 90 minutes on Saturday singing his heart out, he said: "It's great that even though we lost 2-1 we've still got new people saying they want to go again. "