Exile Interview #2

By MCC
January 19 2006

We talk to a Hong Kong based Saddler about the Saddlers, Bird Flu, Willie Naughton and Prospects of Global Domination for the Saddlers (if he can help).

^{Tell us about yourself...
My names Andrew Perrett I'm 39 and I'm currently living in Hong Kong.} 

^{Which part of Hong Kong are you from?
Mid Levels, just up the hill from the central business district, surprisingly called Central, just below the residential area originally named The Peak. We’re inventive in this part of Hong Kong.}

^{When did you leave for foreign lands
October 1991}

^{Last WFC match you saw?
Walsall – Man Utd August 2005 (Friendly at Bescot)}

^{How do you keep up to date with goings on.......
Via the internet. Long time poster and reader of UTS. Subscribe to Saddlers World to see goals and listen to commentaries.}

^{When are you planning to back to Walsall
I get back to Walsall for a couple of weeks most summers. Probably back next July/August.}

^{What do you miss most about the Town and football club
Banks’s Mild and watching the games each Saturday. Also used to enjoy playing cricket during the summer with one or two posters from UTS at some point. Pelsall and Bronze were the two teams I played for.}

^{If you could take one thing from Walsall and put it in Honk Kong what would it be
Banks’s Mild once again!}

^{Why not take the Concrete Hippo
Probably cost too much in excess baggage to check in, too heavy and bulky for hand carry (You couldn't take it anyway. There'd be uproar. You'd never get it through quarantine)} 

^{Any local Football to watch in HK?
There is some. It’s not great. Did see Willie Naughton play for a local team called Instant Dict (most teams are named for sponsors) after he finished with Walsall}

^{Level any good?
Not really.}

^{Any of the players you'd recommend for Merse?
Probably not. Haven’t watched any recently. The teams come and go so quickly here as sponsors lose interest in football and do something else. Only a couple of teams have played for the whole time I’ve been here, one being the South China Athletic Association.}

^{Are you worried about Bird Flu?
Not really. It will come, or not, and there’s no point being too concerned until it happens. No one knows what form the mutated form will take, so just have to wait and see. Lived through the hyped-up epidemic that was SARS. Massive over-reaction to a minor problem. Still that’s the way these days.}

^{Is it a serious threat to Hong Kong?
Yes. Hong Kong still has a culture which embraces live chicken sales. Wet markets here have historically had a low level of hygiene (compared with Northern Europe). This has lead to close contact between many locals and live chickens. It was inevitable that some transmission would occur. The government has tried cleaning up the wet markets with some success. They are also planning a centralised slaughter house which is facing some opposition from people here. Bird flu in Hong Kong actually pre-dates SARS, but has only hit international headlines in recent months as it has spread west.}

^{What would your average Wallsillian do in Hong Kong?
Hong Kong has a couple of good sights: Victoria Peak gives a great view of Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon peninsula (as long as the pollution from Southern China lets you see it). Would also suggest sampling the night life: Hong Kong is a genuine 24 hour city. Some great bars, restaurants and clubs.}

^{What one fixture would make you come back at the drop of the hat
None that are likely; an FA or Carling Cup final or a Championship play off final. I tried to get back for the division 2 play off final, but work prevented me. A 10 hour flight each way makes for a long commute to any game.}

^{Tell us about your favourite Walsall players...
I was always a big fan of Big Willie (Naughton) which was only increased by his coming to Hong Kong for a season. I don’t really know the current crop and Fryatt, of course, was on England duty for the friendly I saw this summer. I have seen Leitao a few times and like his hard working game, although he doesn’t appear to be the player he was. I don’t suppose his form as a striker is helped by Merse playing him on the wing.}

^{Any one you've not been keen on? 
Amongst Walsall players? I’ve always appreciated them playing at all. I don’t hold with all this ‘Judas’ like name calling of ex-players, but there again I wasn’t there when Ricketts was playing for us. Most people would move jobs for more money and that’s what football is now; a job.}

^{Ever met any other Saddlers in HK?
Pete Lee runs a fan site from here in Hong Kong and we meet every now and again for a few beers along with cat3 who used to be more of a regular on UTS. My brother used to live here and he’s a Walsall fan as well.}

^{Do you try and convert people to Saddlers? If not why not.
Impossible to do out here: no TV coverage. I do talk about supporting Walsall to others, and how the highs are higher because they are almost unexpected, certainly rarer than with big clubs. The Milk Cup run was fantastic and can’t be compared to other sporting achievements by other bigger teams.}

^{If you could persuade just one Hong Kongian to be a Saddlers fan we'd could be quids in because they'd tell all there mates and they'd tell there mates, and before you knew it we'd be the biggest thing in Honk Kong since Tammogotchis and Suduku.
Most Asian fans support Premier League clubs: that’s what they see on TV. They also tend to go for successful teams like Man Ure, the Arse and Chelski. We get blanket coverage of the EPL here with one cable TV company having up to 5 live games on a Saturday, three of the 3pm games on three different channels. Difficult to compete when the occasional FA Cup game is the only thing we see.}