Stevenage FC father and son fans bond travelling to every match

A father and son said they formed a very special bond after months of travelling to every home and away game for their beloved football team.

John and Oscar Aizlewood attended every Stevenage FC match, including cup ties, during the 2024/25 season.

Mr Aizlewood, 51, a sports writer and journalist, said it was "a love story" between them and a "snapshot" of their lives, before Oscar, 14, started his final two years of GCSEs.

Their journey has been recorded in a book, Before You Go, written by the dad to show what their life was like before other commitments got in the way.

Mr Aizlewood told Andy Collins on BBC Three Counties Radio that it was a "very personal" time.

"It's a love story between father and son and a love story for lower league football and Stevenage," he said.

He said he got into supporting the Hertfordshire club, known as the Boro, which is currently top of League One, through Oscar.

Last season, the club finished 14th in the table.

Oscar, 14, said he really enjoyed the year, which involved spending hours in the car with his father and planning where they would eat.

Mr Aizlewood, from Cheshunt, said each visit was varied and at Burton there was "just 13 of us stood huddled together in the cold".

"To have that experience and to bond like that in a deserted Burton stadium is something really special, and it's something we will remember for the rest of our lives."

One of "the best" trips was watching Boro beat Wrexham, 3 - 2, but "I think we found something wonderful in every place that we went", Mr Aizlewood said.

Another cherished memory was travelling to Stockport "on a school night".

"There were about 98 of us huddled in a corner muttering miserably to ourselves as Boro plummeted to a rare defeat in what was quite a good season," he recalled.

He said the book captured a shared moment in time and was a "snapshot of our year, before he goes".

"What happens next, I don't know," he added.

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