Keeping the Faith

A year in the life of a Collingwood footy fan with all celebratory highs and desperate lows of the 2004 season. A story for anybody who loves a football club.

side by side we stick together the reason Collingwood is totally different, in my mind, to any other football club in this country is that it stand for something.' Eddie McGuire

In a world of constant change, one of the few things that never alters is the passion of footy fans for their club.

In Keeping the Faith, Collingwood supporter Steve Strevens charts the 2004 season, a winter of black and white agony and ecstasy, through his own story and those of the many ordinary supporters we never hear about, the backbone of any footy club. From the bleak afternoons sitting in the outer to the president's lunch, from the memories of Anzac Day games long gone to a train journey to Sydney with the cheer squad, Steve Strevens paints an affectionate and humorous portrait of those who follow the Pies'.

Despite the disaster that was the 2004 season, Collingwood survived - and support flourished. For those who follow the Magpies, it was simply a matter of faith. You love your club, to the exclusion of all others. You support it, even when times are tough. In many ways, winning and losing are not as important as belonging.

Keeping the Faith is a glorious celebration of Aussie Rules - and the fans who make the game great.