Meet the Gooner Family [Colin, New Orleans]

Meet Colin Ash, an Arsenal fan living in New Orleans, and another host for the Gooner On The Road. Colin showed me around New Orleans and took me to some great bars, restaurants and jazz clubs. 

Another City another Gooner.

Colin Ash

Q. Why Arsenal?

I love the way that the club is run and I love how we play on the pitch, aesthetically we're still one of the best teams to watch, and we're always getting better.

Q. Started Supporting Arsenal?

2002. The World Cup in South Korea & Japan was what really got me into watching football. Because it was in the summer (when I wasn't at school) I just watched every game. Then I had to pick a team, and I chose Arsenal. My earliest Arsenal memory was beating Spurs 5-4 at White Hart Lane in 2004, with that remarkable fifth goal from Pires.

Q. Favourite Player?

Henry. He played a big part in me being an Arsenal fan in the first place. How easy he made everything look, his demeanour, he's a legend.

Q. Favourite current Player?

Aaron Ramsey. He seems like he loves the club as much as I do and always gives his all. It's great to see him come back from what he's gone through and that incident over time has made him much stronger.

Q. Favourite Arsenal moment?

Fabregas scoring in the San Siro against AC Milan in the Champions League. I was at the Student Union at Louisiana State University and when he scored I stood on top of a table as people were eating lunch, just screaming in ecstasy. With AC Milan having never been beaten by an English team, it was especially gratifying.

Q.Where do you watch Arsenal in 'New Orleans'.

Watch it at Finn McCool's Irish Pub in the Mid-City district. I've been going there regularly for the past few months, although I've known the place for the last few years. The NOLA Gooners have literally only been an official Arsenal America branch for a few weeks. We're young but we're growing fast and we're proud of our group.

Q. Emirates or Highbury?

One of my biggest regrets is not making it to Highbury, I would have loved to have seen it in person. Highbury sticks out in my mind for better memories, and I'd pick this place over Emirates for that reason alone.

Q. League Prediction?

We're going to finish top. I don't see why we can't at this point.

Q. Who will be Arsenal's player to watch this season?

At the moment Ramsey is the man to watch. At the same time I'm excited to see how Gnabry will progress this season as he gets more playing time with Theo being out.  

So, next stop is Austin Texas for some Tacos and Rodeo (maybe!) Remember, if you enjoy reading the blog please help out by donating to the Triple Negative Breast Cancer Foundation.

COYG