And on Saturday afternoon, before Crystal Palace's historic FA Cup Final triumph, a stunning supporter-led display – produced by the Holmesdale Fanatics, and with fans coming together to raise over £45,000 to support it – saw that sentiment beamed from the heart of South London to the eyes of the watching world.
This is the story behind a tifo display for the ages...
On the 30th November 2011, after an uneventful first-half in a League Cup quarter-final at Old Trafford, Crystal Palace's Darren Ambrose picked up the ball 40 yards from goal, turned and…
Well, you surely know the rest.
The cameras panned to the away end and, amidst 3,000 supporters jumping for joy, found an adrenalised red-and-blue clad supporter, Mark Wealleans, screaming with passion whilst holding up two young Palace lads who – then nine and six-years-old – responded by bursting into tears.
“I watch it back a lot, being grateful that we’ve got that on camera,” Dominic and Nathan Wealleans reflected, speaking to Palace TV back in 2023, many a year after the incident.
“That that moment was actually picked up and filmed… it’s the best bit for me.”
Sheer emotion – sheer delight – the sheer heights that only football can bring… and all shared with their hero and idol.
The moment that will forever matter to them the most – captured on camera and sent out to the world.