VOLUME 2, ISSUE 5 MAY/JUNE 2010
DEEP FROM THE HEART
Notes from the Chairwoman
CHAMPIONS CHAMPIONS CHAMPIONS -
TWICE! Oh, the Double and how sweet
was that? All I can say is that I was lucky
• Notes from the enough to be there and it was amazing!
And not just the double, but a double
Chairwoman plus a junior, as our U18 squad also won
the FA Youth Cup (the first time in 49
• Photos from the years!)... so how unbelievable is that? I
Dallas Cup did write a match report, and I have
posted all my photos. If you are
• Tales from the interested, you can look at them here:
http://www.chelseainamerica.com/
Champions beths-excellent-adventure.html!
• CIA Celebrates The match report is long, so grab a meal
and a drink before you sit down.
the Double in http://community.webshots.com/user/
texasblues1 for all the photos - over
Photos 600 of them, so take your time.
• FA Cup Match ! but we have made some major changes
So now we have the lazy days of summer
Report to recover and get ready for the next
• 5 Questions season. But wait - lazy? Did I say lazy?
No way, there is much going on. For
For... those of you that follow the
internationals, we have the WORLD CUP.
• Summer Tour Fourteen Chelsea players are involved
DVD Review and thanks to modern technology, I hear
that every match at the Cup will be on,
• Malouda: A so set your DVRs and soak it in. And yes
then there is that “famous” match just
Reconsideration days to go on the 12th of June. I just
hope everyone enjoys it, and that all our
boys come home injury free. If that
wasn’t enough to keep you interested,
we are in the midst of the silly season
and just remember before you think we
have signed someone or you read/
heard/whatever that someone has left,
check the o"cial Chelsea website.
Rumors are rife during the silly season
and the papers are more fiction than
fact, so until you see it an o"cial
statement from the club, don’t believe it!
! our voice heard at headquarters and
Of course there is no summer tour in the
US for Chelsea this summer, but
Beth with some of the Youth team after honestly I am not too bothered about
the Wigan match, photo submitted by that as we saw a bout of injuries that
Beth Wild
were non-stop when they came over
here after the World Cup last time, so
take this time to enjoy the World Cup,
enjoy your summer and get ready for
next season. We have two Cups to
defend as well as looking to maybe
make a bid for that silvery trophy with
the really big ears! And do you realize
that should we win the FA Cup again
next season, the three-peat on the FA
Cup has not been done since the 19th
Century! And it wasn’t done by any
Manc, Scouse or Gooner! Now wouldn’t
that be some kind of history (fingers
crossed, knocking on wood)?!
!
We should have the CIA membership up
and ready for people to sign up in the
next couple of days. Sorry for the delay,
to the techy part of CIA - a new server,
bigger and better than ever, some new
software to help us manage data better
and process applications better and all
of that. It has taken a bit longer to get it
all installed. So please bear with us while
we finish that last bit of testing and
installation. We will let you all know
when it is ready. And just so you know,
we are keeping membership dues at the
same price as last season, so $8 for
Adults, $4 for Youth members, $20 for
families (with maximum of 2 Adults). We
also have a wonderful membership gift
up our sleeves. So along with supporting
all we do at CIA, your membership dues
will get you a great gift, which I am
keeping as a surprise, HA HA! I think
everyone will like it, as I hope you all
liked the special DVD from last season.
But that isn’t all. When you become a
member of CIA, you help us build the
largest supporters club not only in
America but in the world. We are making
they are listening.
!
After quite a few years of trying to
continued on Page 2
 PAGE 2

continued from Page 1 Now, with your True Blue membership

not only do you get access to match
explain what our vision is for CIA, we
tickets, (your CIA membership alone
had a great meeting with the club and
cannot do that for you) you get
are going a step forward. For the first
ChelseaTV streaming to your computer.
tim,e we will have not only CIA be a
Even better, they are now getting to
recognized club but also all of our larger
launch a whole new driver for
regional and local clubs. What does that
ChelseaPlus, and it will o#er not only
mean? It means that every local/regional
access across platforms to PC and Mac
club will have the opportunity to become
users both, but also it will be on-
a recognized supporters club of Chelsea
demand! How sweet is that? So if the
FC without having to deal with all the
show you really love is on while you are
hassle and paperwork of being an
at work, you will be able to pull it up on-
o"cial club. No need to collect dues and
demand when you get home, on the
report your financials, no reporting of
weekend or whenever you like.
members and True Blue members, no
ChelseaPlus cost 39 pounds last year
working on getting tickets, all of that
and is 3.99 pounds a month if you
will be centralized through CIA, so that
renew monthly, and the True Blue
the regionals/locals can spend the time
membership was 25 pounds last year, so
working on growing our numbers and
you get both this year for only 30
making the local/regional clubs exactly
pounds for an adult. I guess what I am
what the local/regional clubs want to be
saying is if you needed a reason to
and do - all the fun and not the hassle.
become a True Blue member and
A local/regional group qualifies by
support Chelsea and CIA, I don’t know
having at least 20 CIA members and
how they could give you a more
electing a contact person for CIA and
compelling reason to sign up. Also, if
Chelsea. With that, that club will be
you should sign up before the 31st of
featured as an o"cial club on the
July you will gain 5 loyalty points; if you
Chelsea website with a link to your
are thinking of attending one of those
website (which we can now host on the
big matches, or maybe the last match of
big new CIA server for no cost!), and you
the season, you need those loyalty
have the opportunity to have your club
points. Five loyalty points will get you a
flag hanging permanently at Stamford
ticket to any match, (not counting Semi-
Bridge as you have seen on television!
Finals, Finals and away Champions
CIA is going to try and fund those flags
League matches) no matter who we play.
for all the clubs as well. How cool is all
!
of that? I know it has taken some time,
And just to clarify, being a member of
but we are moving forward. So if you
CIA is important! As I said, it helps
want to support this, then here is what
support the growth of Chelsea as the
you need to do: sign up for CIA and
club sees it. They measure support by
CONTRIBUTORS:
support your local/regional club. If you
the number of supporters clubs and
don’t know who they are or how to get A big thanks to everyone who
their members. However, the CIA
involved, they will be contacting you, I
membership alone does not get you helps make the CIA Bluesletter
promise. If you really want to step out,
access to tickets. A True Blue possible!
then o#er to work on your region or
membership gets you access to match
local club. All you have to do is contact
tickets. When you pair the two of them Editor: Jamie Edwards
me and I will get you going,
together, that is the best of both worlds. Chairwoman: Beth Wild
beth.wild@chelseainamerica.com. That is
Because as a supporters club we get to Logo and Graphics: Raciel Diaz
all there is to it, and we want to grow to
order our members’ tickets prior to
as many groups as possible! So don’t be Proofreader: Sarah Drake
them going on general sale to regular
shy; as we say, GET STUCK IN!
members, which makes it easier on you
! CIA Crest done in collaboration
to be assured of getting the ticket you
That isn’t all. For years I have tried to with Who Are Ya Designs -
want. You can only order one ticket per
explain to Chelsea that the True Blue www.whoareyadesigns.com
True Blue membership through us, so if
membership has little value, if any, to
you want to take the family, they will
our members unless they feel they can
each need a membership. But isn’t that Want to contribute or make a
make it to the Bridge for a match. And
we have our first real US benefit! This
better than having to pay through the suggestion? Send Jamie an
nose from a ticket agency or travel firm? email at newsletter@
year if you become a True Blue member,
I know we had a couple of families go chelseainamerica.com!
you GET CHELSEA PLUS FOR FREE!
over last season, and they were thrilled
Chelsea Plus is the online broadcast of
Chelsea TV! So if you have been missing
ChelseaTV on Setanta, wait no further! continued on Page 3

continued from Page 2
with their seats, the ease of getting
tickets and how less costly it was than
what they had found on the internet
before discovering CIA. Junior True Blue
memberships are even less expensive.
So there you have it! If you have any
questions, again, you only have to ask.
And be sure that when you do sign up
for CIA that you tell us your True Blue
number so that we can register you and
help you with those tickets.
! also like to know that the money was
How exciting is that? Like I said, the
bigger we get the more our voice is
heard, so please support us supporting
you. Become a member of CIA and get
your True Blue membership; it has value
now even if you aren’t going to the
Bridge!
! from the time I was in London, and best
Now that the season has ended and
most of our paperwork is done and
turned in to Chelsea, we nearly have our
membership page up and working. We
thought it would be nice to see if anyone
is interested in getting some CIA shirts if
they missed the opportunity last
summer and also their very own CIA
flag. I will let everyone know when I get
the details on that. We will also be
having a ra$e for the signed
merchandise we get from Chelsea as
well, so be on the lookout for details.
! is dedicating herself to doing the three-
Don’t forget to check out the old and
new episodes of both the regular CIA
podcast and Legend podcasts. Don’t
forget the great contests on Twitter, so
please follow CFCinAmerica. Of course
there is also the website, numerous
Facebook pages, and the bulletin board
to keep your summer filled with Chelsea.
If you want to get more involved, let me
know. There is much more we could be
doing if we have the manpower.
! something that raises money for charity,
I also wanted to give you an update on
one of our members. Dean Kelley, as
many of you know, was in an horrible
car accident a few months back. It was
quite scary, but he is finally out of
hospital. He is o# the respirator and
eating on his own now, though he is still
in a wheelchair. Though he is fighting
mightily, he has a long way back to
regain the mobility of his arms and legs,
but knowing Dean, he will be fighting
harder than anyone. We have been
running a page to allow people to make
a donation to Dean’s cause, because as I
PAGE 3
am sure you can imagine the costs of
DALLAS
this are many. To date we have raised
$1,824.93 for Dean, but it doesn’t stop.
He will need help for some time to
come. So if you forgot or ran out of time
or didn’t even know about it, our “Eidur” CUP 2010
needs our help, so please give what you
Photos by Beth Wild
can and know it is going to help
someone that is a fantastic supporter of
Chelsea and a very dear person. You can
find the link to the donation site here
http://www.chelseainamerica.com/
ShoppingCarts/DeanKelly.htm You might
raised from donations from members as
well as a donation from CIA funds to this
good cause. We also were able to send
Dean some flowers, a box of goodies
with some shirts and one of our signed
team balls, Jens and I put together a care
package to Dean of some mementos
of all our lovely Mick from Phoenix
Autographs made a donation of
something very special for Dean. Sorry I
can’t tell you more, but the box is in the
post to Dean, and I would hate to spoil
the surprise should he read this before it
gets to him. But I will give all the details
on the thread on the board when I know
the box has arrived.
!
I would also like to make you all aware
of a special thing one of our members is
doing. Monique, who does a lot for CIA,
day walk for Breast Cancer Research. I
am sure, and sad, that most of us have
been touched by this and lost friends or
loved ones to breast cancer. Please, if
you can find a few extra dollars around
to support Mo in her walk that would be
wonderful. You can find her donation
page at http://tinyurl.com/ybw5hk5 Any
and all donations are gratefully
accepted, and remember it is for a very
worthy cause. If you are doing
please let us know. We are one big Blue
family here and the generosity of this
group of people is mind-blowing. We are
more than just a group of crazy people
that wake up at silly times of the
morning to watch a team and drink beer,
we are a group of people with many
di#erent interests and hearts as big as
they get, so let us know what you are up
to and maybe we can help.
Let me end by wishing you all a very Blue
summer, enjoy your family and friends,
and KEEP THAT BLUE FLAG FLYING HIGH!

TALES FROM THE CHAMPIONS 2009/10
Story and photos by Chris Axon
What else could I call this?
Oh Boy - What a game.
From the quiet cave of Anfield, subdued
apart from three thousand Chelsea
loyalists, to the bubbling cauldron of
noise and emotion at HQ.
Just a spectacular day.
I will be honest, I was still more nervous
than I perhaps ought to have been
throughout the build-up to the Wigan
Athletic game. A lot of people were
telling me to relax, but how could I? This
was a potential disaster waiting to
happen. The more I thought of the
match, the more worried I became.
There have been numerous examples of
teams failing at the last minute and I
couldn't face my Chelsea being the next.
I think it is safe to say that I was just
glad that there was no Wigan player
called Mazeroski.
The alarm sounded at 6.30am on Sunday
and the first task of the day was to
decide on match-day apparrel. This
often takes a good many minutes as I
weigh up the choices. I kept thinking
back to the Bolton championship game
in 2005 and I remembered that I wore a
white Henri Lloyd polo on that incredible
day...I superstitiously decided to mirror
this choice, but this time the chosen
colour was royal blue. I kept the Bolton
theme going by wearing a pair of HL
jeans that I bought in a store outside
The Reebok before the game last
autumn. I needed all the good luck
charms I could muster. My new Barbour
jacket worked a treat at Anfield last
week, so that got the nod, too. The
weather looked dull and overcast as I set
o# at 8am.
Parky, sporting some new Forest Hills,
was collected at 8.30am and we were on
our way. We shot through the familiar
towns of Devizes, Marlborough and
Hungerford on the A4. Passing through
the Savernake Forest, thousands of
bluebells were spotted in woodland
glades alongside the silver birch trees. It
was a spectacular sight.
I had been in touch with Jamie
( crowtrobot ) who was lucky enough to
be over for Game 38. Jamie was nervous,
just like me.
On parking up at Chelsea, the weather
was cold but a breakfast soon sorted
ourselves out. Frankie Two Times was in
the cafe too and he updated us with
details of his recent health scare. He's
doing much better now thank heavens.
Daryl, Ed andNeil then appeared, all
wearing the requisite polo shirts. Daryl
was wearing a lovely Fred Perry - and
there was an element of superstition
about this choice, too.
"If it was good enough for the first game
of the season, it's good enough for this
one too" he said.
There was an element of classic Chelsea
about it too as the white shirt had green
and red trim...shades of the much-loved
red / white / green of the 1970's away
kit.
We got the nod that US visitors Ashley
and Jamie were close by, so we
sauntered o# to The Goose. There was a
sizeable crowd waiting for Reg to open
up. In we went, bang on mid-day. Over
the next hour or so, all of my mates
showed up and joined the throng. By
2pm, Reg had decided to limit the
amount of people entering as it was so
full. We had our little corner of the bar,
beneath the TV set showing the Leicester
vs. Cardi# game ( which nobody was
watching...) and the pre-game rituals
were taking place. The laughs, the
stories, the jokes.
Of my mates, Parky and Andy were the
PAGE 4
most stressed, whereas Daryl and Simon
seemed rather chilled out and confident.
I still wasn't sure.
"Bottom of the ninth, Mazeroski
swings..."
Jamie and Ashley - plus also Jason and
his girlfriend - were being entertained
by Lord Parky, the resident CIA-Social
Secretary, and the beers were flowing
nicely. Talk also included plans for the
FA Cup Final pre-match, but also of the
friendlies in Holland and Germany. Wes
showed up a bit later, thus missing the
other Americans who had left to sample
the pre-match, and he was buzzing as
per normal. He grabbed me and shouted
"let's do this." I showed a few mates
some photos from Anfield, but also from
the Chelsea Old Boys game I had seen in
Southampton on Monday...great photos
of former players such as Johnny B.,
Tore Andre Flo, Clive Walker, Canners,
Ian Britton and Colin Pates.
At about 3.15pm - a bit earlier than
normal - we set o# for The Bridge. There
were lines of fans waiting to get into the
packed pubs around Fulham Broadway
and I guessed these unlucky souls were
without tickets. There was an air of
carnival, but I only felt the tension. I
quick word with Mark on the CFCUK
stall, wearing his lucky trainers.
By 3.40pm, Steve and myself had taped
'VINCI PER NOI' up against the back wall
of the Matthew Harding Upper, right in
my NW corner. Bizarrely, there were still
marks from the tape which I must've
used all those years ago. I used to bring
the banner along in the Vialli / Zola era,
but 'VINCI' was last seen at Stamford
Bridge in around the year 2000. My
goodness, the years have flown.
Unfortunately, the banner was hid for
most of the game by a few fans who had
decided to stand. Oh well. I was hoping
that Carlo might spot it at some stage.
The Bridge, though under grey skies,
was a riot of colour and more flags then
usual were dotted around the balconies.
continued on Page 5

continued from Page 4
Den Haag.
Newry.
Cornwall.
Polska.
The rumours were true, though - Wigan
hadn't sold all their tickets and I was
pretty annoyed with the gaps in that
section. There were even clumps of
empty seats in the
"complimentaries" ( players families,
friends, etc ) in the middle of the Shed
Upper. Work that one out. Also empty
seats in the "Abramovich" tier of the
West...
Building up to the game, I had yearned
for an early goal - by ten minutes would
be perfect. Wigan, in a truly horrendous
kit, had the best of the early exchanges
though. The Bridge was on fire, however,
with everyone seemingly buoyed by
extra pints.
"We love you Chelsea - we do."
On just five minutes, a Drogba free-kick
was cleared but the ball was played back
in. A touch back from Malouda and
Anelka was waiting.
A shot.
YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSS
SSSSSSSSSSS.
What a start - Oh my, I wanted to
explode. After the shouting, the
screaming and the back-slapping had
died down slightly, Alan turned to me...
"They'll have to come at us now."
"Come on my little diamonds."
We then struggled a little bit and I
thought Wigan got back into the game.
However, just as the crowd was cooling
down a little, along came a burst into
the box and we were given a penalty,
though my view was impeded. Not only
that - a red card.
This isn't happening. This is going
exactly to plan.
Frank took the ball. However, Alan had
told me that Didier had allegedly been
promised a penalty in order for him to
get a shot at The Golden Boot. In the
imediate build-up to the penalty, there
seemed to be "words" between Frank
and Drogba.
I caught Frank's emphatic stab on film
and the resultant celebrations. This was
wonderful wonderful stu#. The texts
started to fly in.
The Bridge was then bouncing like never
before...whole sections of stands were
joining in...it resembled a sight akin to a
bouncing Mexican wave. Heady stu#
indeed.
The rest of the half seemed a blur, but
we were well aware that Drogba was
sulking. I had to remind myself that he
was our Player Of The Year. I wasn't
impressed. At the half-time break, I
couldn't help but think that there was
still an air of uncertainty amongst my
fellow fans.
Two-nil up, Wigan down to ten men and
we're still not convinced.
"Proper Chelsea," I thought.
I heard one soul utter "we only need to
let in one goal and..." His voice trailed
o#, but we all knew what he meant.
At the break, Roy Bentley and Ken
Monkou made the half-time draws.
Great to see Roy again - was it really a
year ago that his antics on the pitch
after the Blackburn game gave us so
much joy?
The Chelsea eleven re-entered the pitch
well ahead of the opposition and - for
the first time I can ever remember - had
a pre-second half huddle. I imagined
that it had kicked-o# a bit between
Drogba and the others at the break
PAGE 5
( maybe out of earshot of the manager )
and now JT was bringing them all
together.
"Let's do this together, boys."
Well, the second half was an absolute
blur. At the end of it all, we were having
trouble remembering who had scored or
how they had scored. It was the third
goal that really made it safe. A lovely
one-two between Kalou and Frank and a
slick finish. I think I celebrated this goal
the most as I just knew we couldn't be
caught. Photos of Kalou, minus his shirt,
posing right down below me and in front
of Cathy and Dog in the corner.
The Anelka goal - the fourth - was just
mesmeric...the deep cross from Ivanovic
and the first-time volley. The place
erupted again. The players raced over to
celebrate in the same corner and the
expressions on their faces are a joy to
behold.
OK, we were now on 99 league goals and
( despite my nervousness ) I had toyed
with the notion of a 5-0 win to give is a
ton. It soon came...a great angled
header by Drogba from a lovely Lampard
cross. Drogba was euphoric.
One hundred league goals!
"Boring Boring Chelsea - Boring Boring
Chelsea."
And so it continued...Ashley was clipped
by former blue Mario Melchiot and Drogs
was handed the ball. I raced down to the
front and steadied myself. Just time for
aquick word with Big John.
"I think we're safe" he said.
Snap.
6-0. The place erupted again. Up to 101
now...
We couldn't repeat the 7-0 of the very
last home game could we? Well, a bit of
interplay between Juliano and Joey set
up Drogba to push home from close
range. On this goal, I just smiled and
laughed...this was just crazy.
The songs continued.
continued on Page 6
 PAGE 6

continued from Page 5 wondrous. I thought about what must

have been going through the minds of
Then a break, a shot from Moses - the
Jamie, Wes, Ashley and Beth - especially
shot of the game - and a World class
Beth.
save from Petr, who had been a
spectator for virtually all of the game.
I thought about my mates dotted around
Then - a beautiful moment - and a
the stadium.
chant which some fans will not have
heard ever before...
We live for days like this.
"That's Why We're Champions."
An hour or so later, we were drinking in
The Lily Langtry and the place was
Memories of 2005-2006. We'll be
mobbed. We had heard that the OB had
singing that again next season.
closed a lot of the pubs around The
All of us together. Broadway and all of the fans were out on
Then, the final act of 2009-2010 and
the road drinking from cans. It was a
the beautiful finish from Ashley Cole
I had taken around one hundred crazy scene.
after a deep Joe Cole cross.
photographs during the game and I then
took an equally high amount in the Across the way, a hundred fans outside
Eight.
aftermath. The Prince Of Wales were goading us in
The Lily for a song.
8-0.
The songs, the banners, the laughter,
the build-up to the trophy being handed
Un-believable.
over to JT.
I had received a flurry of late texts and
The colour, the noise, the red of the
was mid-text at the final whistle. While
Chelsea Pensioners, the royal blue in the
the rest of the crowd roared, I sent a
four stands, the Wigan fans staying
simple text to a few mates - mainly
behind, the anticipation...
Chelsea, but also Manchester United,
Liverpool and Rotherham United too.
The booing of Scudamore...Game 39 will
not be forgotten.
"My team. My life."
The youth team with the FA Youth Cup -
I crouched down, weak with joy, and my
winners for the first time since 1961. "CAMPIONES - CAMPIONES - OLE - OLE -
eyes were momentarilly moist.
OLE."
The back-room sta#, Ray Wilkins - a big
Payback for Moscow.
roar - the manager - a bigger roar, the Later, heading out of London, I called
reserve players. Steve in California and we spoke for a
I hugged a few friends - especially Alan,
few moments. I commented that the day
who is now up to about 140 consecutive
The first-teamers, Michael Essien - a reminded me so much of the game
Chelsea games, home and away, Europe
massive roar - the slow build up. which clinched promotion from the old
and all. We love our club and we love our
Second Division in 1984. We beat Leeds
friendship too. I've known Alan since
The veterans, Petr Cech, Didier Drogba. 5-0 that day and there was wild
March 1984 and we know what it means
euphoria in SW6 all those years ago. I
to be Chelsea. There was Rousey behind,
The East End Boys, the Blood Brothers, experienced the same feelings twenty-
going crazy, there was Tom alongside,
the vice-captain Frank Lampard and the six years later. It was a phenominal
quiet and contented, there was Mick
captain John Terry. scoreline. As I spoke to Steve, 6,000
behind with his ailing father, there was
miles away, I turned a gentle corner on
Kev and Anna, new aquaintances since
The walk. the M4 and the sky ahead was lit with a
the California trip in 2007, Russ and his
sunset of incandescent beauty. To my
daughter, Old Joe and his sons.
The handshake. north, the sun's rays caught the
Wembley Arch. It was a magical moment.
The glint of the gold and the silver of
the trophy. Life...it truly does not get any better.

The roar. Ed. note: Just wanted to thank Chris for

The sky exploded with white, silver and
blue streamers and the next few minutes
was joy unbounded. The players did a
triumphant lap of honour and it was
yet another season of memorable
write-ups from the matches! Also
thanks to him for letting me include
them in several issues of the
Bluesletter. Can't wait for next season!
 PAGE 7

CHELSEA IN AMERICA CELEBRATES THE DOUBLE!

Ready for champagne, photo

submitted by John Costello

Photo submitted by Belle

Austin Blues after the Double, photo submitted by Jens Busch

Photo submitted by John Costello

Photo submitted by Ben Horner Representin' at the Bridge after Wigan, photo PCBlues after Wigan, photo submitted
submitted by Beth Wild by Julie Carlson

After winning the Double, photo submitted by John Costello Photo submitted by Julie Carlson

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO SUBMITTED PHOTOS!


THE WEMBLEY EXPERIENCE: CIA AT THE FA CUP
Story and photos by Bob Clark
I began thinking about the eventuality of
this trip after my visit in March for two
matches – ! the West Ham league match,
and the Inter Milan match. ! A few of us
were licking our wounds after the loss to
Inter in an Indian restaurant, and I was
admonished to make sure that I returned
for the FA Cup Final!!
Once we went through to the Final, I
began making plans in earnest. Couldn’t
get “Que sera sera…” out of my head. !
Arrange leave from work – check.! Hotel
– check. ! Air ticket – pricey, but check. !
Match ticket was sorted in the second
day of availability, when things opened
up for those with my amount of loyalty
points.! I was buzzing.! !
Texts and emails flew back and forth in
the few days prior to my leaving on May
12, making sure that the plans for the
day were set. ! I was soooo looking
forward to this. ! It would be my second
visit to Wembley, the first having been
the debacle of the League Cup Final in
February 2008. ! ‘Nu# said. ! This time
would be better, I was sure, or was I? !
That nervousness…worrying about
underachieving again…was I turning into
‘proper Chelsea’?! !
The air travel interruptions due to the
volcanic activity had me nervous, but
things seemed to have settled down in
the days prior to my departure.! I got out
fine on May 12 in the evening, although
the flight was delayed an hour and the
routing was to be well to the south of
the usual pattern from San Francisco.! It
was going to put us into Heathrow later
than I wanted –!this was going to be an
issue as I had to pick up my match ticket
at the ticket o"ce on the Thursday,
because in the ‘close’ ! season, they are
closed on Fridays. ! I was glad I had
carried my bag on board instead of
checking it in.! !
Upon arrival, I made fast feet for the
tube and headed in. ! I texted Chris. !
Could he please call the ticket o"ce and
find out what time they were closing? ! I
had no idea if it was 4pm, 5pm, or
whatever..shame on me for not
knowing. ! As we got close to London, I
had to make a fast decision - go to my
hotel, drop my bag then head to the
ticket o"ce, or go straight to the ticket
o"ce, bag and all?! I chose the latter to
be safe. At the ticket o"ce, as I was
being handed my ticket, I was told that
this was the very last Cup Final ticket
that hadn’t been picked up yet!! I wasn’t
sure whether to be proud or
embarrassed.! !
Happy, I headed back to my hotel to
check in and get settled.! I made this an
early evening as I knew that the next
couple of days would be manic.! !
Friday was spent meeting up with Mike
Neat from the New York Blues, and our
OC Hooligans’ Andy Wray.! After a drink
and lunch, we headed to the Megastore
to check out the o#erings. ! Andy
branched o# with some others for drinks
and dinner, and Mike and I ventured into
Frankie’s. ! Whilst enjoying our drinks,
Kerry Dixon came in briefly but didn’t
stay long enough to catch him. ! I had
met him last April, but it always amazes
me as a fan from the US how the Chelsea
ex-players always seem to be around
and are generally approachable and
enjoy chatting with the supporters.!
Saturday morning, Andy and I waited at
the hotel for Chris and Lord Parky to
arrive from the West Country. ! Chris,
Parky and Rob would be sharing the
room with me Saturday, as we expected
to be in full celebration mode, and we
also didn’t want a repeat of what
happened to Rob after the Burnley match
in August.! !
We elected to take a bus rather than the
PAGE 8
tube up to Marble Arch to meet the Bada
Bing Firm for breakfast.! A nice ride on a
sunny day.! Things were shaping up well
so far. ! As we were crossing Oxford
Street, Chris spotted Daryl’s brother Neil
so he was hailed and waited for us, and
we walked up together to the Tyburn on
Edgware Road. ! The Tyburn for
breakfast, and pre-match at the Duke of
York pub, has become the pre-Wembley
ritual. ! We ordered our breakfast and
began chatting about anything and
everything – baseball, Chelsea’s summer
tour in Europe - the Cup Final match
today got scant attention. ! Isn’t that so
often the case? ! There were a few
Pompey in the Tyburn, but they were a
reasonably friendly lot and kept to
themselves.! !
After breakfast, we headed to the Duke
of York.! The plan was to stay there for a
bit, then head to Wembley well in time to
enjoy the atmosphere and so Chris could
hang his Vinci Per Noi banner. ! Mostly
Chelsea at the pub, and then some
Pompey arrived for their pre-match, or
were they headed to a costume party? !
Replica shirts are one thing, but this lot
had on what looked like Native American
headdresses, jester hats, all kinds of
garish gear. ! When I sort my photos I’m
sure I have something of this spectacle.!
!
It was all too soon that we headed o# to
Wembley. ! Tube from Baker Street to
Wembley Park station this time, so we
could make an approach down Olympic
Way. ! The last time, we took an
continued on Page 9

continued from Page 8
overground train to Wembley Stadium
station, but the Olympic Way approach is
more dramatic, and it must have been
quite a sight back in the day of the old
Wembley with the twin towers in the
background.! !
Upon arrival, there were no operational
lifts or escalators, so we had to climb
many flights of stairs up to the top level,
Level 5, where our seats were. ! Whew! !
Flags were placed at each seat. ! The
atmosphere was not as loud as I
expected or was hoping for.! Eerily quiet
I thought. ! Prince William was present
and was sat with the dignitaries and
Lord Treason, I mean Triesman, on Level
2, where the Cup is presented.! !
C
h
e
l
s
e
a
w
a
s
w
e
a
ring the new kit with the red accent.! Not
much to say about the match that hasn’t
been said already.! How many times can
woodwork be hit?! Even our goal was o#
the post.! Cech did a great job, and how
Kalou missed still escapes my brain. !
The end grew near, and I had fingers on
both hands crossed.! Could it be?! Yes!!!
The Double!! ! ! Everyone was jumping
around, even strangers hugging each
other! ! I took what photos I could, but I
was in the last row of the upper deck. !
No matter ! - just to be there was
something I will relish forever. ! The
presentations began, and as the Cup
was presented, “Blue Is The Colour”
began to play on the tannoy. ! I grew
misty eyed and everyone was in full song
now.! Perfect.!
After some festivities back at the Duke
of York, we took a taxi to Salvo’s, a nice
little Italian joint that we have come to
regularly patronize either before or after
matches. ! Some more beers, some
photos of Parky who had fallen asleep,
and great conversation. ! What was over
the horizon for us? ! The hotel I guess! !
We made our way there and after
figuring out who would lie where, we
settled in to get some shut-eye because
Sunday the open top bus parade was
taking place!!! !
Sunday dawned.! To borrow a line from a
song, “we’re going to make this a Blue
Day!” ! I was buzzing again with
excitement. ! After breakfast at Café
Yadana, we walked down the North End
Road. ! Streets were already blocked o#,
and there were a great many street
vendors selling all sorts of
commemorative memorabilia - inflatable
FA Cups, T-shirts, you name it. ! A
carnival-type atmosphere it was! ! We
went into the auxiliary Megastore, and
outside were reunited again with the
New York Blues contingent.! I purchased
a second match programme to send to
Teri in Africa.! Next we ventured down to
the Imperial Arms pub on the King’s
Road, where the parade would pass by
later.!!
Near parade time, we ventured outside
where the crowds were gathered all
along the King’s Road.! At the top of the
hill, the first of the buses appeared, and
then they came closer to the increasing
volume of the crowd. ! I took many
photos and couldn’t believe how
fortunate I was to be able to witness
history in this fashion. ! A superb trip
and weekend it had been. ! We said our
goodbyes to the NYB who were flying
out that afternoon. ! Chris, Parky and I
then made our way back to the Fulham
Road, and we took some final photos to
mark season’s end. ! We said our
goodbyes, and of course we will meet
again next season! ! I’m already
anxiously awaiting the League fixture
list, and the Champions League group
stage draw. ! Friendship and Football. ! It
doesn’t get any better than this.
PAGE 9
Following the
Chelsea
by Josh Hampton
There it was in my mailbox. The
envelope I’d been waiting for. Marked
in the top left hand corner with Beth’s
signature Chelsea address label. The
C.I.A. American Tour DVD was finally
in my hands! Popped some popcorn.
Poured a pint of Fuller’s ESB. And
plopped down on the couch for my
first viewing.
!
I only had the pleasure of going to the
Baltimore match, so I admit my first
inclination was to skip right passed
Seattle and Pasadena—but I resisted,
and I’m glad I did. From the very first
images of the Chelsea in American
flag and the opening notes of “Blue
Day,” all the great memories came
flooding back. It didn’t matter what
city I was watching, it was all Chelsea
in America. The now familiar faces of
new friends and fellow supporters I’d
only talked to on the chatboard. It was
Spy, Jock and Tommy along for the
ride. It was True Blue and a helluva
time.
!
We get the pre- and post-match
festivities. The charity soccer game.
Warm-ups and training sessions.
Singalongs. And lots of great pics and
video of the players and the CIA. In
Dallas, we get some great shots of the
CIA up on the Jumbotron (we’ve got to
be some of the first fans to ever grace
that ginormous screen!). In Baltimore
we get lots of goodies from the Pratt
Street Ale House, which became like a
second home for those 3 days in
Baltimore. Video of quiz night, the
Legends Q &A, and the walk through
the streets of Baltimore, singing
“Carefree.”
!
I was also happy to see one of my
favorite moments from the tour
included. We get video and audio of
Zhirkov’s game-winner against AC
Milan. I’ll never forget the sound of
the Chelsea roar when the ball hit the
back of the net, and now I have it on
disc for perpetuity. Brilliant. And to
think it came free with our paid
memberships. What a club. What a
DVD. What a great group of people
behind it all. Now when the heck’s the
next American tour?!

5 Questions For... Beltway Blue Erik Jonasson
How did you become Chelsea, and
when?
I became a Chelsea fan in 1997. I was
watching the FA cup final and started to
cheer for the team in blue as that has
always been my favourite colour. After
winning the game I started following the
team a little. With time my interest grew
more and more until I finally got hooked
to the point of obsession.
Who is your favorite first team player?
It fluctuates depending on how they are
playing. It's been periodically Lamps, JT
and Essien mostly. At the moment it's
definitely Ivanovic. I've never had a
player stay as my favourite for more
than a season. To me it's about the club
not the individual. I've never been able
to get behind Drogba completely due to
his diving. He seems to have gotten a lot
better with that this season however so
he's grown on me quite a bit.
Florent Malouda: A Reconsideration (or How a
Frenchman Made Me Look a Right Fool)
by David Braley
As many of you remember, and are fond
of reminding me, I wrote a fairly critical
article about Florent Malouda earlier this
year. For a frame of reference it was in
Volume 1, Issue 7 of the Bluesletter. I
have decided to re-evaluate my
conclusion about to include his
performance this season.
Instead of doing a statistical comparison
to the last article, lets just talk about
this season. In the league Florent made
33 appearances, scored 12 goals and
had 9 assists. This season it felt, at
times, that he could have knocked a dust
mite o# a pinhead without disturbing
the pin. His goals, 12, are the same
number he has had in all competitions
for us in the previous two seasons, a
fantastic improvement. He still maintains
a great disciplinary record, 4 yellow
cards and, sadly, his first red card at
Chelsea.
What is your most cherished piece of
Chelsea “stu!”?
I really don't have any Chelsea stu#
besides jerseys. I did buy a signed
Lampard picture on the tour. I stuck it in
my wife's purse and somewhere in the
beer haze it got lost. Before that I had a
teddy dressed up in Chelsea gear
(named Frankie after both Zola and
Lamps) but he got lost somewhere in
Taiwan when I moved back home to
Sweden.
Also we need to take into consideration
his intangibles - his crosses went from
sub-sub-par in previous seasons to
almost automatic this season. He has
been more than just a pacey head case
who couldn't finish or pick a pass this
season; he has become a mazy dribbler
who seems to always know where a man
is and able to pick him out without much
trouble at all.
PAGE 10
If you could have any player from any
other team play for Chelsea, who
would it be?
Messi. Naming anyone else right now
would be madness.
Do you have any pregame rituals?
Nothing besides brewing a steaming pot
of co#ee before every game. Rituals
have always been associated with
superstition to me, I'm not a
superstitious person at all. I wore shirt
#13 in my football team just for that
reason.
I'd just like to add that I'm really glad to
have found this great group of people. I
never would have imagined I'd be able to
get a stronger connection and bigger
interest in the game after moving to this
football wasteland. Thank you everyone
for keeping the blue flag flying high and
in doing so making my life all the more
fun.
In honor of this great improvement I dub
you, Florent Malouda, Dave's Most
Improved Player of the Year. Also, my
new kit that debuted at the FA cup final
is #15 Malouda. Congratulations Flor,
you've won over a skeptic who wanted
you sold as recently as October. Also, I
apologize for suggesting you couldn't
beat a statue. Mea culpa my friend, mea
culpa.
ATTENTION: We need your
help! Photos are needed for the
CIA Member Gift for next season -
a 17-month calendar! Please
send full-resolution pictures from
meet-ups, from the Bridge, from
any Chelsea-related occasion, to
RaDragon on the message board
or to
newsletter@chelseainamerica.com