Honorary Squad Member

I'm Will Bowman, 33, originally from Great Broughton, and grandson of Billy Bowman (a name some of the older fans might recognise!). Despite being a Cumbrian, I grew up in Wales and currently live in Liverpool. 

I've been a Carlisle fan longer than I remember. Literally, my mum brought me to BP before I was born. My earliest actual memory watching Carlisle, I'm pretty sure, was Wembley in 1997. It's either that or getting smashed in the face by a wayward shot in the Warwick. Both are formative memories for different reasons.

When I was three, I moved from Cumbria and spent the rest of my childhood growing up in Wales. However, every weekend, my Dad would drive the round trip from Cockermouth to Ruthin to pick me up. Watching Carlisle was always the destination.

Following the double promotion winning Simmo teams up and down, from Wincham Park to Millmoor to BP, then going to school on Monday and trying to talk to my Welsh friends about how good Simon Hackney was. These properly cemented me as a lifelong Carlisle supporter.

These were sadly my last few years as a kid watching Carlisle consistently, before I started playing football myself every Saturday instead. Fair play to my Dad, he also stopped going to BP and came to watch me play in my local youth leagues instead. 

Since online streaming became a thing, and my body became too broken to play 11 side myself, I've barely missed a single Carlisle game. When work allows, I'll go watch the games with my dad and my brother Jamie. With me in Liverpool, my brother in Rochdale, and my Dad in Cockermouth, away games are often the best place for us to meet.

The recent Simmo promotion campaign was easily the best time as a Carlisle fan. Against the odds, spirited, and with local lads in the spine of the team - that season was everything to make you proud to be a Cumbrian.