It can’t be easy growing up in the public eye, and I guess that is exacerbated when there is a lot of hatred around for your old man. Throw in the fact that you’re in all probability the youngest director in English football, and it’s got to be said, I feel sorry for Ryan Yeung.

Today sees Ryan turn eighteen years of age. Most people I’ve known (including me, so many moons ago) have celebrated this milestone with their first legal pint, swiftly followed by their second, third and fourth. I can’t imagine how I’d deal with a situation where my attendance would be probably expected at a football match where a large section of the crowd would be making comparisons between my dad and a piece of the female anatomy. Ryan has rather been thrust into the position he has because of circumstance, and I think it’s to his credit that since his elevation to directorhood nothing else has been said about him.

I’ve spent most of the last week researching a large piece I’m putting together about Carson and his ownership of the club, and the overriding feeling I’m getting is one of a guy who has bitten off way more than he can chew. Carson came to the club with bold promises of spending pots of money, or investing in the club more than anyone else – and despite what his detractors say, he has put a fair bit in – around £16mil of his own money to be precise. The problem with owning a football club these days being rich doesn’t cover it – you have to be very rich, very very rich – and unfortunately I think Carson has over-reached himself. In April, BIH announced to the stock exchange Carson got a mortgage on his own house to put money into the club – which is desperate, to be fair but also shows his commitment to BCFC.

I think that’s what annoys me about the “Carson Out” scarves and chants. I mean, some fella is knocking out Carson Out scarves for a few quid a pop pre-match – where’s that money going? The cynical side of me would say that the bloke isn’t doing it out of the goodness of his own heart. Similarly, whilst the “we don’t care about Carson” chants aren’t that bad on there own, the fact people need to overlay them with shouts of “wanker” and “c*nt” tells me that some are singing it out of pure vitriol – vitriol because a guy who bought the club doesn’t have a bottomless pot of cash to keep putting into it.

It’s a tired old subject and I accept that – but I really do think people need to get behind the team more. We’ve got a manager who excites the fans, we’re playing some half-decent football – let’s sing about our players, wind up the opposition and about how much we’d like to defecate on our brethren from across the expressway. The worse thing about the “we don’t care about Carson” chants is that apart from “Keep Right On”, it’s about the only song other people join in with. I know that constant crowd noise is a myth of rose-tinted nostalgia, but seriously, when did we become such moaning chuffers?

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, I’ve loved this season. I’ve felt revitalised about the team, Europe has been even more of a blast than I thought it would be and it seems we have a team and a manager we can be proud of. Yes, there may be trouble ahead but there always is – let’s just enjoy the moment for what it is. Lastly, I’d like to wish Ryan Yeung a very happy 18th Birthday – I hope he remembers more of it than I remember of mine.

Tags: Carson Yeung, Ryan Yeung