Barry Town United FC, founded in 1912 as Barry FC, is one of the most recognized teams in all of Wales. With 7 league titles and 6 cup titles, this team’s glorious past has been overshadowed by recent tumultuous events that threatened the club’s very existence. However, the fans and the city stood united and united they won. John McAllister, 22, is one of these proud supporters who withstood the storm and now is enjoying his club’s great present, including a long-awaited return to European football.
Q: To begin with, I wanted to know what is the first memory you have related to Barry Town United?
A: My first memory is seeing that Barry Town had won a court case in 2013 against the Welsh Football Association who tried to remove us from the Welsh Football League. Over the few years after that, I watched occasional games and then I started watching regularly in 2017.
Note: Barry Town FC’s owner removed the team from the league in 2013, but, after the intervention of the club’s lawyers and the fans, he was removed from his position and the team was renamed Barry Town United. At first, the Football Association of Wales denied the team permission to participate in the Welsh league system but was later overruled and the club joined the third division in late 2013.
Q: Do you remember your first match at Jenner Park?
A: My first match at Jenner Park was in 2017 during our season where we got promoted back up into the Welsh Premier League. It was a 3-0 win over Goytre United which sealed our promotion
Q: What a match! Incredible that was your first one! I understand Barry Town United has quite a loyal fanbase and that the whole Barry gets behind the team at all times, is this true?
A: We have a very loyal fanbase but it is definitely a minority within the town. We have the most passionate fanbase within the Welsh football system but sadly because our town is very close to Cardiff a lot of people support them instead of us.
Q: Actually one of my questions was if Welsh fans turned their heads more to the English League System with Swansea and Cardiff or support local teams too?
A: They definitely support the English system teams who play in Wales more than Welsh local teams.
Q: Oh, sounds quite unfair for Welsh football in general. But Barry Town is owned by the fans, right? In modern football that means A LOT, in my opinion.
A: Yes Barry is owned directly by the fans. We have a lot of control over what happens within the club. It’s really good to know that our club is safe.
Q: All fans have a say on administrative issues? Or is it like Argentina where you have to get a monthly membership?
A: All fans who buy an annual membership or season ticket can have their say and attend annual meetings at the club and elect board members.
Q: What would you say is your most treasured memory regarding the club?
A: Watching our club playing in the Europa League qualifying, definitely. In 2019 we qualified and played against Cliftonville from Northern Ireland.
Q: I was about to ask: Barry Town was a regular in Europe during the 1990s and 2000s. Now that you guys have returned to the big stage of football, did Barry miss the European Competitions as much as these missed Barry Town?
A: Oh absolutely! European nights were characteristic of our club for nearly a decade. We played some giant European clubs, FC Porto and Dynamo Kyiv. These games are what make people support the club and even more importantly they give the club the money needed to survive.
Q: When I asked a fan from the Faroe Islands he said that, when a Faroese team plays in Europe, all the other fans of all the teams gather to support that specific team. Does anything similar happen in Wales? Maybe with Barry Town or The New Saints or even Connah's Quay, for example.
A: Yes that does happen! It’s very important for Wales that all Welsh teams playing in Europe perform well so we all support each other. I have even been to watch other team's matches in their stadiums, for example in the summer of 2019 I watched TNS play FC Copenhagen and Connah’s Quay play Partizan Belgrade.
Q: I assume you guys have that same stance when it comes to the National Team right? FIFA World Cup qualifiers, the UEFA Euro and so.
A: Yes, almost all Barry Town fans also support the National team passionately. A few of my friends and I who support Barry all go to the National team games home and away in Europe.
Q: Do you guys see the National Team as a platform to kind of separate "Wales" with the rest of the UK? We have a pretty big Welsh community here in the south of Argentina and what they always told us is that Welsh people are very fond of their traditions and so.
A: I personally do and I think a majority of people who support the national football team do, but I’m not certain that’s a majority in the whole population. I do know about the Welsh community, it seems like a lovely place I want to visit at some time soon.
Q: Do you have any pre-match rituals? Getting together with friends, having some beers? Anything like that?
A: Yes, friends and I always meet up before matches for beers, then we watch the match and, after the match, go for some more beers. It’s a great day when we play at home. When we play away we either travel up for the match in a supporters bus or by train and have some drinks on the way there.
Q: What does football mean for an average Welsh and could you describe Wales and Football with one word each?
A: I think football for the average Welsh person is a great escape for people to enjoy themselves on the weekends and in one word I would say Welsh football is about passion. We support our team passionately and people support our country passionately as well.
Q: And Barry? What does the team mean to you?
A: The team is very important to me, I think it’s crucial to support a team that you can identify with, and supporting the team of your town is as close as you can to identify with anyone. It’s a really great feeling knowing that when the team is successful, people get to know your town and your club.