During Membership Week, aleagues.com.au is sharing stories of the incredible fans who have made their presence felt off the pitch over the first two decades of the A-Leagues.
From “Red Wig Steve” to an interstate Perth Glory member who, for years, has worn the exact same Glory kit to every game he attends, these are the cult figures of A-Leagues supportership, and the unique ways in which they’ve become synonymous figures within their respective clubs.
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Brian “Eggy” Glasgow’s love for Central Coast Mariners was born in season one of the Isuzu UTE A-League.
Amid the blur of all the away days and home games he’s attended, the defining memory that sealed his love for the club came in the pouring rain during a home win over Perth just eight rounds into the competition’s existence.
He’s shown uncompromising loyalty to the club ever since.
“I got involved a couple of weeks into the first year,” Glasgow told aleagues.com.au in 2023.
“I made a few random friends I’d never met before, and was seeing myself on TV. When I was a bit younger I thought that was a big thing. It just started from there and escalated. Those first few years I didn’t miss many games after that. It was a good ride.
“The biggest thing has always been the atmosphere rather than the game on the pitch, for me. I spend most of my time facing the other way!”
Now, Glasgow is a mainstay in Central Coast’s Yellow Army, a self-described “random group of misfits.”
The hard times of the 2010s made way for a glorious two-year stretch in which the Mariners won back-to-back Isuzu UTE A-League Championships, one Premiership and the AFC Cup. Glasgow was there to witness it all, hanging over the fence, surrounded by family and friends in the Mariners’ active supporter base.
“It’s probably the same for all the other teams, but Mariners in particular, we’re all from very different backgrounds and circles, and a pretty random group of misfits that fit together,” he says.
“There are some interesting characters, to say the least, but they all fit in on gameday. Some people you’re hanging out with outside of games, and others, you don’t know where they go or where they come from, but they’re there every weekend. They disappear and come back.
“I’ve got my little sister, who has never been into sport, she’s got a couple of little boys now that have been coming the last few years. And she now comes to a lot of games, because she sees how happy it makes them.”
Today, Glasgow is one of the A-Leagues’ most recognisable fans, but amongst the thousands of supporters around the competition, there’s perhaps none more iconic than ‘Red Wig’ Steve Cervaro.
Cervaro was in the front row at Adelaide Oval when Pablo Sánchez arrived off the bench to seal Adelaide United’s first and only Championship.
“That’s it – they’ve done it!” screamed commentator Simon Hill, as the Spaniard veered off toward the corner flag, whipping the faithful Reds crowd into a frenzy.
Then, Sánchez dovetailed to his left. Arms spread wide, mouth gaping, he could hardly believe the crowning moment had arrived – and that he was the orchestrator of it.
Sánchez wished to share that moment with one man in particular. Off he went in search of a red wig bouncing in the crowd.
“When Pablo scored that goal, I was on the fence,” Cervaro recalled to aleagues.com.au.
“He found me, he came straight to me, gave me a hug and said: ‘This is for you’. I’ve got his tattoo on me, his portrait. His goal celebration when he was running, that’s the exact picture I used to get tattooed.”
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Cervaro is affectionately known among the A-Leagues community as “Red Wig Steve”.
The label of Adelaide’s “number one fan” has never sat well with Cervaro. “Number one fan? Everyone should be a number one fan,” he says. “We’re all equal at Adelaide United.”
But what can’t be argued is that Cervaro is one of the league’s most recognisable supporters. It’s what helped Sánchez pluck the Adelaide City Council worker out from the heaving Adelaide Oval crowd as he sealed the Reds’ Isuzu UTE A-League crown.
The Reds haven’t won an A-Leagues Championship since that day in 2016 – but Cervaro remains a dedicated member of Adelaide’s supporter base, with his dedication inspired by a deep family connection to football.
“I caught the bug from my dad,” he said. “My dad in Italy was a mad Juventus supporter. My dad told me many stories of going to all parts of Italy, being a dedicated supporter. So I started travelling when I was 15 with Adelaide City in the NSL.
“I was lucky enough to watch Adelaide City win two Grand finals, both at Olympic Park when it was there. I’ve been travelling since I was 15 or 16. I’m 46, so I’ve been travelling for 30 years. It’s part of my DNA.
“I just love the game. When would I stop? who knows. I take it year by year, game by game, but it’s a part of me.”
If you’ve been to Coopers Stadium, or tuned in to the broadcast of any Adelaide United fixture down the years, you’re more than likely to have seen Red Wig Steve in the stands, or on your screen.
The same can be said about Chris Lawrence, also known as “Big Red”, at any of Perth Glory’s fixtures in New South Wales.
Lawrence has been a Glory member since 2010, but has never lived in the Western Australian city. As the only Isuzu UTE A-League club to have played in the old National Soccer League (NSL), Glory is the oldest active professional football club in Australia – and since the late 1990s, the club has had a dedicated fan in Lawrence.
“I first started following the club in 1997 or 1998,” Lawrence told Perth Glory media in 2020.
“The love affair really started around the 2001 (NSL) Grand Final, even though it was a loss. Just the atmosphere and being involved with the club. At that stage I was still under 18 and it really kicked off when the A-League started, especially with the same club and colours, being able to travel by myself from game to game, that’s when it really kicked off full-time for me.
“It was the first team I remember watching in the NSL days. They played Canberra Cosmos at the time. It was the first time I’d seen purple shirts – not that that was the deciding factor. Perth was the new club into the competition at the time, so I sort of stuck with them, got another family and made heaps of friends out of it.”
It’s been more than a quarter of a century since Lawrence began supporting Glory from afar, and now he’s a staple sight at any of his club’s away games scheduled in his home state, often shown on broadcast wearing a bucket hat and a 2012-13 Glory home kit.
“It’s about the only shirt that fits me now!” Lawrence joked.
“I’ve been a sportsman all my life, superstition’s a big thing. I wear the same shirt every week and hopefully we get the result.”
Lawrence attends every Glory game in New South Wales each season, and makes several trips around the country, including Perth, and across the ditch to New Zealand, to see his beloved club in action.
One of the A-Leagues’ ultimate superfans, Lawrence’s dedication to Perth Glory is a glowing example of how a member’s support can be felt from across borders.
“I’ve made heaps of friends all over the country, obviously a lot in Perth, but Melbourne, Brisbane and all over New South Wales as well, people I probably wouldn’t have met otherwise.
“I’ve picked a team and I’ve stuck with that team for 20 or so years. It’s more about loyalty than anything.”
CLICK HERE TO BECOME AN A-LEAGUES CLUB MEMBER TODAY!
IT’S MEMBERSHIP WEEK! How you can win BIG by securing your seat for 2025-26 today
Become a Member and Win
Purchase a club membership during Membership Week to go into the draw to win:
- Four premium hospitality seats to any Isuzu UTE or Ninja A-League home match of your choice,
- Your very own signed jersey,
- An exclusive inner sanctum tour,
- The chance to meet and mingle with the stars of the squad.
- PLUS Your choice of a SharkNinja product valued up to $500.
All new and renewing members this week will go in the draw to win the ULTIMATE Match Day Pass, a once-in-a-lifetime experience that puts you right in the heart of the action.
All members already signed up for season 2025-26 will also be entered into the draw.
Visit aleagues.com.au, A-Leagues socials or the A-Leagues Official App to find out more.
