Cap’n Willy, Nicklas Bendtner, Abou Diaby, Armand Traore and Tomas Rosicky quickly returned to the dressing room, although the former two came later on for some light running ballwork

A very soggy yet satisfying day. When I told my dad on Monday night that I was gonna be hopping into the shower before him the following morning, he looked at me like I was a nutter. And I agreed with him. I guess insanity is the price you pay for the things you love.

Having arrived at Holloway Road around 9pm, we then queued up outside turnstiles M and N for a good half-hour. Although the clouds were out in full force, the rain held up until we got into the stadium. Upon entering, there was a mad rush to grab the best seats. I was straggling behind reading the Members Day leaflet, but thankfully my mate DJ had the wherewithal to nab some seats in the front row.

The first glimpse of a player came at 10am, as our beloved Crozilian took to the field to partake in a few laps of the pitch. While some may bemoan the fact the he is not yet training properly with the squad, and that the press cunts deem it a “crisis” because he won’t be ready until Christmas, you have to remember that the man nearly lost his leg. Putting it into that perspective shows you how much strength of character he has and how far he has come since that fateful February day in Birmingham. One of the things I am looking forward to most this season is his comeback ovation and goal.

As Eddie was completing his jogging, good ol’ Elvis started playing and you knew business was about to pick up. Out first were the keepers for a spot of stretching and running whilst the coaching staff started to lay the cones. The keepers went back inside, and then a few minutes later the whole squad emerged one-by-one. Jack Wilshere’s presence confirmed his step-up up to the first team squad.

Of the first team squad, Cap’n Willy, Nicklas Bendtner, Abou Diaby, Armand Traore and Tomas Rosicky quickly returned to the dressing room, although the former two came later on for some light running ballwork. Tomas is of course recuperating from injury, whilst Armand didn’t feature on the weekend so I assume he is injured. Willy came off late on against Real so probably didn’t want to aggravate anything, whilst Bendtner and Diaby probably saw the rain and couldn’t be arsed, haha.

The aforementioned players were soon joined by newboy Samir Nasri, who came off following a few laps of the field. As he was coming off he indicated to the coaches that he had felt his groin or thigh. No point risking further injury just to please the fans, a wise move. I’m sure the shit weather helped him arrive at the decision, with the heavens beginning to open it had become very slippery underfoot and a pulled muscle would’ve been the biggest danger.

As the players jogged round to the South End of the stadium where all the fans were situated, the biggest cheers came for Theo, who was at the front of the pack. I was present at the game against Juve on Saturday and every time he picked up the ball, the expectations level audibly rose. I hope for his sake and ours that he can live up to the hype.

Following the warm-up run, the players then segregated off into groups: a youthful and predominantly British quintet of Rambo, Wilshere, Gael, Theo and Justin; another quintet of Phil, Robin, Vela, Eboue and Denilson; a trio of Djourou, Ade and Sagna; and finally the duo of Cesc and Kolo, who are furthest behind in their schedules having just respectively returned from international duty and illness.

Cesc and Kolo trained close to where we were sitting. Both responded to shouts from the crowds with waves and smiles. Kolo in particular was sporting a very funky new haircut:

After each group had completed their jogs and stretches, it was game time. The lads were split into two teams of nine: the Green Bibs containing the likes of Ade, Robin, Phil, Gael and Jack; whilst the White Bibs had Vela, Theo, Rambo, Eboue and Kolo amongst others. The fact that Nasri had hobbled off earlier on saw Vito Mannone line-up on the right of midfield for the Greens, and he wasn’t half bad!

The Greens triumphed 4-2. Robin and Ade netted with neat finishes and Gael broke his Arsenal duck by lashing home a volley in the second-half. Mannone got on the scoresheet too with a blistering effort! He went in goal during the second period as Manuel reverted to the right-wing. The replies from the Whites came from the Ivorian double act of Kolo (who was getting forward a lot), and Eboue – who even in a training match managed to go down injured. Though he did get a fair ovation when he eventually got to his feet.

After the game the players came up to the sides of the pitch and booted the balls into the crowd. Some lucky sod three seats next to me managed to grab one from Cesc. Most of the players then trudged off, apart from Manuel who signed a few autographs. He was within touching distance of me. Close but no cigar:

Manuel stayed out to face penalties from five lucky fans. The first bloke was the oldest of the lot and wrong-footed the Spanglish One, but the rest of them were little nippers who couldn’t muster the power to hit the onion bag. A funny moment came when Arsene took an unexpected pot-shot from point-blank range but Manuel got his fingers to the ball and diverted it wide off the post. Manuel then spoke a few words, including some chat about maybe one day becoming England’s no.1.

The day was fittingly rounded off by Le Boss. I couldn’t really make head nor tail out of what he was saying, but did pick up on him saying that the search for an experienced midfielder was continuing in earnest.

We then left the stadium pretty sharpish in order to get to The Armoury for a spot of shopping. I decided to get Walcott 14 on my home shirt and Wilshere 19 on the away one. The new Henry and the new Messi, some might say. So much for us not having any talented Englishmen in the ranks, eh? The away shirt is stunning by the way, it’s the best shirt I’ve seen us wear in my lifetime.

So what did I make of Members Day? It was definitely worth it. The weather was a bitch though, especially when sitting in the front row. If any of you get the opportunity to go next year, I would definitely recommend it. Being free of charge, it was value for money (duh) and a nice way to get pumped for the new season.

Were any of you present? Drop us a line in the comments section and let us know your thoughts on the day.