It is true that we are barracking for laundry, but the question is why? Why do we get so worked up and so emotional over this laundry? The predictable answer is tribalism, but I'm not sure this explains it, as most people who support their clubs live out in the burbs, country towns or even different cities, a long way from the spiritual homes of these clubs. If you look at how we start barracking for a particular club -- if not passed down from parents -- it is usually some trivial incident in the school yard, or some eccentric relative who hands us a beanie or scarf. As we grow older, it then becomes a case of identity. Our sense of identity is linked to this club. It's a bit like nationalism or even religion. Thus, I think barracking has more to do with pride, insecurity and fear than anything else. The Club was written in 1977 -- mostly about events at Collingwood in 1974-6 but events at other clubs are also portrayed in the story (e.g. Collingwood did not have a hushed-up sex scandal in the mid seventies but at least two other VFL clubs did) This was really the start of the modern professional period. Football has moved a long way further from the game of suburban loyalties in the intervening 35 years. In 1977, players were zoned and in the case of Melbourne (inc. Geelong) based players they were likely to be playing for the team