Celebrating Tony Bugby’s 25 Years at Oldham Athletic
You may not have heard of Tony Bugby, but you will most certainly have read his wise and entertaining words. And when you hear how important Tony is to the Latics, you’ll kick yourself for not memorising his name sooner. Because this year, Tony Bugby is celebrating an incredible 25 years of writing for the Latics match day programme. Tony is a lifelong fan of Oldham Athletic and over his 25 years of contributing to the programme he has written approximately 2,500 articles which spanned across 650 publications.
What Started As a Temporary Role…
When he first began making his contributions, Tony was working as a sports reporter for the Oldham Evening Chronicle during the day and then heading over the club in the evenings to help write the programmes, often working long into the night. The team were having a great year, which meant they were playing in more matches that every and that it was becoming harder and harder to get all of the programmes needed written and printed in time: Tony agreed to help out. As Tony himself said, “When I started out during the cup run, I never envisaged it’d last this amount of time.” As well as writing for Oldham Evening Chronicle and contributing to the match day programmes for his beloved club, Tony also found the time to write for website Manchester Football, and contribute insightful articles about the Latics to other sources on an ad hoc basis too.
A True Football Addict
Tony Bugby must be one of the hardest working men in the football writing industry. Many people working within the football industry are often accused of being football addicts, and this is true for Tony Bugby too, with his family and friends often accusing him of having an obsession with the game. Whilst it is genuinely possible to become addicted to football in Tony Bugby’s case this often feted ‘addiction’ was nothing more than a genuine passion to help and support the team that he loves so much. Tony began supporting the Latics over 40 years ago, when he was still a school boy, and he agreed to help to write the match day programmes all those years ago because he was genuinely passionate and devoted to the club. He felt that to write for and support his team from this unique position was a genuine honour. Tony is what many people would refer to as a committed Oldham Athletics addict, and it is a badge that he wears with pride.
What Does The Future Hold?
Tony is showing no signs of wanting to leave his job at the club and is just as enthusiastic about his team now as he was when he first started ‘helping out’ all those years ago. His features often go above and beyond the call of duty and as well as interviewing celebrity fans and current players he has also spent long hours investigating former players in order to put together interesting and informative pieces from new angles. Despite writing over 2,500 different pieces about the club, every piece Tony writes is unique and interesting, making him one of the most important and longest lasting members of the Oldham Athletics team. As Tony himself said when interviewed about his achievement: “I’ve always enjoyed writing. It’s been my life and it’s nice when people say they’ve enjoyed what you wrote. It gives me a great thrill knowing your work has been appreciated by other people.” With quiet dignity and respect, it is clear that Tony’s passion for the Latics is one of his life’s great loves and that he has no intention of giving up what is clearly a labour of love for our club.
So the next time you’re at a Latics game and you grab a programme, give a thought and raise a glass to Tony Bugby, in honour of his amazing contribution to the club. Cheers Tony!