KIDS ARE LUCKY TO GET THE NEW STRIPS

EARLY YEARS In action for Norwich

EVEN heroes have heroes. Chris Sutton’s first kit was a Nottingham Forrest top just after Brian Clough’s side had become champions of Europe with back-to-back successes in 1979 and 1980.

Sutton would later go on to play under two of his idols from that team when Martin O’Neill and John Robertson signed him for Celtic.

“I remember being pretty happy when I got that red shirt,” said Sutton. “I have better memories of watching those players back then as a kid than I do now!

“I was actually a little bit starstruck when I went to Celtic under Martin at first. I was always a little bit in awe of that older generation of players and what they had done with Forest was just phenomenal.

“I had grown up looking to what they had achieved in the game and so to get the chance then to go up and play for them was brilliant.

“They had been part of a really special team and special time at Forest and I think the group we had at Celtic had a pretty good time as well.”

The first “real” kit Sutton was given was a hand-me down as he turned out for his primary school – a yellow and blue strip that has left him casting a jealous glance towards the current crop of kids who will benefit from the Record’s Kits for Kids campaign.

“It drowned me,” he recalled. “I think I was about eight and we were given the old strips from the under-12s.

“We’d be thrilled with the strips and playing for a team for the first time but, yeah, these kids now don’t know just how lucky they are getting a