Mike Nefs (40) has lived in Soest for several years, but Roosendaal is in his heart. Especially RBC, because he has a large collection of his favorite club in his house. “I started small, but it grew with the craziest RBC stuff.”
You can’t ignore it when you walk into Mike’s house. A significant part of the living room is colored orange. The love for RBC runs deep and his children, aged 6 and 3, have already been introduced to daddy’s club.
“As a 12-year-old boy, my parents allowed me to go to RBC. I stood among the big boys behind the goal. I remember being pulled away during one of my first matches because they were lighting fireworks. In the beginning I looked up to those guys, but later I started watching a lot of home and away games myself. Preferably around the center line, so that I could really get the experience.”
In all those years, Mike experienced a lot of great moments, such as two promotions to the Eredivisie. “RBC regularly dangled somewhere at the bottom of the first division and then we suddenly ended up at the highest level through the play-offs. We drew away at Ajax and it was unbelievable that we won at home against Feyenoord. Famous players have worn our shirt, such as Glenn Helder and Regi Blinker.”
“The plans were unrealistic.”
The high ambitions ultimately meant the end of RBC. “In the old days, RBC was a real people’s club. The transition to a new home made sense from a business perspective. Ultimately, the club management wanted too much, the plans were unrealistic.”
The bankruptcy in 2011 hurt him. “The last home game there was a sort of Champions League atmosphere and we won. Shortly afterwards, RBC was bankrupt. In the same weeks, other clubs with financial problems were saved by the municipality, but Roosendaal did not. It didn’t feel good. I didn’t want to let my love for RBC pass by and decided to start collecting things. This way I can later show my children where daddy went.”
From shirts, scarves, books, match tickets to posters: the collection is diverse. “Everything from RBC is welcome, you can’t imagine anything so crazy. The club even offered me stadium lights, but I declined. I like my wife a lot, but this seemed a bit crazy to me.”
“Just let them take it easy.”
While leafing through a book with match tickets, a piece of club history passes by. About the Eredivisie matches against top clubs, the cup final in 1986 and about a season ticket with the photo of Henk Vos, who went to rival NAC Breda shortly after going to press. “We even had a stadium leaver card. At halftime you were allowed to leave the stadium to get fries. As a result, it was much busier in the second half, because that card was passed through the gates.”
RBC made a new start and is now well at the top of the first division. “They started at the lowest level in amateur football and are making great progress. Let’s first see if they make it to the top among the amateurs. Professional football again would be nice one day, but let them take it easy.”