In 2008, Drogheda went into examinership, Eire’s equal of administration, and had been deducted 10 factors within the league.
Trabzonspor followers heard of their plight and despatched letters to the membership with money inside.
Two years later, their relationship was made official after they grew to become sister golf equipment and there have been plans for a ceremonial pleasant in Dublin in 2013.
“They travelled over right here to play and there was a freak deluge of rain that fell inside an hour of kick-off,” explains Wogan.
“We had our workers within the turnstiles ready to scan tickets in, however the sport was deemed unplayable and Trabzonspor went house with out enjoying the fixture.”
So Thursday’s match has been a very long time coming.
When Drogheda introduced the pleasant on social media on 2 September, Trabzonspor followers reacted of their droves. The submit on X has been seen effectively over half 1,000,000 occasions.
About 30% of Drogheda’s social media following is from Turkey. Greater than their share of followers from Eire.
And it’s not simply on-line the place the crossover of followers is being seen.
Trabzonspor shirts and flags are generally noticed at Drogheda matches and Turkish followers typically go to the membership through the week simply to see the stadium.
One Trabzonspor fan, Cafer Bektas, lives a few miles exterior Drogheda and attends each sport.
When he first moved to the world, carrying a Trabzonspor jersey caught the eye of locals and received him reductions in outlets.