Saul Castro Espino: A Life Dedicated to Supporting Santos Laguna
Saúl Castro Espino, a computer science graduate, husband, and faithful follower of Santos Laguna, shares his journey, his story, and anecdotes lived over almost 30 years supporting the "Team of Everyone".
He was one of those blinded followers by the "Santosmania", that phenomenon that emerged after the team reached the finals in 1994 against Tecos, where the main public walks and avenues of the city were filled with people waving flags in support of Santos. That media event impacted Saúl, who from that moment changed his life, now he is an unrepentant Santos fan, a true Lagunero and with green blood.
Two people influenced his childhood to pay attention to football and Santos Laguna, the television commentator and host, Juan Gómez Junco, and his mother.
"Definitely there are many anecdotes, it was my mother who somehow was more attached to me regarding Santos, when they were runners-up in '94, I was just starting to get the hang of Santos, I remember Gómez Junco on a program he had called Reseña.
"Every Sunday at the Corona is something very special for those of us who feel Santos in our hearts."
At that time, I was watching cartoons, and at that moment, I would get angry because I was watching cartoons and this gentleman would come out talking about Santos, but I heard the word Santos, I thought it was a wrestler, not the team. Then I realized it was the team, the 93-94 season came and I started watching it, that's when I realized what it meant to love a team, I discovered the Santosmania, I liked it, and until now I'm here supporting it," he recalled.
How did the Santosmania impact you?
It was during that Santosmania that Santos impacted me, I remember the first time I went to the stadium, already as a very passionate fan, it was after the '96 championship, I remember Jared's beginnings, when he arrived and very humbly said, 'I am here to score goals,' in that tournament I followed the team game after game, without missing a single one.
Do you remember the passwords?
Above all, priority was to watch Santos since I was a kid, it was a struggle to buy a ticket, you had to have a password, I bought my season ticket in 2006 so I wouldn't struggle and never stop going to the games, and if it were to be relegated, always be with the team, thank God it didn't happen and the team remains in the top division.
Today, times are different
Now at the TSM, I remember when it was being built, I used to make rounds to see the progress, the first games in the new stadium were memorable like the ones in the old Corona.
What do you think about Santos as a symbol of identity?
I am very grateful for the region where I live, I am Mexican, I was born in Torreón, lived in Gómez, now I live in Lerdo, my wife is from there, so, I am from the Comarca Lagunera, and I strongly defend this region and the fact that Santos represents our Comarca gives it added value.
What does Santos mean to you?
Two people influenced me to pay attention to football and Santos Laguna, the television commentator and host, Juan Gómez Junco, and my mother.
The fact that a player feels the colors for the institution and the club's social initiatives towards the region and its people are very important things that identify me more with Santos, because since its arrival, it has brought positive things to the lives of fans, to the economy, and to the identity of La Laguna.
Were there good times, but also some bitter ones?
I have experienced the championships, the first two were on TV, the other three I experienced live, I had the fortune of going to Toluca in 2010, that final that tragically was lost, I suffered horribly, it was the first time I was going to know a stadium other than the Corona, going as an away fan and feeling that championship in the bag and then losing... well, this is football.
Is there still the same support as before?
Definitely, there is a generational change, the reasons are a combination of many factors, it's not just one, the fans of yesteryears are very different from the current ones, that would be one reason, another is where the stadium is built, its structure, its design, before you would just go to support, now there are social networks, many distractions.
What is the value of the fan?
There were many sacrifices and efforts to have what we have today, that Santos that struggled financially, the relegation problems, and we were there supporting, if the fans hadn't been present, the same businessmen would lose interest and the players as well, it's good that we were there, we encouraged, and there is Santos for a while.
dcr