HERE is our next featured Hornet in our 'My Watford' series.

Thanks to Stuart Staines for volunteering to answer our teasers. All of these articles are located in the 'My Watford' area of the website which can be found by clicking here.  

If you would like to be featured please email themediateam@watfordfc.com with 'My Watford' in the subject line and we'll send you some questions to answer.

Name: Stuart Staines
From: Higham Ferrers (Northants)

Q: Why do you support Watford and how long have you followed them for?

A: I had my first season ticket in 1980 as a nine-year-old boy. My brother took me home and away and I experienced the highs of the 80s, from that moment on I was always going to be a Hornet.

Q: Take us through a normal home matchday for you, from where you have to travel from right up to taking your seat in the stadium?

A: I leave Higham Ferrers at around 11am with my eight-year-old son Oliver, we drive to Hemel Hempstead to see the family and pick up my father, we then drive over to the ground, park up and usually head for the club shop.

I am one for being in the ground with at least an hour to go to kick off, must be the nerves, but hate being late for a game.

Q: As a supporter how hardcore are you?

A: Like most hardcore fans would say it is part of your life, you live and breathe it and although we have day jobs and other things in our life's,  it's rare that a day would go by without the subject of the club being be mentioned. I travel to as many away games as possible, which is most of them.

Q: What is your most memorable moment following the Hornets?

A: There have been a few over the years but the FA Cup Quarter Final away to Birmingham in 1984 will live with me forever.

Being a 13-year-old lad who even in them days was surrounded by Man United and Liverpool fans at school and me following my beloved Watford to glory to the FA Cup final was an amazing experience.

I'm not sure of the official following that day but it was packed out and the atmosphere was rocking. I still watch the John Barnes goal today and feel the hairs on my neck stand up!! Poor old Tony Coton never stood a chance!

Q: What are the most extraordinary lengths you've gone to get to a Watford game?

A: I remember being stuck in Edinburgh Airport on a Tuesday night when we were playing at home that evening, my flight was due in at 1600hrs but our local airline based at that lovely place up the M1 decided to cancel the flight.

I was aware of a later flight on another airline and had to tell a little white lie to get me on that flight. Needless to say I was late to the ground but the boys won that night and the little white lie about my poor son being left at the ground waiting for his dad to arrive done the trick. My son does not do evening home games due to school!

Q: Who is your all time favorite Watford player?

A: That's so hard as there are many, Tony Coton is up there for what he did consistently for us but it has to be John Barnes, for his age at the time he terrified right backs and was the provider and scorer for so many of our goals.

We sold him too early and for £900k for someone so gifted and so young should have had Liverpool in court for theft!

Q: Who is the last truly exciting player you saw play?

A: Ronaldo by a mile, the boy is a genius.

Q: Do you have any football related superstitions?

A: As a player always put the right boot on first, as a fan never sit down until either of the sides actually kick off.

Q: How do you fill your weekends during the summer break?

A: Listening to my eight-year-old son tell me where it all went wrong last season.

He says one player was the reason we did not go up, Adam Johnson, he is not a fan of Mr Southgate for taking him back but I have to say he has a good argument for one of the main reasons it all went so badly wrong.

Q: Club or country? Or is there no contest?

A: I will always support England when we play and not being in the Euro's was hard to take.

I did feel for Steve McLaren when he walked past a group of Watford fans at the Hull away game, he was told in no uncertain terms that this summer was not going to be a nice one thanks to him. Anyway it would always be Watford over England.

Q: Are you a singer when you attend games and if so do you have a favorite song?

A: Yes I have a voice that carries! Ask any right winger or left back that does not have a good game at the Vic!

Seriously though my favorite song of all time has to be the old Terry and Ray song. It was produced and copyrighted by a group of us at the away game at Sunderland in the FA Cup a few years back, it was sung all the way home on the plane to the delight of the BA cabin crew.

Q: What do you think of the atmosphere at football grounds today? Has it got better or worse and why?

A: I mentioned the 80s when I experienced some amazing atmospheres but I still believe today's crowds can generate as much noise and the songs seem to be a lot better!

Q: If you could meet one ex-Watford player, who would it be and what would you ask them?

A: Jamie Moralee - how many women did you tell you once signed for £500k for a 1st Division football club?

Q: If you had the talent to have been a professional footballer, what position would you play and how would you describe yourself as a player?

A: I did have, I was the one that got away! Always a centre forward, the feeling of scoring goals at any level is great but in front of thousands must be an amazing buzz. If I had to compare I guess I was a Kevin Philips build with better finishing!

Q: Do you have a favorite away ground, if so why?

A: Yes Luton, 4-0 and 2-1, do I need to say more!

Nothing more to say according to Stuart!

Q: What is the best away support that you've ever seen at Vicarage Road?

A: Liverpool in the 80s, Plymouth always have great vocal support but the best has to be Manchester United, they just do not shut up singing with some funny songs.

Q: Do you have a soft spot for another team or do you look out for anyone else when the results come in?

A: West Ham - family from the east end, as a very young lad I also had my room decorated in the famous claret and blue.

I can also claim to have sat in the old West Stand with my Hammers shirt on when David Cross scored a fantastic winning goal against, yes, sorry, Watford! I soon woke up and realised winning at Vicarage Road was not as good as it looked so changed to Watford!

Q: How active a supporter are you away from matchdays?

A: Always looking on the website for news, I'm keen to know what is happening with the youth and academy set up but do not watch their games.

Q: How do you think opposition supporters view the club?

A: Great question as this season I have not faced so much hostility from other fans before.

Our style of play away from home seems to have upset some of the locals, coming out of Ipswich was a little hair raising.

A deserving win was had at Ipswich according to Stuart

I thought we deserved to win that game and actually played some good stuff that afternoon however we certainly have seemed to upset a lot of teams this year.

Q: Do you think the club is still staying strong to its community values and how important is that for a supporter?

A: As I am not living in Watford I can not judge the club on this subject, however as a supporter I would hope the work with the schools and hospital is still very strong. The players sometimes forget what they have and this work should be so rewarding for them as well.

Q: If you could change one thing about football, what would it be and why?

A: The offside rule. Why have it? The game is about scoring goals to win three points, I'm told it would increase the long ball game but I do not for one minute think it would.

Q: Homegrown players. Just how important are they for the club and what does it mean for supporters to see a youngster coming through the ranks?

A: As a proud dad who has just seen his son be given a one-year contract at Northampton Town, I am all for the youth academies, the work the coaches put in to develop the kids of the future should not be forgotten.

It's a hard job producing quality players but for the smaller clubs and I include Watford in this, it's essential to their survival, one player who makes it out of hundreds could net a club enough money to keep them in this money driven game for years.

Q: What are your feelings on the Premiership? Has it been good or bad for the game or is the answer somewhere in between?

A: Any English player who has worked with the best of the foreign imports (most are in the Premier League) will tell you it's been the best thing for the English game. The Premiership is where all English clubs want to be, so for me this answers the question.

Q: How do you feel about the large amount of British clubs being brought by businessmen from abroad? What would be your reaction if it happened to your club?

A: Tough one, no club in the above bracket has yet gone to the wall. I would be worried if I was a Chelsea fan with so much being laid on one man but for me the money in the game and the prizes for being in the top league being so high, I would welcome any investor who truly wanted to put money into Watford to get us in the top league and be established as a top 10 side.

Q: Do you prefer new stadiums or old grounds?

A: New, whilst I love Vicarage Road the decision a few years ago to stay was wrong for the future of the club in my opinion, a nice 25,000 purpose built stadium would be so much nicer to attend.

Q: What are your immediate hopes for the club and where in the league do you think the Golden Boys will finish?

A: To get back to a feeling where the fans and club are together. I question how a club can run with two/three board members, I may be wrong but I feel no one is accountable.

I fear for this season mainly due to the messages coming from the Chairman around our financial position but also due to the changes I believe we need in the squad, however I am still with Aidy although the first few games will set the feeling for the future months.

Q: Where do you see the club in 10 years time?

A:  Hopefully stable in business, in that purpose built stadium I mentioned and competing in the top division all be it the lower to middle half.

The views in this article are not necessarily the views of Watford Football Club.