MY children, if they could, would have me banned from their concerts and sports events. I am one of those who wouldn’t be satisfied sitting down and enjoying their performance quietly.

I have been spotted jumping up and down as my son, the striker, was about to score a goal, shouting, “Go sayang mama, go!”

I know I am not alone in this. Whenever I remember proud mums by the sidelines, I remember Mrs Underwood.

I had always wanted to meet Mrs Underwood ever since pictures of her jumping up and down were splashed across newspapers all over the United Kingdom, when her two boys, Rory and Tony, scored the goals when England played Scotland at Twickenham in 1993.

She was caught on TV in what was regarded as the world’s solo Mexican wave, or some sort of tribal dance.

So, I spoke to Mrs Underwood last week. She was surprised when I told her I had always wanted to meet her.

“Are you a fan of rugby?” she asked over the phone from her home in County Durham.

“No, I am a fan of you, Mrs Underwood,” I said, imagining that, had both of us been at a game together watching our children play, we would have stolen the show with our Mexican wave and mums’ antics.

I had always wanted to meet Annie Tan, who hails from Kuala Pilah, and mother to two of England’s famous rugby players, Tony and Rory.

So, it was by chance that I met Tony during a flight back from Geneva. I approached the son, to get to the mother. This, in itself, would have my children cringe in their seats.

Annie, now in her early seventies, had to bring up her two boys alone when her husband, James Ashley Underwood, died at the age of 53.

“They excelled in games since they were very small. And I had to take them training and just be with them,” she said, remembering those coach rides and staying at bed and breakfasts, as she followed her sons’ matches all around the country.

She was reported as saying that all her money were spent on following the boys — ever since Rory went for his 16 school trials.

She spent her time on the road, waiting during trainings, coaxing when the going got tough, commiserating when something didn’t turn out as planned and rejoicing when success was in their hands.

I know of many mothers like Annie Underwood.

I spoke to Haniza Mohamad, mother of 17-year-old Zahra Masoumah, who is set to conquer the English Channel on July 2. She has four other children who are either into swimming or triathlon in a big way.

“My day starts at four in the morning and I get them to the swimming pool by 5.30. Then it is back home to cook, collect them again and then off to school before I get myself to the office at 8 o’clock,” she said of her typical day as she and her husband, Abdul Halim Abdul Manaf, hone and nurture the talents that they saw in their children.

“We are always there with them, encouraging them, giving them pep talks and preparing them emotionally and physically for the tasks ahead,” she said.

I had seen pictures of Haniza, crying tears of joy as she embraced 12-year-old Salman when he completed the swim from Pangkor to Lumut.

What does she feel, watching her children out there in the open sea? And now, with the prospects of watching from the shores of Dover as Zahra swims alone in the English Channel?

“I can’t swim,” admitted the mother of these talented swimmers, “so I will wait by the beach and do my prayers.

“I have trust in them, I have trust in Zahra that she can do it,” said Haniza.

Zahra almost drowned when she was four years old and that was when Haniza and her husband decided that the children must learn to swim.

“I can ‘read’ my children. I can read their emotions and their feelings. And so we prepare them psychologically,” she said.

Two weeks ago, I was at the Royal Albert Hall, watching The King and I.

Among the cast were two young daughters of Hezelina Hashim and Azamtu Ashari, both professionals living and working in Reading.

Sarah, 12 and Sofea, five, are indeed talented and took to the stage like Zahra to water.

But their talents would have been wasted had the parents not invested their time and money on them.

I had seen them ferrying their children to auditions, rehearsals and photoshoots. They juggled their time, their holidays, their work so that the girls are there on time.

“I am just a driver,” said Hezelina, clearing her car of empty crisp packets and drinks that the children had on the way to the dress rehearsal.

But of course, she is more than that. Her dedication and patience are in abundance as her belief and confidence that her daughters can do it. -NST