That's a brilliant piece, the sort of article you are disappointed when you finish, because you wish it could be longer.
I had almost forgotten, but I had a very similar experience at my first game. My Dad was a County fan, but hadn't gone regularly for several years - but lots of people seemed to know him (mostly from Unigate, where he worked for 40 years). I remember asking him who was that chap who he called "Flower" - he laughed and told me that he called everyone at work Flower!
We were stood on the railway end, aptly named, as I am sure we were stood on old sleepers, and Johnny Price became my hero that day.
After that, due to my Dad not being too keen on standing up for so long, we went in the Cheadle End. That's where the smell I can still remember hit me. A mixture of pipe smoke and cigar smoke - delicious!
The thing is, the man who "had the wrong culture" actually gets all of this, he's as much part of the County family as any of us. That's why it still doesn't feel right to me, although I am of course wanting us to win every game.