Why do you not support your local team?

[Tummy]

I like watching good football, thats why I don't really support colchester.

 

[Metalface Mark]

My grandpa took me to St Mirren, which is also my local team so I support St Mirren.

Most of Scotland gloryhunt by attaching themselves to either side of the old firm, not always for footballing reasons, its a horrible existence though, I wouldnt wish it on anyone.

I dont think theres anything particularly wrong about glory hunting, people want to attach themselves to a bigger thing, to be part of someone else's success, theres no need to trot out excuses like "we were not great when i started supporting them" (Rangers and Man Utd fans bring this one up quite a lot, despite their not being good spell would still be more successful than 95% of every other club's best spell in history). Its fine, just be honest about it.

 

[spudbynight]

I like watching good football, thats why I don't really support colchester.

The thing is football is tribal. If you don't support your team then they are not really "your team" at all.

As I see it there isn't too much of a difference between someone from Surrey supporting Man Utd and someone from England supporting Brazil.

I am English and would always support England - however we haven't won anything since 1966 and have endured heartbreak upon heartbreak.

Pity the Welsh who have never won anything and never will.

 

[Metalface Mark]

The thing is football is tribal. If you don't support your team then they are not really "your team" at all.

As I see it there isn't too much of a difference between someone from Surrey supporting Man Utd and someone from England supporting Brazil.

I am English and would always support England - however we haven't won anything since 1966 and have endured heartbreak upon heartbreak.

Pity the Welsh who have never won anything and never will.

You never know, never say never, look at the Celtic team that won the 1967 european cup, all players came from a 30 mile radius of Glasgow, its possible that a smaller nation could have a group of players which blossom at the same time. You are right though, some Utd fan earlier posted how two of his greatest days supporting his club came in pubs at finals, thats not supporting your club in any way shape or form, a real supporter would be at the ground, or in the city the match is being played because thats what real supporters do.

 

[Stewy]

You are right though, some Utd fan earlier posted how two of his greatest days supporting his club came in pubs at finals, thats not supporting your club in any way shape or form, a real supporter would be at the ground, or in the city the match is being played because thats what real supporters do.

Indeed, there are only twenty thousand rich people that are real United fans.

I can't bring myself to use a rolleyes but yeah.

Also, I can't be a real fan of anyone anywhere as I ****ing hate football crowds and never go. I must suxx

 

[Metalface Mark]

Indeed, there are only twenty thousand rich people that are real United fans.

I can't bring myself to use a rolleyes but yeah.

Also, I can't be a real fan of anyone anywhere as I ****ing hate football crowds and never go. I must suxx

Celtic took 100k to Seville for the UEFA cup final.

If you never go to games then you are what you are, an armchair supporter, as most fans of bigger clubs are, again, theres nothing wrong with being an armchair fan or a glory hunter if you get something out of it, but a supporter of a club like Man Utd, Celtic, Rangers, Arsenal etc, will never truly appreciate what its like to support a club like Wigan, Clyde, Wycombe Wanderers etc, you have to experience agony and ecstacy as a football supporter, and coming 5th or getting put out of the champions league in the group stages isnt a particularly harrowing experience.

 

[Stewy]

I'm an armchair / pub-chair supporter as I hate the atmosphere at football stadiums. Meh. I've also had enough agony supporting Quins

 

[dante6491]

Arsenal since by father and grandfather both supported them. Leeds United are my "second" team I suppose. Maternal side of the family is from Yorkshire.

Now days though I am supporting football more and more like I support Rugby. By individual players.

 

[Weebull]

I'm surprised that this thread has gotten on so well so far without it breaking down. Usually a lot of people on here get very defensive when you ask them why they don't support a team on here they were born next to. It's something I've always felt pretty strongly about (if/when I have kids, I'll make them support whoever we live near, not my club).

For what it's worth, I grew up in Islington, which made me an Arsenal fan automatically. When I moved to Hull I started going to their games, and took an interest, but I still defined myself as an Arsenal fan, because for me, supporting a club is a tribal thing to do with where you grew up. I'm a gooner because I'm a filthy cockney, basically . Oh, and before someone (cheets) asks, I don't follow a team in Belfast because:

Northern Irish football is toss, and very sectarian.

 

[sammo62]

I'm surprised that this thread has gotten on so well so far without it breaking down. Usually a lot of people on here get very defensive when you ask them why they don't support a team on here they were born next to. It's something I've always felt pretty strongly about (if/when I have kids, I'll make them support whoever we live near, not my club).

For what it's worth, I grew up in Islington, which made me an Arsenal fan automatically. When I moved to Hull I started going to their games, and took an interest, but I still defined myself as an Arsenal fan, because for me, supporting a club is a tribal thing to do with where you grew up. I'm a gooner because I'm a filthy cockney, basically . Oh, and before someone (cheets) asks, I don't follow a team in Belfast because:

I think it's fine if the team near you is half decent or has some kind of history. Try being a Cambridge United fan for 5 years without just giving up - I still root for them to win, and would go back to them if they had some sort of future, but they really don't. Besides, £12 a week to see dirge football in the conference is beyond a joke. It cost me less to see Frankfurt in the Bundesliga.

 

[Spud21]

I think it's fine if the team near you is half decent or has some kind of history. Try being a Cambridge United fan for 5 years without just giving up - I still root for them to win, and would go back to them if they had some sort of future, but they really don't. Besides, £12 a week to see dirge football in the conference is beyond a joke. It cost me less to see Frankfurt in the Bundesliga.

I don't seenwhy it should matter personally, it's not as if many teams have a glittering past is it? We have never won anything, baring the freight rover trophy and the ldv vans trophy, we were in the top flight for 4 years well before I was born, which was swiftly followed by consecutive delegations and in 1982 we sat bottom of the football league about an hour away from extinction.

Since I've been going I've seen 2 relegations, 2 promotions, two playoff finals which we lost in both, 2 playoff semis ( which we lost) 1 auto windscreens shield final which we lost, 1 ldv vans final (which we actually won ) and large amounts of mincing around mid table in league 1 or more recently the championship.

There have definitely been more downs than ups, but there is nothing I'd rather be doing on a Saturday afternoon than going to Ashton gate to watch Bristol city.

As for Cambridge yea they may not be particularly good, but then if people stay away because the football is not good then they never will be good again, they haven't always been rubbish as I remember us playing them in league 1 years ago, you have a decent little ground ( your police are horrible ******** though).

Yes 12 quid isn't cheap for conference football, but as the preimer**** sucks all the money out of football, the only way small clubs can survive is to have high prices at the turnstiles as that's the only revenue stream that they get, and still people will stay away as theyd rather "support" man u in a pub, no matter what they charge, Cambridge could charge £5 a game and although that may convince you to go back, it won't convince most to bother going, so for them it's better to charge £12 and keep a small but hardcore fan base which can be predicted than drop the price and loose out because plastics still stay away in favour of watching football on the telly.

 

[Weebull]

I think it's fine if the team near you is half decent or has some kind of history. Try being a Cambridge United fan for 5 years without just giving up - I still root for them to win, and would go back to them if they had some sort of future, but they really don't. Besides, £12 a week to see dirge football in the conference is beyond a joke. It cost me less to see Frankfurt in the Bundesliga.

I know I speak from the high comfort of a team who've got plenty, but not every club gets to win trophies. From what I can see, for a 'new' club, Cambridge have had some decent success. History is just a bunch of numbers, the only victories that really count are the ones you see yourself.

I'd love to be able to rock up to games and pay £12 to watch . I get your point though, but stupid ticket prices is unfortunately systematic of the English leagues as a whole really.

 

[sammo62]

I know I speak from the high comfort of a team who've got plenty, but not every club gets to win trophies. From what I can see, for a 'new' club, Cambridge have had some decent success. History is just a bunch of numbers, the only victories that really count are the ones you see yourself.

I'd love to be able to rock up to games and pay £12 to watch . I get your point though, but stupid ticket prices is unfortunately systematic of the English leagues as a whole really.

Yeah I've come across as a bit of a glory hunter but that really isn't the case. I went every game for 5 years, and to be honest, the club weren't meeting me halfway. I saw us get relegated in last place from division 2 (now league 1), then relegated into the conference, and then just completely give up. None of the players I supported stuck around which doesn't help.

I mean at any bigger team, players will stick around, but at Cambridge I had to invest in a programme every week just to know which new players we had and who had left.

I remember us winning about 3 home games one year, and it was just dire. I honestly supported the club still and enjoyed going - but it was the jacking up of prices that turned me away for good. £100 is the most I could reasonably pay to go and see them for a year. I had a terrace season ticket for Eintracht a few years ago that cost me €109 - I got to see some top players in a 50k seater stadium. Compare that to £240 to see crap at Cambridge and I can't justify it to myself any more.

 

[Metalface Mark]

I don't seenwhy it should matter personally, it's not as if many teams have a glittering past is it? We have never won anything, baring the freight rover trophy and the ldv vans trophy, we were in the top flight for 4 years well before I was born, which was swiftly followed by consecutive delegations and in 1982 we sat bottom of the football league about an hour away from extinction.

Since I've been going I've seen 2 relegations, 2 promotions, two playoff finals which we lost in both, 2 playoff semis ( which we lost) 1 auto windscreens shield final which we lost, 1 ldv vans final (which we actually won ) and large amounts of mincing around mid table in league 1 or more recently the championship.

There have definitely been more downs than ups, but there is nothing I'd rather be doing on a Saturday afternoon than going to Ashton gate to watch Bristol city.

As for Cambridge yea they may not be particularly good, but then if people stay away because the football is not good then they never will be good again, they haven't always been rubbish as I remember us playing them in league 1 years ago, you have a decent little ground ( your police are horrible ******** though).

Yes 12 quid isn't cheap for conference football, but as the preimer**** sucks all the money out of football, the only way small clubs can survive is to have high prices at the turnstiles as that's the only revenue stream that they get, and still people will stay away as theyd rather "support" man u in a pub, no matter what they charge, Cambridge could charge £5 a game and although that may convince you to go back, it won't convince most to bother going, so for them it's better to charge £12 and keep a small but hardcore fan base which can be predicted than drop the price and loose out because plastics still stay away in favour of watching football on the telly.

You dont appreciate the highs without having the lows, I was at the 1980 Anglo Scottish cup final St Mirren vs Bristol, one of my earliest football memories

 

[Uriel]

Yep. From Sheffield and if someone mentions United round these parts I assume they mean the Blades - and I'm a Wednesday fan. Having said that if it's on the telly - I assume they mean Man U. Context is everything.

Got annoyed recently reading newspaper reports of the FA Youth Cup final and one of them wrote wrote about the two teams as "United" and "Sheffield".

Anyway - I was sort of a glory supporter. Sheffield United were technically closer but my great grandfather was a scout for Wednesday. Took no interest in football until I was about 11 and started researching teams to put into Sensible Soccer. Then started playing football and supporting Wednesday. I credit that game with me not being about 30 stone now. Back then Wednesday had recently won the league cup, promotion to the top division, playing in europe and in my first supporting season got to two cup finals. It's all been downhill from there.

Edit: I'm actually the Sheffield Wednesday supporting equivalent of a lapsed Catholic that turns up and Chrismas occasionally, and maybe Easter. Not got to many games in the last few seasons. Football attendance is too expensive, even in the lower leagues.

 

[cheets64]

My grandpa took me to St Mirren, which is also my local team so I support St Mirren.

Most of Scotland gloryhunt by attaching themselves to either side of the old firm, not always for footballing reasons, its a horrible existence though, I wouldnt wish it on anyone.

I dont think theres anything particularly wrong about glory hunting, people want to attach themselves to a bigger thing, to be part of someone else's success, theres no need to trot out excuses like "we were not great when i started supporting them" (Rangers and Man Utd fans bring this one up quite a lot, despite their not being good spell would still be more successful than 95% of every other club's best spell in history). Its fine, just be honest about it.

So true

Wigan and Fulham only EPL teams in the league now, who would have thunk it

http://www.statto.com/football/teams/wigan-athletic/1994-1995

First year I went to a Wigan game/football game, friends older brother took me

 

[Rich_L]

I still support Plymouth and have done for a good 18 years or so now so have seen a lot of ups and downs, promotions and relegations though the current down is probably the worst :-/ Best times were the Shilton era (I remember meeting him before taking penalties at half-time in Home Park) and Holloway era although that didn't exactly work out great when he left and took half our decent players with him. This season was a mixed bag, a sterling effort by the players and management despite the points deduction they still fought to the very end so fair play, especially when you hear that the players haven't been paid in full since Christmas.

My dad's family are all Arsenal as they are all from there so I keep up with how things are going and also I like the way they have gone about the business of running the club over the last decade or so. Been to a fair few Premiership grounds over the years, the benefit of being a Plymouth fan is most fans seem to think they are ok or at the least non-offensive so won't kick your head in, haha.

If/when I end up moving down to LA will probably go watch the Galaxy play for a laugh

 

[Weebull]

Got annoyed recently reading newspaper reports of the FA Youth Cup final and one of them wrote wrote about the two teams as "United" and "Sheffield".

Hull City fans I knew used to hate the same thing with their Manchester equivalents. People referred to them as Hull, but that's always been the rugby team. City are City, but of course in the Premiership that's only ever going to mean Man City.

The curse of a more popular equivalent, I guess.

 

[CliffyBiro]

Because Newry City are ****. I want to be entertained, not bored to death.

 

[Peg]

but of course in the Premiership that's only ever going to mean Man City.

Unless you live in Stoke.