Other Games 23/24

[ErwinK1961]

2 minutes ago, Dark Munster said:

In can only think of the Sunderland one. And we almost blew that match against an awful team on a big losing run.

There's been many games where the pre match thread has descended into chaos once the team selection was out, and we indeed ended up losing because of Russ's awful midfield/defense lineup.

You must have a pretty crap memory then.

[ErwinK1961]

3 hours ago, OldNick said:

Play offs I think are going to be fine, getting through to Wembley is a different story.

I believe the keeper has cost us too many last 5 minute goals to lose us the win, and also the mistake against Millwall put us in a bad position. Its not only him, but last season he was left in the firing line after mistake after mistake. He is young and will progress, we will take the mistakes, he will learn and then other clubs will gain from his experiences with us when he as become more polished. 

i still cant get my head around that the keeper has to be good with his feet but paper over they rarely makes a save. I truly hope Bazunu does make it to the big time but it is to a cost to us. He is still very young of course.

 

You mean one?

[CB Fry]

4 minutes ago, Dark Munster said:

In can only think of the Sunderland one. And we almost blew that match against an awful team on a big losing run.

There's been many games where the pre match thread has descended into chaos once the team selection was out, and we indeed ended up losing because of Russ's awful midfield/defense lineup.

WBA away was a bit curious but it worked. Possibly that gave RM too much confidence to fuck about in subsequent selections.

[VectisSaint]

1 hour ago, OldNick said:

Its a forum and we all think we know more than the manager.

As soon as the BC team was announced it was obvious to me we'd struggle. How many times have we weakened the team with changes for a cup game and we've then been dire? We had 2 injuries and so that was enough, to add 2 more changes just made us disjointed. 

We have won plenty of games, but have also been not clinical/professional to keep conceding a late equaliser. That is costing us. 

Iam not gagging to get back to the PL , what does it give us? A ego trip to say we are in the league that basically the media are only interested in 5 teams, where we are the whipping boys time and again. Where we find some gems who then are taken away to feed the top 5 or 6. I have been watching for many decades andso have become disillusioned with it all. 

No VAR is also a plus, I accept we will lose a lot of our best players (nothing new there, most are loans anyway) and we will be left with the dross on big contracts we cant get rid of.

BC wasn't after a cup game, it was after the Huddersfield debacle. 4 changes, 2 for injury was not really that radical after that display, especially considering that 2 changes were to bring in attacking players who had dug us out of that hole as substitutes. If Martin hadn't changed the team after the Huddersfield display there would have been hell to pay.

[Micky]

3 hours ago, Patches O Houlihan said:

What's even more impressive is that Leeds have only conceded 3 goals across all their league games in 2024

Which is exactly what you need to do, keep the back door shut and you only need to take one chance up front.  Clean sheets breeds confidence throughout the rest of the team as well.  Unfortunately we can be prone to leaking quite badly at the back, even against some pretty mediocre teams.  I don't see us getting anything from Leicester,  Ipswich or Leeds so it's the playoffs or bust for us. 

[The Cat]

1 hour ago, Dark Munster said:

In can only think of the Sunderland one. And we almost blew that match against an awful team on a big losing run.

There's been many games where the pre match thread has descended into chaos once the team selection was out, and we indeed ended up losing because of Russ's awful midfield/defense lineup.

Almost blew the match? It was a comfortable win. We were 2 goals up twice in the game, and for the best part of 20 minutes before the final whistle went.

Does Saints winning make you happy? If so, then we've won far more games than we haven't so surely overall you must have gained more enjoyment than not from it.

[Dark Munster]

1 minute ago, The Cat said:

Almost blew the match? It was a comfortable win. We were 2 goals up twice in the game, and for the best part of 20 minutes before the final whistle went.

Does Saints winning make you happy? If so, then we've won far more games than we haven't so surely overall you must have gained more enjoyment than not from it.

Whoopie doo. Only Leicester and Leeds have a squad as good as ours, and yet we are miles behind in fourth place in a three horse race.

Not. Good. Enough.

[The Cat]

Just now, Dark Munster said:

Whoopie doo. Only Leicester and Leeds have a squad as good as ours, and yet we are miles behind in fourth place in a three horse race.

Not. Good. Enough.

That's a no then.

What would you enjoy? Literally promotion or nothing? If so it's a hell of a commitment watching every game from home and shit posting on here all the time just for the slim possibility that you might be able to crack a smile as final whistle of the season is blown.

Maybe get some friends and go to some games. Jump up and down and hug someone random when we score. Give it a try, it's a right good laugh.

 

[S-Clarke]

15 minutes ago, Dark Munster said:

Whoopie doo. Only Leicester and Leeds have a squad as good as ours, and yet we are miles behind in fourth place in a three horse race.

Not. Good. Enough.

Such a ''quickly looked at the table without context'' view on things. We're not miles behind, don't make that up.

We have two games in hand, 6 points to play for. That will place us on 79 points, which would mean we're exactly 3 points behind Leeds - not miles behind.

I know games in hand are games in hand, not points on the board etc etc, but the reality is that it's somewhat kind of still in our hands. We've got the games against the teams we're chasing, such a big opportunity to not only gain points for ourselves but put a massive dent into them as well. I see the fact we have all 3 to play as a massive positive rather than a 'bad run in'. 

I'm not paying much attention to the points gap as of now as it's not a true reflection of how the situation stands, if it was equal games and we were this far behind then fair-do's - but it's not, we have games in hand and we have to play all 3 above us. Puts our destiny somewhat in our hands in my opinion. Yes, we'll likely need to win most of our remaining games - but who is to say we won't? Who predicted we'd not lose for 26 games after we'd been done by Middlesborough? Not many I'd have thought.

Have faith in the team, they've done a lot of good things this year and we have some real quality. I think it's totally unfair to say we are miles behind and it's 'not good enough' - say that at the end of the season if that's the case, but not now.

[SW5 SAINT]

On 17/03/2024 at 18:41, FarehamSaintJames said:

Leeds were seventeen points behind Leicester on New Year’s Day I just read! Mad!

And six points behind us……!

[Dark Munster]

3 hours ago, S-Clarke said:

Such a ''quickly looked at the table without context'' view on things. We're not miles behind, don't make that up.

We have two games in hand, 6 points to play for. That will place us on 79 points, which would mean we're exactly 3 points behind Leeds - not miles behind.

I know games in hand are games in hand, not points on the board etc etc, but the reality is that it's somewhat kind of still in our hands. We've got the games against the teams we're chasing, such a big opportunity to not only gain points for ourselves but put a massive dent into them as well. I see the fact we have all 3 to play as a massive positive rather than a 'bad run in'. 

I'm not paying much attention to the points gap as of now as it's not a true reflection of how the situation stands, if it was equal games and we were this far behind then fair-do's - but it's not, we have games in hand and we have to play all 3 above us. Puts our destiny somewhat in our hands in my opinion. Yes, we'll likely need to win most of our remaining games - but who is to say we won't? Who predicted we'd not lose for 26 games after we'd been done by Middlesborough? Not many I'd have thought.

Have faith in the team, they've done a lot of good things this year and we have some real quality. I think it's totally unfair to say we are miles behind and it's 'not good enough' - say that at the end of the season if that's the case, but not now.

That's true. If we win our games in hand and take close to maximum points against the top three it's all open again. But the odds are very long, especially if RM continues with his suicidal defensive line ups.

[Turkish]

18 hours ago, Tamesaint said:

I agree that without promotion we will lose players. There will be ins and outs but hopefully there will be no need to  introduce a new system. There should be enough players left who know what is expected of them and know how to play Russball. 

Well it’ll be a new system to about half next season squad if we go up or stay down. As we’ve seen it only takes one or two not to be at it for it all to go tits up

[FarehamSaintJames]

Bazunu hasn’t had a bad season. He hasn’t be world class by any means but he certainly isn’t the reason why we’re now in the position we are.

Our team is going to be very different next season. I don’t think we’ll have the same “oomph” if we don’t go up.

Would anyone be confident playing any of the current top three in a play off final right now?

[Weston Super Saint]

1 hour ago, Turkish said:

Well it’ll be a new system to about half next season squad if we go up or stay down. As we’ve seen it only takes one or two not to be at it for it all to go tits up

Baz will know the system. I can't wait for the first short pass to the new defender who hasn't got a clue about the system. I imagine it won't end well.

[Kenilworthy]

1 hour ago, FarehamSaintJames said:

Bazunu hasn’t had a bad season. He hasn’t be world class by any means but he certainly isn’t the reason why we’re now in the position we are.

Our team is going to be very different next season. I don’t think we’ll have the same “oomph” if we don’t go up.

Would anyone be confident playing any of the current top three in a play off final right now?

I think we would have a decent prospect of beating Ipswich or Leicester. My issue is that I don't have a great deal of confidence in us winning the semis, especially if we meet Norwich

[Miltonaggro]

On 17/03/2024 at 10:11, Turkish said:

I agree.  The skates may be deluded but in my lifetime they’ve won all three divisions outside of the top flight and the FA Cup. Our club organise a dinner celebrating staying up one season nearly 30 years ago. They’ve had a lot of downs but also some good ups as well. 
 

A lot of our fans seem to think just being in the premier league is some sort of amazing achievement which is somehow better than winning stuff. We’re a club with a losers mentality happy just to play the big clubs. Always have been. when we did get to a few cup runs one too a final and European campaigns you still had fans moaning it would negatively impact our league form FFS. 

These days their fans are so small time it's actually quite pitiful, it is as if since they dropped out of the top flight they've been hyper-interbreeding to create a generation of creatures that can truly put the myth in Portsmyth.  Thankfully there appear to be considerably less than 19,000 specimens at large for their current resurrection and title surge.  Saints are a bigger club in every aspect and it's idiotic for the inbreeds to suggest otherwise, we have been for around sixty years, and soon it will be 'in living memory' - support, stadium, facilities, players, internationals, transfer fees, European campaigns, PL seasons, revenue, ambition, you name it.  The problem is we are also the fucking runners up / semi-final / perennial choke specialists, and you are right to say this.  I wanted that great Adkins side to win both pots on the way up but couldn't really give a shit about lower league trophies, except where those freaks down the wrong end of the M27 are concerned, and that's the problem here.  I hope that they fuck it up, but if they come up next season expect another Rotherham rather than Ipswich, delusion in their DNA.    

[Miltonaggro]

1 hour ago, Weston Super Saint said:

Baz will know the system. I can't wait for the first short pass to the new defender who hasn't got a clue about the system. I imagine it won't end well.

or Manning, who is supposed to...

[Charlie Wayman]

Put it another way. The challenge for us going forward is that we must beat the top three at least once each and one of them twice. If we can do that then we will be promoted and deservedly so. It's a very tall order but stranger things have happened in Saintsland.

Is it worth betting the house on? That's for you to decide but it sounds like a brick too far to me.

[Osvaldorama]

Fuck me a lot of negativity on here. 
 

We can beat anyone in the league on our day, especially once KWP and Fraser are back fit 

[Tamesaint]

2 hours ago, Turkish said:

Well it’ll be a new system to about half next season squad if we go up or stay down. As we’ve seen it only takes one or two not to be at it for it all to go tits up

Half of the squad is at least half more than we started this season with. 😁

[OldNick]

17 hours ago, VectisSaint said:

BC wasn't after a cup game, it was after the Huddersfield debacle. 4 changes, 2 for injury was not really that radical after that display, especially considering that 2 changes were to bring in attacking players who had dug us out of that hole as substitutes. If Martin hadn't changed the team after the Huddersfield display there would have been hell to pay.

I used cup games as an example where changes show how we lose our rhythm

[Challenger]

2 hours ago, Miltonaggro said:

These days their fans are so small time it's actually quite pitiful, it is as if since they dropped out of the top flight they've been hyper-interbreeding to create a generation of creatures that can truly put the myth in Portsmyth.  Thankfully there appear to be considerably less than 19,000 specimens at large for their current resurrection and title surge.  Saints are a bigger club in every aspect and it's idiotic for the inbreeds to suggest otherwise, we have been for around sixty years, and soon it will be 'in living memory' - support, stadium, facilities, players, internationals, transfer fees, European campaigns, PL seasons, revenue, ambition, you name it.  The problem is we are also the fucking runners up / semi-final / perennial choke specialists, and you are right to say this.  I wanted that great Adkins side to win both pots on the way up but couldn't really give a shit about lower league trophies, except where those freaks down the wrong end of the M27 are concerned, and that's the problem here.  I hope that they fuck it up, but if they come up next season expect another Rotherham rather than Ipswich, delusion in their DNA.    

They will be massive distraction to us in what will probably be another choke season.

[Lighthouse]

3 hours ago, Miltonaggro said:

The problem is we are also the fucking runners up / semi-final / perennial choke specialists

We aren’t though. We didn’t choke promotion in League 1 when Huddersfield were snapping at our heels the whole way, then the followIng season we didn’t bottle promotion against a West Ham squad with much more experienced PL players. Since promotion we didn’t bottle any of our relegation battles either, including the absolutely must in at Swansea. We also didn’t bottle a two-legged semi-final against Liverpool and gave one of our best performances under Puel in the final.

They’re the chokers if anything, 13 years in League 1 including a couple of playoff defeats.

[Miltonaggro]

27 minutes ago, Lighthouse said:

We aren’t though. We didn’t choke promotion in League 1 when Huddersfield were snapping at our heels the whole way, then the followIng season we didn’t bottle promotion against a West Ham squad with much more experienced PL players. Since promotion we didn’t bottle any of our relegation battles either, including the absolutely must in at Swansea. We also didn’t bottle a two-legged semi-final against Liverpool and gave one of our best performances under Puel in the final.

They’re the chokers if anything, 13 years in League 1 including a couple of playoff defeats.

Are those examples in the trophy cabinet? The point is valid, for a club our age and size you might expect us to have been successful in actually winning senior silverware on more than one occasion in the last 140 years.  Portsmouth clearly have bragging rights here, as much as that grates.   

[VectisSaint]

2 hours ago, OldNick said:

I used cup games as an example where changes show how we lose our rhythm

So how come we won every League game that followed an FA Cup game this season? 

[badgerx16]

43 minutes ago, Miltonaggro said:

Are those examples in the trophy cabinet? The point is valid, for a club our age and size you might expect us to have been successful in actually winning senior silverware on more than one occasion in the last 140 years.  Portsmouth clearly have bragging rights here, as much as that grates.   

If you are going back 140 years then I am truly jealous of the success enjoyed by The Wanderers, with their 5 cup wins. Personally I am happy that in my lifetime we have won more FA Cups than Newcastle, Villa, and Notts Forest combined.

[Lighthouse]

1 hour ago, Miltonaggro said:

Are those examples in the trophy cabinet? The point is valid, for a club our age and size you might expect us to have been successful in actually winning senior silverware on more than one occasion in the last 140 years.  Portsmouth clearly have bragging rights here, as much as that grates.   

You’re talking about stuff which is barely in living memory. Aside from a few of the old boys who get wheeled out of the care home every couple of weeks for a day at Fratton, nobody is going to remember Pompey last winning the league in nineteen forty-whatever it was.

About 85 of the 92 league clubs have won f**k all in the last three decades. PL money came along and that was basically it. 

[whelk]

4 hours ago, Osvaldorama said:

Fuck me a lot of negativity on here. 
 

We can beat anyone in the league on our day, especially once KWP and Fraser are back fit 

There were people on here moaning about our last season in the Championship as we didn’t catch Reading. Some people are wired to find no joy in life.  Should not be supporting Saints as they hate the few enjoyable seasons we have….like this one

[Miltonaggro]

1 hour ago, Lighthouse said:

You’re talking about stuff which is barely in living memory. Aside from a few of the old boys who get wheeled out of the care home every couple of weeks for a day at Fratton, nobody is going to remember Pompey last winning the league in nineteen forty-whatever it was.

About 85 of the 92 league clubs have won f**k all in the last three decades. PL money came along and that was basically it. 

Go back and actually read my post, you seem to have misinterpreted or completely missed the points made.

[Lighthouse]

1 hour ago, Miltonaggro said:

Go back and actually read my post, you seem to have misinterpreted or completely missed the points made.

You’re conflating two separate points; that we’re perennial chokers and that the Skates have more trophies. The first isn’t true, the second nobody cares about. People laugh at Liverpool fans because they’re obsessed with the great teams they watched growing up in the eighties and the trophies they won 40 years ago. Pompey fans bragging about trophies they won in a very brief post war window is probably more laughable than not having any at all.

[Charlie Wayman]

3 hours ago, Lighthouse said:

You’re talking about stuff which is barely in living memory. Aside from a few of the old boys who get wheeled out of the care home every couple of weeks for a day at Fratton, nobody is going to remember Pompey last winning the league in nineteen forty-whatever it was.

About 85 of the 92 league clubs have won f**k all in the last three decades. PL money came along and that was basically it. 

Portsmouth won League One in 1949 and 1950. They are one of only five English football clubs to have been champions of all four tiers of the professional English football pyramid. You might soon have to get used to the idea of us possibly being the 4th best team on the south coast.

As a Hampshire man through and through, I remember very well their post-war achievements and not without a little envy as Saints drifted between Division 2 and Division 3. Rivals they may be but give recognition where it is deserved.

Your careless and insensitive remark about handicapped people in care homes does you no credit whatsoever and in the context in which you set it, wildly inaccurate. There are still plenty of football fans from the Silent Generation who still know which way is 'Up' even amongst our season  ticket holders.

Edited March 19 by Charlie Wayman

[trousers]

29 minutes ago, Charlie Wayman said:

Portsmouth won League One in 1949 and 1950. They are one of only five English football clubs to have been champions of all four tiers of the professional English football pyramid. You might soon have to get used to the idea of us possibly being the 4th best team on the south coast.

As a Hampshire man through and through, I remember very well their post-war achievements and not without a little envy as Saints drifted between Division 2 and Division 3. Rivals they may be but give recognition where it is deserved.

 

Yeah, but what about the 12 year old football club that now play at Fratton Park? 

[Lee On Solent Saint]

1 hour ago, Charlie Wayman said:

Portsmouth won League One in 1949 and 1950. They are one of only five English football clubs to have been champions of all four tiers of the professional English football pyramid. You might soon have to get used to the idea of us possibly being the 4th best team on the south coast.

As a Hampshire man through and through, I remember very well their post-war achievements and not without a little envy as Saints drifted between Division 2 and Division 3. Rivals they may be but give recognition where it is deserved.

Your careless and insensitive remark about handicapped people in care homes does you no credit whatsoever and in the context in which you set it, wildly inaccurate. There are still plenty of football fans from the Silent Generation who still know which way is 'Up' even amongst our season  ticket holders.

Didn't they have a lot of players that were still in the RN at that time though based down there? Not sure how it worked back in those after war days.

[TheAlehouseBrawlers]

37 minutes ago, Lee On Solent Saint said:

Didn't they have a lot of players that were still in the RN at that time though based down there? Not sure how it worked back in those after war days.

Yep, some top footballers based in the area doing national service were allowed to ‘guest’ for them it kick-started their ‘golden era’. They also allowed thousands of locally based servicemen into the ground for free but despite their brief league and cup success they only ever saw two attendances just over 50,000 in a ground that held 58,000 at its peak.

Here Endeth today’s history lesson.

[Miltonaggro]

3 hours ago, Lighthouse said:

You’re conflating two separate points; that we’re perennial chokers and that the Skates have more trophies. The first isn’t true, the second nobody cares about. People laugh at Liverpool fans because they’re obsessed with the great teams they watched growing up in the eighties and the trophies they won 40 years ago. Pompey fans bragging about trophies they won in a very brief post war window is probably more laughable than not having any at all.

No, not at all.  Trying to point out that Saints have had a great many opportunities to achieve some balance in terms of the silverware quotient with our bitter rivals, and have continually fallen short.  I've been attending matches for something like 45 years.  In that time I've seen us pipped by that arrogant Liverpool team in terms of the league title when we were the best side that season, been to an FA Cup final and four semi finals, and two League cup finals and two semi finals.  Just once on those ten occasions it would have been nice to have actually got it over the line.  I am sure that a majority of supporters at similar sized provincial clubs would not view one out of ten as unreasonably ambitious.    

[AlexLaw76]

8 hours ago, Miltonaggro said:

No, not at all.  Trying to point out that Saints have had a great many opportunities to achieve some balance in terms of the silverware quotient with our bitter rivals, and have continually fallen short.  I've been attending matches for something like 45 years.  In that time I've seen us pipped by that arrogant Liverpool team in terms of the league title when we were the best side that season, been to an FA Cup final and four semi finals, and two League cup finals and two semi finals.  Just once on those ten occasions it would have been nice to have actually got it over the line.  I am sure that a majority of supporters at similar sized provincial clubs would not view one out of ten as unreasonably ambitious.    

What is a provincial club?

[CB Fry]

53 minutes ago, AlexLaw76 said:

What is a provincial club?

A club like ours, in the provinces, not in the capital. Clubs with a status primarily in their own area rather than nationally/internally.

Similar sized provincial clubs would be Leicester or Forest or Norwich or Sheffield Wednesday or Wolves. 

Before you even bother, QPR is an example of provincial club in London. Liverpool and the Manchester clubs are world famous so not provincial either.

[Miltonaggro]

1 hour ago, CB Fry said:

A club like ours, in the provinces, not in the capital. Clubs with a status primarily in their own area rather than nationally/internally.

Similar sized provincial clubs would be Leicester or Forest or Norwich or Sheffield Wednesday or Wolves. 

Before you even bother, QPR is an example of provincial club in London. Liverpool and the Manchester clubs are world famous so not provincial either.

Exactly, cheers CBF.  Back in the early 80s when the likes of Forest, Ipswich and Saints were capable of genuinely upsetting the 'big clubs' I remember it being used as a common label applied by journalists when they could write and speak English.  Provincial as opposed to metropolitan, peripheral perhaps - a semi insult

[Chris cooper]

9 minutes ago, Miltonaggro said:

Exactly, cheers CBF.  Back in the early 80s when the likes of Forest, Ipswich and Saints were capable of genuinely upsetting the 'big clubs' I remember it being used as a common label applied by journalists when they could write and speak English.  Provincial as opposed to metropolitan, peripheral perhaps - a semi insult

Miss the 80s mate up the dell .. early 80s wen I saw keegan run out the tunnel in the corner of Milton rd .. channon & Williams .. very special times ❤️

RIP Dave Armstrong.. wota player !

[Miltonaggro]

10 minutes ago, Chris cooper said:

Miss the 80s mate up the dell .. early 80s wen I saw keegan run out the tunnel in the corner of Milton rd .. channon & Williams .. very special times ❤️

RIP Dave Armstrong.. wota player !

Chris, re-watch some of those games on the Big Match Revisted on ITV Player. You want to see class, intensity and team spirit - we were very spoilt. 

[TheAlehouseBrawlers]

15 minutes ago, Miltonaggro said:

Chris, re-watch some of those games on the Big Match Revisted on ITV Player. You want to see class, intensity and team spirit - we were very spoilt. 

I’ve probably watched more Big Match Revisited than I have MOTD or any other football show in the past few years - from a SFC perspective I’d highly recommend the Saints v Fulham (Best/Marsh) and Saints v Man Utd FA Cup 5th Round 1977 for a bit of 70s nostalgia.

[Charlie Wayman]

13 hours ago, Lee On Solent Saint said:

Didn't they have a lot of players that were still in the RN at that time though based down there? Not sure how it worked back in those after war days.

They did but their success was built around the legendary midfield trio of Scoular, Froggart & Dickinson by any standards world class players.

We had Smith, Webber & Mallett by the way at that time… who, you may well ask?

Just so my loyalties will not be questioned, I haven't a clue who plays for them now and cannot name a single player from their squad.

[Charlie Wayman]

3 hours ago, AlexLaw76 said:

What is a provincial club?

Non-metropolitan. 

[Weston Super Saint]

34 minutes ago, Charlie Wayman said:

They did but their success was built around the legendary midfield trio of Scoular, Froggart & Dickinson by any standards world class players.

We had Smith, Webber & Mallett by the way at that time… who, you may well ask?

Just so my loyalties will not be questioned, I haven't a clue who plays for them now and cannot name a single player from their squad.

Who?

[VectisSaint]

14 hours ago, Lee On Solent Saint said:

Didn't they have a lot of players that were still in the RN at that time though based down there? Not sure how it worked back in those after war days.

They would have played as Guests during the War, but by the time the Football League resumed in 1946 the players would have all been registered with Pompey, not as Guests. Some of the players were indeed recruited from the Navy though.

[Chris cooper]

1 hour ago, Miltonaggro said:

Chris, re-watch some of those games on the Big Match Revisted on ITV Player. You want to see class, intensity and team spirit - we were very spoilt. 

Yeah I’ve watched them all mate .. proper football for me .. hard tackles .. raking passes .. wonder goals and ofcourse that glorious unique standing room only atmosphere… 

I know those days are long gone ..but boy do I miss them .. pay on the gate .. last train home .. even the smell back then sparks off nostalgia.. I can smell it now if imagine hard enough!! Blessed we had it .. feel sorry for the generations who never will !
 

[The Cat]

1 hour ago, Chris cooper said:

Yeah I’ve watched them all mate .. proper football for me .. hard tackles .. raking passes .. wonder goals and ofcourse that glorious unique standing room only atmosphere… 

I know those days are long gone ..but boy do I miss them .. pay on the gate .. last train home .. even the smell back then sparks off nostalgia.. I can smell it now if imagine hard enough!! Blessed we had it .. feel sorry for the generations who never will !
 

The only place to get that now is non-league. Obviously the standard of play isn't quite the same but you still get spectacular goals, amazing play and a lot of hard tackles.

I took my kids to a load of non league games because I felt it was important for them to understand that not all football is sanitised seating, half and half scarves and people whining on the internet because the manager has picked the club captain.

[Kenilworthy]

54 minutes ago, The Cat said:

The only place to get that now is non-league. Obviously the standard of play isn't quite the same but you still get spectacular goals, amazing play and a lot of hard tackles.

I took my kids to a load of non league games because I felt it was important for them to understand that not all football is sanitised seating, half and half scarves and people whining on the internet because the manager has picked the club captain.

However, I went to Tamworth v Chester on Saturday. The home team was 15 points clear at the top of the table and managed not a single shot on goal in the 0-0 draw.

[Miltonaggro]

2 hours ago, Chris cooper said:

Yeah I’ve watched them all mate .. proper football for me .. hard tackles .. raking passes .. wonder goals and ofcourse that glorious unique standing room only atmosphere… 

I know those days are long gone ..but boy do I miss them .. pay on the gate .. last train home .. even the smell back then sparks off nostalgia.. I can smell it now if imagine hard enough!! Blessed we had it .. feel sorry for the generations who never will !
 

We are in jumpers for goalposts territory here, but the one clear smell I remember from that era was a wall of Deep Heat when the players ran out and at every corner.  The cup win in 1976 gave us ten years of positive momentum and we played some beautiful passing football, but with an intensity that is incredibly rare.  Remember Steve Williams reminiscing and saying that it was a side that would keep fighting to play football and for one another right until the final whistle.    

[The Cat]

4 hours ago, Kenilworthy said:

However, I went to Tamworth v Chester on Saturday. The home team was 15 points clear at the top of the table and managed not a single shot on goal in the 0-0 draw.

Oh no doubt you get awful games at that level too, I've seen my fair share of stinkers over the years while stood in the cold wondering what the hell I'm doing with my life.

It's just different though. The stalwarts who go every week and grumble with dry humour, the old bloke with a stick who doesn't seem to age, the unreasonably cheerful woman working in the tea hut, terrible tannoys that emit random high pitched noises every once in a while, kids playing games on a grass area behind the pitch which are sometimes more entertaining than the match you paid for, the club secretary with fried egg yolk stains down his shirt. 

You get the odd jumped up club with a bit of cash and suspicious finances who suddenly get a couple of aging ex League 1 pros, but they quickly become the club no one else likes and invariably run into trouble.

Personally I love it's charm. It's not elite sport but then it doesn't pretend to be anything other than what it is.