Why are we such happy clappers?

[Grebfromgrebland]

1 minute ago, Foxes1 said:

Wait till Everton move to their new stadium, they will turn into the same robotic fans as us.

ROBOT FANS! That's probably a good idea. Get Elon on the phone.

[Jobyfox]

4 hours ago, TamworthFoxes said:

A decade of home and away tickets being a pretty much closed shop has led to an old, bored fanbase.

Unfortunately people just don’t care enough about the results. People go out of habit. 
Even when things are bad and relegation is staring them in  the face they will still bilindly applaud the players, management and ownership every week.

The only thing that gets their blood pumping is if the thought of ufs expanding and them losing the seat they have sat in since the dawn of time next to their best friends Doris and Gerald who they share a blanket and a packet of worthers originals every second Saturday of the month.

We are a far too old, bored and perfectly diverse fanbase to really care what happens. Don’t really know how that changes now either, we are to far down the line for it to change.

I think there is some truth in this. Not just in respect of “happy clapper”, but in terms of fan engagement, passion and vocal support within the stadium.

 

When I first started supporting at Filbert Street you bought a ticket on the door and stood with a vociferous, loud and totally committed group of fans. There might only have been 10,000 or so, but those were the ones who were truly committed. Now if you went into the kop you’ll see a very comfortable, ageing, apathetic fan base.

 

I’m not sure what the solution is and there certainly isn’t one that anyone would have any initiative to implement. When I had my season ticket (up to a few years ago), I know I’d have been happy to relocate to another part of the stadium rather than sit in the kop, if (for example) safe standing was installed. It would have felt a bit like passing the baton on to the next generation who would create the atmosphere that I helped to create in the eighties and nineties.

 

It feels like we need something radical like safe standing, more tickets on general sale, singing areas etc. if we’re ever to get any sort of atmosphere back. Be it a positive or a negative one.

 

[Stadt]

There's lots of things compounding here.  I think our fanbase is probably a bit older and more middle class than Everton's or Leeds'. Our fans on average live further away from the ground than what Everton's do. This has a pretty consequential knock on effects as to how our support is comprised.

 

Vichai dying is an incorrigible suit of armour for the club for some fans. Criticising 'our wonderful owners' is tantamount to blasphemy, despite Top being totally disinterested. Winning the league also means a sizeable faction think we've completed football so are just content with being toss. I personally can't stand this mentality.

 

The season ticket situation means people who probably don't want one keep it because they're never getting it back otherwise. There are would-be vociferous fans frozen out.

 

The club aren't interested in letting an atmosphere bloom, in most instances they work against it. See safe having their head in the sand about safe standing for about 15 years. Having their own co-chair on the Fan Advisory Board, persisting with clappers, loud music at full time, half arsing the clear out for the singing section etc.

 

 

[boots60]

8 hours ago, TamworthFoxes said:

A decade of home and away tickets being a pretty much closed shop has led to an old, bored fanbase.

Unfortunately people just don’t care enough about the results. People go out of habit. 
Even when things are bad and relegation is staring them in  the face they will still bilindly applaud the players, management and ownership every week.

The only thing that gets their blood pumping is if the thought of ufs expanding and them losing the seat they have sat in since the dawn of time next to their best friends Doris and Gerald who they share a blanket and a packet of worthers originals every second Saturday of the month.

We are a far too old, bored and perfectly diverse fanbase to really care what happens. Don’t really know how that changes now either, we are to far down the line for it to change.

If this is a piss take, fair enough.

If this is a serious post then I've never read such a lot of unthought out ageist claptrap in a while.

[CrazyKopCorner]

8 hours ago, adejo92 said:

There are other clubs like us. Your Southamptons, Bournemouths, Fulhams..

 

But, this forum is toxic. Every thread is plagued with negativity. 

No it's fuching not you dimwit  

[BenTheFox]

I love a good rant, I'm not going to lie. However, sometimes I think all of us need to take a step back and remember what we've seen during our time following the club. In my lifetime we've won two league cups, the FA Cup, the Premier League, the charity shield and several promotions and seen great footballers like Vardy, Mahrez, Schmeichel, Cambiasso, Kante etc. All this in a period of football where provincial clubs like us haven't won trophies. Compare that to what it has been like following a club like Sheffield Wednesday in that same timeframe who have a big fanbase, a big stadium and have won major trophies several decades ago. They've been out of the top flight for 24 years, suffered many relegations to the third tier, and the best players Wednesday fans under the age of 32/33 have seen are the likes of Fernando Forestieri and Barry Bannan. You can still have a moan every now and then and want to hold those running the club accountable when things aren't great but ultimately we've had it good over the past 12 years and life's too short to get worked up about it when it's not going well. Just best to enjoy what time you have with your friends and family. 

Edited 12 November 2024 by BenTheFox

[ARTY_FOX]

The average person at the ground can't grasp anything other than being some sort of yo-yo club and if you aren't just happy to be a team that makes up the numbers you're the problem. We were in league 1 you know. 

 

You have to be happy to be there and have zero ambition. 

Edited 12 November 2024 by ARTY_FOX

[gazzaa2]

19 hours ago, Walshy5 said:

Take Everton fans for example. Not afraid to make their feelings be known. Despite the amount of people on here that are anti Rudkin, want Cooper gone and completely disillusioned with the running of the club in general we never let our feelings be known at games. We clap players off after complete inept performances and even when anyone dares to dish out any criticism they tend to get dogs abuse from others in the crowd. Why do we stand for it when most other fans won't? 

 

Everton fans refused to accept relegation and we went down instead two years ago after sticking with Brendan while the fans politely stood by.

[Paninistickers]

9 hours ago, davieG said:

Most of those older fans have been young fans and stood on the terraces in the 50s/60s/70s singing their hearts out and have seen it all

I dont agree. You can tell,. physically, those sort of blokes. The way they dress. Their understanding of the game. The company they keep. 

 

There are thousands (if I was to guess, I'd say as many as 6000) of elderly supporters - many of whom go as couples -  now who don't have an understanding of the game. Nor do they feel the game. Win, lose,.draw...they go home to a cuppa, watch strictly and look at the lottery results. They go as a spectator hobby. Not as an active supporter. 

 

Plus, these elderly women. Back in the 80s, you could virtually count on one hand how many women were down there. These old girls now would've been 30 or 40 and telling you for certain they weren't there under Pleat. Not a chance.

 

The few old girls that did go in those days were often as acerbic, quick witted and gobby as any fella. Not the passive dementia cases that attend now. 

 

[Winstonthedog]

My opinion .... a vast majority in the stadium now have really took an interest over the past 10 mostly good years .. day trippers if you like .... me I have followed the team on a journey for 50 years so I have a knowledge of times when things were tough and watching them in the LDV vans trophy in front of a few thousand of us ... the current fans need passion and anger not f***ing clappers before we slip into the pit of yo yo mediocrity.... be warned 

[Claridge]

51 minutes ago, Paninistickers said:

I dont agree. You can tell,. physically, those sort of blokes. The way they dress. Their understanding of the game. The company they keep. 

 

There are thousands (if I was to guess, I'd say as many as 6000) of elderly supporters - many of whom go as couples -  now who don't have an understanding of the game. Nor do they feel the game. Win, lose,.draw...they go home to a cuppa, watch strictly and look at the lottery results. They go as a spectator hobby. Not as an active supporter. 

 

Plus, these elderly women. Back in the 80s, you could virtually count on one hand how many women were down there. These old girls now would've been 30 or 40 and telling you for certain they weren't there under Pleat. Not a chance.

 

The few old girls that did go in those days were often as acerbic, quick witted and gobby as any fella. Not the passive dementia cases that attend now. 

 

Its the stupid young wannabee fans that do my head in, turn up bang on kick off, sing for 10 mins, piss off at half time and come back with 20 mins to go.

 

 

[The whole world smiles]

23 hours ago, Sly said:

I think the mood of Foxestalk, doesn’t translate to the fans within the stadium. 
 

I’d say your typical Foxestalk poster, is potential more invested in the football club. Sue and Frank, who’ve smuggled in a flask of soup and some sandwiches wrapped in foil, aren’t on the internet at 23:33, questioning Steve Cooper tactics and whether he’s the correct person for the job. 
 

The stadium doesn’t hold the same atmosphere as a Goodison Park. Our fan base is a different demographic. 

Disagree with this I would say the fans in the stadium are more invested than the ones on  foxestalk spending their matchday moaning in the live game thread. The fans in the ground have literally invested their money into tickets, travel, pre match refreshment etc etc and have done so for many years. so i think it's difficult to try and say they care less.

 

I would say it boils down to attitude and conformation bias rather than investment if you are at the game then you desperately want the team to succeed and are surrounded by people who want the team to succeed where's people in the match day thread on foxestalk (not everyone by the way) would seem to want to be proven right about a certain manager above wanting to see them win and are surrounded by like minded people.

 

I logged onto foxestalk in the car on the way home after the recent Southampton and was genuinely surprised to see the "Cooper out" thread hot anyone that goes away regularly knows how rare a 97th minute winner is and would have been totally caught up in the outpouring of primal emotion that followed it. It was utterly incredible and one of the reasons we go for the 1 in 100 chance you might see something like that. No one leaving the stadium singing the Jordan ayew ole ole song at the top of their lungs was thinking about sacking anyone yet on foxestalk people had their knives out straight away pursuing their personal agendas.