Well, I've got access to a vast UK pool of information. You lot! I've been a World Cup and Olympic soccer fan for years now, but the US' MLS doesn't "do it" for me. However, I've caught a few EPL matches on TV and they were exciting. What I'd like from you is help in:
#1) Choosing the best Football printed magazine to get my info from. EPL's version of Sports Illustrated, say. Hopefully I can find a US bookstore that will carry it.
#2) Help me pick my team(s)! A buddy at work who also likes Soccer wants to join me in this venture. We're going to hang our hats with a team each, and I'd like to know about all of the teams, even the ones that aren't currently in the top 20. **I can't go for Manchester United, simply because that would be like jumping in feet-first with the New York Yankees as a new baseball fan. Can't do that. So Man U is out, but everyone else is in. SELL ME on your team. Why is your team worthy (and for that matter the other teams not worthy). Sell me on location, fan loyalty, team colors, team history, team songs, team fans, connections to trains, food, beer...whatever.
Have fun with it. :foodanddrink:
BBC online is where I get all my info from.
I will get in early with Aston Villa, owned at the moment by an American, colours Claret and Blue, from Birmingham.
Plenty of history :), but not done so well in the last few years >:(.
Not sure about magazines nowadays to be honest but I used to read shoot or match as a child. I think 'four four two' is a more 'grown up' football magazine though so maybe try that first if its on sale in America.
Most clubs have their own magazines or fanzines too I think.
I support Leicester City. Kasey Keller used to play for us if you remember him.
We just got promoted back to the premier league.
Tim
As you are in the Southern US, approximately in the middle, why not go for a similarly based English team e.g. Southampton. There is a certain penguin-like member on here who will wax lyrical about them for hours ;)
As for news, you are just as well with the BBC Sport website or Sky Sports News or you can try http://www.fourfourtwo-magazine.com/ (http://www.fourfourtwo-magazine.com/)
Sorry, Scott. You don't sell a team. You love a team, without needing explanation or reason. For most it's because they grew up near that club, or a family member already supported that club themselves (usually your dad).
The best way to pick your team is to look at your personal links. Do you have family in Britain, or family history? Or any kind of link or past affinity with any town or city? Or maybe a best friend has a link that you'd feel comfortable using. It's worth a try.
Sorry to be a spoilsport :D
I'd suggest not Aston Villa lol
Southampton play good football from what I saw on match of the day
Just put names in a hat and pull one out... but don't include Chelsea. man city, man u, liverpool. Spurs, QPR or Villa! lol
Tim
:claphappy:Villa :claphappy:
You have the right colours, but the wrong team. Up the claret s. Burnley are back :D :bounce:
Richard, shut up!! Who in their right mind would support Aston Villa :P :P
I'm with Tim, Leicester City's the team, perenniel under achievers, never won the FA, cup in fact we hold the record for the team going to the most FA cup finals.........and losing ;) ;)
In all seriousness, if you want to support a team but don't want to be labelled as a glory hunter, then avoid the likes of Chelsea, Man Utd, Man City, Arsenal or Liverpool. Southampton is a good shout actually and if you fancy an underdog, then Leicester City, Burnley & QPR are the teams who got promoted last season.
The middle teams are the likes of Everton, Newcastle Utd, Tottenham Hotspur, Southampton, Swansea, Hull. Then theres the rest who'll more than likely be scrapping around the relegation zone, not including the promoted teams, these will be West Ham, Sunderland, Aston Villa, Crystal Palace, Stoke & West Bromwich Albion.
I do agree with the statement your football team is mainly chosen because of family ties, as you've probably guessed my team is Leicester, purely because thats where I was born and bought up, and my dad instilled my love for them, as I have done to my son.
As you're not from these shores then you have the whole football league to choose from,remember there is more to English football than the Premier League, the level of football in the Championship is as exciting as tne Premiership.
At the end of this drivel, the choice is ultimately yours and you'll get scoffed at and ridiculed no matter which team you choose, just pick your teamand go along for tne ride, it'll have massive highs, suffering lows and bouts of frustration but we football fans love it and wouldn't have it any other way........
Regards
Neal
UTF
By the way I LOVE the idea of relegation and wish US sports leagues would do it. We have this awful tradition of "tanking" when the season seems lost so as to get a better draft pick in the upcoming draft. I hate tanking! The idea of teams facing relegation would keep things interesting until the last minute of the last game.
Quote from: scottmitchell74 on July 15, 2014, 11:32:40 PM
By the way I LOVE the idea of relegation and wish US sports leagues would do it. We have this awful tradition of "tanking" when the season seems lost so as to get a better draft pick in the upcoming draft. I hate tanking! The idea of teams facing relegation would keep things interesting until the last minute of the last game.
Actually, you could do us a favour and explain the draft as I think it's something unique to American sports. It's something I've heard and read about over the years and from what I understand, the general concept is that any new players coming from college don't get to choose or work out deals as to what teams they get signed to, they get randomly picked between the teams for the next season?
Quote from: Zwilnik on July 15, 2014, 11:40:23 PM
Quote from: scottmitchell74 on July 15, 2014, 11:32:40 PM
By the way I LOVE the idea of relegation and wish US sports leagues would do it. We have this awful tradition of "tanking" when the season seems lost so as to get a better draft pick in the upcoming draft. I hate tanking! The idea of teams facing relegation would keep things interesting until the last minute of the last game.
Actually, you could do us a favour and explain the draft as I think it's something unique to American sports. It's something I've heard and read about over the years and from what I understand, the general concept is that any new players coming from college don't get to choose or work out deals as to what teams they get signed to, they get randomly picked between the teams for the next season?
That's correct. For North American sports the draft is a huge deal. Teams pick inversely to their standing from the previous season (unless they trade away their draft position) and then the team owns the "rights" to that player for a predetermined amount of time (each league has different rules). Players can hold out and not sign if they don't like the team that chose them, but it's a big, messy situation and they usually start their career with the teams that draft them.
The draft isn't such a big deal to fans in baseball because the maturation process of baseball players is so unpredictable and varied and because college baseball isn't followed nearly as rabidly as college football and basketball is.
Careful, here, folks... remember what's currently beneath my avatar... >:D ;D
We have the same draft and tanking issues with Aussie rules as well.
Re the team you pick, well, when I moved to Melbourne, I lived in the SE suburbs. there was only one team still operating in those burbs, so I selected them. More fool me, a few goes at the cup, but no wins since '66.
Anyway, Scott, as someone above suggested, look at your ancestry and maybe select a team based on where a great grandad came from or something like that. Maybe choose based on the colour of the jersey closest to the colours of your favourite railway? Cheers, Bill.
As Neal says, there are five teams that are ahead of the rest as they are global brands, have large fan base and money to spend. There were four, Man Utd, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool, Man City, through having a fantastically rich owner, have broken into this five. My view is that the gap between these teams and the rest is growing. Man Utd are the biggest of these five clubs (e.g. they have just signed a £750m kit deal). Arsenal maybe the most exciting of these five to follow this season though. Newcastle United have a huge fan base and really ought to be in this group.
All the rest are fighting relegation or trying to win a cup. That may sound harsh on Everton, who finished fifth, but a run of injuries/poor form can see a team sucked into the relegation fight. Plus the media will be on their backs, with headlines like 'doomed' from early in the season.
Winning a cup or finishing fifth in the league enables the team to qualify for the Europa league. This is not as glamourous as it sounds because, in order to cope with the volume of matches etc, it needs a big squad of quality players - which you are unlikely to have unless you are a top five team. Teams playing in the Europa league can see their Premier league performance fall.
My team is Southampton, the Saints. We have an excellent, rich owner, that rescued us from going under. The owner pumps money in but the aim is for the club to stand on its feet and not fall foul of the Financial Fair Play rules. Our philosophy is the 'Southampton Way' with a strong emphasis on developing young players through the academy and all of our teams play in the same way. We have just opened our new training centre which is arguably the best in the Premier league and have also upgraded our manager. We also have a large scouting network that identifies players, coaches and managers from around the globe.
There is a downside to this. The moment a team outside of the top five looks like becoming successful, they get raided by the top five (and European teams) for players and this forces teams to look abroad for cheap talent as the top foreign players are unlikely to come to a non-top five club unless it is for silly wages. The other issue is if the owners decide to sell up.
For me the most exciting times for Southampton were when we started our journey out of Division One - so maybe also have a look at the lower leagues and pick a team that has the potential to get to the Premier League.
It would be great it you would become another Saint though!
If you like the idea of relegation, Scott, then you could support my team - Tranmere Rovers. At the end of last season we were heroically relegated from the third division to the fourth. (Well, they're called League 1 and League 2 nowadays, but they're the 3rd and 4th divisions really.) Still, the fightback starts here! Ooh aah super white army, as we say in Birkenhead. We may not have much money but we've got soul, and you can't buy that.
PW
I won't quote Pengi's post 'cos it's so long.
But I bet yer all sorry you asked... :P
About the only thing "English" about the English Premier League is the name. About half the players
and many of the managers are foreign. ;D
Quote from: Pengi on July 16, 2014, 08:56:53 AM
My team is Southampton, the Saints. We have an excellent, rich owner, that rescued us from going under. The owner pumps money in but the aim is for the club to stand on its feet and not fall foul of the Financial Fair Play rules. Our philosophy is the 'Southampton Way' with a strong emphasis on developing young players through the academy and all of our teams play in the same way. We have just opened our new training centre which is arguably the best in the Premier league and have also upgraded our manager. We also have a large scouting network that identifies players, coaches and managers from around the globe.
There is a downside to this. The moment a team outside of the top five looks like becoming successful, they get raided by the top five (and European teams) for players and this forces teams to look abroad for cheap talent as the top foreign players are unlikely to come to a non-top five club unless it is for silly wages. The other issue is if the owners decide to sell up.
Sorry, Pengi. Your team looked like becoming successful so my team (one of the aforementioned European teams and also the usual fifth place finisher, barring last season's hiccup) nabbed your manager. I'm really hoping for some Southampton-like attacking football next season as a result.
PS: I also hope that Southampton continues to do well. They're one of the 'nice' teams in the league.
Quote from: PennineWagons on July 16, 2014, 11:18:56 AM
If you like the idea of relegation, Scott, then you could support my team - Tranmere Rovers. At the end of last season we were heroically relegated from the third division to the fourth. (Well, they're called League 1 and League 2 nowadays, but they're the 3rd and 4th divisions really.) Still, the fightback starts here! Ooh aah super white army, as we say in Birkenhead. We may not have much money but we've got soul, and you can't buy that.
PW
Or you could follow one of my 'keep an eye on them' teams, Barnet, who were relegated from League Two (the fourth of the national leagues) and failed to bounce straight back up last season. Little clubs can suddenly boost their fortunes just by buying or loaning-in a couple of new players, so they can deliver quite exciting results all of a sudden - or be in trouble for the entire season!
Don't forget Manchester Uniteds railway orgins... formed by the Carriage and wagon dept, newton heath - L+Y rly...
Great, great information so far! I knew this board would come through for me. :claphappy:
Forget the Premier League and look lower for decent honest football. In fact why look any further than Swindon Town. With the town's railway history it's an absolute must! We are usually involved in either relegation or promotion battles and have spent 1 season in the Premier League after thrashing Leicester in 1993 at Wembley 4-3. Believe me, play-off finals are far more exciting than any FA cup final. We also won the League Cup on March 15th 1969 by beating Arsenal 3-1 after extra time. Arsenal were at the time in the 1st division, we were in the 3rd. I can't remember us having any Americans play for us but we have had at least 1 New Zealander and 1 Australian play for us, Rory Fallon and Danny Invincibile respectively, so we're a truely international team within reason. You'll also see more passion and dedication from the fans of the lower league clubs (and Southampton who are often below the Premier League) rather than the prawn sandwich brigades to be seen at 1 game per season at the likes of Chelski and Man Ure.
Quite a lot of people support a specific football team because of:
1. They live or had lived in the town or city of the same team;
2. Their parents often supported or followed the club;
3. When a specific team was dominant or had specific memories to the individual at a certain time (childhood, etc);
4. As a means of rebellion against their parents, siblings, or other groups of people's choices of team
(I know someone who's an Aston Villa (Birmingham) fan who always lived in Yorkshire, even though most of his schoolmates supported Leeds United at the time)
In England, there's a pyramid league system with the Premier League at the apex, followed by the three other major leagues (Championship, League 1 and League 2), or referred unofficially to as the second, third or fourth tier or division.
Then you have what's known as the Conference Premier and below (collectively known as non-league)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_football_league_system (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_football_league_system)
In theory, an ambitious club could climb up through the leagues (or conversely get relegated).
Luton Town got promoted back to the Football League from the Conference Premier at the end of last season and will start in the Football League's League 2 division next month. It's spent time in all four top divisions over the years.
Several other teams have similarly spent time in all top four divisions over the years: Watford, Wimbledon (pre-2003), Portsmouth and Wigan Athletic, amongst others.
Quote from: gc4946 on July 16, 2014, 05:16:40 PM
Several other teams have similarly spent time in all top four divisions over the years: Watford, Wimbledon (pre-2003), Portsmouth and Wigan Athletic, amongst others.
"Others" includes Swindon Town of course :'(
Why not choose a team with a weird name, like Sheffield Wednesday ?
Best regards,
Joe
My brother has recently been appointed to the board of Margate FC and there are big things planned down there, they currently play in the Ryman Premier league and hope to again full league status in a few years, they have a wealthy owner ;)
So, Scott, if you fancy following a wee team, check out http://www.margate-fc.co.uk/ (http://www.margate-fc.co.uk/)
I support Arsenal ( no sniggering at the back)
As already mentioned, they do play some lovely attractive passing and attacking football. Defensively, they ca be a bit iffy, but the biggest problem is that they have no plan B. Even when down 3 - 0, they insist on playing the same open passing style. Great to watch, but it can be nervy and frustrating being a Gunner. (Nicknamed the Gunners, due to previously being named Woolwich Arsenal, when they were located at the famous London Armoury of the same name. Their fans are affectionately called (by themselves) Gooners.
All of that said, they have a good philosophy at the club, spending within their means, and the current manager (currently the longest serving in the EPL) is a professor of football, lives and breaths the game and has a knack for spotting young talent and nurturing it. There is a wonderful ethic around the club.
Arsenal qualify for the Champions League every season, and I think I'm right in saying that under Arsene Wenger, they've never finished outside of the top 4? I stand to be corrected on that maybe............
Arsenal famously one the league one season on the last day of the season against the then mighty Liverpool, at their ground. They also more famously won the league another year at the home of their greatest rivals, Tottenham.
On top of all that, a fellow American, Stan Kroenke is the largest shareholder of the club. He owns Denver Nuggets (?!), Colorado Rapids, Colorado Mammoth and St Louis Rams.
Songs include the lyrically challenged
"We love you Arsenal, we do, We love you Arsenal we do, We love you Arsenal, We do, oh, Arsenal We love you!"
and the equally lovely ditty
"oo to, oo to be, oo to be a GOONER!"
Go for Arsenal, Scott. You know you want to. If that's not enough, my name is Scott Stitchell. We're practically brothers!!!
I rest my case.
Personally I support Liverpool, but as Texas is known as the LONE STAR state, if you rearrange the letters in that you get ARSENAL (if you substitute another A for the letter O), so why not choose them. As Arsenal is a London Club, why not get your mate to choose a Premiership Club from the Midlands or the North (or South eg. Southampton). Arsenals colours are Red & White, and Sothamptons are Red & White stripes.
Jeez, will you lot stop giving him such bad advice? :p
I'm assuming your birth year is 1974, same as mine, so actually we're practically twins.....
Get your mate to support Tottenham, Arsenal;s biggest rivals. Some tasty matches!
Another possible factor in your choice could be how the club originated:
Manchester United was first called Newton Heath, and originated as a railway works team in the same district of Manchester.
Several began life as church teams, e.g. Aston Villa (Villa Cross Wesleyan Chapel), Southampton (St Mary's Church of England Young Men's Association), Fulham (Fulham St Andrew's Church Sunday School F.C.)
A few were based on the military, e.g. Arsenal (after Woolwich Arsenal munitions factory) and Portsmouth (navy)
Quotemy name is Scott Stitchell.
:o Ha, that's cool!
Quote from: Tdm on July 16, 2014, 07:51:18 PM
Personally I support Liverpool, but as Texas is known as the LONE STAR state, if you rearrange the letters in that you get ARSENAL (if you substitute another A for the letter O), so why not choose them. As Arsenal is a London Club, why not get your mate to choose a Premiership Club from the Midlands or the North (or South eg. Southampton). Arsenals colours are Red & White, and Sothamptons are Red & White stripes.
Now that's clever! I've been doing further research based on this thread. Very interesting...and
lots of teams/leagues/levels. It's head-spinning!
Quote from: Pete33 on July 16, 2014, 08:01:56 PM
Jeez, will you lot stop giving him such bad advice? :p
Sorry, you are quite right Pete ;)
Scott follow West Ham from afar as I do (I did go to games when based down South) and be done with it :D
You could always do what my father did to choose a team. He grew up in the English county of Dorset in the 1940s and at that time there wash't a professional soccer team anywhere in the county (before anyone asks this was when Bournemouth was in Hampshire).
So one Saturday he decided he would support the team who scored the most goals. It turned out to be Blackpool and he supported them through thick and thin for the rest of his life (mainly thin, but you could be luckier!!)
Quote from: Trainfish on July 16, 2014, 04:44:13 PM
Forget the Premier League and look lower for decent honest football. In fact why look any further than Swindon Town. With the town's railway history it's an absolute must! We are usually involved in either relegation or promotion battles and have spent 1 season in the Premier League after thrashing Leicester in 1993 at Wembley 4-3.
Lol 4-3 thrashing, oh yeah I remember that game, 3-0 down by half time, then we bring it back to 3-3 only to fall (literally) to a last minute very dubious penalty!!!!
Oh and as for an 'honest' team, weren't
Swindle (sorry ;) ) Swindon Town thrown out of the Premier League during their 1 and only visit, because (allegedly) their manager was taking bungs??
Oh by the way scottmitchell74, the above is called 'friendly banter' amongst us football supporters, if you start supporting an English team be prepared for it, it can get a bit vicious at times and very heated. ;) ;) ;) ;)
Regards
Neal.
A cast iron penalty as far as I'm concerned :D
Yes, we were 3-0 up but realised that it would be a bit boring for your fans so we gave you half a chance for a while. And no, we weren't thrown out of the Premier League that season, that was 3 years earlier when we didn't even get to start a Premier match and there was a lot more to it than taking bungs :-[
Ps, I thought my post would rattle your cage :thumbsup:
Thanks again everyone for your participation. Love the banter! I'm going to keep everything I've read here in mind as I begin watching matches when league play begins. Please keep posting here and offering insight, insults, and more! It's fun and enlightening.
Scott, do you get to watch many English matches on TV over there? And if so, is it just Premier League or do you get the other games too, ie, The Championship, Leagues 1 & 2?
The BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) has a program called "Match of the Day" on a Saturday night which shows highlights of all the Premiership league matches that day. If you could watch that by any chance it would give you a good insight into all the teams and how they are performing. There are other TV broadcasting companies who also regularly review the weekends matches on a Monday as in the Premiership,
most teams play on a Saturday, but those broadcast on "Live" on TV are played on Sundays and Mondays.
All depends on what Channels you can access where you are as to what you can watch and when. There is an Arab Channel that also covers the Premiership matches as well as the likes of "Sky" and "BT Sport" who own most of the "Live" viewing rights.
Decided on who you will be supporting yet?
I know half of bugger all about our domestic game but wouldn't just pick a team that's doing well (too easy).
If I were in your shoes, Scott, I'd pick a team with the most appealing nickname and am sure someone can furnish you a list of them :D
Quote from: Trainfish on July 18, 2014, 02:11:58 AM
Scott, do you get to watch many English matches on TV over there? And if so, is it just Premier League or do you get the other games too, ie, The Championship, Leagues 1 & 2?
As far as I can tell, it's just the Premier League that they show. MLS is shown as well, and that's improving each year, but the other UK leagues don't seem to get air time over here on the channels I have access to.
Quote from: scottmitchell74 on July 18, 2014, 02:39:57 PM
Quote from: Trainfish on July 18, 2014, 02:11:58 AM
Scott, do you get to watch many English matches on TV over there? And if so, is it just Premier League or do you get the other games too, ie, The Championship, Leagues 1 & 2?
As far as I can tell, it's just the Premier League that they show. MLS is shown as well, and that's improving each year, but the other UK leagues don't seem to get air time over here on the channels I have access to.
Nobody televises Scottish football now because it is so abjectly awful :-[
Prepared to be bamboozled with this list of nicknames though, just remember when you are ready to slit your wrists, it was Mick who suggested it ;) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_football_club_nicknames_in_the_United_Kingdom (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_football_club_nicknames_in_the_United_Kingdom)
I model the B&O because they are in NE USA and I live in NE Scotland, made sense at the time. My one great passion in US sport has always been the Broncos though, since the early days when Elway had just worked out how to use a razor! The back to back wins in 97 & 98 made up for a lot of hurt, and I will never forget sitting up late and watching 'The Drive' (just googled it, was it really 1987!!)
I have always supported teams that meant something to me, perhaps a local side, a particular ethos, perhaps a geographic link, and I do support them either by attending, buying merchandise etc. I have never been a 'glory hunter'
Nobody can tell you who to follow, you will find your own way of choosing a team and it can be from any league, anywhere, the important thing is that you decide. It is a bit like Rule 1 on your layout, it's yours, do what you will with it :thumbsup:
I vividly remember those Broncos-Browns games of the 80s. I grew up in NE Ohio, so I was surrounded by crestfallen Browns fans year after year. Growing up in Ohio and having relatives in Baltimore led me to model the B&O as well, maybe something can come from that?
What's the deal with Scottish football? That would have been a natural draw for me, and was something I was looking for,but didn't see any teams mentioned from Scotland. My last name is Douglas, my favorite trip with my wife has always been our UK trip, of which Edinburgh was my absolute highlight.
Scot and his colleague could each take a gamble and pick one of the newly promoted teams - Burnley from the North of England, Leicester City from the Midlands, or Queens Park Rangers from London.
How they will fare in the Premiership is anybody's guess, each of them has been there before but got relegated.
Burnley's nickname is "The Clarets", Leicester City are known as "The Foxes", and QPR "The Hoops".
For a list of all the nicknames of Premiership Clubs click on the Link :-
http://www.premierleague.com/en-gb/kids/clubs.html (http://www.premierleague.com/en-gb/kids/clubs.html)
Quote from: scottmitchell74 on July 18, 2014, 09:33:39 PM
Growing up in Ohio and having relatives in Baltimore led me to model the B&O as well, maybe something can come from that?
I can provide you with a very tenuous link from a Premier league side to Baltimore if that helps your decision. If you scroll down to the bottom of the following link you will see in the defunct section that there was a team called Crystal Palace Baltimore that used to play in the USL (a competing but lesser league to MLS).
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sports_in_Baltimore (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sports_in_Baltimore)
Nothing relevant in the list of Cleveland soccer teams I'm afraid...
As a long standing Crystal Palace fan I can't promise success. Indeed heartache, near bankruptcy and the occasional hint of mediocrity are all that I can guarantee :'( But they are the only Premier League Team to have the same uniform as Barcelona, and for that I am truly thankful :whistle:
Isn't Middlesbro' in Cleveland? Or is it on the Durham side of the Tees :D
Having watched Hull, QPR, Man U. and a few others at the tail-end of last year, my whistle was whetted. Today the Seattle MLS team plays a friendly vs Tottenham Hutspur, so I'm looking forward to that. Anything/anyone I should look out for?
Quote from: Chetcombe on July 19, 2014, 12:52:41 AM
Quote from: scottmitchell74 on July 18, 2014, 09:33:39 PM
Growing up in Ohio and having relatives in Baltimore led me to model the B&O as well, maybe something can come from that?
I can provide you with a very tenuous link from a Premier league side to Baltimore if that helps your decision. If you scroll down to the bottom of the following link you will see in the defunct section that there was a team called Crystal Palace Baltimore that used to play in the USL (a competing but lesser league to MLS).
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sports_in_Baltimore (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sports_in_Baltimore)
Nothing relevant in the list of Cleveland soccer teams I'm afraid...
As a long standing Crystal Palace fan I can't promise success. Indeed heartache, near bankruptcy and the occasional hint of mediocrity are all that I can guarantee :'( But they are the only Premier League Team to have the same uniform as Barcelona, and for that I am truly thankful :whistle:
Gosh, another Palace fan!! Few and far betwen we are, but Somerset to Baltimore must be a record.
As I was born literally a stone's throw from the Holmesdale Road end of Selhurst Park, there was no real debate as to which team I supported. And having seen all the strips (uniforms, if you must) from the early 60s to the current day, my preference is for the 1972/73 version of the white with claret and blue vertical stripes.
Quote from: talisman56 on July 19, 2014, 05:31:08 PM
As I was born literally a stone's throw from the Holmesdale Road end of Selhurst Park, there was no real debate as to which team I supported. And having seen all the strips (uniforms, if you must) from the early 60s to the current day, my preference is for the 1972/73 version of the white with claret and blue vertical stripes.
1972/3... Jumpers for goalposts, Don Rogers, Malcolm Allison, 5-0 at home versus Man U :D... inevitable relegation :-[
I grew up just the other side of the railway tracks near Selhurst Station! Favorite kit though had to be the 1990 cup final blue/red stripes
So far I've caught three matches.
Arsenal taking down Crystal Palace late 2-1
Arsenal getting lucky or maybe Everton getting sloppy by allowing a 2-2 tie
Sunderland playing Man United to a 1-1 tie. That was fun
No decision yet. Going to watch the whole season.
Quote from: scottmitchell74 on August 24, 2014, 08:33:26 PM
Sunderland playing Man United to a 1-1 tie. That was fun
It was good to hear the lads managed to hold the crappy visitors, shame the late attempts failed ! Would love to hear they'd managed to stuff the Mancies again :P
With a bit of luck, they'll do better than they did after Christmas last time ... appalling set of results :doh: Fingers crossed for at least a mid-table position at the end (and by more than a few points !).
Such a shame they had to abandon Roker Park ... oh well, can't stop progress ... :hmmm:
You should have caught Spurs thrashing poor QPR 4-0 to go top of the league. Now that was fun (for a Spurs fan - sorry Harry).
So, many long months, many matches later, one torn ACL, lots of reading...finally in August my buddy and I came to our respective conclusions and I landed with Tottenham Hotspur.
There was a lot to like - team history, team colors, there name is cool. Anyhow, color me surprised now at the half-way point of the season the Spurs are sitting #4! Color me even more surprised how Leicester City is doing, and how poorly Chelsea is doing!
I'm really getting into the swing of the EPL and have been able to watch 6-7 Spurs games not to mention as many or more matches involving other teams. My buddy was even more intrepid and went with Crystal Palace, who are doing very, very well so far. Here's hoping!
I'm a Crystal Palace fan as well. Best fans in the league. :) COYP!
(https://nbcprosoccertalk.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/crystal_palace_f-c-_logo_2013.png?w=283&h=343&crop=1)
Hi Scott,
Hadn't seen this thread before but glad you're into 'football'.
Most teams were formed years ago in working class crap holes and glad you both picked two of London's finest examples :D
Only joking, I'm a Portsmouth fan and although they've done Fratton, a suburb where they play, up a bit the people haven't changed much.
The language is like a rainbow :)
My sister is an Arsenal fan and we always fall out at Christmas and birthdays, funerals etc so I think Spurs is a good choice.
Enjoy the 'soccer' and have a great New Year
Cheers weave :beers:
Gosh we're all coming out of the woodwork now...
:whistle: Glad all over... :whistle:
Quote from: Tank on December 30, 2015, 10:45:59 PM
I'm a Crystal Palace fan as well. Best fans in the league. :) COYP!
(https://nbcprosoccertalk.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/crystal_palace_f-c-_logo_2013.png?w=283&h=343&crop=1)
CPFC TILL I DIE!!!!!! Hurrah!
Quote from: scottmitchell74 on December 30, 2015, 10:36:50 PM
There was a lot to like - team history, team colours, their name is cool. Anyhow, colour me surprised now at the half-way point of the season the Spurs are sitting #4!
Believe me, you can be no more surprised than long-term Spurs fans who saw mid-table mediocrity in the early season performances.
Pains me to say it (as a Saints fan and we really do not like Spurs :censored:), Spurs have got their act together. Pochettino was great for Saints so no surprise he is doing well at Spuds, they have a great training facility and the plans for the new stadium (including NFL) are awesome.
Earlier in the thread, I said that the gap between the top five and the rest is growing - I was wrong, the amount of money coming from TV sponsorship is levelling the playing field although Financial Fair play still makes it harder for smaller clubs to consistently remain in the top bracket :veryangry: (FFP affects the wages clubs can give players).
I'm really hoping the Foxes prove all the pundits wrong and finish in the top three.
Quote from: Pengi on December 31, 2015, 10:09:05 AM
Pains me to say it (as a Saints fan and we really do not like Spurs :censored:), Spurs have got their act together. Pochettino was great for Saints so no surprise he is doing well at Spuds, they have a great training facility and the plans for the new stadium (including NFL) are awesome.
I'm hurt! As a Spurs fan I see Southampton as one of the 'nice' teams. You may wear red, but it's a friendly red.
Quote from: Pete33 on December 31, 2015, 01:32:57 PM
Quote from: Pengi on December 31, 2015, 10:09:05 AM
Pains me to say it (as a Saints fan and we really do not like Spurs :censored:), Spurs have got their act together. Pochettino was great for Saints so no surprise he is doing well at Spuds, they have a great training facility and the plans for the new stadium (including NFL) are awesome.
I'm hurt! As a Spurs fan I see Southampton as one of the 'nice' teams. You may wear red, but it's a friendly red.
'friendly red' :smiley-laughing: Yeah. Lovely lot ;). Well, Pengi is.
Play up Pompey!
Am going on Saturday against Crawley. Not sure if they hate us as much as Brighton and the aforementioned (their name cannot be named by me here) team do but will find out.
Happy New Year to you all and enjoy the footie.
Cheers weave.
See I said to follow the Mighty Foxes :D :D :D
Although I'm under no illusion that we'll be anywhere near winning the Premiership this season, I'm damn well enjoying the ride so far :o :o
If we finish in a Champions League spot, I'll be over the moon. If we finish in a European place, I'll be happy. If we manage to actually achieve the unbelieveable and win the Premiership, well I don't know what I'll do, I'll probably just explode.......
Mind you, being a long suffering Leicester supporter for the past 40 odd years, I'd be looking at the record books just to see if the Winners of the Top league have ever been relegated the next season ;) ;)
But whatever the outcome, it's great taking the mickey out of all those glory huntimg supporters who follow certain teams nowadays.
Happy New Year to one and all and I hope that 2016 is a great year, especially if you're team plays in Blue & White like mine. ;) ;)
UTF
Regards
Neal.