Monday 3 October 2011

Political Correctness in Football doesn't work


So we have had yet another weekend of managers crying wolf over chants on the football terraces, we have pundits talking about what is correct and what is not, what is wrong with this country, is this the level we have dropped too because people don’t fight as often as they used too, hello but this isn’t new?

Being a Man United supporter and somebody who has been to hundreds of games in the past, I am used to being abused, being called a “Munich”, having aeroplane gestures directed towards me, but because people were fighting, or the gutter media had other things to report, and also because it was towards United, then it never got mentioned.

All of a sudden because some of the people who arse lick the media have mentioned it, or because it is not against United, or because talk sport has suddenly become a full on sports talk channel and need to fill the airways, and then it is a major issue. It isn’t when you go to football, you accept it, you pay your money to support your team, you sing songs to each other, you try to create an atmosphere, you cheer on your team and down the opposition, and you also let your main rivals know you are thinking of them.

This is what I have grown up and put up with for years, I packed in going in 2003 week in, week out; I now go to very few games, but the banter is still there, grown blokes who have had a few beers before the game, chanting to each other, when you go you know what to expect.

I am sick of pundits saying that so many people won’t go because of this, well I am afraid that the fans who put money into clubs, are the ones that go home and away, are there every game, home, away or abroad, if these fans are forgotten it will be at the clubs detriment. The football world is already one that TV has ruined, I mean just look at Monday night football this year, United v Spurs, QPR v Newcastle, Norwich v Sunderland, really fair to supporters who travel, yet the proper fans still do it, because they love their club, so if people now want to alienate them further, then so be it, but it will kill football.

I am not privy to the exact chants that people are on about, but surely we can’t start setting rules, I know a lad from United who loved making up songs, his name was Pete Boyle, an absolute legend and a very funny guy with some great lyrics, do people like this now have to sit with a book of accepted words, do they send off songs for approval? With the way player’s move these days, by the time the song about them gets approved, they won’t be at that club anymore.

Let’s get a grip on life here, instead of people who are paid by our national game, is there any chance of thoughts for the people who pump the most money into our game?