To all LOI fans

[Dave77]

Firstly I dont like writing this thread but a friend of mine went to a LOI game over the week end and lets say wasnt made welcome (not a shels game) and im pretty sure will not go again. My question is do LOI fans want more fans because some (small number I hope) dont seem to want new fans. i understand that LOI fans have been every other sports poor relation well since forever but some fans seem to think therfor they have exclusive rights to the game.


and it really hit home because i had read a fanzine which said "this is aimed at the johnny-come-lately, jester hat wearing lamps that have begun to infest our game (note derry and Drogheda's nouveau support for example)", I am a johnny come lately fan, i went to LOI games as a kid but my family was from sligo so only saw their away games then i moved to drumcondra and started goin to shels games, i have been hooked since. I cannot understand how people who love their clubs do not like new fans to their clubs. if 30 people who had never been to a LOI game mind you a football game before went to tolka I would be delighted. 20x15euro is simply money for a club.

i understand some fans have supported a club forever(and dont get me wrong the ultras, supporters clubs etc are fantastic in this league and do make a great atmosphere and are exclusive but is the club?) and their fathers/mothers etc have, but surely all new fans whether they wear hats or go naked for gods sake should be welcomed.

this league needs fans!!!!!!
but then again im a "jonny come lately"

[L37Ultra]

Firstly I dont like writing this thread but a friend of mine went to a LOI game over the week end and lets say wasnt made welcome (not a shels game) and im pretty sure will not go again. "

Why, what happened?

[don ramo]

johnny come lately should always be welcome, only problem most fans have is with sunshiners, but you will never know a sunshiner from a johnny come lately untill hes been there through the bad times supporting the lads,
as you said its money in the bank
im 24, and im even put down sometimes by oldstock tellin me there the real fans theyve been here 20 years, and blah blah blah, its totally irrelevent, you go to a game and you love it, you get attached to it, but this will never happen overnight, i would tell your friend to go back to maybe 2-3 more games and if he still doenst feel welcome then that the clubs loss, or more the fans loss as its really there club,

sad to see people not being welcomed into this enviroment we have,
send him our way more support is always welcome:D

[Dave77]

he was given abuse by young lads for wearing a rugby jersey nothing serious but again it would still put him off which i understand he went along to a game and got grief, he is a connaught fan and he simply would not get this in the sportsground. i told him to give LOI a go. He wont anymore

[stann]

Don't think it's a case of fans not making your friend welcome as such, Dave, there's no fan but wouldn't want to see more punters at games - at the end of the day, bar the very rare sugar daddy, everything a fan wants for their team is based on bodies through the turnstiles.
But in every group, however vanishingly small they're seeming at the minute, there's always knob-ends. I hope you can convince your mate that that is all it was.

[Higgo]

In all fairness Dave, if that little "incident" put him off then he obviously wasn't too interested in the first place. Of course every club needs new fans and they should be made welcome but ffs that is very minor "abuse". If he got a bit of stick at a Connaught game, would he stop going to that too?

[osarusan]

But in every group, however vanishingly small they're seeming at the minute, there's always knob-ends. I hope you can convince your mate that that is all it was.
Agreed. Convince him to give it at least one more go, with a different club if he is that bothered about it. It's unfortunate that he happened to come across some idiots, but they're not representative of eL fans in general.

[oldyouth]

I've returned to LOI since last year after a 25 year absence, so I could be considered a johnny come lately. If the 'abuse' amounted to a chant or something about the rugby jersy, then I think he's being oversensitive. If it was more than thay then it is not acceptable alright. Every true supporter of their club would love more people coming to see what attracts their attention week in, week out.
In every aspect of life there are eejits and you shouldn't take them as representitives of all

[Terry]

I agree, it all sounds like it was a bit of a laugh and nothing to be taken seriously?

[Dodge]

this league needs fans!!!!!!
but then again im a "jonny come lately"

Not neccesarily aimed at you but I'm ****ed off at how LOI fans are lumped together. You read the opinion of one bloke and thought it was the opinion of LOI fans.

LOI fans are black, white, Polish, Chinese, Irish, English, catholic, prodestant and loads of other races and nationalities. Some are idiots, some are sound. Some have rich, some are poor. We all have different taste in music, films, clothes and food & drink. Some are more hardcore than others. Some sing, some don't. Some are flag wavers, some aren't.

There is no LOI mentality, and don't for one second think the that LOI internet community is representative of LOI fans. We're a few thousand people who watch our local teams. Thats the only tthing we have in common and we'd have different opinions on everything. Some will welcome new fans, that bloke didn't.

Most people don't care about our league, and will use any excuse not to get involved. I don't care about these people, its their loss. If someone comes to the game with an open mind, then I'll do my bit to welcome them

[Massop 10]

Dave tell your mate to come down to Flancare Park. We need numbers in Section O and I don't care if they are Johnny come lately or sunshine supporters as long as they pay E15 they will be made fell more than welcome. In Section O we get some fans who drop in only now and again but we welcome them with open arms cos as you said its money for the club and for us its an extra voice for our songs and chants. If anyone wants a good night at a game come to Section O where we all are there for one thing - To have some fun and watch a game of football.

[skitz3]

Tell him to suck it up.

The quote in the fanzine is not poking fun at all Drogs fans, just the many who never bothered their arse goig when Drogheda didn't win a thing and they now profess to "love" their club when it's just as likely that they'll p*ss off back under the rock they crawled out from under if they happened to be relegated next season. I've seen the crowds they got in the first dvision, why couldn't they go and "love" their club then?

[stovelid]

In all fairness Dave, if that little "incident" put him off then he obviously wasn't too interested in the first place. Of course every club needs new fans and they should be made welcome but ffs that is very minor "abuse". If he got a bit of stick at a Connaught game, would he stop going to that too?

No offense, Dave but I agree with this. I've know a few people that have went to a LOI game almost wanting to be put off. They don't go back because the crowd is too small/football is "****e" whatever. It's almost as if they are pleased that their doubts have been confirmed and they can stay "I gave it a go anyway".

It's not nice to give somebody stick over a jersey but it could happen anywhere. Hopefully he'll be back. If he really wants to go again, he will.

[brianw82]

What game did he go to?

If he had worn a bog-standard black or white t-shirt the chances are he wouldn't have had a word said to him.

[Kildare Lad]

In fairness though lads he shouldnt have had anything said to him regardless of what he was wearing. That would be enough to turn a first timer off. Hope he gives the league another shot. What game was he at?

[dcfcsteve]

In all fairness Dave, if that little "incident" put him off then he obviously wasn't too interested in the first place. Of course every club needs new fans and they should be made welcome but ffs that is very minor "abuse". If he got a bit of stick at a Connaught game, would he stop going to that too?

I'd echo this.

That was just thick kids doling abuse out. You would get the same or worse walking down the street or standing at a bus stop. Would that stop him leaving the house ? :confused:

I got abuse once from eejits for wearing a Derry top in the centre of Dublin on my way to a game against Shels. Comically, it took them about 4 guesses - all of English teams - before I put them out of their misery about which team it actually was. Needless to say it won't stop me goin to B.A.C again.

Your friend either has very thin skin, or was given a very handy excuse for not going back to an EL game again.

[dcfcsteve]

and it really hit home because i had read a fanzine which said "this is aimed at the johnny-come-lately, jester hat wearing lamps that have begun to infest our game (note derry and Drogheda's nouveau support for example)",

I'd agree with you 100% on this Dave. There's a pathetic, sneering hairsuite element to some EL fans. You'd be forgiven for thinking that many wouldn't want the league to become successful at all, least the growing fanbase dilute their self-anointed superiority complex for following the club for years. It's their little play thing, so how dare anyone else try to get involved.

Bottom line is that every footbal fan has to have a first game (bar-stoolers aside, of course). Every football fan was a Johnny come lately at some point. Whoever wrote that in the fanzine should take a long hard look at themselves.

As for slagging off Derry's supposed jester-hat wearing fans - it's a 'criticism' I've heard often on this site from a small number of posters (you know who you are). I'm delighted that we have consistently the largest or second largest active fan-base in the league. And it's great that most of those jester hat wearing fans are kids - who, by the magical nature of human chronology, are obviously going to be Johnny Come Lately's given theri age. Perhaps the smug cnuts with comments like this could take a look around the numerous empty seats at their own grounds in-future, and try to imagine what it woiuld look and sound like to have a group of jester-hat wearing Johnny Come Lately's cheering on their team for a change....

[skitz3]

Suprise suprise :rolleyes:

[kingdom hoop]

In fairness though lads he shouldnt have had anything said to him regardless of what he was wearing.

Completely disagree. Sorry.

I'm not of course privy to the exact facts at hand but abuse should usually be just one clever retort away from friendly banter, which might in the odd case spawn a connection between a newcomer and the regulars, something that leaves an impression so that Johnny might come back. Fair enough some people like to mind their own business, and some people are strangely sensitive, but if a fella on his own going to a match for the first time isn't open to a bit of (hopefully good-natured) messing he probably won't ever get into going regularly.

Anyway for all the hecklers suspected Dave's friend purposely wore provocative clothing to see if there was any craic out of the fans or if they were as boring as the rugby lot! Well, what I mean is if you wear a rugby jersey to a football match expect some few smart comments, get into the spirit of things and try maybe have a bit of fun. :)

[dcfcsteve]

Suprise suprise :rolleyes:

Surprise, surprise what...? :confused:

[thischarmingman]

No offense, Dave but I agree with this. I've know a few people that have went to a LOI game almost wanting to be put off. They don't go back because the crowd is too small/football is "****e" whatever. It's almost as if they are pleased that their doubts have been confirmed and they can stay "I gave it a go anyway".

It's not nice to give somebody stick over a jersey but it could happen anywhere. Hopefully he'll be back. If he really wants to go again, he will.

Agree 100%.

[redobit]

Havin a bit of a slagin is all part of the fun of the LOI. and if u cant take a bit of jibin, from kids, well all i cant say is dont come to the Showgies nyway.

[ndrog]

Tell him to suck it up.

The quote in the fanzine is not poking fun at all Drogs fans, just the many who never bothered their arse goig when Drogheda didn't win a thing and they now profess to "love" their club when it's just as likely that they'll p*ss off back under the rock they crawled out from under if they happened to be relegated next season. I've seen the crowds they got in the first dvision, why couldn't they go and "love" their club then?


Not sure who you support , but what are you talking about ffs .Drogheda were getting the same amount of fans when we were fighting relegation .The season of the play off game with galway had a very similar average gate than this seasons .This is getting really annoying as no eircom leauge club can comment on attendances of another as there all crap .Bot dont let the facts get in the way of another way to attack Drogheda :rolleyes:

[Réiteoir]

Havin a bit of a slagin is all part of the fun of the LOI. and if u cant take a bit of jibin, from kids, well all i cant say is dont come to the Showgies nyway.

This message is brought to you by the Marketing Department of Sligo Rovers FC...

Sligo Rovers - A Local Club for Local People

[Rovers Maniac]

This message is brought to you by the Marketing Department of Sligo Rovers FC...

Sligo Rovers - A Local Club for Local People

Some of these days you are going to say something wity until then i suppose we will just have to put up with you being totally obsessed by us and everything Rovers ;)

[Réiteoir]

Why would I be obsessed with Shamrock Rovers? :confused:

[Rovers Maniac]

Why would I be obsessed with Shamrock Rovers? :confused:

Biggest club in Dublin i would say ;)

[skitz3]

Not sure who you support , but what are you talking about ffs .Drogheda were getting the same amount of fans when we were fighting relegation .The season of the play off game with galway had a very similar average gate than this seasons .This is getting really annoying as no eircom leauge club can comment on attendances of another as there all crap .Bot dont let the facts get in the way of another way to attack Drogheda :rolleyes:

Christ, don't flatter yourself. You're not worth of anyones hate, except maybe Dundalk. You're honestly trying to tell me that you have roughly the same average gate now as you did, the season you were fighting relegation? I might be hungover but i'm not just going to believe any old shi*te like that.

[chipsahoy]

Christ, don't flatter yourself. You're not worth of anyones hate, except maybe Dundalk. You're honestly trying to tell me that you have roughly the same average gate now as you did, the season you were fighting relegation? I might be hungover but i'm not just going to believe any old shi*te like that.


in fairness he's right about the season in question. althought we used to have dire attendences. i remember about 10 years ago we were about to fold and those years we used to get about 100 or 200 in gates but that was the worst it has ever been that i remember. i canb take this slaggin but at the end of the day we're a club who are on the up as opposed to most teams now so we're obviously going to be targets!

[Schumi]

Why would I be obsessed with Shamrock Rovers? :confused:Aren't you a Bohs fan? :confused:

[Macy]

Not sure why the op didn't just bring him to a Shels game if he's so concerned about the impression he'd get. Sounds like a massive case of being thin skinned - game was hardly so packed he couldn't go and mingle somewhere else if he was that bothered about getting a slagging over a (Connacht) Rugby jersey at a league match. Just add it to the list of bogus excuses that people will come up with...

Bar sounding like the shels fanzine is following very similar lines to Red Issue, it's probably right about people who where jesters hats to football matches. Taking one quote, from one article in one fanzine, quite probably out of context, hardly gives the right for anyone to brand all League of Ireland fans with the same brush when it comes to welcoming new comers. Speaking from experience I'd say it's the very opposite.

[GavinZac]

Not sure who you support , but what are you talking about ffs .Drogheda were getting the same amount of fans when we were fighting relegation .The season of the play off game with galway had a very similar average gate than this seasons .This is getting really annoying as no eircom leauge club can comment on attendances of another as there all crap .Bot dont let the facts get in the way of another way to attack Drogheda :rolleyes:

You seem touchy this morning for some reason.

[ndrog]

Christ, don't flatter yourself. You're not worth of anyones hate, except maybe Dundalk. You're honestly trying to tell me that you have roughly the same average gate now as you did, the season you were fighting relegation? I might be hungover but i'm not just going to believe any old shi*te like that.

Hate ? who mentioned hate .Im just giving you the facts pal , if you dont like em tough .The last season we were fighting relegation we had very similar crowds to this season .You getting the message yet :eek:

[GavinZac]

Hate ? who mentioned hate .Im just giving you the facts pal , if you dont like em tough .The last season we were fighting relegation we had very similar crowds to this season .You getting the message yet :eek:

Your fans didn't like watching you under perform in either season?

[ndrog]

My Fans ? Thanks v much ;) In the same way cork fans didnt like being beaten by Drogheda in 2 cup finals .You wanna keep at it or what :confused:

[GavinZac]

My Fans ? Thanks v much ;) In the same way cork fans didnt like being beaten by Drogheda in 2 cup finals .You wanna keep at it or what :confused:
Strangely enough, our fans seem to like it; we're setting records for highest average attendances, then as now.

I think the gist of what they were saying is that there was a brief increase in your attendances while you were above your station in the league, but before and after that period they weren't very good and back in the grave yard a few years ago they were poor even by that standard.

Nothing to be ashamed of, as the heir to the Longford model (over-investing in a mostly Dublin-based side and sticking them at some club in the outer reaches of Dublin's suburbs) you won the same number of cups and succeeded where they didn't in pulling in a league title, albeit in a weakened league but we won't go into details. I'd say that'll be the difference, while Longfords attendances dropped back into the hundreds I'm sure you'll maintain yours around the thousand mark.

[GuisaSaigon]

he is a connaught fan and he simply would not get this in the sportsground.
Sounds like the Galway United Chairman actually attended a game!:D

[ndrog]

Thats good to know that your fans enjoy being beaten in cup finals , you really are strange bunch .As for us being above our station and getting crap crowds ? well its been said many times with regards to the population of corkie land you are getting even worse ones .i.e the vast majority of the bandwaggon corkies dont give a rats arse about city .As for your comments regarding dublin players ? Get over it FFS , you not complaining about were your manager and top goal scorer come from are you ? Dubs if im not mistaken . Does our close proximity to Dublin effect you langers that much that you keep harping on about it .As for over investing , how much are you big investors loosing this season ?

[Rovers fan]

just the many who never bothered their arse goig when Drogheda didn't win a thing and they now profess to "love" their club when it's just as likely that they'll p*ss off back under the rock they crawled out from under if they happened to be relegated next season. I've seen the crowds they got in the first dvision, why couldn't they go and "love" their club then?

Ok,you support shels. In 2004 ye won the league and had an average attendance of 2158.Now in 2007,when in the first division your average attendance was 888. So where did all those who "love" the club go:rolleyes:?

[skitz3]

Ok,you support shels. In 2004 ye won the league and had an average attendance of 2158.Now in 2007,when in the first division your average attendance was 888. So where did all those who "love" the club go:rolleyes:?


Oh no, the achillies hill in my arguement. I hoping no one would bring that one up :rolleyes:

Firstly, our averages weren't even that high in 2004 and secondly Columbo, did it ever cross your mind that while playing Premier football and winning titles, the away support was much bigger with teams like Derry, Cork, Pats, Bohs and Rovers all bringing in and over a thousand people to games Tolka.

[Rovers fan]

Firstly, our averages weren't even that high in 2004.






and secondly Columbo, did it ever cross your mind that while playing Premier football and winning titles, the away support was much bigger with teams like Derry, Cork, Pats, Bohs and Rovers all bringing in and over a thousand people to games Tolka.


1)Well those figures were taken from the attendances thread so they must be quite accurate.

2)Yes,these teams were bringing 1300 fans every week,that makes up for the difference:rolleyes::rolleyes: So I'll have to accept that all shels fans stayed loyal:rolleyes:

[micls]

1)Well those figures were taken from the attendances thread so they must be quite accurate.


:D:D

Shels had rubbish crowds, even when they were winning the league.

[Rovers fan]

:D:D

Shels had rubbish crowds, even when they were winning the league.

They declined from 04 onwards,again according to the attendances thread.
It can't be that far off anyway.

[CharlesThompson]

How in the name of sweet Jaysus has this turned into a crowd bashing, you're worse than us posturing excersize?!

Who give's a flying fück what anybody's crowd size was 5 or 6 years ago? It's the most irrelavant argument/discussion point that this (rapidly going downhill) forum has at any time.

FACT. If a team starts to do well and win trophy's then the crowds will in 99% of cases increase (bar Shels of course). This is a formula proved the world over. When a team starts to do badly (Bohs for instance) crowds will fall away. Simple.

FWIW, in relation to the actual point of this thread (though I'm damned how I remember what it was after reading 2 pages of pure drivel), then it is IMO generally speaking not going to benefit anybody if somebody is going to get slagged off for coming to an eL game for the first time whether they were the jersey of another team in football or another code. No matter what anybody here likes to believe there is a generalisation about eL football and its supporters which has been waved like the Jolly Roger by the general media in this country for more years than I care to remember. And part of that generalisation is to paint us as 'holier than thou' group of people that do not want our game taken over by 'Johnny come lately's'.

The upshot then is that people can be wary of coming to eL matches and their 'fears' may well come to pass on the utterance of a throw away mark from any regular attendee at our games.

That said, if he's given up based on that then he could probably well be one of those lads that went looking for an excuse not to come back. Easier to turn down opportunities to come to games later on in life.

[skitz3]

1)Well those figures were taken from the attendances thread so they must be quite accurate.

Yes of course they are, all that guess work is quite accurate. I've been discussing this on Shelsweb recently but i don't believe the attendance figures on here one bit.


2)Yes,these teams were bringing 1300 fans every week,that makes up for the difference:rolleyes::rolleyes: So I'll have to accept that all shels fans stayed loyal:rolleyes:

Areyou trying to say 1300 fans every other week wouldn't make that difference? For as long as i've been going to Shels games regularly there has been a hardcore of about 800 fans. Of course like every team (winning things or not) some come and go, a few have gone due to being demoted, mainly young lads who now go to either Bohs or Rovers so they were never much fans in the first place.

[osarusan]

Oh no, the achillies hill in my arguement.

Isn't that a mountain in Scotland?

[Dave77]

Me mate told me this in the pub with a few drinks on him. he wasnt upset just kinda making the point i gave it a go (have been hassling him to go for a while to go) and didnt like it, he was there with his girlfriend and was ****ed off.

and it just struck me because i had just read fanzine.

as some people have said on this forum maybe he didnt really go in the right mindset.