Annoying Monday morning soccer conversations

[peadar1987]

Same here, really annoys me. Someone asks me, 'So who do you support?' I say 'Harps'. Then they go, 'but who in England do you support?'....agghhhhh!!

Derry.

[John83]

Is it just me wondering why you had a UCD scarf on you in an Irish pub in Rome?

It's Pineapple Stu; he wears UCD gear to funerals.

[WoodquayBoy]

Fresh from the San Marino game/heading off to the Bari game.

To be honest, I didn't walk in the first night with the scarf, but when I figured it might be good for a free pint...!

Typical free-loading student! Marinobohs, I just might use that comparison in future arguments, and pray the Mary-Harney-in-lingerie-and-6-inch-stilettos-rubbing-baby-oil-all-over-herself* rebuttal is not thrown back at me.




(*Did I go a bit far there??) Sorry, nerves over tonight's play-off are getting to me

[marinobohs]

Typical free-loading student! Marinobohs, I just might use that comparison in future arguments, and pray the Mary-Harney-in-lingerie-and-6-inch-stilettos-rubbing-baby-oil-all-over-herself* rebuttal is not thrown back at me.




(*Did I go a bit far there??) Sorry, nerves over tonight's play-off are getting to me

dont use the comparison tonight so (Peadar is a Bray Fan). *














* and yes, way way too far

[Fivesilver]

Have been known to have a "discussion" or two with Prem supporting friends (I know it will come as a surprise to many on here ) and usually wrap it up by the comparison of live footie versus "SKY" to sex versus porn video !
..............usually ends the argument

Or the difference between going to small-venue gigs and watching the X Factor

[Dead_Star]

Originally Posted by pineapple stu

There's a growing group of people now who won't support Ireland cos they're crap. I've had people in work say that they would support an Irish team if they got to the CL, but only in the CL group stages, because basically any standard below what can't get out of the group stages isn't worth supporting.

This person was a Leeds fan, and then changed to Arsenal around the time Leeds went pop...

I heard people use that excuse before about the standard being bad giving for a reason they don't support an Irish team. And I know a lad that was in school with me that went from supporting Sheffield Wednesday to Newcastle and a few years ago I seen him in a Chelsea jersey.

But it doesn't explain why some Irish people support team's in the lower divisions in England. I have meet Irish people that support Leeds, Notts Forest, Sheffield Wednesday and Crystal Place. They still support them even when the teams successful period ended.

It's like their saying they are die hard football fans for sticking with "their" team that was successfully when they were younger and have stuck with them even though they are now crap. Could they be arsed going up the road to see a local team play? No, but they still have some connection team in the lower leagues in England. I can never figure out what goes through their heads when it comes to this. I have heard people that support second division English teams sneer the standard of Irish football.

[pineapple stu]

It's their way of standing out from the crowd I'd say. But to do this, it seems you still have to support an English team.

[SkStu]

i have to say all the stuff posted here is bringing a wry smile to my face. Agree with everything posted. But i would also like to add another category of wbanker to this list... the 'stooler who claims superiority over other 'stoolers based on the fact that he doesnt even like the EPL and is a huge Juventus/Milan/Barca/Madrid* fan.

These guys are almost worse because they think theyre better..

* Club jersey purchased in the mid 90's is sufficuent evidence of their being "huge fans".
* Attendance at any game ever is irrelevant but if they've taken a tour of the Noucamp (or equivalent) on a stag weekend then you'll never hear the end of it.

[John83]

I don't have a problem with any of these people. They're consumers of sports entertainment, and I'm a fan of my local football team. Sometimes, I also consume sports entertainment. They don't understand that my following UCD isn't like their following of Liverpool, but that's okay.

[SkStu]

that is because you are rational and apply logic. Which says to me that you shouldnt be interested in following a football team and should instead take up sudoku.

[John83]

I find sudoku kind of boring to be honest. Anyway, I'm published in combinatorics, so it's a bit too much like work.

I wonder, if I worked in chaos theory, would I find the LoI boring too?

[PartySaint]

Hold on Lads,Did anyone ever think maybe we're the ones who are wrong??

[John83]

I thought about it, but no. The fan culture driven by the marketing teams in the likes of Manchester and Isleworth (BSkyB headquarters) have manipulated and aped traditional fan culture. Their customers are being sold a manufactured approximation of the fan culture we experience. Are they wrong to enjoy the product they buy? No, absolutely not. But they're not football fans, any more than fans of The Undertaker and John Cena* are wrestling fans.

*WWE references may be out of date and/or film stars and/or dead. I just don't know, and can't be arsed checking.

[Guinney]

I often fruitlessly try to convince my mates to go to Dundalk matches, but they would rather sit on their 'barstools'. In my opinion watching football from the telly isn't truly watching football. Football is a spectator sport from the sidelines, from the terraces, from the stands, from the one man and his dog, from the packed stadiums. But try convincing your average LoI-shunning barstooler of this. The simple truth is to many Irish people are event junkies and only like supporting teams when times are good. A real fan supports his team through tick and thin. I've nothing against supporting English teams, but supporting your local team should come first.

Here are some of the reasons why some of my barstooler mates don't go to matches:

Why should I support Dundalk they aren't even top of the league....Liverpool 'fan'.
The league is **** ... a person who never set foot in Oriel probably since we played Liverpool yonks ago.
Its to dear, I can't be spending this money every week ... a regular in Anfield & Croke Park & soon to be regular in Aviva, where ticket prices are much higher than Oriel (plus travel costs).
I'd go if the league was better ... how can the league get better if attendances don't improve.
What did Dundalk ever do for me ... A Celtic 'fan', Neil Lennon regularly visits his house, cuts his grass and does general DIY jobs for him.
Sure there's no local lads playing ... from an Irish man I work with who supports Liverpool, an English team full of foreigners

[Ezeikial]

Sure there's no local lads playing ... from an Irish man I work with who supports Liverpool, an English team full of foreigners

Last time I heard that one, I told the barstooler of the bunch of local lads....Ross Gaynor, Tiarnan Mulvenna (at that time), Stephen McDonnell, Ciaran McGuigan, Johnny Breen. Before I got to mention other locals who were often in the squad, he replied "Sure they are all $hite, if there was really good local lads I'd go"

[marinobohs]

Hold on Lads,Did anyone ever think maybe we're the ones who are wrong??

Try a day trip to Old trafford, Anfield, or any "big" EPL ground PS and I promise you that you when you look at the number of g*bs around you it will become clear where the real football fans are *

I believe in live and let live (still hope some of the EPL junkies can be converted to the one true faith) but there are times......



* not trting to offend anybody here but much the same can be said about the crowd at most Rep of Ireland games.

[WoodquayBoy]

For Annoying Monday morning conversations, a new departure for me today was annoying Wednesday morning conversation:
WC: How did ye got on last night against Cork?
M: We were playing Bray, and we won, so we're staying up.
WC: Ah great, and didn't Salthill beat Monaghan? It'll be interesting now with 3 Galway teams in the First Division, I'll probably go to a few games so next year.
M: *walks away shaking my head*

[Dodge]

Woodquay, you need to move jobs. For their safety as much as anything else.

I work with a bunch of aulwans and weirdos. Only one likes football, and has a decent interest in the league to be fair. The rest don’t talk to me about sport because they’re sick of me rolling my eyes at them after they say anything at all on the subject. I call them “the world cup is crap because Ireland isn’t in it” types

Just to echo bluebeard’s post above. Have gone to plenty of games in England and mainland Europe. Always treated as an equal by them, and they usually get what supporting a team is about.

[marinobohs]

Woodquay, you need to move jobs. For their safety as much as anything else.

I work with a bunch of aulwans and weirdos. Only one likes football, and has a decent interest in the league to be fair. The rest don’t talk to me about sport because they’re sick of me rolling my eyes at them after they say anything at all on the subject. I call them “the world cup is crap because Ireland isn’t in it” types

Just to echo bluebeard’s post above. Have gone to plenty of games in England and mainland Europe. Always treated as an equal by them, and they usually get what supporting a team is about.

Congrats on the job at tallaght stadium Dodge (Yes, put away the burning torches, it was only a joke).
depends very much on where you are in England. Scouser (born in/live in) Liverpool fans dont have a lot of time for the day trippers and are not shy about letting them know, understand similar sentiments can be found at Old Trafford. Would agree with you they are less defensive about supporting their team than we seem to be and (especially outside the top of the EPL) are still traditional footie fans in the main.

[Dodge]

Yep, scousers and mancs might despise day trippers there to support Liverpool/Man U (complete with kit, scarf etc etc) but as I'm just there to have a few beers and watch a bit of ball they treat me far better than they do my Liverpool/Man u supporting mates. It actually ****es my mates off that I can swap stories about bus breaking down and last minute equalisers and being kept behind while home fans throw ****e at us.