General football related musings

[luckyeddie]

46 minutes ago, HongKongVillan said:

Fat obese Newcastle fans who go shirtless in matches, and somehow they are always being praised by pundits, for being 'passionate', 'real fans'.

what are you praising them for, being fat and ugly and probably using our tax money to fund his obese life style?

Wasn't the "famous" one twenty odd years ago a bloke from Wolverhampton?

[Mark Albrighton]

26 minutes ago, Xela said:

I remember when the FA Cup meant something. A joyous day, even if your team wasn't playing in it. 3pm Saturday kick-off. Watch the build up on Grandstand from 12:15pm... aerial shots from a helicopter of the coaches arriving etc. 

Can't remember the last time I watched the final. 

It’s a funny one, the FA cup final. A large part of my own negative feeling towards it is that these days it’s always the same handful of teams who reach the final. Oh it’s Arsenal v Chelsea again, how interesting.

But it’s kinda always been the case. 

Since 2000 there’s been 48 finalists. 

Chelsea are top with 11 appearances. 

Then Arsenal (8), Man Utd (6), Man City (4) and Liverpool (4). 

So 5 clubs have occupied 33 finalist spots. The other 15 spots are shared by 13 clubs.

But, looking at FA cup finals from 1975 to 1999 -

Man Utd lead with 10 finals, then Liverpool (6), Arsenal (5), Everton (5) and Spurs (4). 

So over this period of time, 5 clubs make up 30 of the finalists spots. Basically as dominant as the following quarter of a century. For completion the 18 final spots were shared by 15 clubs.

I think really what it is, is the sense that the usual clubs competing in the final would rather be doing something else. It’s a consolation prize to them now and it wasn’t in 1976. At least it doesn’t appear to have been.

[rjw63]

1 hour ago, Xela said:

I remember when the FA Cup meant something. A joyous day, even if your team wasn't playing in it. 3pm Saturday kick-off. Watch the build up on Grandstand from 12:15pm... aerial shots from a helicopter of the coaches arriving etc. 

Can't remember the last time I watched the final. 

This.

[mjmooney]

1 hour ago, Xela said:

I couldn't name 3 players from the Luton Town squad today. 

TBH I'd have that problem even with the 'big' teams. 

[villa4europe]

3 hours ago, Xela said:

I remember when the FA Cup meant something. A joyous day, even if your team wasn't playing in it. 3pm Saturday kick-off. Watch the build up on Grandstand from 12:15pm... aerial shots from a helicopter of the coaches arriving etc. 

Can't remember the last time I watched the final. 

i can remember ours, i spent the weeks leading up to it saying im not getting drunk, im enjoying the saturday night in london, sunday im taking it easy soaking it all up

10am im in the spoons for breakfast with a pint, someone comes in wearing a captain morgan's pirate hat, im a big rum drinker so i want one, he says andy townsend and david seaman are pulling pints in the globe over the road, neck the rest of the pint, run over, townsend pours me a pint, turn round see its 75% arsenal in there and a bit shit, neck the pint, run back over to the spoons...i was smashed, could barely see come the game

[HanoiVillan]

3 hours ago, Xela said:

I remember when the FA Cup meant something. A joyous day, even if your team wasn't playing in it. 3pm Saturday kick-off. Watch the build up on Grandstand from 12:15pm... aerial shots from a helicopter of the coaches arriving etc. 

Can't remember the last time I watched the final. 

After the 3rd or 4th round it doesn't mean much any more, but I still get some joy out of going to the preliminaries, saw Halesowen Town thrash Rugby Borough 7-0 this year which was a fun day out. 

[Mark Albrighton]

When it gets to May, I wonder how many supporters ask the question “So do away goals count in the play offs?”.

[mjmooney]

I'm never too sure which teams are in the Football League and which are not any more.

Without checking, I would have assumed the likes of Accrington Stanley, Crawley, Harrogate, Salford and Forest Green were way down in the lower reaches of non-league, but no, they are League 2. 

Likewise, Halifax Town, Oldham Athletic, York City, etc., I think of as League clubs. And they aren't. 

And that's before we get onto the mysteries of Scottish fitba. 

Edited November 20, 2023 by mjmooney

[HanoiVillan]

Scarcely worth putting in any other thread, but the wife noticed a Villa mention in this bit of Sarah Millican's stand up the other day:

 

[fruitvilla]

13 hours ago, mjmooney said:

TBH I'd have that problem even with the 'big' teams. 

I don't have a problem not being able to name opposition players.

[Rich192]

On 20/11/2023 at 23:53, HanoiVillan said:

Scarcely worth putting in any other thread, but the wife noticed a Villa mention in this bit of Sarah Millican's stand up the other day:

 

Her partner is Gary Delaney, a Villa fan comic. 

[HKP90]

18 minutes ago, Rich192 said:

Her partner is Gary Delaney, a Villa fan comic. 

Not a massive fan of one-liner comedians, but some of his are quite good.

[maqroll]

On 19/11/2023 at 10:22, Xela said:

A thread for things that don't warrant their own thread. 

- What is with players and that stupid celebration most do, when they they do a jump slide on their knees. I always wince, as my knees constantly ache! 

- I can't be the only one who hates South American commentators reactions when they announce a goal - "Gooooooooaaaaaaaaallllll" **** off pal. 

if i were an owner or manager, id not let my players do the knee slide

[maqroll]

fa cup semifinals at wembley makes the final much less of a spectacle. such a stupid decision.

also, they shouldve renovated the old wembley. it had such a strong aura. nothing like it. *(except maybe the old Boston Garden) 

Edited November 22, 2023 by maqroll

[maqroll]

I wonder if some of the superstar players of yesteryear would just be random mid or upper mid level players today.

If you watch George Best clips, yes he dances through defenses, but the defending is really awful. Just guys standing still and sticking a leg out to try and stop him.

[Zatman]

39 minutes ago, maqroll said:

I wonder if some of the superstar players of yesteryear would just be random mid or upper mid level players today.

If you watch George Best clips, yes he dances through defenses, but the defending is really awful. Just guys standing still and sticking a leg out to try and stop him.

But they also played on dreadful pitches with no protection while living an unhealthy lifestyle

Would Harry Kane, Mbappe or Neymar have thrived on a bobbly pitch with a rock hard ball while getting violently attacked as diving wasnt really a big thing

[bobzy]

Just now, Zatman said:

But they also played on dreadful pitches with no protection while living an unhealthy lifestyle

Would Harry Kane, Mbappe or Neymar have thrived on a bobbly pitch with a rock hard ball while getting violently attacked as diving wasnt really a big thing

Considering the more successful players from the past were the skilful ones, you’d assume yes. 

[maqroll]

4 minutes ago, Zatman said:

Would Harry Kane, Mbappe or Neymar have thrived on a bobbly pitch with a rock hard ball while getting violently attacked as diving wasnt really a big thing

I'd guess that they would. They are fitter, faster and more skillful. So despite those old timey parameters, I think they'd dominate. After all, they dominate today, against hundreds of other, fit, highly skilled players employing better methods and tactics.

And as far as bobbly pitches, Neymar probably played on his fair share of them as a youth player. And I assume Mbappe played on asphalt.

[Zatman]

20 minutes ago, maqroll said:

I'd guess that they would. They are fitter, faster and more skillful. So despite those old timey parameters, I think they'd dominate. After all, they dominate today, against hundreds of other, fit, highly skilled players employing better methods and tactics.

And as far as bobbly pitches, Neymar probably played on his fair share of them as a youth player. And I assume Mbappe played on asphalt.

But if George Best had all the benefits of playing the modern game including curbing his drinking then he would be no different to how he was in his prime

[Xela]

3 hours ago, maqroll said:

if i were an owner or manager, id not let my players do the knee slide

With so many ACL injuries in top level sport, its a stress on the knee that is just not needed.