atmosphere today

[SashasGrandad]

I am convinced the ship has been steadied. Yesterday was the most settled and assured  we have looked as  a club in two years. Last season (and the season before) there was a sense of constant crisis and dread. Villa Park always seemed nervy, on edge. Yesterday I felt we started to look to the future with confidence.

I agree - I think the confidence in our new team is starting to grow - even when Vlaar went off the crowd stayed with the team and played their part in holding on for the point. I think regulars can see the progress being made and its starting to raise the spirits.

In recent seasons the crowd would have sensed disaster at that point - and would have gone very quiet while the game faded away with the inevitable defeat.

You could see the players were determined to hold out - they knew it was going to be hard without concrete Ron but they kept their nerve, quickly reorganised, Lowton seemed to know it was going to happen and was prepared to go in the middle, Clark took charge, Lichaj slotted in well, Stephens looks a bit unorthodox but he is fairly effective despite being a bit of a worry, he does push the opponents back, not sure how he does it but they are less of a danger the further the get towards their own half!

Westwood and Bannan were not world beaters but they and Al Ahmadi weren't afraid to take on the Arsenal "established stars" and at times they were on top.

Keep the faith we are getting there. When we do get there the atmosphere will also be back to its best.

[nornironvillain]

Armchair 'fans' knocking the atmosphere.. pisses me off nearly as much as Small Heath Fans.

wasnt knocking anything - just saying that the utd match the atmosphere was/seemed a lot better - hell even the 2 commentators said as much a couple of times, and i take it they were there?

[nornironvillain]

When it comes to judging atmosphere, I think he has a point. I do think you have to be there.

In my opinion, the atmosphere was second only to the Man Utd match.

what you should do is start another "funny" thread and then have to explain to everyone what the "joke" is

[astonvillan]

on espn you could hear every Arsenal song, and when the Villa are live on tv, its very rare you hear the away fans!!!

You can always hear the away fans on TV at Villa Park. The mics are located by the away end. Furthest from our 'singing end'. It's the same at Goodison & Ewood.

I was sat in the Upper North and had to explain to an Arsenal fan at half time the principle of acoustics in football stadia. And how he wasn't going to hear the Upper Holte from 150+ yards away. Same applies here.

The second half however, when the whole of the Holte joined in, it was excellent and very much audible from where we were. I had a wry smile as our supporters in the Lower Holte sang "Paul Lambert's Claret & Blue Army" whilst Arsenal fans boo'd Wenger and sang "You don't know what you're doing". Excellent from us. You wouldn't find many fans so ardently behind their manager when in the relegation zone a third of the way into the season.

[myf]

I thought the atmosphere sounded good on TV, and heard lots of Villa songs.  Have you won the Euro cup etc...

[dave.woodhall]

I was in the lower north and it was a bit quiet in there. Maybe it was the weather? It was utterly grim today.

I *was* in it for two hours!

Try standing in it for two hours.

Not before the match you weren't.

I actually was. It wasn't pleasant. I thought the Holte sounded noisy at times, I was hoping the Paul Lambert claret and blue army chant would catch on where we were because that one sounded ace. As ever the acoustics of the ground probably have a part to play.

It still wasn't the wettest ever. Middlesbrough in 2008 wins that award.

[WALTERS WARRIORS]

I was bloody soaked. I had to stay in the pub to silly o`clock to get dry, it was terrible :-))

[Can Gana Be Bettered!?!?]

When it comes to judging atmosphere, I think he has a point. I do think you have to be there.

In my opinion, the atmosphere was second only to the Man Utd match.

what you should do is start another "funny" thread and then have to explain to everyone what the "joke" is

"By" "everyone", "you" "mean" "the" "couple" "who" "missed" "it""," "then" "understood" "what" "I" "meant""?"

[Breezeblock]

From P8 all I could hear was the Arse fans who put on a good show, unlike those Manc scumbags a couple of weeks back.  For us there was one particularly obnoxious knuckledragging fucktard up at the back of P8 who really boiled my piss.  When he wasn't calling Bannan a ****** or screaming "Dive in you useless ******" at all of our defenders he was trying to provoke the Arse fans from behind a row of stewards.  Fair play to the Arse fans for nearly causing said individual to suffer an aneurism by pointing and laughing at him.

[MarkM]

Agree with comments about L8, you can barely hear the Holte from there

[nornironvillain]

When it comes to judging atmosphere, I think he has a point. I do think you have to be there.

In my opinion, the atmosphere was second only to the Man Utd match.

what you should do is start another "funny" thread and then have to explain to everyone what the "joke" is

"By" "everyone", "you" "mean" "the" "couple" "who" "missed" "it""," "then" "understood" "what" "I" "meant""?"

there was only a "couple" of comments before it was asked...then had to ask where it was....im sure its still up there

but again good effort

[garyfouroaks]

Mindful of our league position and the weather it could have been a lot worse.

[Andy_Lochhead_in_the_air]

Well I sit in Lower Trinity. I was cold and my seat was wet.

[MarkM]

I was in the lower north and it was a bit quiet in there. Maybe it was the weather? It was utterly grim today.

I *was* in it for two hours!

Try standing in it for two hours.

Not before the match you weren't.

I actually was. It wasn't pleasant. I thought the Holte sounded noisy at times, I was hoping the Paul Lambert claret and blue army chant would catch on where we were because that one sounded ace. As ever the acoustics of the ground probably have a part to play.

It still wasn't the wettest ever. Middlesbrough in 2008 wins that award.

I dont know, Wimbledon away in the FA cup was pretty wet for a Wednesday night, (can't remember the year, but if memory serves we lost to an own goal) I along with about 1500 other villa fans got pissed right through

[SoccerHQ]

There was a rousing rendition of PL's claret and blue army near the end for a few minutes.

Shows most are still behind him.