Other Games - 2017/18

[Chris Jameson]

I went to football matches regularly throughout the late 70's and 80's and very rarely saw any violence. No doubt there was but it was also very easy to avoid, maybe I was lucky but judging by the amount of books by supposed former hooligans you'd think each match was a war zone. Funny how they recall exactly how many were involved and how outnumbered they were and all the logistics involved, did they have a 'crew' documenting each ruckus? Saw far more trouble at gigs than football matches.

[Comrade Blitz]

Football has actually won something back with USA being knocked out.  They are everything that I detest about the modern game,  corporate, franchised and nouvelle soccer supporters. 

Sam's Army and their equivalents at club level all seem to be tatooed/bearded/hipster/millennial types latching on the the newest fad. They'll all be having their chips in little metal buckets and their food served on slates - washed down with a growler of locally brewed, hipster-flavoured beer.

[Risso]

I'm sure I read somewhere that at junior level in the US, [proper] football is the biggest participation sport.

[saunders_heroes]

These international breaks are a pain in the back side. Roll on the weekend!

[Comrade Blitz]

Oh - it definitely is - soccer-mad kids and all that - but the problem historically has been that once the kids become teens they gravitate away from it  - both playing and supporting.

The proliferation of leagues for the under 14s isn't reflected in the high schools and there won't be many "clubs" at that level. So if you don't make your high school team you probably won't be playing competitively as a 14-18 yr old. Studies also suggest that at that age they also tend to just start supporting NFL or NBA or mostly from peer pressure.

I'm guessing here but I'd bet that the majority of Sam's Army members and individual club army member's don't come from the ranks of those who once played as a child.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

World Cup U17s in India

England 3  Mexico 2

The scoreline flatters Mexico as England were 3 up and cruising, playing some of the best football I've ever seen from an England side. Through to the quarter finals with with a game to go. Mexico were highly rated but England made them look like U12s. Chelsea, Man City and Liverpool have some brilliant players coming through.

[cdbearsfan]

They'll have more loan spells than first team games for those clubs.

[Ads]

Football was a hell of a lot tastier 24 years ago everywhere. In 1993 we went to the Sty and there was a battle on Garrison Lane. We will go in a few weeks time and nothing will happen.

The games moved on.

Was there? Cant say i remember that, and football was "a hell of a lot tastier?" i cant say i saw any major problems at all following Villa home and away in the late 80's early 90's.

There was. You ok Colin?

Im fine, went to the game on the number 8 bus, watched us win, got the number 8 bus home. Didnt see any violence, riots, fights.

Honestly, went to VP throughout the 80's and probably saw one instance of violence outside the ground, against Arsenal of all teams.

My one memory of any sort of trouble with opposing fans was a final day game against Chelsea when a few hundred little hard men came out of the Holte End at full time and decided to goad the few Chelsea fans there, will never forget the noise of stampeding feet on the VP pitch when the Chelsea fans decided to walk onto the pitch.. walked through Aston Park that day listening to a chorus of "Villa run from Chelsea"

I dont deny violence occured at many Villa games (as they did with football in general) throughout that period, but its no different from now.. generally if you keep your head down, are sensible about where you go and how you behave then you will be fine.

All this "football was tastier in the 80's" all sounds a bit patheitc and Danny Dyer, it just amuses me.

Glad you agree that football was more violent in the 70/80/90s than it is today, which was my point.

[Jon Crofts]

I'm sure I read somewhere that at junior level in the US, [proper] football is the biggest participation sport.

I can believe that, every time I travel to the US I see more and more kids playing football.  You only need a ball to play whereas every single American sport needs endless amounts of uniform and kit, just pop into Dicks Sporting Goods or Sports Authority and see how much a baseball bat, catchers mitt, batters helmet, batting gloves & silly trousers will set you back for little Johnny, fucking eye watering amounts, don't even bother looking at American Big Girls Blouse Football equipment costs.

[ColinMac]

Football was a hell of a lot tastier 24 years ago everywhere. In 1993 we went to the Sty and there was a battle on Garrison Lane. We will go in a few weeks time and nothing will happen.

The games moved on.

Was there? Cant say i remember that, and football was "a hell of a lot tastier?" i cant say i saw any major problems at all following Villa home and away in the late 80's early 90's.

There was. You ok Colin?

Im fine, went to the game on the number 8 bus, watched us win, got the number 8 bus home. Didnt see any violence, riots, fights.

Honestly, went to VP throughout the 80's and probably saw one instance of violence outside the ground, against Arsenal of all teams.

My one memory of any sort of trouble with opposing fans was a final day game against Chelsea when a few hundred little hard men came out of the Holte End at full time and decided to goad the few Chelsea fans there, will never forget the noise of stampeding feet on the VP pitch when the Chelsea fans decided to walk onto the pitch.. walked through Aston Park that day listening to a chorus of "Villa run from Chelsea"

I dont deny violence occured at many Villa games (as they did with football in general) throughout that period, but its no different from now.. generally if you keep your head down, are sensible about where you go and how you behave then you will be fine.

All this "football was tastier in the 80's" all sounds a bit patheitc and Danny Dyer, it just amuses me.

Glad you agree that football was more violent in the 70/80/90s than it is today, which was my point.

I will refer you to a line in my post:

I dont deny violence occured at many Villa games (as they did with football in general) throughout that period, but its no different from now.. generally if you keep your head down, are sensible about where you go and how you behave then you will be fine.

I think you may have missed the point of my post entirely. Punch ups occured in the 70's/80's/90's, punch ups occur now. In both eras, if you are careful where you go and you dont act like a twat you will avoid any trouble, there will be (and was always) the odd occasion that you will get caught up in something purely by misfotune of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

In the same way that 25000 people now claim they were at VP on the day 8000 people turned up for that Southampton fixture in 86, people will exaggerate stories of the violence that occured in the past. I was at that game at the Sty, there was an unpleasant atmosphere at the ground, but after the game i was able to walk from the Tilton up to Bordesley Green Rd to get a bus home, without incident, without any bother.

[cdbearsfan]

Strachan gone. Somebody foreign and exciting, please.

If we appoint Moyes, Lambert or McLeish, I'm giving up.

[olaftab]

How about BFS? He is foreign and quite excited at times😊

[The Moose]

How about appointing Moyes, Lambert AND McLeish.......😂

[cdbearsfan]

How about BFS? He is foreign and quite excited at times😊

WGS was bemoaning our lack of height, so I can't see us suiting his preferred style of play.

[DB]

Strachan gone. Somebody foreign and exciting, please.

If we appoint Moyes, Lambert or McLeish, I'm giving up.

Won't matter who you get, it's all down to genetics....