Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Heroes Discussion => Topic started by: Witton Warrior on February 13, 2013, 09:53:22 PM
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Does anyone else think there has been an increase in groups of "tourists" at VP this season.
In the Upper Trinity there have been noticeable groups of Chinese, American teenagers and Italians to name but three.
The Italians were especially fun enjoying our exuberant celebrations on Sunday with an air of slightly concerned fascination - "Cockney bastards" ????
The American kids were being very organised by one of their number who will certainly be the first female President.
I enjoy meting these occasional visitors - reckon they are good for us?
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Does anyone else think there has been an increase in groups of "tourists" at VP this season.
In the Upper Trinity there have been noticeable groups of Chinese, American teenagers and Italians to name but three.
The Italians were especially fun enjoying our exuberant celebrations on Sunday with an air of slightly concerned fascination - "Cockney bastards" ????
The American kids were being very organised by one of their number who will certainly be the first female President.
I enjoy meting these occasional visitors - reckon they are good for us?
In the past few years there more overseas and less from Britain. If they buy tickets there's no harm in that.
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Does anyone else think there has been an increase in groups of "tourists" at VP this season.
In the Upper Trinity there have been noticeable groups of Chinese, American teenagers and Italians to name but three.
The Italians were especially fun enjoying our exuberant celebrations on Sunday with an air of slightly concerned fascination - "Cockney bastards" ????
The American kids were being very organised by one of their number who will certainly be the first female President.
I enjoy meting these occasional visitors - reckon they are good for us?
In the past few years there more overseas and less from Britain. If they buy tickets there's no harm in that.
There have always been negative comments on here about Manure/Arse/Scousers having lots of tourists and reckoned it was a bit pot/kettle/black
When they break free from their "minders" they have always been enthusiastic and positive - really enjoying the day. I remember the look of awe on the Americans faces when the tempo went up and the Holte got into voice.
We always translate the chants for them - which is a laff ;-)
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There was a crowd of Oriental visitors sitting near us in Lower Trinity at a cup match earlier in the season. They were loaded up with bags from the club shop and were constantly taking photos.
They seemed to enjoy themselves too!
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The more, the merrier.
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As me and the Omnipresent one were discussing on Sunday, the tourists like their photos of the new Trinity Road stand. Just imagine how much they'd have been in awe if they'd seen the old one.
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As me and the Omnipresent one were discussing on Sunday, the tourists like their photos of the new Trinity Road stand. Just imagine how much they'd have been in awe if they'd seen the old one.
Probably not at all.
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As me and the Omnipresent one were discussing on Sunday, the tourists like their photos of the new Trinity Road stand. Just imagine how much they'd have been in awe if they'd seen the old one.
The lights look good in the rain!
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As me and the Omnipresent one were discussing on Sunday, the tourists like their photos of the new Trinity Road stand. Just imagine how much they'd have been in awe if they'd seen the old one.
Probably not at all.
Sadly probably true
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As me and the Omnipresent one were discussing on Sunday, the tourists like their photos of the new Trinity Road stand. Just imagine how much they'd have been in awe if they'd seen the old one.
Probably not at all.
No ?
I'd imagined that fans making their first visit to Villa Park and seeing the old TR would have had the same awestruck feelings as I had the first time that I saw Fenway Park in person.
(The similarity also being that once you were inside, you found yourself in a cramped seat with no leg room and a post blocking your view)
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As me and the Omnipresent one were discussing on Sunday, the tourists like their photos of the new Trinity Road stand. Just imagine how much they'd have been in awe if they'd seen the old one.
Probably not at all.
No ?
I'd imagined that fans making their first visit to Villa Park and seeing the old TR would have had the same awestruck feelings as I had the first time that I saw Fenway Park in person.
Do you really think that people who have been sucked in by the hype and glitz of the Premier League would care less about what was, in all honesty, a nondescript seventy year old structure?
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Dave, when in the USA, I've been known to travel for hours on a train just to take photos of the outside of a closed baseball ballpark. Therefore, maybe I look at stadiums differently to most people.
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Dave, when in the USA, I've been known to travel for hours on a train just to take photos of the outside of a closed baseball ballpark. Therefore, maybe I look at stadiums differently to most people.
You probably do.
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I was gutted when I was refused access to the Maracana in Brazil. It looked like a concrete carbuncle from the outside.
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There have always been negative comments on here about Manure/Arse/Scousers having lots of tourists and reckoned it was a bit pot/kettle/black
Hmm, it's a bit different, mind.
Those Man U shirt wearing, television watching hordes in Asia who never get near the UK, let alone a football match, are not just buying into the Premier League, they are buying in to success.
I like seeing large groups of similar people at Villa Park, but it's a bit different in that, unless they've got incredibly long memories and are of a certain age, nobody could ever accuse them of being glory hunters, plus, they're actually at the ground, experiencing a game.
I have a bit of a thing about gloryhunters, I'll admit. I found it irritating to see tens of thousands of Chelsea shirt wearing gloryhunters when we did that pre season tour against them in HK the other year, for example.
Mind you, the glory hunter I actually know who winds me up the most is a Kidderminster bord and bred Man United fan, who has never shown any interest in actually going to Old Trafford, or a Man U game anywhere, for that matter, yet waxes lyrical (mostly on Facebook, of course) about his "beloved" Old Trafford.
I'd find it hard to describe any place i hadn't actually been to as "beloved".
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Last season there were quite a few tourists in A1 for a number of games. Most seemed to have some Villa merch from the club shop so they are okay with me. Apart from the ones in those wanky half and half scarves. Anyone who buys those for a league game is a twat.
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Let's be honest - they're not here to see the Villa. They're here to watch what they doubtless call the EPL.
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As me and the Omnipresent one were discussing on Sunday, the tourists like their photos of the new Trinity Road stand. Just imagine how much they'd have been in awe if they'd seen the old one.
Probably not at all.
No ?
I'd imagined that fans making their first visit to Villa Park and seeing the old TR would have had the same awestruck feelings as I had the first time that I saw Fenway Park in person.
Do you really think that people who have been sucked in by the hype and glitz of the Premier League would care less about what was, in all honesty, a nondescript seventy year old structure?
Curious. Nondescript was about the last.word I'd use to describe the old Trinity, even taking into account its emotional connotations for us.
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If they're daft enough to suffer it they are more than welcome...for us it's a life sentence. Rather like Trevor McDoughnut visiting Death Row the other week on the telly.
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Curious. Nondescript was about the last.word I'd use to describe the old Trinity, even taking into account its emotional connotations for us.
By football ground standards it was magnificent architecture but as Simon Inglis said, in a wider context it had no more merit than a late Victorian town hall.
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But the original context was as a backdrop for someone having their picture taken at Villa Park, not in front of some town hall. As such the old frontage was way more iconic than what's there now.
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But the original context was as a backdrop for someone having their picture taken at Villa Park, not in front of some town hall. As such the old frontage was way more iconic than what's there now.
Not to a Premier League tourist it wasn't.
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I've seen and heard people when taking photos of the new Trinity and loads love it. Especially when it's a night game and it's lit up. Still looks half lego to me. It's shit compared to the old Trinity. Looks wise I should add, comfort wise it's miles better but i'd still prefer to be sat behind a pole in the old Trinity stamping my feet.
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I reckon the most awe inspiring view of Villa Park is from the Aston Expressway on the way in to the city centre.
I worked in the city centre for a few years, and drove past it every morning, and every single time, back then, and even now, I couldn't resist a long look at it.
If you drive past during the night, on the way to a night match, it looks even more impressive, all lit up. I always think that away fans, coming off the M6 and in towards the ground, must see it and think they're seeing a real institution on their way into the city.
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After the Spurs defeat on Boxing Day I was chatting to some Chinese tourists on Aston Lane - actually students and first jobbers after university in Brum - and they said they loved the colours and liked the atmosphere and quality of footie that is missing in China. When I said that we were shit - after a 0-4 stuffing - they just laughed and said they were used to that in Chinese football.
Scots, Dutch and Swiss mates loved the old Trinity at Euro 96 and have more photos of it than I do. My mom says loads of visitors and the Argentinian team were posing in front of it in 1966 ( mind you the Argies also went shopping in Dorothy Perkins where she worked so they must have been short of things to do).
French mates have been over and couldn't believe its magnificence, and I have subsequently met Italians who were at Villa Park for the Lazio-Inter final in 1999 (?) who thought it was the finest stand they had ever seen from the outside, and those Romans know a thing or two about architecture. They thought the food was an abomination though.
To non-Brits in particular it really was a joyous piec of very British architecture and unlike anything you find at European grounds.
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Every time I go I get mistaken for a tourist. Last time I even had my strange foreign money refused when I wanted a programme.
I doubt any glory hunters are knocking down our door, as someone on here memorably put it the other week people who follow us are more like 'grief hunters'.
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As me and the Omnipresent one were discussing on Sunday, the tourists like their photos of the new Trinity Road stand. Just imagine how much they'd have been in awe if they'd seen the old one.
Probably not at all.
The old stand was built at a time when only the best would do -and it maintained that grandeur throughtout it's life. Even if the team on the pitch didn't reflect such lofty Rinder-like ideals.
The new effort was a lot like the bloke who built it: functional. Not terrible, but not particularly great either. If Rinder's motto was that 'Only the best will do,' Herbert's was 'That'll do.'
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Wasn't there an American student on whom the old Trinity Road stand made such an impression he came back many years later and bought the club - only to find it had been knocked down and replaced?
We seem to be assuming here that all the millions of overseas fans attracted to the Premier League via TV coverage are glory hunters. All the PL clubs get decent coverage over the season and I'm sure there are plenty of free-thinkers all over the planet who have been attracted to Villa for a variety of reasons - be it the name, the colours, a particular player or through a love of the underdog. Plenty will have been drawn to the Villa and other less popular clubs just to be different to their school friends or workmates. Yes there are even people in Shanghai and Kuala Lumpur who just want a football team they can have a good moan about week in week out.
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It's probably been said about a million times before but if only we could have found a way of improving the capacity and facilities whilst retaining the facade. Surely wouldn't have beyond the wit of man
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I'm still waiting for those Qataris to return, you know the ones that were going to buy the club...?
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Let's be honest - they're not here to see the Villa. They're here to watch what they doubtless call the EPL.
They wouldn't have seen much of that at Villa Park this season.
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The more the merrier if they're spending money with us.
They should be made to feel welcome as well, the Italians have always been friendly to us when i've gone to Roma, Atalanta and Genoa.
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Tourists or empty seats, what would you rather look at?
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Lots of Italian football fans also follow an English team. I've got quite a few mates here who at one time or another have been over to watch an English top-flight game. They take football, its history and culture seriously over here.
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My French girlfriend is coming to a match for the first time on Mar 16th, QPR (h). Could be make or break. For the season and her continuing any interest in Villa!
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I am intrigued that this topic has come up at this time.
This week, I travelled to Stockholm for a few days' work in Sweden. Getting a flight from Manchester on Monday morning I was - frankly - amazed at the number of ManUre fans travelling back to Scandanavia. I would say that at least four flights to Scandi destinations were full and there was also a flight to Tel Aviv with a lot of red-wearing travellers. The airport was heaving with people.
I was quite shocked and amazed, actually.
So, this thread gives me some comfort that we are at least drawing in some tourists despite our parlous league performance over the last three years.
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Let's be honest - they're not here to see the Villa. They're here to watch what they doubtless call the EPL.
But they are choosing to watch it at Villa Park, one of the best football stadiums in the country dave, so at least we get the ticket money and it's also good if they decide to spend in the club shop.
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Let's be honest - they're not here to see the Villa. They're here to watch what they doubtless call the EPL.
And what's wrong with that ?
Why does someone have to be a fan of one of the teams playing to watch a game ?
I quite happily sat in the stands watching Seattle Sounders @ Chicago Fire, with absolutely no interest in who won the game.
Likewise, I've been to hundreds of baseball games where it made no difference to me who won and who lost.
To me, attending a game with no rooting interest is no different to watching some random game on TV (eg my watching of Donetsk v Dortmund last night).
Thinking about it, having no loyalty to a particular team is probably a far more enjoyable, and certainly a far less stressful, way of watching sport.
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It's certainly one of the reasons I love watching rugby union so much and often more than the football - there's no decent rugby club from Birmingham and I can watch it totally stress free and appreciate the skill much more from both sides. The only thing I have missed since giving up Sky Sports has been the live premiership rugby
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I reckon the most awe inspiring view of Villa Park is from the Aston Expressway on the way in to the city centre.
I worked in the city centre for a few years, and drove past it every morning, and every single time, back then, and even now, I couldn't resist a long look at it.
If you drive past during the night, on the way to a night match, it looks even more impressive, all lit up. I always think that away fans, coming off the M6 and in towards the ground, must see it and think they're seeing a real institution on their way into the city.
Excellent post as ever Paulie. I feel the same way and have never ever lost that thrill of seeing Villa Park past the church for the first time whenever I return to Brum. I remember the first time I took my two daughters to a game a few years back and having a competition to see which of them could be the first to spot the stadium and they were so made up when they saw it. I love the walk beneath the underpass too and that sight you have of the road dividing in two, the Holte pub and the massive Holte end behind it. I think that is very iconic and not surpassed at too many other stadia around the country, certainly not in my experience
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Not a comment from a tourist but I was talking with a Bradford fan last night who I only know in passing and his comment to me was "what a great stadium Villa Park is, still felt like a traditional football ground, inhabited by passionate and knowledgeable football fans". Thought I would pass that on!
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I reckon the most awe inspiring view of Villa Park is from the Aston Expressway on the way in to the city centre.
I worked in the city centre for a few years, and drove past it every morning, and every single time, back then, and even now, I couldn't resist a long look at it.
If you drive past during the night, on the way to a night match, it looks even more impressive, all lit up. I always think that away fans, coming off the M6 and in towards the ground, must see it and think they're seeing a real institution on their way into the city.
Excellent post as ever Paulie. I feel the same way and have never ever lost that thrill of seeing Villa Park past the church for the first time whenever I return to Brum. I remember the first time I took my two daughters to a game a few years back and having a competition to see which of them could be the first to spot the stadium and they were so made up when they saw it. I love the walk beneath the underpass too and that sight you have of the road dividing in two, the Holte pub and the massive Holte end behind it. I think that is very iconic and not surpassed at too many other stadia around the country, certainly not in my experience
Agreed. We drove past it a few times last weekend on my trip over. It just looked incredible.
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At Stamford Bridge, for example, you see huge numbers of foreign visitors with their brand new shirts and bags of club merchandise, and there are always at least 20 coaches from Holland and Belgium parked outside the ground. We're never going to attract that sort of interest, especially from the glory-hunting types of fans.
The foreign support we do have is, for the most part, loyal and committed. I've written more than once in H&V about my connection with the German Villans, who come to home and away games regularly and will continue to do so, whichever league we end up in. Archie from the Latin Lions is a regular contributor to this website and his members are passionate Villa supporters. A group of us, including John Gregory, Rob Bishop and Alan Perrins, are attending their annual reunion in Padua later in the season and the restaurant will be filled with claret and blue and much noise. Those of you with a strong constititution have taken part in and perhaps survived the notorious visits of Edvard and his Faroese Lions. Our fans from Sweden, Norway, Belgium and Ireland come to Villa Park several times a season.
We're not a global brand, which may or may not be a good thing, but what it does mean is that our foreign supporters have deliberately chosen us rather than just jumping on the latest bandwagon. They care about Villa and suffer when we suffer. They love coming to Villa Park and we should welcome them and appreciate their loyalty.
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At Stamford Bridge, for example, you see huge numbers of foreign visitors with their brand new shirts and bags of club merchandise, and there are always at least 20 coaches from Holland and Belgium parked outside the ground. We're never going to attract that sort of interest, especially from the glory-hunting types of fans.
The foreign support we do have is, for the most part, loyal and committed. I've written more than once in H&V about my connection with the German Villans, who come to home and away games regularly and will continue to do so, whichever league we end up in. Archie from the Latin Lions is a regular contributor to this website and his members are passionate Villa supporters. A group of us, including John Gregory, Rob Bishop and Alan Perrins, are attending their annual reunion in Padua later in the season and the restaurant will be filled with claret and blue and much noise. Those of you with a strong constititution have taken part in and perhaps survived the notorious visits of Edvard and his Faroese Lions. Our fans from Sweden, Norway, Belgium and Ireland come to Villa Park several times a season.
We're not a global brand, which may or may not be a good thing, but what it does mean is that our foreign supporters have deliberately chosen us rather than just jumping on the latest bandwagon. They care about Villa and suffer when we suffer. They love coming to Villa Park and we should welcome them and appreciate their loyalty.
Top post frank.
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Yes, top post Frank and you do more than anyone to keep all those connections going which is fantastic. Chelsea is a fine example of what I never want to see down the Villa. I have often said that going to Stamford Bridge is more like experiencing a day out to Madame Tussauds than a football match in terms of it being such a 'tourist experience'.
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There have always been negative comments on here about Manure/Arse/Scousers having lots of tourists and reckoned it was a bit pot/kettle/black
Hmm, it's a bit different, mind.
Those Man U shirt wearing, television watching hordes in Asia who never get near the UK, let alone a football match, are not just buying into the Premier League, they are buying in to success.
I like seeing large groups of similar people at Villa Park, but it's a bit different in that, unless they've got incredibly long memories and are of a certain age, nobody could ever accuse them of being glory hunters, plus, they're actually at the ground, experiencing a game.
I have a bit of a thing about gloryhunters, I'll admit. I found it irritating to see tens of thousands of Chelsea shirt wearing gloryhunters when we did that pre season tour against them in HK the other year, for example.
Mind you, the glory hunter I actually know who winds me up the most is a Kidderminster bord and bred Man United fan, who has never shown any interest in actually going to Old Trafford, or a Man U game anywhere, for that matter, yet waxes lyrical (mostly on Facebook, of course) about his "beloved" Old Trafford.
I'd find it hard to describe any place i hadn't actually been to as "beloved".
I'd like to Unbelieveable - but it's not.
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I was season ticket holder (LH) in later 90's when my mate from Holland visted and Villa were at home.
Passed on said season ticket to another friend and asked him where did he want to sit - there was only ever one place he was going to choose. He is lucky enough to have been to dozens of football grounds all around the world.
Basic reasoning was there was no stand like the Old Trinity anywhere in the world. (Wimbledon duly did us 2-1 I think. Typical).
For what it's worth I think they did a half decent job on the replacement especially compared to most redeveloped grounds.
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At Stamford Bridge, for example, you see huge numbers of foreign visitors with their brand new shirts and bags of club merchandise, and there are always at least 20 coaches from Holland and Belgium parked outside the ground. We're never going to attract that sort of interest, especially from the glory-hunting types of fans.
The foreign support we do have is, for the most part, loyal and committed. I've written more than once in H&V about my connection with the German Villans, who come to home and away games regularly and will continue to do so, whichever league we end up in. Archie from the Latin Lions is a regular contributor to this website and his members are passionate Villa supporters. A group of us, including John Gregory, Rob Bishop and Alan Perrins, are attending their annual reunion in Padua later in the season and the restaurant will be filled with claret and blue and much noise. Those of you with a strong constititution have taken part in and perhaps survived the notorious visits of Edvard and his Faroese Lions. Our fans from Sweden, Norway, Belgium and Ireland come to Villa Park several times a season.
We're not a global brand, which may or may not be a good thing, but what it does mean is that our foreign supporters have deliberately chosen us rather than just jumping on the latest bandwagon. They care about Villa and suffer when we suffer. They love coming to Villa Park and we should welcome them and appreciate their loyalty.
Excellent stuff, Frank.
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At Stamford Bridge, for example, you see huge numbers of foreign visitors with their brand new shirts and bags of club merchandise, and there are always at least 20 coaches from Holland and Belgium parked outside the ground. We're never going to attract that sort of interest, especially from the glory-hunting types of fans.
The foreign support we do have is, for the most part, loyal and committed. I've written more than once in H&V about my connection with the German Villans, who come to home and away games regularly and will continue to do so, whichever league we end up in. Archie from the Latin Lions is a regular contributor to this website and his members are passionate Villa supporters. A group of us, including John Gregory, Rob Bishop and Alan Perrins, are attending their annual reunion in Padua later in the season and the restaurant will be filled with claret and blue and much noise. Those of you with a strong constititution have taken part in and perhaps survived the notorious visits of Edvard and his Faroese Lions. Our fans from Sweden, Norway, Belgium and Ireland come to Villa Park several times a season.
We're not a global brand, which may or may not be a good thing, but what it does mean is that our foreign supporters have deliberately chosen us rather than just jumping on the latest bandwagon. They care about Villa and suffer when we suffer. They love coming to Villa Park and we should welcome them and appreciate their loyalty.
Excellent stuff, Frank.
Amen to that - Villa aren't an easy team to support. It would be bloody boring if we were
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A mate of a mate is from Northern Ireland and follows us home and away.
I think Frank is right, the foreign fans we do have, are pretty decent in that they actually turn up (not that N. Ireland is foreign, but if you have to take a plane to get to the game, then fair play!).
We have always seemed to have had a lot of Scandinavian and Irish support. Every time I am in Dublin I see more Villa shirts than Yanited or Liverpool.
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A mate of a mate is from Northern Ireland and follows us home and away.
I think Frank is right, the foreign fans we do have, are pretty decent in that they actually turn up (not that N. Ireland is foreign, but if you have to take a plane to get to the game, then fair play!).
We have always seemed to have had a lot of Scandinavian and Irish support. Every time I am in Dublin I see more Villa shirts than Yanited or Liverpool.
My Mrs was telling me that whenever she went to Ireland with her ex in the mid 90s, there were Villa fans all over the place. Probably due to the McGrath / Townsend / Staunton / Hughton thing.
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A mate of a mate is from Northern Ireland and follows us home and away.
I think Frank is right, the foreign fans we do have, are pretty decent in that they actually turn up (not that N. Ireland is foreign, but if you have to take a plane to get to the game, then fair play!).
We have always seemed to have had a lot of Scandinavian and Irish support. Every time I am in Dublin I see more Villa shirts than Yanited or Liverpool.
My Mrs was telling me that whenever she went to Ireland with her ex in the mid 90s, there were Villa fans all over the place. Probably due to the McGrath / Townsend / Staunton / Hughton thing.
I have lived in the midlands, in Maynooth and now in South Dublin and I have always seen villa tops and ended up making friends that I can go and watch villa with. When I used to go Murrays, home of the Irish Lions, it was always packed out and any time I fly to Birmingham for a game the flight is packed with villa fans.
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Yep, we have a decent fan-base in Ireland. Often hear them on the weekly phone-ins...not always with the best arguments but I'm comparing them to us clever lot on here.
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Curious. Nondescript was about the last.word I'd use to describe the old Trinity, even taking into account its emotional connotations for us.
By football ground standards it was magnificent architecture but as Simon Inglis said, in a wider context it had no more merit than a late Victorian town hall.
I might be missing the point, but frankly I don't understand this argument. There are good and bad late Victorian town halls, and some of the better ones are worthy of being retained and even adapted to suit changing requirements. There are also good and bad late Victorian (or interwar) factory buildings. The old Trinity Rd stand was a football stand, built in the early 20th Century, and so can only really be judged in that context. The stand was a reflection of the grandeur of the institution (at the time it was built), and a celebration of the event of the match. It was commonly acknowledged to be, along with Ibrox, the best example of a football stand of that era.
I think you are also underestimating the average football tourist, who I believe would be more interested in the main stand and cottage at Craven Cottage for example, than the main stand at Loftus Rd. Whether this manifests itself in taking photographs in front of the stand, or attending games I don't know. I do believe however that a contemporary tourist is entirely capable of being seduced in the same way that many of us were by the old Trinity Rd stand. I think UK Redsox touched on this, as I'm sure that Fenway Park is more visited by tourists than Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia for example.
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Dave, when in the USA, I've been known to travel for hours on a train just to take photos of the outside of a closed baseball ballpark. Therefore, maybe I look at stadiums differently to most people.
In a similar vein, I have some photos somewhere of the outside of the Baseball Ground in Derby on a wet day.
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There have always been negative comments on here about Manure/Arse/Scousers having lots of tourists and reckoned it was a bit pot/kettle/black
Mind you, the glory hunter I actually know who winds me up the most is a Kidderminster bord and bred Man United fan, who has never shown any interest in actually going to Old Trafford, or a Man U game anywhere, for that matter, yet waxes lyrical (mostly on Facebook, of course) about his "beloved" Old Trafford.
I'd find it hard to describe any place i hadn't actually been to as "beloved".
It's like that bloody Plumbutt Cooper. Born and bred in Tamurff and only goes to Villa Park when he gets a free ticket. Really grinds my gears....
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I reckon the most awe inspiring view of Villa Park is from the Aston Expressway on the way in to the city centre.
I worked in the city centre for a few years, and drove past it every morning, and every single time, back then, and even now, I couldn't resist a long look at it.
If you drive past during the night, on the way to a night match, it looks even more impressive, all lit up. I always think that away fans, coming off the M6 and in towards the ground, must see it and think they're seeing a real institution on their way into the city.
Excellent post as ever Paulie. I feel the same way and have never ever lost that thrill of seeing Villa Park past the church for the first time whenever I return to Brum. I remember the first time I took my two daughters to a game a few years back and having a competition to see which of them could be the first to spot the stadium and they were so made up when they saw it. I love the walk beneath the underpass too and that sight you have of the road dividing in two, the Holte pub and the massive Holte end behind it. I think that is very iconic and not surpassed at too many other stadia around the country, certainly not in my experience
Both of you summed it up as well as anyone could.
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Had a chap sat next to us at the albion game this season, camera round neck, little rucksack, the whole tourist caboodle. Got chatting, turned out he's an Australian. Been to Europe a fair few times, but this was his first game. Asking him why the Villa, he said he'd followed our results and fortunes ever since he was a kid in the seventies, cos we had someone quite good who shared his name (Brian, by the way!), and his school rugby team played in our colours. Took him nearly forty years to get here, but he never forgot, and made it in the end. Got himself plenty of photos, and thoroughly enjoyed his day
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The thing that stands out for me is that they all comment on the great atmosphere - we moan that it's not as good as it used to be (whenever that was) but apparently we are tremendous in our support. The Italians with us on Sunday went ballistic when we scored the first and then held back a bit watching for the free kick - one started making that circling-finger up the side of the head thing while grinning like a loon ;-)
Explaining some of the chants is always a challenge...
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Curious. Nondescript was about the last.word I'd use to describe the old Trinity, even taking into account its emotional connotations for us.
By football ground standards it was magnificent architecture but as Simon Inglis said, in a wider context it had no more merit than a late Victorian town hall.
I might be missing the point, but frankly I don't understand this argument. There are good and bad late Victorian town halls, and some of the better ones are worthy of being retained and even adapted to suit changing requirements. There are also good and bad late Victorian (or interwar) factory buildings. The old Trinity Rd stand was a football stand, built in the early 20th Century, and so can only really be judged in that context. The stand was a reflection of the grandeur of the institution (at the time it was built), and a celebration of the event of the match. It was commonly acknowledged to be, along with Ibrox, the best example of a football stand of that era.
I think you are also underestimating the average football tourist, who I believe would be more interested in the main stand and cottage at Craven Cottage for example, than the main stand at Loftus Rd. Whether this manifests itself in taking photographs in front of the stand, or attending games I don't know. I do believe however that a contemporary tourist is entirely capable of being seduced in the same way that many of us were by the old Trinity Rd stand. I think UK Redsox touched on this, as I'm sure that Fenway Park is more visited by tourists than Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia for example.
Kevin likes this.
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At Stamford Bridge, for example, you see huge numbers of foreign visitors with their brand new shirts and bags of club merchandise, and there are always at least 20 coaches from Holland and Belgium parked outside the ground. We're never going to attract that sort of interest, especially from the glory-hunting types of fans.
The foreign support we do have is, for the most part, loyal and committed. I've written more than once in H&V about my connection with the German Villans, who come to home and away games regularly and will continue to do so, whichever league we end up in. Archie from the Latin Lions is a regular contributor to this website and his members are passionate Villa supporters. A group of us, including John Gregory, Rob Bishop and Alan Perrins, are attending their annual reunion in Padua later in the season and the restaurant will be filled with claret and blue and much noise. Those of you with a strong constititution have taken part in and perhaps survived the notorious visits of Edvard and his Faroese Lions. Our fans from Sweden, Norway, Belgium and Ireland come to Villa Park several times a season.
We're not a global brand, which may or may not be a good thing, but what it does mean is that our foreign supporters have deliberately chosen us rather than just jumping on the latest bandwagon. They care about Villa and suffer when we suffer. They love coming to Villa Park and we should welcome them and appreciate their loyalty.
Great post....Whenever I make it back to VP, which isn't often, I always buy a pile of merch before the game etc....generally though, the treatment I get from other fans/season ticket holders is in keeping with the comment below. It's always very disappointing, but I've come to ignore it.
Let's be honest - they're not here to see the Villa. They're here to watch what they doubtless call the EPL.
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Great post....Whenever I make it back to VP, which isn't often, I always buy a pile of merch before the game etc....generally though, the treatment I get from other fans/season ticket holders is in keeping with the comment below. It's always very disappointing, but I've come to ignore it.
Let's be honest - they're not here to see the Villa. They're here to watch what they doubtless call the EPL.
That's a real shame CaliVilla - drop us a line the next time you are over for a more positive experience!
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Great post Frank, as usual!
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I have met loads of foreign lads up The Bartons. The Germans, the Italians, the Gers, Garyth from NZ as well as some riotous nights out with the Scandinavians.
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Fenway Park was a bit like the Goodison of baseball ground world. You might get nostalgic over it and comment on how lovely it is, until you go inside and remember what a shit hole it is.
The Trinity looked very elegant from the outside, but on the inside it was old and decrepit, then onto the seating area it was cramped, with a pillar here and there blocking your view, while it was also too small and feeble looking compared to the Holte, with the lower tier being taller than the entire stand.
The stand that has replaced it is impressive from my view in the Holte, as its pretty big and imposing. Its fairly bland from the Trinity Road itself mind and non-descript. The rear of the Holte End is very impressive and it’s a pity that a similar finish could not have been applied to the new Trinity Road stand.
One day they will re-build the North stand carbuncle and I expect it will be interesting to see how they go with it; a bastion of modernity with plate glass everywhere or something harking back to the age of yore.