Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine

Heroes & Villains => Heroes Discussion => Topic started by: russon on March 07, 2018, 12:58:17 PM

Title: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: russon on March 07, 2018, 12:58:17 PM
Chatting to my father about May's impending triple whammy of elation, I described my segmented joy in the following statistical terms -

Villa's promotion 85%
Albions's demotion 10%
Blues' relegation 5%

He said it should be 100/0/0 and went on to confess he'd watch Villa & Blues alternately in the 60s, an unspeakable prospect in the modern era surely. Or do you know people who do that even now?

In other (futile) news, here's a photo of my son outside his Aberdeenshire home proving that smalltime can reach 400 miles north of B6  :D


(http://thumb.ibb.co/n9qzsn/Ernie_AV_snow.jpg) (http://ibb.co/n9qzsn)


As you were.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: Damo70 on March 07, 2018, 01:44:58 PM
I'm not too fussed about Albion, probably as the only Albion fan I knew growing up in Solihull was a mate of my dad's. He sadly died a few years ago of CJD/mad cows disease. At college I acquired an Albion supporting mate and accompanied him to a few Albion v Small Heath derbies in the Albion end. All of which Albion won which prompted my mate to bestow lucky mascot status upon me. Since then I have picked up another couple of Albion mates who I have regularly drank with in the past. I always enjoyed games at The Hawthorns. My first was a Milk Cup tie in 1984 which we won 2-1 and Clive 'The Book' Thomas sent off Gary Owen. Cyrille Regis scored for them, Walters and Mortimer for us. I am however enjoying their slow painful demise this season due to all the pride of the Midlands/only place to watch Premier League football in the West Midlands crap.

I don't like Small Heath but I do very much enjoy their misfortunes. I look upon their regular relegations in the same way I look upon special, rather expensive holidays. You can't expect to have one every single year but every couple of years you get to have one and it is always enjoyable.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: Richard E on March 07, 2018, 01:57:12 PM
Go for the Ron Saunders approach - 100% happy about Villa, 5% about each of the other two going down.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: Damo70 on March 07, 2018, 02:01:44 PM
Go for the Ron Saunders approach - 100% happy about Villa, 5% about each of the other two going down.

I like that thinking/logic!
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: dave.woodhall on March 07, 2018, 02:30:48 PM
To paraphrase Father Jack, THIS is smalltime;
www.themag.co.uk
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: PeterWithesShin on March 07, 2018, 02:59:19 PM
It's 100% about Villa going up. If we don't, I don't give a shit what anyone else does. If we do, it will just be funny as you know it will really hurt both of the Villa obsessed tin pot clubs.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: cdbearsfan on March 07, 2018, 03:44:20 PM
If Villa go up, I'll be delighted. If Blose go down, it'll be extra amusing. But if we go up and they stay up, I'll still be delighted.

If Villa don't go up, Blose being relegated would provide a tiny bit of consolation. If we don't go up and they stay up, it'll make our failure a tiny bit more annoying.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: saunders_heroes on March 07, 2018, 03:47:33 PM
It’s all about going up, and anything else is failure. Obviously seeing Small Heath going back to where they belong would be extremely funny.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: garyshawsknee on March 07, 2018, 04:06:01 PM
Us getting promoted is top billing, but the fact there could be two divisions between us and SH can not put a smile on your face.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: Tokyo Sexwhale on March 07, 2018, 04:10:56 PM
Your dad's right - I don't actually give a shit about Albion unless we're playing them or it otherwise affects us. 

And similarly for Small Heath - except for the added gloating over the noses I know.

Villa going up 100% - anything else is an additional bonus.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: Drummond on March 07, 2018, 04:18:38 PM
To paraphrase Father Jack, THIS is smalltime;
www.themag.co.uk

I know, fancy quoting Villa Talk..
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: TelfordVilla on March 07, 2018, 04:56:23 PM
My Granddad (RIP) lived in Hamstead and used to take my mom to Villa one week and albion the next week until my mom said "can we not bother with going to albion anymore". I guess this was in the late 40's early 50's. In 57, my dad said if Villa beat Manure in the cup final they would get married. Married in 58. Still together now 60years on. 100% satisfaction if Villa get promoted but the demise of the other two locals is very amusing but nothing more than that.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: russon on March 07, 2018, 05:18:03 PM
I wonder if this conundrum is better framed in the context of a good curry, Villa's promotion being a top drawer chicken jalfrezi with all the trimmings, WBA's relegation the highly satisfying bowel evacuation the following morning and Blues demise the triumphant flush down the pan. A most agreeable episode from beginning to end.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: PaulWinch again on March 07, 2018, 06:56:35 PM
I couldn't really care a less about Blose or West Brom. I'm solely interested in Villa going up.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: PeterWithesShin on March 07, 2018, 07:04:49 PM
I will admit that us going up automatically while sha and the bitters are relegated and Wolves summon the spirit of 2002 and choke and lose in the play-offs would be a tad amusing.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: eddiemunster on March 07, 2018, 07:44:26 PM
Chatting to my father about May's impending triple whammy of elation, I described my segmented joy in the following statistical terms -

Villa's promotion 85%
Albions's demotion 10%
Blues' relegation 5%

He said it should be 100/0/0 and went on to confess he'd watch Villa & Blues alternately in the 60s, an unspeakable prospect in the modern era surely. Or do you know people who do that even now?

In other (futile) news, here's a photo of my son outside his Aberdeenshire home proving that smalltime can reach 400 miles north of B6  :D


(http://thumb.ibb.co/n9qzsn/Ernie_AV_snow.jpg) (http://ibb.co/n9qzsn)


As you were.

I freely admit to following both teams in the 70's, and was actually a season ticket holder at both for a time as the prices weren't that bad. then
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: Flamingo Lane on March 07, 2018, 08:02:34 PM
In the early to mid 70s I went to the Hawthorns a great many times, as with Villa then not being in the first division it would be the only way to watch the top sides.  I'd usually stand amongst the away fans in the Smethwick end.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: robbo1874 on March 07, 2018, 09:52:43 PM
It's 100% about Villa going up. If we don't, I don't give a shit what anyone else does. If we do, it will just be funny as you know it will really hurt both of the Villa obsessed tin pot clubs.
there’s at least 3 villa obsessed tin pot clubs
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: PeterWithesShin on March 07, 2018, 09:55:03 PM
At least 5 as Wolves appear to have joined sha, Bitters, Cov and Newcastle.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: TopDeck113 on March 07, 2018, 10:04:50 PM
Chatting to my father about May's impending triple whammy of elation, I described my segmented joy in the following statistical terms -

Villa's promotion 85%
Albions's demotion 10%
Blues' relegation 5%

He said it should be 100/0/0 and went on to confess he'd watch Villa & Blues alternately in the 60s, an unspeakable prospect in the modern era surely. Or do you know people who do that even now?

In other (futile) news, here's a photo of my son outside his Aberdeenshire home proving that smalltime can reach 400 miles north of B6  :D


(http://thumb.ibb.co/n9qzsn/Ernie_AV_snow.jpg) (http://ibb.co/n9qzsn)


As you were.

I freely admit to following both teams in the 70's, and was actually a season ticket holder at both for a time as the prices weren't that bad. then

Somewhere I've got a history of Villa VHS (but, alas, no video player) in which Doug squirms his way through explaining how he became a Blues director on the back of being a season ticket holder at both clubs.   I even recall BFR saying that as a kid he used to alternate between attending Villa Park and St Andrew's.

I guess it wasn't that unusual to go to both club's home fixtures with many people - men - working Saturday mornings making away travel almost impossible, but admission in real terms being low so the cost of going to local games every Saturday wasn't prohibitive.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: dave.woodhall on March 07, 2018, 11:05:41 PM
I used to occasionally go to the Blues for the last half hour if I'd been Up Town on a Saturday afternoon and I'd regularly watch Walsall midweek, when they'd regularly get bigger gates than on a Saturday. I suppose the rising cost of admission did for that, coupled with more televised football, which meant you could see games more than once a fortnight.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: DeKuip on March 08, 2018, 12:31:02 AM
In the mid 70s I’d always go down the Blues if we didn’t have a game, usually Tuesday night games, with my mate and his dad. We’d go in the Supporters Club under the Railway End then take a place standing in the Kop right on the halfway line.
To be fair it was probably one of the best views you could get at a football game for standing and I got into the habit of watching closely one of the players, depending who was playing, to try and improve my own game. I could never do that down the Villa as I was too wrapped up in the game.
The regulars around where we stood knew I was a Villa fan and I’d get good humoured comments (it was from when I was about 14 to 16), but never any hassle.
Support for both clubs back then was huge and very positive after years in the second, and for us third, divisions. Brum really had the potential to have two big successful clubs like Liverpool and Manchester but just didn’t have that big mentality in the boardrooms. Our big successes of the early 80s coincided with their demise and the jealousy and hatred festered.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: dave.woodhall on March 08, 2018, 12:42:06 AM

Support for both clubs back then was huge and very positive after years in the second, and for us third, divisions. Brum really had the potential to have two big successful clubs like Liverpool and Manchester but just didn’t have that big mentality in the boardrooms. Our big successes of the early 80s coincided with their demise and the jealousy and hatred festered.

That's a good point. For thirty years or so after the end of the war we weren't that much better than them and for times a lot worse (Don't tell them, but they had a bigger average gate in 1971-72, when we were breaking division three attendance records every other week). It was only from 1977 onwards  that we were on a different level and from 1981, while we were winning trophies all they had to boast about was their hooligans. Looking back, that's when the real hatred started. 
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: wittonwarrior on March 08, 2018, 11:50:11 PM
I only really care for the Villa and am solely engrosed  in seeing  us promoted.  However, would smile if  olbion and/or bloose go down.

As for the total hatred for each other this was duee to the greed of football, forcing  people to choose their games.  Obviously you would choose only the club  you support.   
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: Ayup on March 09, 2018, 09:25:03 AM
I used to occasionally go to the Blues for the last half hour if I'd been Up Town on a Saturday afternoon and I'd regularly watch Walsall midweek, when they'd regularly get bigger gates than on a Saturday. I suppose the rising cost of admission did for that, coupled with more televised football, which meant you could see games more than once a fortnight.

How about the Albion? Did you go there?
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: Ads on March 09, 2018, 09:30:42 AM
To paraphrase Father Jack, THIS is smalltime;
www.themag.co.uk

I know, fancy quoting Villa Talk..

What was it?
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: Duncan Shaw on March 09, 2018, 10:13:54 AM
Going with the overall title of the thread - I think it's a bit smalltime of our CEO to be tweeting stuff about Wolves and FFP - got the Dog Heads in a right old lather!!
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: dave.woodhall on March 09, 2018, 11:07:56 AM
I used to occasionally go to the Blues for the last half hour if I'd been Up Town on a Saturday afternoon and I'd regularly watch Walsall midweek, when they'd regularly get bigger gates than on a Saturday. I suppose the rising cost of admission did for that, coupled with more televised football, which meant you could see games more than once a fortnight.

How about the Albion? Did you go there?

Once, I think. The opposition had an extra supporter that day.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: kipeye on March 09, 2018, 12:08:43 PM
I wonder if this conundrum is better framed in the context of a good curry, Villa's promotion being a top drawer chicken jalfrezi with all the trimmings, WBA's relegation the highly satisfying bowel evacuation the following morning and Blues demise the triumphant flush down the pan. A most agreeable episode from beginning to end.
That is very poetic. I will especially look forward to a picaresque Picasso of the pan following our promotion.
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: Big Dick Edwards on March 09, 2018, 12:30:15 PM
He said it should be 100/0/0 and went on to confess he'd watch Villa & Blues alternately in the 60s, an unspeakable prospect in the modern era surely. Or do you know people who do that even now?

My Dad did exactly the same, though he was definitely a Villa man. You've got to remember there was a lot less choice with what to do with your leisure time then. Working class men didn't go to the gym or play golf all day, not round by me anyway. They went to the football or to the pub, or watched Grandstand on tv all afternoon.

I still count my lucky stars that on the weekend I attended my first match with him, it was for a Villa game. Once I'd been to Villa Park they were the only team for me, even if they were particularly shite at the time (around 1967/68).
Title: Re: Smalltime Villa?
Post by: olaftab on March 09, 2018, 11:34:32 PM
Your dad's right - I don't actually give a shit about Albion unless we're playing them or it otherwise affects us. 

And similarly for Small Heath - except for the added gloating over the noses I know.

Villa going up 100% - anything else is an additional bonus.
This.
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