View From the Opposition - WBA fan

[dave.woodhall]

Bingo. Absolutely spot on, I think that's the major differing factor between us and Albion and Blues.

Finished above us the last two years. Honestly, is it that big a deal for them? Is that anything to really crow about?

Finished 8th and 10th the last two seasons, and they consider that doing "very well", whereas for us, it'd be seen as mediocre.

Then there's the whole "you've fallen on hard times" thing which they spin out from that. Fallen on hard times, but still not fallen anything like hard enough to get relegated in the last quarter of a century.

It's something no matter how many times it gets explained you will never understand it.

We've lived having to suffer your arrogance, the looking down on us and forever letting us know just how "small" we are and how "big" you are.

It means something to us because it is hilarious watching the big brother of the region finally being knocked off their perch. You have a good history and your expectations are naturally much higher than ours, but we'll laugh at seeing your side fail to meet your high expectations which lets be honest - may, at times, be slightly over the top.

If you would have had the school days that I had, just maybe, just maybe, you might understand. We're obsessed with our club - but we'll take great delight in watching you fail because we've had your successes rammed down our throats for years on end.

Unless you're an Albion fan or a bluenose you'll never understand it - you'll just claim we're small time and obsessed until you're blue in the face

That's fine by me, carry on.

And you'll carry on being the same smalltime, sanctimonious nonentities you always have been. You call us arrogant, then throw a party when you're eleventh in the league after twelve games. You reckon you're on the way to glory, but we've got as many points as you and we're apparently struggling. You say you'll delight in our failure (no obsession there, oh no), when it's still what you'd call success. You come on here and reckon you're laughing at us. I know who's laughing the loudest.

[peter w]

Well you can't say we will never get you, then try to explain to us what we're like. its quite simple, you won't get us either. we don't like to lose to you and get that you derive so much pleasure from us not doing well, but I'm sorry if its arrogant but you are an insignificance to us. that's the reality. You clearly don't like that. we've hadour success rammed down our throats as well. That's why we're desperate to see us there again. We've been to the very top in most of our lifetimes. I really couldn't care less about getting you, you can be happy getting each other whilst big brother dusts himself down again and goes out after the tasty birds whilst you can use our fake 18 year-old's student card to get into Pagoda Park. 

[Liam_Baggies]

And you'll carry on being the same smalltime, sanctimonious nonentities you always have been. You call us arrogant, then throw a party when you're eleventh in the league after twelve games. You reckon you're on the way to glory, but we've got as many points as you and we're apparently struggling. You say you'll delight in our failure (no obsession there, oh no), when it's still what you'd call success. You come on here and reckon you're laughing at us. I know who's laughing the loudest.

And here comes Dave to prove my point.

Your comment about throwing a party when being 11th in the league after twelve games is pure hyperbole with the intentions of trying to make us look petty and small time. That will not wash with me. What we're achieving at the moment and the money we've spent in today's footballing world is for us a success and something we're proud of - we've laid down a model for football clubs to follow - like Swansea have for example.

I have also heard very little from Albion fans or myself talking about glory. We'll be happy finishing anywhere between 8th and 12th. Realistically we can go no higher as our funds do not allow us to stretch that far without outside investment - but according to Lambert, the mighty big club cannot compete with us in the transfer market, as he eluded to earlier in the week so you will be fighting for roughly the same spots. Villa, whilst going with the young kids approach are always going to be a hovering over that trap door in my opinion until they have got the necessary experience to know what is required at this level - last season would have helped a great deal and survival this season will again be another great learning curve.

And as for your final point, I'm not laughing at you, or any other Villa fan.

Well you can't say we will never get you, then try to explain to us what we're like. its quite simple, you won't get us either. we don't like to lose to you and get that you derive so much pleasure from us not doing well, but I'm sorry if its arrogant but you are an insignificance to us. that's the reality. You clearly don't like that. we've hadour success rammed down our throats as well. That's why we're desperate to see us there again. We've been to the very top in most of our lifetimes. I really couldn't care less about getting you, you can be happy getting each other whilst big brother dusts himself down again and goes out after the tasty birds whilst you can use our fake 18 year-old's student card to get into Pagoda Park. 

I don't mind your success - well done to you. You have earned them on merit.

What I don't like is when we have to have it shoved in our faces - that is where the annoyance on our part comes into play.

You should over take us in the not to distant future. We all expect it. And if you do, well done - it's finally great to see some competition in Midlands Football.

[pauliewalnuts]

Bingo. Absolutely spot on, I think that's the major differing factor between us and Albion and Blues.

Finished above us the last two years. Honestly, is it that big a deal for them? Is that anything to really crow about?

Finished 8th and 10th the last two seasons, and they consider that doing "very well", whereas for us, it'd be seen as mediocre.

Then there's the whole "you've fallen on hard times" thing which they spin out from that. Fallen on hard times, but still not fallen anything like hard enough to get relegated in the last quarter of a century.

It's something no matter how many times it gets explained you will never understand it.

We've lived having to suffer your arrogance, the looking down on us and forever letting us know just how "small" we are and how "big" you are.

It means something to us because it is hilarious watching the big brother of the region finally being knocked off their perch. You have a good history and your expectations are naturally much higher than ours, but we'll laugh at seeing your side fail to meet your high expectations which lets be honest - may, at times, be slightly over the top.

If you would have had the school days that I had, just maybe, just maybe, you might understand. We're obsessed with our club - but we'll take great delight in watching you fail because we've had your successes rammed down our throats for years on end.

Unless you're an Albion fan or a bluenose you'll never understand it - you'll just claim we're small time and obsessed until you're blue in the face

That's fine by me, carry on.

That's all well and good, but it'll take more than finishing above us twice to "knock us off our perch".

As for being small time and obsessed, aren't you kind of proving the point by the posting of this "boo hoo, I didn't like having your success rammed down my throat when I was a kid" nonsense on a Villa forum?

[pauliewalnuts]

Your comment about throwing a party when being 11th in the league after twelve games is pure hyperbole with the intentions of trying to make us look petty and small time. That will not wash with me. What we're achieving at the moment and the money we've spent in today's footballing world is for us a success and something we're proud of - we've laid down a model for football clubs to follow - like Swansea have for example.

And that proves the point.

"What we've achieved" - you've finished above us twice and are currently 11th to our 12th.

How low does your self esteem have to be to consider that an "achievement" of any kind?

You keep going on about what we "don't get", but that's what you're not getting. It's not an achievement to finish mid table for us, that's why we're unimpressed and find it amusing that you're getting so excited about it.

I'm also interested to see you suggesting Swansea have "followed your model". This is your fourth consecutive season in the top flight, in which you've finished 11th, 10th and 8th.

Let's be honest, that's not really an amazing model for anyone to follow, is it? You've managed to stay up and remain around mid table, largely based on a policy of being tight and borrowing players from other sides. It's not exactly an amazingly progressive piece of football management.

[dave.woodhall]

Sorry, I must have imagined the DVD for winning a league game, the We Know What We Are banner, "We'll take great delight in watching you fail" and best of all, you reckoning that you're going to be safely mid-table while we'll be fighting relegation. Still, as you said, you're only a little club. You're doing ever so well. What was that about petty and smalltime?

[PeterWithesShin]

I think you'll find you are copying the Swansea model rather than you leading the way and they copy you. But it's only us that are arrogant.........

[pauliewalnuts]

Sorry, I must have imagined the DVD for winning a league game, the We Know What We Are banner, "We'll take great delight in watching you fail" and best of all, you reckoning that you're going to be safely mid-table while we'll be fighting relegation. Still, as you said, you're only a little club. You're doing ever so well.

I think the official title is the "We Know What We Are Banner, sponsored by Zoopla".



Incredibly small time.

[Liam_Baggies]

Your comment about throwing a party when being 11th in the league after twelve games is pure hyperbole with the intentions of trying to make us look petty and small time. That will not wash with me. What we're achieving at the moment and the money we've spent in today's footballing world is for us a success and something we're proud of - we've laid down a model for football clubs to follow - like Swansea have for example.

And that proves the point.

"What we've achieved" - you've finished above us twice and are currently 11th to our 12th.

How low does your self esteem have to be to consider that an "achievement" of any kind?

You keep going on about what we "don't get", but that's what you're not getting. It's not an achievement to finish mid table for us, that's why we're unimpressed and find it amusing that you're getting so excited about it.

I'm also interested to see you suggesting Swansea have "followed your model". This is your fourth consecutive season in the top flight, in which you've finished 11th, 10th and 8th.

Let's be honest, that's not really an amazing model for anyone to follow, is it? You've managed to stay up and remain around mid table, largely based on a policy of being tight and borrowing players from other sides. It's not exactly an amazingly progressive piece of football management.

The achieving part is in reference to us being able to compete in the Premier League with the director of football approach whilst running a prudent business, spending within our means and not running up huge amounts of losses like others clubs do in division.

That in my opinion, is a success for in modern football and one championship clubs, similar to ourselves should look to follow. We've proven that to enjoy "success" in this division, you don't have to spend insane amount of millions to achieve it.

Sorry, I must have imagined the DVD for winning a league game, the We Know What We Are banner, "We'll take great delight in watching you fail" and best of all, you reckoning that you're going to be safely mid-table while we'll be fighting relegation. Still, as you said, you're only a little club. You're doing ever so well. What was that about petty and smalltime?

The DVD from the club was pathetic - I will admit that - very small time - you will never see me deny that - the banner which you're referring to I believe was donated to us by our club sponsors Zoopla - hence as a marketing ploy they shoved their name all over it.

I think you'll find you are copying the Swansea model rather than you leading the way and they copy you. But it's only us that are arrogant.........

We operate with similar models - not spending vast amounts of money - we just have the technical director in place to run other facets of the club whereas Swansea rely heavily on good scouting - again, in this modern world, they're another success.

[Liam_Baggies]

In response to Pauliewalnuts - I've posted my views on the game and answered the questions which were asked by Villa fans in this topic.

I would much rather answer them than be ignorant and ignore them.

And then I answered the questions in your post - whether they were rhetorical or not.

I get the feeling you and Dave don't like us very much - as least Legion was nice to me! 

Anyway, I'm off to bed guys.

You have a good forum here. Take care of yourselves and I shall see you in January.

Best wishes,

Liam.

[pauliewalnuts]

The achieving part is in reference to us being able to compete in the Premier League with the director of football approach whilst running a prudent business, spending within our means and not running up huge amounts of losses like others clubs do in division.

"Compete in the PL" = "stay in the premier league". For all of three seasons thus far.

Can't you see why we find this sort of thing so ridiculous?

Good on you for getting back into the top flight again, good on you for staying in it for three seasons, and I am glad you're not saddled with huge debts like a lot of clubs.

But the point at which we say "hold on a minute" is when you start spinning it as us being "knocked off our perch" and crowing about how we haven't beaten you in any of the last six meetings, as if that's something remarkable.

We had the same thing from Small Heath about ten years ago, and that turned out to be utter bollocks too (all this "the balance of power has shifted" nonsense), but if anything, this from your lot at the current time is even more in the realm of fantasy than it was when we heard it from Small Heath - a club even smaller than Albion.

[Jimbo]

We're obsessed with your club.

Fixed.

[Archbishop Herbert Cockthrottle]

Anyway, I'm off to bed guys.

Slag.

[bertlambshank]

Anyway, I'm off to bed guys.

Slag.

With his brother.

[Steve R]

Liam ...

I look at the clubs above us league table and it sticks in my craw to see where Everton and Tottenham are. And they are not even in positions I'd be satisfied to see Villa in. I see where the Albion are and think 'even they are doing ok' without being overly concerned or irate.

That is how much the Albion means to me.It's probably the same for most Villa fans.

Small Heath were saying they had overtaken us and they were actually beating us by clear margins. Whatever happened to them? I'm even old enough to remember Walsall fans saying it. Yeah, right.

By the way, further corrections to that blog - in the 50's and 60's Manchester United were the Manchester United of the day.

West Brom's time as one of the country's leading teams - someone you would actually expect to challenge for trophies or gain high league position - did not extend into the 60's. Ditto Wolves.