Are we a boring outfit?

[Legion]

There is a bit of sub-discussion going on in the match thread

What match thread?

[Sexual Ealing]

I imagine a passing neutral might come to that conclusion due to our always being around in the PL era but rarely actually doing much to grab their attention.

That's not true. We've done as much if not more than the likes of Tottenham have done in the PL era

Ourselves, Spurs and Everton have been in the PL every season and have four league cups and an FA cup between us. To the passing, Sky-watching, Talksport-listening neutral that's not a lot to be excited about over 20 years. Not compared to that time Kevin Keegan went tonto or the unveiling of a new Beckham hairdo.

[Sexual Ealing]

I meant tonto, not Toronto!

[Pat McMahon]

If I take the question to mean just this season then it has been a mixture of dull (at West Ham I was as deflated as I have been in ages by our lethargy against a team with no strikers), sprinkled with some excitement and hope (notably Arsenal, Man City and possibly Chelsea away). However after 11 games scoring 11 and conceding 12 doesn't exactly shout "excitement and drama guaranteed" from the rooftops..

Chico and I drag a couple of mates along to London games who are neutral (York City and Dundee!) but enjoy the crack, and want us to win. They are decent barometers of how interesting we are and feel that on a good day we have the potential to be exciting - Benteke, Gabby, Delph - but we are too often unadventurous and fail to dominate or create many chances. If we offered them a ticket with no booze I am not sure they'd come along....

[Sexual Ealing]

Ah, there's a filter.

[Legion]

We're a roller-coaster ride. Plenty of ups, plenty of downs and a lot of coasting along merrily.

[dave.woodhall]

Every media outlet in the country say there are only five clubs that matter. It's hardly surprising that the unthinking masses aren't bothered about us.

[paul_e]

typical of one of the more negative people on here to accuse someone who's happy with things of being a nodding dog but then to sulk when he's called a misery arse.

That's the problem, some of the negative posters on here (yourself and previously risso along with a few others) take it to such stupid levels that your opinion reads more like a parody and it's hard to take you seriously, in just the same way that you clearly aren't taking the opinion ads has presented seriously.

[eastie]

We're a roller-coaster ride. Plenty of ups, plenty of downs and a lot of coasting along merrily.

Indeed, whereas the baggies are a log flume ( and we know what type of log they are )

[Deano's Mullet]

Living down here I find these days we're treated as a joke by other "supporters" I bump into but then most of them down here support teams that win most of their games, the trophies and get all the ref decisions. It was terrible in the latter O'Leary days. O'Neill gave us our respect back,  for the four seasons we had him I always seemed to feel respect off other supporters and get comments that we were a decent team. The last three years have been back to the sniggering and snide comments and when we have beaten teams like City or Arsenal they are quite happy to express their view that we were lucky!

[olaftab]

Boring is not the issue. The issue is that we are not competitive and so when the spoils are divided we are not there. If we were in the melt when it matters  we can be as boring as hell people will take notice.

[aj2k77]

Spurs x2, Hull, Cardiff, West Ham, Liverpool, Newcastle were all boring games to watch.

[eastie]

Spurs x2, Hull, Cardiff, West Ham, Liverpool, Newcastle were all boring games to watch.

Norwich wasn't exactly thrilling either.

[Matt Collins]

I think we're the only side to have been in the premier league since the start but never to have qualified for the Champions League knockouts at least?

That does rather sound like mediocrity.

I do think we've been a little dull this season. But then we've had really tough fixtures and even our more winnable games have often been against quite defensive teams like West Ham, Hull and Norwich.

I actually think the league is a little defensive this year too. So it's not just us.

[AVH87]

I think we're the only side to have been in the premier league since the start but never to have qualified for the Champions League knockouts at least?

That does rather sound like mediocrity.

Everton didn't get past the qualifier.