The Non-attending Fan

[paddy spur]

I grew up as a kid in North London when all you had to do was turn up and you'd get in. Then got a season ticket in the 90s when it was easy to get. It's easy for me to keep going. Now it's a drug I can't really give up.

For the younger people behind me it's not the case. Money, geography and scarcity are against them. That's why I'd never demean follow spurs fans whose access to the live match is very much restricted.

ArcspacE of course is the big exception it's unforgivable that he is living in south Africa and can't be bothered to visit.

 

[GazzasLeftNut]

Guido 🇺🇦

Agreed. I have several mates who have the full Sky/BT packages but complain they can't afford to attend games.

It is an excuse. In a nutshell they can't be bothered to make the effort.

Gotta chuck in the fact they most likely have a family as well. Can't just have Sky for yourself if you have a mrs and kids. "By the way my lovely family, we are getting Sky, it will only have sports though so fuck you lot"

 

[clevelandspur]

Being a fan from overseas it is a bit tricky. I would love to go to 30-40 matches a year but alas that is impossible and even if I lived in London not sure with family and money if that would be realistic. I live and die with every match and have been a supporter for over 20 years so hardly in the new found glory hunter crop.

However, that being said I cannot put myself on the same level has someone that has grown up in the area and has deep family roots and goes to several matches a season. It's just not the same. It doesn't make me any less of a yid but also not going to grandstand and say I am on the same level as those from the area.

 

[Nutter-Naylor]

Being a fan from overseas it is a bit tricky. I would love to go to 30-40 matches a year but alas that is impossible and even if I lived in London not sure with family and money if that would be realistic. I live and die with every match and have been a supporter for over 20 years so hardly in the new found glory hunter crop.

However, that being said I cannot put myself on the same level has someone that has grown up in the area and has deep family roots and goes to several matches a season. It's just not the same. It doesn't make me any less of a yid but also not going to grandstand and say I am on the same level as those from the area.

Good post. At the risk of repeating myself, i regard any overseas Spurs fan i meet as a Yid & will happily have a chat & a drink with them. I know they LOVE the club of that there is no doubt.

When i talk about 'Armchair' fans i generally mean those that do have the time & the money to attend but just cant be bothered. I know plenty of those.

 

[Belgian Spur]

Gotta chuck in the fact they most likely have a family as well. Can't just have Sky for yourself if you have a mrs and kids. "By the way my lovely family, we are getting Sky, it will only have sports though so fuck you lot"

i took a package that has kids channels and cooking/reality tv ...but on weekends football ruled my tv. As a result of that i have my own second tv now in a dark corner of the house

 

[5purs]

fan since '82. work moves me all around the planet. last home game was the last NLD in a full WHL in march '16. attending that game cost me over £5,000. wouldn't have had it any other way either.

those that go to games are fortunate, which comes through circumstance. circumstance shouldn't be a barometer of fan-ness if you ask me.

 

[GazzasLeftNut]

i took a package that has kids channels and cooking/reality tv ...but on weekends football ruled my tv. As a result of that i have my own second tv now in a dark corner of the house

Over here if you have Sky. In order to have the sports channels you have to get most of the other channels as well as you aren't allowed to do a sports only package. Robbing slags.

 

[Nutter-Naylor]

those that go to games are fortunate, which comes through circumstance. circumstance shouldn't be a barometer of fan-ness if you ask me.

That's a very sweeping generalisation which i disagree with.

You assert that fans that attend only go because their circumstances allow? I know many regular fans whose circumstances over the years have changed for the worse with regard to location, financial, health or personal reasons but still make the effort to go as often as they can. As i said earlier, for some it is a lifestyle, for others it is a day out.

 

[Xxx]

I love tottinghams!

 

[mickdale]

However, analyzing games and performances is a lot easier and more objective from behind the screens. As you can scrap the influence of the people and atmosphere around you.

There's no way you can properly analyse a game from watching what's going on in a part of the pitch on tv. You need to see the whole picture to analyse properly. How often on tv can you see the whole pitch on the screen at once. There's nothing can beat a seat on the upper tier for seeing the whole picture of what's going on.

 

[Belgian Spur]

There's no way you can properly analyse a game from watching what's going on in a part of the pitch on tv. You need to see the whole picture to analyse properly. How often on tv can you see the whole pitch on the screen at once. There's nothing can beat a seat on the upper tier for seeing the whole picture of what's going on.

That's true, positioning is very hard to analyze when watching from a single angle (that is always focussed on possesion of the ball) but the effect of the audience on your experience will also influence the way you look at certain players and their performances. So ideally you watch it two times Once from the stands and look at everyone without the ball and once on your telly

 

[paddy spur]

There's no way you can properly analyse a game from watching what's going on in a part of the pitch on tv. You need to see the whole picture to analyse properly. How often on tv can you see the whole pitch on the screen at once. There's nothing can beat a seat on the upper tier for seeing the whole picture of what's going on.

Also you can't have a scrap with Millwall if you're watching it on the telly

 

[mickdale]

Once from the stands and look at everyone without the ball and once on your telly to see Dembele with the ball

 

[5purs]

That's a very sweeping generalisation which i disagree with.

You assert that fans that attend only go because their circumstances allow?

well yeah, it's true isn't it?

I know many regular fans whose circumstances over the years have changed for the worse with regard to location, financial, health or personal reasons but still make the effort to go as often as they can.

what does making the effort entail in your view exactly? ten games? twenty games? every game?

for some it is a lifestyle, for others it is a day out.

if you're aiming that at me, you can fuck off mate! if not, apologies

 

[Pyro_era]

I only go to the odd game every season, but I always go at least once a year. Fortunately I'll have the funds and time to apply for membership once we're in our new stadium and go to as many matches as possible. I do live in London and have always tried visiting when possible but I grew up having to watch MOTD without checking the results and refreshing teletext. Drifted off football for a few years until 2008 or so after I struggled getting my life together and found football to be that refreshing weekly hobby that would keep me grounded and on my feet. It gave me motivation again and allowed me to have something to look forward to. I've only missed one or two games since then but I've always been a spurs fan, early on in my life the relation to the club wasn't as strong as it is now however.

There are fans from around the world who have probably been to more games than I have, but in the end we all have that same connection. That same love for something we have really no direct effect on, however for some strange reason it brings thousands of us together from around the world for those 90 minutes. Once it's over we go back to doing what we do, looking forward to the next 90.

It doesn't matter where you're from, how you began supporting the club, even if you've never been to the stadium or if you've only just joined us. We're all Yids until the day we die. Nobody can claim they're more of a fan than you are when in the end we're all just customers paying for some highly skilled people to kick a ball about for our entertainment. But I don't care because in my eyes and I'm sure in most of yours, it's more than just 'entertainment', it's a way of living and a religion we all follow week in, week out. WHL is my Church and When the spurs go marching in is my Hymn.

 

[Ealesy]

I've only been to see Spurs 3 times live and I fucking love Tottenham so much. If I could afford it then I would definitely go every match. I'm 18, I've just got my first job and I plan to save up for a season ticket in the coming seasons. I think it's unfair to say people who don't go to matches aren't proper spurs fans, some people genuinely can't afford to go.

 

[B-0-Sspurs]

And many fans have been priced out of going. Not that the clubs care, they have the TV money and a nicer clientele at matches.

I still love going, i still get the buzz and like my dad did to me, my son now has the buzz, you can not beat being at the match. I do miss the old atmosphere though, i don't think WHL is as bad as other grounds and hope the new stadium will improve the noise!

 

[palmers_green_yid]

If you are still at University and you think you have been supporting a "bang average mediocre team" then fuck me I feel sorry for you. To put that into perspective the period you speak of is our most constant for the past 30yrs! Yes, we have "only" won 2 trophies in this time, but fuck me.
:avbfacepalm:

I do however get pissed off with glory hunters, fans that only want to watch a winning side, I've given up applying for away games now as the points required I don't have. This has only been the case for the past couple of years, odd it coincides with our best performances. Another thing that pisses me off is those that pay (+)£1,000 per year for a BT/Sky subscription but then sight reason for not going to games a it costs too much, cancel the fucking subscription then!!!
.

Agree with most of your post, but to be fair, the away lot are there on merit (unless they've got someone else's ticket). Sure there's people who go more now we're winning more often, and I don't agree with it, but the sort of person you're talking about maybe now goes to every away game and before went to half of them...they still went to half before, therefore they've earned the LPs and the right to go more often now IMO.

I know a few people like that. Personally I don't think I go to many more games when we're doing well. If it's a midweek away game far from London, I guess I'll only make the effort if it's an important one, but weekends I'll always be there whether we're first or last in the league.

 

[Nutter-Naylor]

well yeah, it's true isn't it?



what does making the effort entail in your view exactly? ten games? twenty games? every game?



if you're aiming that at me, you can fuck off mate! if not, apologies

Oh dear.

I think people are missing my point and i can't be bothered to make the effort to explain again so I will depart thread.

Enjoy.

 

[yidiot abroad]

Thing is, i am not trying to belittle other fans in the slightest.

In the (hopefully) not too distant future when i retire/semi-retire i am probably going to move west (Devon?) & will obviously not get to attend anything like the amount of games i do now (i'm thinking 5 homes/1 or 2 aways area).

Will i still LOVE the club & be Spurs to the bone? Most definitely. Will i be as good of a supporter as i once was & as thousands of other will remain? Absolutely not.

just wondering ...does your comment mean that you feel because your financial input to spurs will be lowered your support will be also...im an overseas fan(Irish) and cant get over very often but i still like to feel im a yid same as all others because i have supported them since i was 7 and am now 48