What goes down, comes back up
I’ve got a mate. Well, several actually, but this one’s a Leeds supporter so we can chat without too much hassle. So far. He’s got used to me using the expression “doing a Leeds” – he knows exactly what it means. But I could easily also say “doing a Nottingham Forest” – same scenario. And Burnley. And Blackpool. But I have noticed that all, well most, of these teams always make it back up again. Eventually.
The point here is people’s changing perspectives depending on when they started following football. I mean, think about it. If you got into football just two or three years ago, your impression would be that Leeds are a third-tier team and that Birmingham are a natural Premier League outfit. But older (or more learned) fans will know that the Leeds side of the 70s was a football machine, a bit like Man U today and Birmingham were a kind of average, second-tier side, never looking very likely to go anywhere. When I first started following football, Blackpool and Burnley were big teams in the top division. They’ve plumbed the depths since. And here they are again, back in the running. And lo and behold, Leeds are slowly but surely making it back up to the big time. What goes down, comes back up again.
Maybe if I practice celebrating like Shearer I'll end up playing like him...nope, hasn't worked.
The big nightmare for the fan of any team relegated from the Premier league is not really the money, as it is for the Chairman and the Board, but the risk that they’ll never get back up again and become the Port Vale of, well, any decade, really. That’s why Bobby Zamora holds a special place in the heart of every West Ham fan, for scoring the crucial goals that brought us back into the Premier League from 6th in the Championship in the 2004-5 season. So where is he now? With Fulham, riding high in the Premier league, with a new and proven manager coming in from Ajax and with plenty of successful Premier League experience with Spurs.
Martin Jol has exceptional tekkers.
So what’s the consistent factor in all this? The Fans. The best fans are in it for the long haul. For better or for worse, remaining true to their club, whatever the ups and downs and no matter how many chancers end up playing for their teams. Or managing them. Or even owning them. Team like Leeds know this. And Newcastle, And, of course, West Ham. So welcome to the new season, whoever ends up playing for us or them. We were after Henry and we got Piquionne. We went for Beckham and we got an extended term for ex-Fulham man Boa Morte. So it goes. You know what, I actually think this could be LBM’s season. I hereby predict that he will get more goals than Carlton Cole, West Ham’s answer to Emile Heskey.
Submitted by Lionel Stanbrook
19/7/2010
