By Carol Combes
ClaretandHugh Facebook admin
Merry Christmas!
🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼
Father Christmas: ‘What would you like for Christmas, Sonny?’West Ham fan: ‘I’d like a toy car, please. No, make that a big toy train”.
Father Christmas: “Ok, a train it is”.
West Ham fan: “Will the train be EXACTLY the same as my old one?”
Father Christmas: “ Well, maybe not-I may not be able to get an exact copy”.
West Ham fan: “In that case, make it a car, please. I want a big, shiny one, but make it faster than my old one…..but I want it the same as the old one , please”.
Father Christmas sighs, stands up, then locks himself away in his house for his own sanity!
🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼🎅🏼
Here is the dilemma of today’s West Ham fans.
I am old enough to remember our successes, and suffered through our many painful ‘failures’. We may not rate high in terms of how many ‘big’ trophies, compared to others, ( although, I think winning the World Cup for your country trumps ALL other clubs boasts!), but I think of us as having a solid, loyal, fan-base who are always there for their club.
Football has changed beyond all recognition over the last 20/30yrs-not all for the better of the game, or fans, many might say.
It is now firstly a business, secondly, a sport. Look at the CONSISTENTLY top clubs. They have mega-rich, ( usually/all non-British), owners & a new, bigger, stadium-or plans for one soon.
Without at least one of these, modern-day footy, just walks over, and kills these clubs. Anyone see Torquay winning the Prem League any time this century? No!
West Ham now have one of these ‘necessities’ -the Stadium!
So, that’s the fans happy. No?
We need new mega-rich owners?
Ok. We have a stadium for today, but fans moan it isn’t the same as our beloved ground. Well, it isn’t and won’t ever be the same.
We HAVE to accept that many who will now attend WON’T be beer-drinking,pie ‘n’ mash eating fans. Truth is, times change & few are-that’s why pie ‘n’ mash is harder to find & pubs closing!
I can remember when Chelsea just THOUGHT they were a big club! They have had to accept changes-but how many want to go back to their ‘good old days’?
We need mega-rich owners? Probably true to stay in the top four, but as Chelsea are learning, even with money, there is always someone richer, and only one club will win every title/Cup.
Maybe we need those mega-rich owners to stand a chance-but then many fans will have to adjust their thinking when it comes to saying West Ham are an east end club, run by fans they know and see at games.
Are we ready to say we are a Chinese-run club by people we’ve never seen, but love the Cups we’ve won?
What I see are confused West Ham fans that ARE going through this transition, but haven’t yet agreed with what they want and on what they are willing to compromise.
We all want the best, but what that is poses a difficult few questions.
Twenty years from now, we’ll have it sussed -the Prem title & and Champs League in our cabinet, won’t we?!
Relax! Merry Christmas, West Ham fans!
COYI! 👍⚒
Brilliant piece Carol, sums up our situation. Any club can be successful with owners who are willing to put in millions but those clubs are 100% businesses and fair amount of their fan base are ‘fans’ who like successful teams.But at the same time our club must move with the times and as you say our new stadium is part of that transition. True fans will stay with us and enjoy the highs and lows that long time fans are so use to. COYI!
Thank you! 😉
Agree Carol certainly the case for some of our fans, we actually have a Billionaire owner allbeit like Arsenal one that keeps the purse string relatively tight. I think with a managed risk it is possible to do what Tottenham have, they did actually spend big over a few seasons and bought high quality prospects that in another season Arsenal may have targetted like Bale, Modric, Carrick from us, Dembele etc if we are to make it into those positions consistently we either have to get lucky with both our youth team and transfer dealings and/or we have to continue to be coached better. Personally I think we have a good coach now in charge in Moyes, he sets the right tone and is not going to accept mediocrity from our players, if he and his team have put in all the hard work on the training field they should expect the players to deliver on the pitch which yesterday many did not. I know what I want for Christmas it is a United West Ham on and off the pitch Merry Christmas and Happy 2018 to all COYI !!!