I can enjoy football again now I’ve got my club back!

New Claret&Hugh blogger Steve Knightley is a happy Hammer. He’s delighted to be ushering in the new Slaven Bilic era – and welcoming the return of Julian Dicks to the coaching set-up. And he’s also pleased that David Sullivan and David Gold have been men of their word, giving our club the backing and support it has sorely needed.

A little over a fortnight ago I uploaded a video to YouTube. It showed my view, from the Bobby Moore Stand, of Slaven Bilic walking out in front of a sold out Boleyn as our new manager. The video was shared by Claret&Hugh – and so far, it has been watched more than 13,000 times.

But why. Why is there so much excitement and enthusiasm among fans at the moment?

Naturally, the immediate suggestion is because we have a new manager. It’s true that there was an enormous sense of joy and excitement when Sam Allardyce’s contract wasn’t ‘renewed’. But is this mood really all down to Allardyce’s exit?

The news of Big Sam’s departure came within four minutes of the final whistle of the last game of the season. I have written many press releases and statements before and I can assure you they take more than four minutes to write, no matter how short they are. You get the impression then that this announcement was prepared some time ago.

If this bit of speculation on may part is remotely true, it would go a long way to explaining the lack of desire and determination in the team that was evident earlier in the year. It could also explain why members of the backroom staff wasted no time in getting other jobs; why Allardyce’s flat was vacated before the final game of the season; and why he chose not to wear his West Ham tie during the Newcastle game.

For all the protesters then, objective complete. Allardyce was gone and a new name was going to be etched on the managerial door. But let’s imagine for a moment that it wasn’t Bilic receiving a rapturous reception – but it was David Moyes, or even Rafa Benitez. Would we still be as excited as we are and would 13,000 people have tuned in to an amateur video?

Right for West Ham

I believe this new found intense and infectious aura around the ground and amongst the fans is a realisation that, at last, we have our club back. We have a board that is listening to us. We have a board that wants to do the right thing. In simple terms, they are living the ‘West Ham way’.

Of course some will disagree. I remember when David Sullivan and David Gold took over the club and the announcement was broadcast on Sky Sports News (the videos are still available on YouTube).

The new owners were inheriting debts ‘so large’ most people wouldn’t be able to shoulder the burden. For we were a club in crisis after the mad dabblings of our Icelandic friends.

Most importantly, the stand out quote at that time was: “If we have a huge ground, we can take football back to the people. We can make admission prices affordable, because we’d have the capacity to do it. We would have the cheapest Premier League prices in the country and that is all part of our strategy.”

And true to their word, they have stuck to their guns. They have made the seemingly impossible possible. For prices for the Olympic Stadium have been recently been released and they are, by far, the cheapest in the country.

I strongly believe we have all started to realise that the good times are coming back.

Sure, we possibly could have had Moyes or Benitez on our books. But would we have cared so much? Would it have been RIGHT for us? Would the passion felt by the board be matched by the person on the touchline? Would we have seen Julian Dicks back? Would we all have felt so excited when our pre-order shirts arrived? Would we have been singing so loudly against FC Lusitans? Would we have sold out on a Thursday night with no beer? Would 13,000 of you have watched my video?

Sullivan and Gold have had to swim through treacle to get us to where we are, and they have come out the other side. In my opinion, things can only get better for West Ham. Everything is in place for us to have a truly magical final season at the Boleyn Ground.

The timing couldn’t be better. And once we are in the Olympic Stadium? I think the building blocks are in place for us to hit the ground running. And once and for all we will be able to show everyone…

The West Ham way!

The views expressed here are those of the blogger and are not necessarily shared by Claret&Hugh