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Time to end the Irons moan-up ‘culture’

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bradyI’m absolutely sick to the back teeth of waking up to headlines aimed at tearing my football club to bits.

This time it’s over some words which might have been more carefully chosen from Karren Brady – last week it was segregation and policing, before that it was standing and prior to that even it was over the taxpayers having to fork out for the London Stadium. We haven’t got to the football yet!

It’s time it stopped.

Ok, I’m a Boleyn Boy like many others. As I wrote recently, for me nothing will ever take the old gaff’s place in my heart  but listen, it’s gone – that’s over – we have moved on and all the moaning in the world won’t change anything.

I say that only because at the bottom of all the complaints from some fans is that we moved from Upton Park. The noise they have generated has I believe started a bandwagon rolling which attracts more and more adverse media headlines.

Once that starts there is absolutely no stopping it as the misplaced word “culture” demonstrated yesterday. Ok maybe it was the wrong word and two others -‘ corporate identity’ may bave been better. But if we aren’t very careful the only culture we will develop is one of having a good moan up.

Brady has become the blame figure for the  move and has become the easiest target in the world.  She is seen as the executioner of the club’s history aided and abetted by the Daves…and you know what? It’s rubbish.

Arsenal moved, Southampton moved, Derby County moved along with many others but there was no  never ending row about it…so can we all give it a rest.

We like to call ourselves a family so can we start acting like one that actually gets on with the members in it.

Hammers fan and Mirror soccer write Matty Lawless wrote this morning: “The Boleyn was great but there were a hundred reasons to move.”

He may or may not be right but it really is time to stick together and stop giving the headline writers an easy job every day of their lives.

COYI

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Hugh Southon is a lifelong Iron and the founding editor of ClaretandHugh. He is a national newspaper journalist of many years experience and was Bobby Moore's 'ghost' writer during the great man's lifetime. He describes ClaretandHugh as "the Hammers daily newspaper!"

Follow on Twitter @hughsouthon

61 comments

  • jimbo says:

    Nice one Slav!

  • slaven a laugh says:

    has anyone on here ever visited a website called West Ham till I die? I was wondering what it’s like and whether it’s worth a visit.

  • hammerjk says:

    This is the downside to the Internet and social media. It is a breeding ground for morons and people who are totally thick. It gives a voice to the idiots that really don’t need to be heard. People think that they can say what they want and that they aren’t accountable at all. Not really sure what Iain is doing with WHTID allowing a cluster of complete clowns to slag the club to within an inch of its life. It’s just total bull.
    Everyone thinks they are an expert from corporate marking to architecture went most of the nob heads couldn’t even find their way out of the dark room they live in bashing away on their keyboards.
    One thing that is totalling reassuring is that is any of those type came on here, I’ve no doubt Hugh would ban them.
    This is a West Ham site for fans who love the club. Not a platform to slag it off. If you don’t like it, either suck it up or support the spuds.
    If only editors of the sister sites had similar morals

    • RayStewartsRightPeg says:

      What patronising nonsense. The idea that loving your club means you have to be blindly positive and optimistic about everything the club does is just ridiculous. And who is to say those who are moaning are actually wrong? They just have a different opinion. You don’t have to accept it. You don’t have to agree with it. You don’t even have to like it. But suggesting they aren’t real fans or love the club less is just arrogant nonsense. I moan about stuff my Mrs does all the time…it don’t mean I don’t love her.

      The reason modern football has become a soulless corporate machine is because we’ve slowly been turned into mindless sheep to be fleeced.

      • RickHammer says:

        Did you read any of this.People have said they dont mind other highlighting issues which is good of course.The problem is with the mindless idiots who continually say the same things ober & over again about the issues.Maybe you like doing it yourself,who knows.

      • hammerjk says:

        Patronising nonsense….. Think you have clearly misread my post. Not once did I say you should blindly support the club and not have an opinion. What has got out of hand are the complete idiots who are clearly misinformed, struggle with the concept of fact over fiction and have nothing positive to say about the club. some forums are becoming a complete pit of negativity.
        Society has changed, football has changed and.we have to move with the times. UP had taken us as far as it could, not only the ground but the area, transport links and all.
        The LS was an obvious choice. It’s now down to the fans to bring our culture across with us. Yes mistakes have been made, yes there are issues to be solved but what did everyone expect. The club is in transition and this will take time. There are ways and means of providing constructive feedback.

        • Tone not Tore says:

          You are wasting your time jk.Apparently it is constructive to continually moan about the same things day in day out, but if you are aware of the issues but dont mention them more than once or twice you are sycophantic.What a load of nonsense.I dont think there is a single person on here who hasnt complained about the Claret membership,the +2 fiasco but if we dont call Brady a parasite or wave banners saying The Board Are Killing Our Club we are sycophants.Pathetic drivel imo as a man who has followed the club for 50 years home & away ( that seems to get you bonus points to moan it appears) Lol

          • hammerjk says:

            I know Tone. not to mention there is a huge difference to having a bit of a moan up about certain aspects of the move as oppose to accusing Brady of being a parasite and the board for killing the club! That’s not moaning in my eyes!
            Personally I want the move to work, I want to see the club moving in the right direction and actually start winning things! Does mean i am condoning changing the culture of the club by wanting us to win a cup….
            I would love to see it work so the idiots calling Brady a parasite would be left with egg on their faces. Part of me also wants to see some of the new signings start to really shine just to show up some of the moaners!

  • RayStewartsRightPeg says:

    A post (and posts) moaning about moaners?! Now that is ironic.

    • Stan The Man says:

      Been there done that.Move on,there always one,we seem to have found two today yippee lucky us!!
      Would you prefer we spent all day bad mouthing the club or the owners.The manager maybe? How about the players.Yeah that would probably be better for you.Give you some of what your used to eh!!

      • RayStewartsRightPeg says:

        You’re still moaning then?

        • Eddie says:

          Oh dear.You just cant beat the moan about moaning line.Its a winner everytime.It takes a lot of thought to come up with a corker like that as well doesnt it.

          • RayStewartsRightPeg says:

            Whilst I’m not part of the current crop of people moaning about the current state of affairs (yet) I don’t get this sycophantic attacking of people who do choose to moan. In over 40 years of following West Ham home and away I’ve yet to see a rule book on being a fan. Who says if people pays their money their not allowed to have a moan about things or slag off the club if they think it’s justified? Us Brits spend most of our days moaning about **** – it’s a national pastime. So some should just get off their high moral horses and stop acting like a bunch of Daily Mail reading *****.

          • Tone not Tore says:

            You just dont get it do you.We are well aware of the problems.Everyone knows there are issues that need addressing but how does the same people ranting help anyone.I dont know,you seem so fired up about it i can only assume you are one of them.
            As for Brits spending all their time moaning well speak for yourself.

  • Sams P45 says:

    I have to admit that WHTID has turned into a real Wetpants now.Its all gone to the dogs since they got me & Banjo booted off haha 😀

    • Stan The Man says:

      They never shut up do they.Abslutely cringe reading some of the posts.I mean really cringe.They somehow seem to believe they are the only west ham fans around.

  • IronMan says:

    Couldn’t agree more with the post. I’ve read people moaning about the use if the word ‘customer’ even, FFS! Time to get a grip and man up. I don’t care what anyone says, there is an incidious ‘knocking’ agenda out there. Some of it is oportunistic but I am convinced that some of it is orchestrated. We’ve got to learn to ignore what is trivial, counter that that is untrue and look on the brightside. Yes, leaving the Boleyn was difficult. Having walked down Green Street for forty years it was a wrench… but let’s be honest, we all knew the time had come to leave, and this was a once in a lifetime oportunity. Wouldn’t have missed any of it for the world… but it wasn’t all good, was it? We had Lee Chapman midweek, Mike Small, the terrible bond scheme, along with Paolo and Dynamo Diblisi mid week. It’s been a rollercoaster and we will never forgot The Boleyn but let’s make some more history ourselves… and maybe even win something? That would be nice…

    • mattefumi27 says:

      Top post Iron 😉

    • RickHammer says:

      Spot on Ironman.Yeah it is getting balmy now when fans are complaining about being called ‘customers’.How bleeding pedantic do you need to be.Maybe instead of moaning about being a ‘customer’ they could get their asses to the stadium & actually support the team with some gusto instead of blowing hot air out of their bumholes about Brady..lame turds.

    • West Ham Fan No 32 says:

      Great post Ironman 🙂

  • Tone not Tore says:

    Some of our fans are delusional,deluded however they you wish to describe them.Living on memories about UP.It was like a morgue sometimes so to moan about the OS atmospehere is foolish to start with.It was becoming archaic in places.Dont get me wrong i loved the place but take off the rose tinted glasses & get real.The place was never the same since all- seater was introduced if we are honest.
    So now it is a sin that we are 20th in the Deloitte money list,will these moaners be happier if we were 220th.They are starting to get under my skin now.I suppose they are happy in their delusional whining world though.

    • mattefumi27 says:

      You are right Tone, but, having said that, I prefer the old badge, the old kit, the old seats, the size of the old pitch and even the colour of the grass of the old stadium, it was slightly more green… hahaha… I’m training for the next Olympic Moanathon… lol 😉

  • West Ham Fan No 32 says:

    Hugh does this mean a change of tack on the articles reported on the site ? (in the short term at least), I am not saying that as an attack by the way, genuinely curious because the site has run a few negative articles that could be said to feed into the moaning culture. Like you I am fed up as are many that view the site judging by most of the comments, as others have said UP/BG had limitations, when you think back on what made it great, it was only really one thing, the supporters and the atmosphere we created, in honest terms if you were sitting it was never that comfortable, what was good was having a laugh with the supporters around you and focusing on making it an intimidating place for away teams, at the Boro game the noise after Payet scored for about 10 minutes was immense, so there is nothing to say we can’t do our part at the OS ( i can’t stand calling it the LS ) we need some help by the team, the same was 100% true at UP if the team weren’t putting it on the line for us we weren’t happy and the place was quiet. It’s the fans that create the atmosphere, am looking forward to the Chelsea match, nothing like midweek games especially against a rival COYI !!!

    • bootsy says:

      I know what you mean.

      But if Hugh just puts up positive stuff then it less of a fan site and more of a propaganda/PR site. No team is perfect, there is good stuff as well as bad stuff, and if all Hugh ends up doing is posting ‘good’ stuff whilst the truth is that we’re a bit rubbish at the moment, then I think the readership would go down a lot as there is no reflection of reality/no issues being mentioned that people want to discuss.

      • Tone not Tore says:

        I totally agree Bootsy if there are problems they should be highlighted or mentioned.Where my issues lies is with reading the same brainless morons moaning about the same rubbish every bloody day.
        Make your point & be done with it Lol

    • To have a change of tack you have to have an agenda in the first place No 32 and we never have had apart from BFS of course. We post our view (or mine) as the issue arises. There is no party line on this site. Were anyone to ask our views on anything we’d give it for fear or favour. It’s interesting how perceptions play a part. Some fans think we are in the club’s pocket but the grief we get from the club is the flip side. We try, and it’s not easy, to steer a middle course saying what we believe at any given tme.

      • We got grief over condcting our own investigation into the Carroll/Randolph thing which is not par for the course with fan sites but we’ve always seen ourselves more as a Hammers daily paper

        • RickHammer says:

          You will never win Hugh,you know that.If you had said there was nothing in the Carroll/Randolph incident some would have accused you of covering up for the club,if you run an article on it saying they had been naughty boys you would be accused of stirring it.You will never please everyone.

        • West Ham Fan No 32 says:

          Probably not the best choice of words in change of tack, I didn’t mean it to be interpretted as you having an agenda 🙂 more referring to when sometimes the articles that encourage feedback of a moany nature are sometimes repeated in a similar fashion but different headline, like for example when all the facebook replies to a negative subject are later quoted ? Just so as we are clear I am not being critical just looking at ways to minimise negative press 🙂

  • mattefumi27 says:

    Unlike you, I’ve not a lot of memories of the Boleyn Ground. I admit, it was a fantastic place, not very big, but suggestive and full of history. But sometimes you make a choice: moving forward or remaining in the same point. If I were you, I would be happy… living in the past it’s useless. So I say to you (Wetties): Don’t be prehistoric like Sam, be cool like Slav… lol 🙂

  • Sharky3 says:

    All this moaning about people moaning

    • Stan The Man says:

      Yeah time to get back to Wetlands Sharky to continue your moaning.

      • Tone not Tore says:

        Some fans cant handle the truth Stan that they are a load of moaning mugs who think they own the club.The truth is they are a bloody embaressment to other fans but they are so precious they cant see it.

      • Sharky3 says:

        Stanley I’ve never moaned on west ham till I die unless I feel strongly about a topic being spoken about and if you do get upset about people complaining on the site then just stay off I agree with Hugh that some fans are a bit ott in regards to the stadium and a lot of the comments about the owners and Karren Brady are unfair but there have and are issues over the stadium ie running track stewarding tickets the owners have been brilliant for the club but it doesn’t mean you can’t your opinion if you agree or disagree we all want Westham to
        Keep moving forward and improving

        • Stan The Man says:

          Fair enough,then do accept my apology.I aint blind i know there are problems at the mo but some of the comments are bordering on sueable.Actually i would laugh my t1ts off if someone did get sued for defamation of character or such like.Alas it wont happen so idiots carry on ranting about parasites & the like.
          I have nothing against fans like you raising valid points but when it turns into a continual rant like some then it gets silly & well overboard.

  • essexclarets says:

    I like the new away kit…. there i found one already lol

  • essexclarets says:

    I am so fed up with all this moaning from everywhere, I have posted on whtid a couple of times over the last few days, maybe my 1st post was OTT but I was pi$$ed with all the negativaty on there. I couldn’t believe how much anti-Brady there is on there.
    one thing said above is that that it’s mainly people who have never been to LS, does it matter if you attend games or not? Everyone has the right to their opinions.
    Let them get on with the moaning as I don’t think it will stop until results start to go our way to take their minds off the other things. We seem to be moaning about them moaning lol 🙂 there must be some positives we can concentrate on, somewhere… 😉

    • GW says:

      Essex it shouldn’t matter whether you go or not but when those that ain’t set foot in it and constantly say it’s **** wind me up lol. As for the positives AC has taken delivery of a new coy carp, Sacko ain’t crashed his motor in a while and the slugs going to **** off to America and make another continent despise him 🙂

  • Michael Miller says:

    The Boleyn was a shed and travel to it was a nightmare – I used to drive to it but had to give up and go back to the train after Local Parking restrictions were introduced in late 2015, what were the Local Council thinking?

    The new Stadium is fine – it’s not perfect but nothing is.

    There’s some issues that were seemingly overlooked like the Standing Issue and Fan Segregation – which will be sorely tested with the visit of Chelsea, I hope to God that the Authorities that be are taking this issue seriously!

    Stewarding passing to outside contractors and them employing people with no experience and limited training has proved to be another problem. The old Boleyn Stadium stewards being made redundant and all their experience and knowledge be throuwn away is stupid – I know some of the old Stewards have been employed by the new contractor but they are not being used sensibly.

    Westfield and the fans being excluded from it and being diverted around the houses to avoid it has not been dealt with well – I know I’m in a minority here but I deeply resent the way the fans have been treated by Westfield.

    The massive issue over and above these minor gripes is the form of the Team and the makeup of the Squad – the Transfer Window has been a bit of a disaster, the Club have been unlucky (again!) with injuries, the new players have been disappointing, there has been no improvement in the quality of the Squad over last Season. The results have been disappointing but West Ham have not played well so far this Season, there’s been some great goals but the overall performance of the Team has been poor.

    An improvement in the form of the Team and an upturn in the results and all these minor gripes with the Stadium will be forgotten.

    • Stan The Man says:

      Give it until the end of the season or next season & the whingers will have run out of steam,the cheap ticket fairweathers will have got bored with the novelty of it all & the hardcore moaners will have buggered off.Its just a case of riding out the storm
      I have supported The Irons long enough to hang on until the tossers finally shut up 😉

      • GW says:

        Plus the lilly****es play at Wembley next year so they can go and watch there proper team and have a moan about the cost of a mars bar 🙂

  • baddowhammer says:

    I’ve never had a bad word to say about the Dave’s or Brady got us out of a dodgy position, to where we are today, thats the bigger picture.Karen Brady is being hauled across the coals,with every missed consonant.David Sullivan is being portrayed as a panto villain,and David Gold the Godfather. Far wide of the mark obviously, its a perfect mix of unfortunate but somewhat inevitable events that have occurred with the move.Jealously is at the root primarily from Spuds who suddenly wanted to move to the East End ? . COYI

  • Stan The Man says:

    You will never stop the moaners from moaning its in their DNA lmao
    So whats the views from the fjords like today.Are there unfurled banners on the mountain tops saying ‘Brady,Gold,Sullivan killing WHU’ lmao..Has Gardermoen airport got burning effigies of Brady hanging from the control tower.

    • GW says:

      If they have Stan he won’t be there he’ll be watching on an Internet stream and then telling everyone how the atmosphere was toxic and how the burning was done the wrong way 🙂

  • Roshi says:

    The only problem facing West Ham are the teething problems of moving into a stadium that has been converted from an athletics track into a football stadium.
    What is igniting the fire of frustration, comment and general anger is that the team is is awful.
    If we were playing attractive football, scoring and winning then the move would be hailed as a great success. The fact is we’re not, the football is dire, and nobody can see an end to it.
    To much attention was paid by all concerned at the club on the move rather than on the team and the forthcoming season.

    • Tone not Tore says:

      Agree Roshi you are right there fella.Its very true that success on the pitch would have made the move more palitable for some.Having said that we have moved & its time some realised it aint go to change,we are there,deal with it & STOP BLOODY MOANING Lol

    • bootsy says:

      “The only problem facing West Ham are the teething problems of moving into a stadium that has been converted from an athletics track into a football stadium.”

      That’s weird, I could have sworn it was to do with the fact that we have a far weaker squad than last season as we have made truly awful signings who are simply not good enough for the Prem.
      And they’re not cheap either-Zaza (and others) loan fees+ wages come in at a huge cost.

      If you don’t agree then contrast this to Palace who signed Benteke, Tonks and Townsend. 3 players who are known to be able to perform in the Prem. Add on the fact that all teams have strengthened their squads whilst we have managed to weaken ours. This is what happens.

      That’s nothing to do with a new stadium and all to do with football.

      • Roshi says:

        Did you read my post or just guess at what I said following the first sentence

        • bootsy says:

          I did. You managed to contradict yourself quite well but I didn’t want to point that out. Well, until now:)

          • Roshi says:

            Do you know what contradict means. What a strange bloke you are, obviously educated at school for half wits

  • Tone not Tore says:

    The bottom line is you will always have a minority of fans who think they could run the club better than the current owners,think they could manage the team better than the manager.Every club has them it isnt unique to us,but with the move as well these footballing experts have more to spout about Lol

  • JB says:

    You are wasting your breath Hugh or typing fingers should i say.We have fans who if they cant moan have nothing left to say!!

    • GW says:

      JB your right mate this should have been posted on Deidre’s daily forum you know the place where a collective of ********s gather and run there mouths off on a daily basis .

      • Tone not Tore says:

        Well i still go there sometimes.It seems many fans are getting sick of the few & their negativity.I have seen a few posters on there say that they are leaving or are sick of it.The problem with that though is that it leaves the moaners to have free reign Lol

  • GW says:

    Alfie what’s more hippocritical is that there are those who have embraced the change over there who get shot down by the anti Brady posse many of who have never even set foot in the ground or didn’t set foot in UP for years.

    • JB says:

      It always makes me chuckle when some of the most vocal are the ones who have probaby never even tried to buy a ticket or know so much about the stadium having never been within an international space stations distance from the place.

  • Radai Lama...Rises From The Ashes says:

    #Westhamfamily lol Brady is currently being put out for adoption though because the moaning grannies cant control her 🙂

  • Alfie says:

    Eddie nailed it earlier when he said some of our fans are giving opposition fans an absolute feast to get their teeth in to.They must be laughing their nuts off reading some of our blogs like Totten Ham Till I Die with their daily round of hissy fits.

  • GW says:

    Never was a truer word said! But when you’ve got certain fans who think that the club belongs to them, who can’t wait to say I told you so and who see forums as a way of stroking there egos nothing will change. Maybe this should be posted on Iain’s site of negativity as that’s where all these ego orientated fans seem to gather?

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