WhistleHappy Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 19 hours ago, Neo said: Old - much more tribal and passionate and generally edgy. The noise level now is tame and too many who will only make some noise when we are winning and that is maybe one verse before sitting back down and waiting to be entertained before they dare shown any further emotion - eurgh !! Yeah, but it aint easy looking back. How the heck would we have managed to eat them foot long hotdogs while smoking No 6, jumping up and down chanting B R I S T O L and clapping three times (repeating) and back kicking the rear East End wall cladding? Some things wouldn't have changed though I guess, with 'tomato sa u ce' occasionally splashed all over the place! (a mix of the best of yesteryear with proper terracing sections and the best of todays facilities and choice of comfort and I reckon football could crack it again!..... The good old days weren't ALL good, but too much of the past has been binned with the modernisation and sanitation sadly prevails a little too much for my liking. (we always had seated areas in the stands for the oldies (like I am now) I miss the past, and am so happy I didn't miss it .. genuinely feel sorry for the younger generation of players and fans who never knew it or ever experienced anything like it.. If I could wave a wand I'd create a happy mix of past and present. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhistleHappy Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 18 hours ago, RedM said: Sorry. But how it's changed huh? Obviously it all had to start after Hillsborough, penning people in like animals was so wrong, but like many things of their time was accepted. I'm sure there were many other risks too, fire risks like Bradford. wooden constructions, no real fire escapes. Not many stewards to help you, we had the Police to batter us and they did. Again this was accepted. Toilet facilities were appalling, dirty, broken, no water to wash you hands never mind hot water, now our biggest complaint is the driers have cold air! Waste of time putting loo rolls in, as previously mentioned they were all thrown at the goals anyway! When I went to Newport County one evening they didn't even have a female toilet in the away end, * I had to be escorted around the pitch, shown down a pitch dark corridor and climb over empty beer crates and wave away spiders webs to use a loo!!! * our very own Little Miss RedMuffet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major Isewater Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 20 hours ago, pongo88 said: Atmosphere ? No! You have gone , decidedly , down in my estimation Pongo . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major Isewater Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 25 minutes ago, WhistleHappy said: Yeah, but it aint easy looking back. How the heck would we have managed to eat them foot long hotdogs while smoking No 6, jumping up and down chanting B R I S T O L and clapping three times (repeating) and back kicking the rear East End wall cladding? Some things wouldn't have changed though I guess, with 'tomato sa u ce' occasionally splashed all over the place! (a mix of the best of yesteryear with proper terracing sections and the best of todays facilities and choice of comfort and I reckon football could crack it again!..... The good old days weren't ALL good, but too much of the past has been binned with the modernisation and sanitation sadly prevails a little too much for my liking. (we always had seated areas in the stands for the oldies (like I am now) I miss the past, and am so happy I didn't miss it .. genuinely feel sorry for the younger generation of players and fans who never knew it or ever experienced anything like it.. If I could wave a wand I'd create a happy mix of past and present. Every thing is so santised these days . Kids are cocooned in front of their game boys and P.C 's then taxied everywhere by their parents. We learnt how to survive on our own . We had a sweet freedom , so long as we were home for tea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhistleHappy Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 12 minutes ago, Major Isewater said: Every thing is so santised these days . Kids are cocooned in front of their game boys and P.C 's then taxied everywhere by their parents. We learnt how to survive on our own . We had a sweet freedom , so long as we were home for tea. On that note Major, yesterdays sad news of John Noakes death prompted me to check out some youtube vids of his Blue Peter exploits... Jeez, was that bloke brave or mad or both the things he done to entertain us kids. Health and Safety ? tch, what's that?? Incredible stuff, and worth revisiting via nostalgic clips.... I loved the 60s/70s everything seemed possible and reality was exactly that then .. real. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
INCRED Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 Old days! in my younger days the East End was an experience to behold, as I matured the enclosure was great for one liners and banter as well as atmosphere I don't miss standing up on those cold damp days hugging a bovril and the men's urinals were a total piss fest. i enjoy the new AG but it is a cleansed new age experience. If safe standing were brought back then we may get a bit of the old AG atmosphere back? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forbespm Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 There was nothing manufactured about our passion,or the adrenaline of a Saturday afternoon deep into injun country.and in our exclusion from the mainstream we found a bond of commonality.we had an identity.we were supporters not subscribers.and we were not the unhappy band of losers that the year zero historians of satellite TV would have you believe. Excerpt from Adrian tempanys book.and the sun shines now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poland_exile Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 old days every day! started going in 1990 standing behind the goal in the east end, and tbh quite often the football seemed largely incidental. Three quid for kids then, and you'd go to school on monday morning still hoarse from singing your heart out for the city! some great couple of years in the open end as well once we seated the east end. loved all the surging, singing, the doobie doo, the fags, the swirl of rumours during the game, the abuse given the away goalie, sneaking in miniature bottles of whisky nicked from my dad, even the way right on kick-off without fail the stinkiest, fattest cider monsters would always somehow end up right in front of me great days! often wish i'd been born 15 years earlier to have hit the late 70s and 80s, but at the same time i'm massively grateful i caught the tail end of proper football!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil_clevedon Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 Nostalgia is a wonderful thing...we tend to remember the good and forget the bad. I started watching City in 1969 as a 7 year old, sitting on the fence at the back of the Open End. Dad bought season tickets for the Dolman for one season when it opened, then as a teenager I loved going in the East End. Since then I've been everywhere, but mainly the Dolman for the past 15 years. There were some fantastic memories & great atmospheres at specific games....BUT, was the atmosphere better every week then than it is now...I don't think so. Facilities - no comparison, yes all the things you associate with the old Gate (most have already been mentioned) are good memories, but would I want them back starting next season? No. Do I like everything that goes with the modern game - definitely not - but do I like the fact that it is more welcoming to families, women and girls, people from more diverse backgrounds, along with better opportunities to socialise with my mates in the stadium etc...yes! So to cut a long story short (too late I hear you say!)...there was good and bad with the old, just as there's good and bad with the new, but would I want to go back - definitely not! Just a footnote - a poster above mentioned preferring us singing songs which support City rather than trying (often unsuccessfully) to goad the opposition fans (or Gas fans - who won't hear the songs anyway!). I've been to Anfield and also to grounds where Liverpool have played away and one thing I've always noticed is that the Kop basically ignore the opposition fans (except for their most hated rivals - Man Utd of course). Every song they sing (Fields of Anfield Road, YNWA, plus various songs about individual players & ex players etc) is in support of their team. In my experience, Ashton Gate rocks the best when we're singing pro-City songs, I frequently join in with those, but, while I enjoy a bit of humorous banter, I'm not remotely interested in singing about the latest Gas manager's mother's occupation!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbored Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 Hmmmm.........tough question. I guess much depends on at what age you were during the "old" days. Today with a redevelopment of AG completed the entire match day experience is far superior to how it used to be. As for the atmosphere these days that depends on who the opponents are. The best I experienced last season was against Leeds under the lights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 On 29/05/2017 at 18:12, Alan Dicks said: 1970s and 80s best by a very long way. Football has become sanitized It certainly has, there aint many old stads left now......hate the new stads and what football has become........whatever happened to the 2 foreign players a team rule? it would certainly sort the prem out if it came back ....premiership your having a laugh....world league fc more like it, including managers and chairmen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobbyC Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 The 70's were the days. Moving the likes of Millwall and Portsmouth from the east end and not moving the likes of Villa and Chelsea. Away days were on our own hired (Turners) coach picking up at Highridge,Withywood,Knowle,Malago and Southmead and with all the right lads on board. Sometimes we would book a coach from the city centre at 3am so it was straight out of the Stage door club and onto the coach to places like Carlisle and Blackpool and all pissed before we set off. I will keep the Birmingham story for another day....i will never forget the shock on their faces,poor lads. up the 70's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pongo88 Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 The old days. Getting wet in the rain; not able to leave where you were standing at half time and guarantee being able to get back to your original position with your friends; no pre-match or half time food and drink options worth bothering with; often low terraces which meant you had a poor view even if you were tall; the violence which is now looked at through rose tinted glasses by many etc. I could go on. I could also list some benefits, but they are outweighed by the negatives. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CotswoldRed Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 10 hours ago, Welcome To The Jungle said: I suggest you take in some atmospheres outside of the UK and then tell me drums are stupid. The best atmosphere at AG all year was created by 200 Fleetwood fans and their drum. All I remember thinking was "I wish they'd shut the **** up". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trueredsupporter Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 On 29/05/2017 at 17:40, shamussy said: So essentially a debate about old days vs new days. Some betters qualified than me who considers 1990 as old days. So back then was often a crackle in the air. Cigarette smoke, jumping up and down funny songs and a fairly aggressive sometimes atmosphere. Compare to new stadium, music fanzone quieter but safer and best for hildren and views etc... So simply old days or new? For atmosphere as in singing and noise its old all day long. modern football is about something else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweeneys Penalties Posted May 30, 2017 Report Share Posted May 30, 2017 loved watching Football in the 70's and 80's. Somehow it seemed more blood and thunder on the pitch, going down like there was a sniper on the stand roof rarely happened. The language of the game has changed. In the 70's you conceded a free kick, a corner or a penalty. Now you win a free kick etc. The emphasis has changed (and not for the better). Walking down Duckmoor Road when the atmosphere in the ground was crackling and sparking was a ritual.... and made AG a place to be wary of for the traveling fan. Traveling to away grounds was an adventure.... the welcome mat was never rolled out for away fans. It was rough, it was occasionally cavalier, it was noisy and it was passionate... and I loved it. On the flip side... it all seems a more civilised (sanitised) product these days. I still follow City at home and a few away games....but the blood and thunder has gone. There again, I'm not as swift as I was when I was younger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanterne Rouge Posted May 31, 2017 Report Share Posted May 31, 2017 21 hours ago, Sweeneys Penalties said: loved watching Football in the 70's and 80's. Somehow it seemed more blood and thunder on the pitch, going down like there was a sniper on the stand roof rarely happened. The language of the game has changed. In the 70's you conceded a free kick, a corner or a penalty. Now you win a free kick etc. The emphasis has changed (and not for the better). Walking down Duckmoor Road when the atmosphere in the ground was crackling and sparking was a ritual.... and made AG a place to be wary of for the traveling fan. Traveling to away grounds was an adventure.... the welcome mat was never rolled out for away fans. It was rough, it was occasionally cavalier, it was noisy and it was passionate... and I loved it. On the flip side... it all seems a more civilised (sanitised) product these days. I still follow City at home and a few away games....but the blood and thunder has gone. There again, I'm not as swift as I was when I was younger I think this sums it up really, the game has changed but so have we. What we saw as exciting and gave you a rush in the 70s when you were eighteen would just scare you now when you`re approaching sixty. I wouldn`t change those experiences for the world, it`s part of who we are, but I don`t think I`d want to go now at my age if it was still like that - certainly not away. It is a shame that younger fans will never experience the intensity of what it was like back then but the fact that ordinary folks can go to a match in safety and not come away with a dart stuck in them or worse outweighs that IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Out of his pie crust Posted May 31, 2017 Report Share Posted May 31, 2017 On 5/29/2017 at 21:24, Kodjias Wrist said: Older fans I have spoke to have always said they enjoyed the terraces and the atmosphere more. So how hard is it to recreate this? Safestanding? More singing sections? Piss on the floor? That lovely smell of cigar smoke floating around the Williams? Where do I sign? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pillred Posted May 31, 2017 Report Share Posted May 31, 2017 On 5/29/2017 at 21:18, Baldyman said: Culturally we live in an utterly different world these days . As an old Eastender I often hanker after the days when watching footy was a far wilder experience and yes , the atmosphere was often far better than now . BUT : Would I want to go back to the constant crowd issues that existed in that era ? The open air urinals that were 3 inches deep in p@@s.Or indeed the abuse that black players received back then ? I remember the abuse poor Justin Fashanu once received and it really was horrific ! On balance , I'll take 2017 footy any day . yes the grass definitely wasn't greener in the olden days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pillred Posted May 31, 2017 Report Share Posted May 31, 2017 On 5/30/2017 at 16:30, poland_exile said: old days every day! started going in 1990 standing behind the goal in the east end, and tbh quite often the football seemed largely incidental. Three quid for kids then, and you'd go to school on monday morning still hoarse from singing your heart out for the city! some great couple of years in the open end as well once we seated the east end. loved all the surging, singing, the doobie doo, the fags, the swirl of rumours during the game, the abuse given the away goalie, sneaking in miniature bottles of whisky nicked from my dad, even the way right on kick-off without fail the stinkiest, fattest cider monsters would always somehow end up right in front of me great days! often wish i'd been born 15 years earlier to have hit the late 70s and 80s, but at the same time i'm massively grateful i caught the tail end of proper football!! I know you wont believe me, but when I first started going to watch city in the early 70s I paid 10 pence as a juvenile yes really!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhistleHappy Posted June 1, 2017 Report Share Posted June 1, 2017 On 31/05/2017 at 23:55, pillred said: I know you wont believe me, but when I first started going to watch city in the early 70s I paid 10 pence as a juvenile yes really!! I believe ya, I had a juvenile ST for the first season the Dolman opened, (think it was block g, row f, seat 15..) and it cost the grand sum of £5 for the whole season (including, I think, entry to Football Combination (the senior reserves) matches).... so 2nd Div matches (now Championship of course) must have worked out as something like 20p per league game.. and nowt for the reserves. Think it was 1970/71 ... two years after Mary Hopkins '68 smash hit record 'Those Were The Days' ... and indeed, my friends, they really were! (I'd definitely raise a glass or two to them now... ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhistleHappy Posted June 2, 2017 Report Share Posted June 2, 2017 On 31/05/2017 at 23:48, pillred said: yes the grass definitely wasn't greener in the olden days. ... grass? what grass? Half the time it hardly existed through the winter months, the sand and mud rivalled a day out on the beach at WSM ! ... & occasionally there was a donkey or two on the pitch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pillred Posted June 2, 2017 Report Share Posted June 2, 2017 Just now, WhistleHappy said: ... grass? what grass? Half the time it hardly existed through the winter months, the sand and mud rivalled a day out on the beach at WSM ! ... & occasionally there was a donkey or two on the pitch. yes watching reruns on the big match shocked me, I had forgotten just how bad some pitches were, that is one aspect of the modern game which is definitely better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pillred Posted June 2, 2017 Report Share Posted June 2, 2017 On 5/30/2017 at 14:24, SARJ said: Atmosphere at the Gate has been dreadful for years, despite the good efforts of the S82 lads. Go watch Ajax or Willem in Holland to see how football should be each week. I know we should try and make more noise but apart from 1 season we haven't exactly had a lot to get exited about lately have we. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reddoh Posted June 2, 2017 Report Share Posted June 2, 2017 On 30/05/2017 at 14:55, Major Isewater said: Every thing is so santised these days . Kids are cocooned in front of their game boys and P.C 's then taxied everywhere by their parents. We learnt how to survive on our own . We had a sweet freedom , so long as we were home for tea. we were not allowed out of the lane (500) yards ish, mother never asked where we had been but we went up to ten miles before we got or made bikes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephenkibby. Posted June 2, 2017 Report Share Posted June 2, 2017 22 hours ago, WhistleHappy said: I believe ya, I had a juvenile ST for the first season the Dolman opened, (think it was block g, row f, seat 15..) and it cost the grand sum of £5 for the whole season (including, I think, entry to Football Combination (the senior reserves) matches).... so 2nd Div matches (now Championship of course) must have worked out as something like 20p per league game.. and nowt for the reserves. Think it was 1970/71 ... two years after Mary Hopkins '68 smash hit record 'Those Were The Days' ... and indeed, my friends, they really were! (I'd definitely raise a glass or two to them now... ) Those were the days my friend we took the north bank end, we took the kop we took the f...ing lot. Can't remember the second verse but was a song in the ease end! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donkeeebles Posted June 3, 2017 Report Share Posted June 3, 2017 On 30 May 2017 at 12:02, Welcome To The Jungle said: On the subject of drums they are quite simple. Bass drum (none of this snare crap) Same person every week Said person must be an actual drummer, not just some bloke Said person must commit to being sober (or at least only one pint) After a month the person would be settled in and know when to drum and when not to, and the fans would be used to the drum too. However I also feel like the culture needs to change in the Eastend. Too many times the loudest chants and songs were aimed at the opposition fans and players, and the gas, instead of supporting our own team. That also needs to change towards a more positive atmosphere that can still be aggressive, but focused more on City than our opponents. I took my daughter to the Women's Champions League Final on Thurs, PSG v Lyon at Cardiff. There were about 120 PSG ultras there and they were absolutely brilliant. 2 drummers (both with bass drums) and 2 guys stood up at the front orchestrating it all (I did comment at the time that had it been a English league match there's no way the stewards would have let them stay there) and they didn't stop for the whole match + extra time and pens. It wasn't until about the 70th min that I heard the same song twice. The whole thing was so impressive and they made a great atmosphere which was no mean feat considering how few of them there were. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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