Many would argue that the last genuine “Mr Arsenal” we had was TA06, that rare breed of a one club man, while others would say that PV04 and TH14 were club heroes in their own equally memorable way. To me such a player is someone who you cannot imagine playing in any kit other than our red and white, can we say that of any of our current squad?
Is it fair to blame the Bosman ruling (and potentially the Webster case) as the reason for the rarity of one club players and/or the shortness of stays at any club for professional footballers nowadays? Will we ever see a world class player of ours who won’t even consider leaving no matter which other supposedly “bigger” club comes knocking?
I was born in the same year as TA06 and also grew up in Essex in the 1970’s so I always identified with him, I could have even have played against him in Primary School football competitions c.1976 but for the fact I had no talent and didn’t get picked for more than a couple of the school’s games. It’s for this and other reasons that I notice the lack of a genuine “Mr Arsenal” in recent years since his departure.
It can be argued that both of the French players I mentioned in the opening line are as close to a “Mr Arsenal” loyalist as “Rodders”, but we were tortured with constant exit rumours every transfer window during the latter parts of their time with us, as we are currently with CF04.
It was a different pre-Bosman era for a significant portion of his career (the ruling being made in 1995) so it could be argued there was less player mobility then, but non the less there was little suggestion he was likely to leave us any time.
Is it an easy bit of xenophobia to suggest that being English he would be less likely to go than the French pair? The career of DB10 would not support that theory as he stayed for 10 years and even at the height of his powers the bi-annual transfer shenanigans we have come to expect as Arsenal fans in relation to our current stars did not come to pass.
Recently I had the misfortune to chance upon one of the latest anti-Arsenal bandwagons Talkspite (aka Talksport) that their posse of shock jocks had made the debating point of the day.
It was the quietness of the Ashburton Grove support and the lack of passion the crowd showed yet my latest match day experience last Saturday was in the Red Action section of the North bank where the more vociferous supporters are located. Now while it’s a cliché to say it’s only Arsenal who ever experience a volume of crowd noise that is less than constant and akin to a power metal concert I felt no need to get unduly wound up by the tired old attempt at a wind-up.
What it did remind me of was the way the “committed” support I was located in berated our players over the slightest of things. Yes, the atmosphere was very lively and the singing almost constant as we were standing up for all of the second half in the lower tier of the North bank, however the “passion” of the crowd led to a less than supportive timbre to the feedback the players would get.
A trip on Arshavin was followed a nanosecond later by our own supporters yelling “Get up for f**k’s sake!”
A forearm smash from Etuhu which felled Robin led to shouts from the crowd around me of “F**king hell he’s injured
again!” and “You’re a waste of f**king money!”
Another incident that grated with me was the sarcastic clapping for Fabianski when he claimed a cross after he’d been beaten by Carroll’s header against Newcastle.
Is it possible that a necessary, unavoidable adjunct of vociferous support is that the negative feedback will be that much more venomous?
A common theme I hear from other team’s supporters is that Arsenal fans slag off their own players more than opposition supporters too as they are spoilt and churlish.
Now I believe criticism of a player’s performance is more than permitted after a game. However, howls of derision at a mistake such as a misplaced pass can in no way spur a player on and are, in my opinion, self-defeating.
Call me selfish, but I’ll do what I can to maximise positive outcomes for myself, so if my team’s goalie scuffs a clearance do I groan out load?
No, because the effect of 55,000+ other voices groaning simultaneously will hardly help a player’s confidence. It can be argued that professional players shouldn’t be affected by crowd noise, professionals they may be but robots they are not. Of course they are going to be affected by negative feedback from crowd reaction and this no doubt has some bearing on our better away record.
It’s ironic that while the Grove is the quieter of the premier League grounds the groans do get gleefully picked up upon by anti-Arsenal media elements such as Talkspite.
Now players make decisions to move on based on a variety of factors; however it is my humble supposition that we can in some small way help to keep our better players if the Ashburton Grove support, and the larger Gooner diaspora, can bite their tongues and suppress groans and moans when players, as human beings, may not perform as expected all of the time.
Gaining respect and support is a two way street but suspending reservations you may have about a player at least during match time is surely better for the positive outcome we should all want.
If you’re not going to sing/shout your support at least don’t make younger less extrovert characters amongst our squad want to hide during the game by jeering and cat calls or, as has been alluded to by a previous post, low-pitched, monotone bovine utterances.
How the crowd reacts after the final whistle, if doubts about any of the player’s capabilities are confirmed, is another question.
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Morning,
Thanks chary for a classic rant – I agree with every word.
Your article has given me an idea ….. it could be madness or it could be me deluding myself.
What if the hardcore supporters or Red Action produced their own easily recognisable woolly hats with a slogan something like ‘True Arsenal’ ?????
They could be sold and the profit could go to one of the Arsenal charities. The purpose would be that those who wear the hats would identify themselves as ‘positive fans’ who sing and don’t look kindly on ‘negative supporters’. Anyone who wore the hat at a game would be sending out a message to those around them and would pledge to make it their business to encourage singing and embarrass the moaners and silent supporters into joining in.
Sadly I won’t be around this morning to join in the debate as the dreaded Christmas shopping beckons 😦 – catch up later….
Well said Chary, excellent post. I think there are some loyal players left though, RVP and Clichy could have both moved on and earned more money elsewhere and have both been unjustly critisised imo but have said that this is where they want to be. Hopefully we are also on the verge of a new generation of home-grown players which may bring back the solidarity which existed in the team of the late 80s early 90s who largely played and learned together. One thing that cannot be overlooked thogh is the lack of loyalty which AFC have shown to some of its players in the past, the reluctance to keep players beyond 30 is ridiculous and we all know that we have let good ones go for this reason and still they talk of their love of the Arsenal. It is actually a three-way street, the player, the club and the support and all should be loyal to each other.
[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by John O Sullivan, EpiKnightz. EpiKnightz said: No more heroes…because we don’t deserve it.: Many would argue that the last genuine “Mr Arsenal” we had… http://bit.ly/gczWDn #Arsenal […]
Excellent post Chary.
Barum, how about four way street. The agent!!
It is certainly true that we do have many players at the moment, both first teamers, as well as coming throughers who are going to have huge chunks of Arsenal DNA, but lets not kid ourselves about a couple of things. Barum makes a very good point about the loyalty shown by AFC to its players. It is a professional sport, and the players know that their loyalty can at any moment be rewarded with the boot. The other point is that fans have always moaned and groaned at their own. Even the one’s with 100% Red and White DNA. Think of the early Tony Adams years and the donkey stuff. That was also from the North Bank!
Its a tough old world.
I think Gibbs and Whilshere will be at Arsenal all of there careers
True Micky. The agents and their greed are the biggest problem in the modern game.
Ketch, I hope so…and Ramsey too
Christmas shopping??? There’s another thirteen days until Christmas Eve!
Back monday.
Excellent post and argument Chary. I do remember groans at Highbury when passes went astray over the years. Perhaps it’s just that the proportion groaning has increased. The truth is that The Grove is a very different environment to the old grounds most of us grew up with and it will take a huge effort to alter the atmosphere. The biggest way it will change is via success. If we win something the atmosphere will improve. I suppose what I’m saying is that the silent/moaning fans are not likely to change until they have something to cheer about.
It’s a sad fact that the fans need the team to lead them out of this trough of despond, because they are surely not going to lead the team out of it.
But having said that, Rasp’s idea is an interesting one. It could be more than hats – there could be badges, scarves, flags, all carrying the message that we need to get behind the lads.
Maybe the slogan should be more about positivity. I wonder whether ‘True Arsenal’ is a bit too provocative because it implies that anyone who doesn’t carry the slogan is not true Arsenal.
Maybe it should be something like Positively Arsenal.
Rasp – you should suggest it to Red Action.
‘Arsenal And Proud’?
‘Arsenal Out Loud’?
‘Arsenal T.I.D.’?
‘Arsenal Arsenal 😛 ‘?
‘Arsenal Aloud’?
Raspers, I like your idea if an Arsenal Ultras kind of sub section of support, a sort of latterday Gooners.
Barum/Mickey, agreed it is a complex multi way relationship that works best with trying to keep a core of die hard Arsenal loyalists as players.
R Lives, on the years I went to Highbury(2000 to 2006) I don’t remember quite as many groans but of course it could be the old nostalgia hiding it from my memory.
I still have my reservations about a lot of the players and the managers policy/strategy but I’m not going to spoil our chances on a match day out of apathy.
Let’s do a poll.
Could make a good post. Maybe we can get a bandwagon going…
R Lives – I like Arsenal Ultras, but then I like being a bit of a stirrer.
On reflection Rocky, the club could lead the campaign and produce a suitable slogan as long as they weren’t too cheesy about it.
What if every Steward had 10 pieces of this type of merchandising and observed the crowd in the first half and awarded them at half time to the 10 supporters who were the most passionate/vocal in their respective sections.
It would make a refreshing change from being told to sit down.
Rasp, do you remember a while ago I did a post about the rules of being an Arsenal player. Maybe it’s time to do one about the rules of being an Arsenal supporter…?
Rasp @2.52 – what a brilliant idea. Surely too clever for the club to ever take up?
Excellent idea Rocky. I do think there is some mileage in the ‘get behind the team’ campaign idea ….. we’re top of the league FFS, West Ham fans must be appalled by our behaviour
OK, here’s the definitive suggestion……. The Cannon Heart badge.
A red heart shaped badge with a golden cannon in the centre that cannot be bought or acquired any way other than being awarded to a supporter who sings his heart out at a game or shows an exceptional level of support (going to an away game at Blackburn in January?). I’m pretty sure anyone who got one would wear it with pride to every match.
It’s simple stuff, like singing really hard immediately after we concede a goal, like not slagging off every player for every mistake etc. Basically, as per Chary’s post, keeping the support level high in the stadium and saving the criticism for the pub.
Love the cannon heart Rasp. Organised by the club? By Red Action? By us? (people could nominate others via clips filmed on their mobile phones etc.
If such an item were produced Rocky I’m pretty sure it would be promoted on all the Arsenal blogsites in the same way as we’ve all supported the ‘Kick Kicking Out’ campaign.
I’ll produce a graphic when I have time, back out Xmas shopping now, laters……
HI all
I’ve given AISA a heads up about the post and all your very good ideas, if I don’t get a response in 48hours I’ll send another one.
Love the heart with the Cannon idea Rasp 😀
Rasp,
Your idea of Stewards giving deserving positive supporters a hat or scarf or (?), is very good.
The maths might be (say) 40? stewards giving out 10 items each to fans at half time = (say) 40*10= 400*25 (say) 25 half-times (allowing for cup games etc) = 10,000 fans/items.
Problems?
(a) Can’t see Arsenal giving the gifts free; not seen any signs of monetary generosity from the Club. 😦
(b) Would take (at least) 10 years to “recruit” the whole fan base, otherwise how is the cut off (the termination of the scheme) to be arrived at.
The idea is good but, before taking it further, the wrinkles would have to be worked out.
— Would the hats, scarves etc be standard AFC items? If so, how would that differentiate “positive” from “non-positive” fans?
— Would the hats, scarves etc be uniquely marked as “positive”? If so, the costs of production may be prohibitive.
— Would such a scheme cause friction between “different fans and/or stewards?
A good idea that would inevitably need careful managing/administering.
Hi RA,
Yes I did the maths too and realised that 10 items would be too many. At the moment stewards are figures of mild disdain so it would be a double positive if supporters warmed to the stewards too.
We’ve developed the idea to the Cannon Heart badge as an award for exceptional support and Rocky’s suggestion that supporters could nominate one another supporter by video from mobiles is very good. I’m sure none of this is original. The club realises that the supporters need encouragement hence the Arsenalization, but they have still failed to create the atmosphere we need. I am against booing, but I’d love to find a way to boo the muppets in Club Level who stroll back to their seats 5 minutes into the second half.
Previously I’ve made my thoughts on the atmosphere at the Emirates and the attendees lack of encouragement very clear. The atmosphere stinks and the attendees are the main culprits. Right or wrong that’s what I feel.
However I like what I’ve been reading today as anything that can be done to wake up the silent masses can only be good.
I’ve never been to the Emirates so my viewpoint is that of a TV viewer and listener so is obviously not as valid as that of an attendee. However that said the silence is still deafening and the moans and groans are loud and clear.
Doing the simple math we have 22,000 more
attendees at the Emirates so realistically there should be more noise and not less.
Listening to you guy’s it would appear that the additional attendees are predominately corporate guests who may or may not be fans. I’ve been in many corporate boxes in my time and my experience is that most of the time is spent on boozing and smoozing and not actively watching the game.
In North American sports stadiums when the crowd goes quiet they get pumped up by prompts on the big screens and club chants over the audio systems.
Does this happen at the Emirates?
Not yet G5 but it is only a question of time.
Here is an even more depressing fact: the noise from the crowd heard on TV is in fact louder than actually being there. They put microphones in key areas and then amplify it on TV. How depressing is that.
Some very interesting comments today and a thought provoking post.
Some good ideas there and if anything remotely positive comes then all well and good.
London, I know for a fact that Stoke play taped crowd noise to “simulate” the intimidating atmosphere they are famous for.
Morning all
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