Go and ask your fellow Spurs if they have a soft spot for West Ham and see the response. In all the time I spent on BBC and Not 606, I have never ever seen a Spurs fan admit to having a soft spot for West Ham. Us Arsenal fans have, pre-Fat Sam, of course. There is far more hatred in the West Ham/Spurs games than the ones between West Ham and Arsenal.
They hate West Ham because they fear them as they usually operate at the same level in the league and are rivals in the true sense of the word. Spuds hate us due to envy and because we give them a stiff neck from having to look up at us at the end of every season.
With respect mate you clearly haven't been to a Spurs v West Ham game recently. Just recently West Ham fans were in court after a "clash" at a Spurs v West Ham match. I know of Spurs ST's (through a friend) that hate West Ham as much as Chelsea or even Arsenal. Particularly those that grew up East London/Essex way. I'd put it down to Hooliganism but also a psychological frailty which seems common at THFC. Most Spurs fans would admit throughout the course of history Arsenal have been better than them but they will not afford Chelsea or West Ham the same grace. Most Spurs fans would admit Arsenal are a bigger club than them. Some Spurs fans would admit Chelsea are a bigger club than them (usually Spurs fans that are under 30) so there you are left with West Ham, the last of London's big 4 clubs. For me Spurs are a bigger club than West Ham but I think the potential is there for West Ham to leapfrog them as Arsenal and Chelsea have done, especially if they get the OS. Certainly from about 1992-2009 the gap between the two clubs bar a 2 year period was minimal. So that's a good 15 years
Most of the hate comes from the West Ham side, much like with Chelsea but our fans have been catching up on the true hatred for awhile. I can see where BS is coming from though, a few years back I went to my first West Ham/Spurs game since I was about 12 and was surprised by the police presence as I simply didn't view West Ham as a particularly big game. Their supporters are total ****s though and that's the main thing for me.
From my experience the hatred in Spurs v Chelsea games comes far more from Spurs than Chelsea but I agree the hatred here is more one sided with West Ham being pretty much obsessed with Spurs, almost as obsessed as they are with Chelsea. Agree with you about their fans though. Total ****s . The away support is just full of Cockney Wide Boy wannabes from Essex in 8 bedroom houses and the home support consisting largely of 12 year old boys and 60 year old men goading away fans all game saying they'll "see you outside" after the game. In the past Chelsea have rightfully come under a lot of stick for anti-semitism before, during and after games v Spurs but I've heard from Spurs fans that go that West Ham are far far worse but it gets conveniently swept under the carpet by the West Ham loving media.
I now realise I slightly misread Smithy's comment, thought he was just saying that he had a soft spot for West Ham which I could understand as we've not always been bitter rivals
Well, not quite, but fair point all the same. As we all know, the only way people stick together is to find a common scapegoat to gang up on, and the weaker and more vulnerable the better. Your number happened to come up, so I jumped on board. It was only after I did that I remembered you're doing well, so far. If you hadn't been lurking, we would have found a better target.
I've always liked watching West Ham.Like Spurs,a good footballing side.But you must remember,I've always been a fan of football.Didn't get drunk at a game like Liverpool fans.Didn't wear bother boots in my youth like Chelsea fans and didn't wait at railway stations for a opposing fans like the Man U lot. Hey!I remember going to Charlton to watch Spurs and the Spurs end invaded by....wait for it....Millwall fans!
On the nice side.I remember,when I was eleven,standing along the boards of "The Shelf",along with some Chelsea fans sporting their colours,ladies too! sharing their food and drink with me. ....and the other side going to Doncaster a few years later watching Spurs win and a Dony fan screaming at both teams for 90 minutes!I guess he got it from his wife(?) and he took it out on the players every matchday!
