I agree Dan.... we need to have a strong cohesive group in the same area. I don't expect everyone to sing.... I am 60 and have to conserve my energy these days! Yes the wobby poster was at one end of the spectrum but I do agree his sentiments....
Someone mentioned Palace having "Glad all over" to sing to. As we don't have a song, someone (within the club or at Wembley) decided to play "Yellow" by Coldplay which is not exactly a song to rouse people to group sing to. As the team at the time were the backing singers, wasn't "Georgia" by SEJ adapted into a chant? If it was, did the chant die out through lack of use?
The percentage of Palace fans at Wembley between the age of 18 and 40 would have been much higher than ours (even though both had 34k at the game). The disadvantage of being a family club is that you will always have children, kids, mums, grandads etc at the games and Palace are not a family club. Another family club, Ipswich, are also quiet. The other part of it, is that I feel the vast majority of us (regardless of age this time) are too civilised and too self conscious about what others will think of us if we show some passion and get behind the team. In a nutshell then, the WFC fans who dont want to chant outweigh the ones who do, it's been like that for over 10 years now.
Mitch, the only thing I would disagree with you on the above is that it's been quiet for over 25 years. It is the direct result of the emphasis on the "family" aspect of the club and the extremely overzealous stewarding and especially policing in the Rookery (starting around 1979 when the "big clubs" like West Ham started to visit). The police used to frogmarch anyone who showed too much enthusiasm for singing and jumping up and down - first into the notorious "police hut" (where who knows what went on in there) and then out of the ground. The Rookery was also frequently given over to the Away fans when playing London clubs. Over the early 80s, this effectively killed off any consistent atmosphere as those most likely to create noise gave up coming. Once the nucleus of noisy fans were driven away, it has been next to impossible to recreate it.
Your club needs an area in the ground. It's as simple as that. We've got the north and south stands. Liverpool have the kop. Most clubs have an area although typically in new stadia it is close to the away fans. Arsenals atmosphere has gone because they failed to recreate the north bank at the Emirates. It's something you should be petitioning your club for. If you really want it then you should be asking your club to get behind the safe standing area initiative that is currently in motion.
Our Rookery end (bigger one behind the goal) is supposed to be the stand for vocal supporters yet there are considerably more quiet/silent ones in that stand than vocal ones. We also have a group of 20 or so kids who call themselves the Yellow Order, they all sit/stand together and try to get some form of atmosphere going but it very rarely works. How many family clubs can you think of that are loud?? I cant think of a single one (no I dont class Liverpool or Newcastle as a family clubs). Safe standing would only marginally improve the atmosphere, instead of 30 people chanting we'd have 40 people chanting.
Yes, by all means. I suggest that a suitable safe smoking area for Vicarage Road would be at the bottom of the allotments....
I disagree Mitch when the rookery was a terrace it generated more noise because people that wanted to sing could congregate together , when your tied to your seats you cant do that , if you do stand up and sing you get some miserable twat behind you moaning , safe standing would make a big difference , just look at the terrace at posh.!
It will be a gradual process as some folk learn how to be less ermmm self conscious but in time it will be the way forward ,what is crucial as palace showed us we have to have the clubs backing to put all the singers together preferably behind goal at the rookery end . So peeps if you are quiet and reserved please dont get an sth in aforementioned place. Lots of folk are willing to show vocal support but we need a large group to take the lead again as wembley and palace showed us with their eagles chant.
Society was very very different when the Rookery was a terrace compared to how it is now. People's attitudes have changed a lot since then. In any case, a proper terrace is different to safe standing.
we've been playing 'Yellow' a lot lately..and it's not the first time. A lot of people had asked for it to be played more as it was becoming a bit of an anthem.
safe standing works. I know this because it's what we do at almost every away game! If the people who go to away games stood together at the Vic, the place would be rocking. We need safe standing, and we need it soon, and we need all the people who want to sing to stand in it and sing! /rant!
East stand needs to be rebuilt....... Only then will the rug and thermos brigade move and the Rookery be rightly reclaimed by the more vociferous members of our support. be
I'm getting on a bit...but I bring neither rug nor thermos...I pay my money...I clap...I shout encouragement from time to time and leap to my feet when we score...but I attend football matches not fascist rallies...I sit in the much maligned Upper Rous and have done for a long time...believe me, it's far from silent...and I take exception to anyone belittling my kind of support or telling me I'm not a proper supporter if I don't chant or sing. I WILL NOT BE ORDERED TO JOIN IN, SO THERE
