Now that the window is closed and we've no game to look forward to, just thought I'd put this thought out there.
A few weeks back I returned to my car to find that the car next to me was emblazoned in Saints stickers. I was chatting to my grandson about this oddity when the owner returned sporting a replica shirt. Turned out that the guy had absolutely no link to Southampton as a City at all, but had been a kid in 1976 and followed them ever since. So there we are. My first encounter with a glory hunting Saints fan, poor sod!
So it got me thinking about the whole issue. We descended the stairs at Wembley in February singing that we support our local team. Crap, of course. If I, and many other Saints, supported our "local team" we'd not be supporting this lot. But there is a link. The family on my mum's side lived in and around Southampton for as far back as I can trace. I grew up in Hampshire and Southampton was the big town (and it was still a town then!). Even then, there were plenty who "supported" United (Munich boosted their appeal) or other big northern names, like Blackpool and Bolton.
FLT recently wrote a jokey piece about being in Liverpool and encountering lots of blue noses. Well, that's my experience of living in or visiting the City. Everton are the team in Liverpool while a lot of Reds speak with Essex accents. We all know the Man City view of their rivals.
Yet travelling to Wembley last February I chatted to two life time United fans who had been born and bought up in Gtr Manchester. We were chatting about the whole global malarkey and one of them made the point that getting tickets for Wembley, for example, had been difficult because of this global appeal. They were embittered by this and suggested that I be careful what I wish for when I suggested that Saints needed to broaden their fan base.
I'm interested in views of other fans on this one. How would we feel about being a global brand, but then be denied the opportunity to see our team in big games as a consequence. There are those who sleight "plastics". I recall with some embarassment being on the Northam when we played Coventry and Season Ticket holders waving their tickets chanting "Where were you when we were ****e?" to those who had taken advantage of extra tickets that had been made available. So do we want to continue to find "glory hunters" a rare breed, or is our obsession with the club capable of seeing them become less and less linked with the City which provides the name?
A few weeks back I returned to my car to find that the car next to me was emblazoned in Saints stickers. I was chatting to my grandson about this oddity when the owner returned sporting a replica shirt. Turned out that the guy had absolutely no link to Southampton as a City at all, but had been a kid in 1976 and followed them ever since. So there we are. My first encounter with a glory hunting Saints fan, poor sod!
So it got me thinking about the whole issue. We descended the stairs at Wembley in February singing that we support our local team. Crap, of course. If I, and many other Saints, supported our "local team" we'd not be supporting this lot. But there is a link. The family on my mum's side lived in and around Southampton for as far back as I can trace. I grew up in Hampshire and Southampton was the big town (and it was still a town then!). Even then, there were plenty who "supported" United (Munich boosted their appeal) or other big northern names, like Blackpool and Bolton.
FLT recently wrote a jokey piece about being in Liverpool and encountering lots of blue noses. Well, that's my experience of living in or visiting the City. Everton are the team in Liverpool while a lot of Reds speak with Essex accents. We all know the Man City view of their rivals.
Yet travelling to Wembley last February I chatted to two life time United fans who had been born and bought up in Gtr Manchester. We were chatting about the whole global malarkey and one of them made the point that getting tickets for Wembley, for example, had been difficult because of this global appeal. They were embittered by this and suggested that I be careful what I wish for when I suggested that Saints needed to broaden their fan base.
I'm interested in views of other fans on this one. How would we feel about being a global brand, but then be denied the opportunity to see our team in big games as a consequence. There are those who sleight "plastics". I recall with some embarassment being on the Northam when we played Coventry and Season Ticket holders waving their tickets chanting "Where were you when we were ****e?" to those who had taken advantage of extra tickets that had been made available. So do we want to continue to find "glory hunters" a rare breed, or is our obsession with the club capable of seeing them become less and less linked with the City which provides the name?
). A taxi driver recently told me that his family were going to their first match because Saints had put a flyer through his door offering cheap tickets for locals. Good for them I thought. A Saints fan is a Saints fan whether a season ticket holder, a casual ticket buyer, or someone who finally makes it for a once in a lifetime treat.
