On the plus side the lardy clump are keeping up great traditions in france tonight. Pussay glory beckons (with both humphries and walker notable absentees).
David Woolmer CLIFFORD CHANCE Limited Liability Partnership Droogbak 1A 1013 GE Amsterdam PO Box 251 1000 AG Amsterdam Direct line: +31 (0) 20 711 9260 Switchboard: +31 (0) 20 711 9000 Fax: +31 (0) 20 711 9999 mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.cliffordchance.com -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [email protected] Sent: Sat Jun 03 01:26:19 2006 Subject: Re: [LU] ST price hike On Fri, 2006-06-02 at 20:33, Michael ALCOCK wrote: > Me and my mate were taking about this - In 1996 - 17 of us, all either > season ticket holders, or away regulars went to the Cup Final against > Aston Villa. As Matt said earlier, the infamous List Clique Clump has shrunk enormously, both on the Away ST side and the Row W crew in the Kop. I'm giving up both this year though I effectively finished last season - despite the fact that I had a home & away ST last year I made precisely 2 games. For me it's one big reason plus a load of little things that have mounted up over the last few years - not just since relegation. Big reason is simply the fact that I'm now a father: I didn't get myself into this position to then have nowt to do with the young 'un for 50% of my free time, and it's not really fair to stick a toddler in a car seat for 2 hours, expect him to stand still at the game for another 2 hours, then get strapped in again for the ride home. Little reasons? The football was getting worse and worse. It's hard to get enthusiastic about the sort of crud we've been subjected to since we rejoiced in the demise of the curmudgeonly O'Leary. The players clearly cared less and less about the club, the fans or anything other than picking up ever increasing pay cheques for an ever decreasing contributions. A couple of honourable exceptions of course, but not enough. The manager(s) treated the paying public as idiots. From DOL slagging off the fans who dared to boo the team after a craven, effort-free capitulation, to Venables with his p***-take of an attitude exemplified best by the defeats at Bramall Lane, to Blackwell slagging off everyone bar his beloved Gregan after everyone apart from the manager had seen the snail-paced lardbucket stand watching while the opposition cut the midfield to shreds. I exempt Peter Reid and Eddie Gray from this: Reid was always brutally honest with the fans and had the courage to admit he made mistakes, and Gray was always on a hiding to nothing. The board - incompetent, reckless, money-grabbing and just plain liars in the past. Bates in the present - well as I said when he took over I thought he was just about the only man in football who might have a chance to save the club. He's doing it to line his own pocket, but ultimately we all win if the team gets promoted again - though as Rick, Betty and others have pointed out, it's mainly being done with other people's money, although I would question whether anybody other than Uncle Ken and his notorious hardball tactics would have been able to make the tough decisions and bring others into line as we get back onto an even keel. The fans: maybe I'm getting old, but as the results slipped a bit, not only did we lose the gloryhunters, we also seemed to lose more of the older crowd, the women and kids and gained more of the sad chav wannabes who seemed so desperately upset on being born 5 years after most serious aggro had vanished that they would start fights with fellow Leeds fans just to show how hard they were. The police. I'm sick of being sectioned, photographed, videotaped, herded, penned and generally treated like a war criminal just because I want to watch a game of football. We bring at least some of it on ourselves (see above) but as we've seen on numerous occasions, treat people badly and you'll get bad behaviour as the idiots are joined by the p***ed off majority: offer a bit of respect and most of the time you'll find that the majority will self-police the idiots. ...and finally it's just the general attrition on the "mates" front. I always said that the people you saw were at least as important as the footy. People get older, move, have kids, change jobs. Remembering the dear departed: my original mates from Leeds - H, Cog, Jim and Stan (married presumed happy since 199?), then listers Gav, Mike, Claire, Martyn, Thirkers and family, Verner (despite the fact that he still has a ticket he used it almost less than me), Dunderhead, Betty, Roger, Padraig, Alan, Da Rev, Tottys, Maggie, Al, Waddle, the Mad Jocks, Caddy, Sticky, the Tonga clan, Stotty, Raffe, Voice, SiC, AndyE, Jamie Oliver, Sarge... We've had some bloody good times around Britain and around Europe. Highlights too many to mention them all - getting an hour of Shutty's time and boardroom privileges when me, Wiggy and SiC decided to go to Kettering anyway after Leeds cancelled at the last minute, or on the European front, Javier the Real Madrid fan sorting me out with half a dozen tickets for Valencia and then insisting on taking me, Andy Ewart and a few more stragglers on an eating and drinking tour of his city, then drinking the Argie Bar dry the following day, much to the delight and surprise of the proprietor. But you can't cling onto the past forever. I'll make a couple of home games next season, and since I've still got my home ST card I might even venture to an away game if the chance presents itself. In 5-6 years time, when the little chap is old enough to start getting something out of the games then I might reconsider an ST, but for now I'm signing off as a regular without too much regret. I've not stopped wanting the club to do well, to win everything going or at least get promoted, but there's more - much more - to life than football: it's taken me nigh on 40 years to realise it but I got there in the end. Cheers jabba PS - Blackwell out. He's taken us as far as he can and anyone who buys that 3-year plan c**p and believes that he wasn't going for promotion this year with the signings he made needs their head examining. This year was our best chance and he blew it twice: in the run-in when we had the Blunts in our sights, and then on the big day in Cardiff when his team selection, team tactics and team preparation all showed that no matter how many times Mark H and co repeat the same old argument on this list, we cannot afford the luxury of getting to February 2007 and seeing the same thing happen again. Decent bloke, not a bad manager, but not the man to take us forward. _______________________________________________ the Leeds List is an unmoderated mailing list and the list administrators accept no liability for the personal views and opinions of contributors. Leedslist mailing list [email protected] http://list.zetnet.co.uk/mailman/listinfo/leedslist oh alright then :-) ******* This message and any attachment are confidential and may be privileged or otherwise protected from disclosure. If you are not the intended recipient, please telephone or email the sender and delete this message and any attachment from your system. If you are not the intended recipient you must not copy this message or attachment or disclose the contents to any other person. For further information about Clifford Chance please see our website at http://www.cliffordchance.com or refer to any Clifford Chance office. _______________________________________________ the Leeds List is an unmoderated mailing list and the list administrators accept no liability for the personal views and opinions of contributors. Leedslist mailing list [email protected] http://list.zetnet.co.uk/mailman/listinfo/leedslist oh alright then :-)
