Southampton, the erosion of goodwill and tribal truths

Good article I've just read - definitely starting to notice this sort of behaviour in supporters of other clubs!

 

http://thepremierleagueowl.com/southampton-the-erosion-of-goodwill-and-tribal-truths/

 

Southampton could provide a revealing insight into rival fans’ mentality this season.

 

Ronald Koeman’s side have become almost a neutral’s favourite over the past six months, bucking the established trend of the Premier League era and threatening to crack through the glass-ceiling at the top of the table.

 

They’re easy to get behind: ravished by predatory clubs during the Summer, re-built out of necessity in double-quick time, and yet somehow still prevailing.

 

Southampton are the club who refuse to accept their place in the hierarchy and why would anyone not embrace that?

 

Sure, supporters of clubs who are part of that little cabal at the game’s summit may not be so enthusiastic and are unlikely to want to see them displace their own side in next season’s Champions League, but generally there’s a lot of goodwill about.

 

That mentality is easy to follow: “If they can do it, why can’t my club?”

 

Southampton represent hope against probability, success versus expected failure and, for fans of also-ran clubs they are naturally a force for good.

 

But that’s about to change – and not even because of anything to do with Southampton.

 

The longer this run of form continues and the more Koeman and his players achieve, the less audible those banner-waving neutrals will become. The root of almost all hatred in football is envy and nothing erodes at goodwill quite like success.

 

Over time, those championing Southampton’s cause will stop celebrating the ‘what if?’ and focus on the ‘why not?’. If this club is making such strident steps forward, rival fans will ask, why isn’t my club doing the same?

 

Instead of cheering them on against Manchester United, Chelsea and the other behemoths, some will start to enjoy watching them lose and seeing their momentum punctured. Soon, it will all become a bit sneery and snarky and the usual rules of tribalism will once again be in-play.

 

That’s really because, although we all moan about it, we take perverse comfort in the glass-ceiling. Having three or four dominant clubs amounts to an evergreen excuse for failure. When our teams fail year-on-year to achieve anything tangible, we’re comforted by knowing that success is really impossible and that we’re all just victims of a vast financial imbalance.

 

Seeing a side challenge that belief? It’s fun for a while, but the more partisan supporters will only ever have so much tolerance for it.

 

Neutral-favourite status is fleeting and there’s always a point at which the majority start wanting the underdog to fail. The same people who laughed heartily as Steven Gerrard tripped over himself at Anfield last season will soon be directing that same brand of schadenfreude at Koeman, Tadic, Pelle and friends. Southampton are great, but only for as long as we’re able to pat them on the head.

 

It’s a shame, because this is a great story, but it’s inevitable.

Good article I've just read - definitely starting to notice this sort of behaviour in supporters of other clubs!

 

http://thepremierleagueowl.com/southampton-the-erosion-of-goodwill-and-tribal-truths/

I haven't noticed any of that sort of behaviour from other fans. Generally a compliment if we're not always liked and no-one wants to be seen as the plucky underdogs all the time anyway.

I haven't noticed any of that sort of behaviour from other fans. Generally a compliment if we're not always liked and no-one wants to be seen as the plucky underdogs all the time anyway.

 

Try living in Manchester!

It's early days yet. Let's see where SFC finish at the end of the league campaign.

 

Also, let's see if the club finish in the top 8 on a consistent basis over the next 8 years.

 

Whatever, this has been a great season. To be clear of relegation by January, awesome.

I think it would all depend on how we act.

 

If we establish ourselves at the top and start behaving like the Mancs, Liverpool and London teams, i.e. buying up all the talent from smaller clubs, people will start to hate us. Whereas if we continue creating a lot of our own players and playing attractive football on the pitch, I think most fans will admire our team, or at least be indifferent toward us.

The first to take the sneery attitude were the pundits. Maybe that has more to do with their opinions pre-season being so wide of the mark. Maybe it is because they are happy with the cabal at the top. All they go on about is Liverpool and Arsenal finishing in top 4, which while I think it will probably be that way, we aren't even considered.

 

Supporters of the "cabal" are seemingly sort of split. Many can see that it is great for the game if a smaller team gets in the mix (obviously so long as it's not at their expense), while many just want the cabal to be the way it always is. I guess it might be a generational thing, with the older supporters realising how much football has changed, even though there were certain clubs always up at the top, and changed for the worse. There is very much two divisions within the PL, 6 vs the rest as Everton seem to have dropped off (maybe only temporarily). Of those 6, how many have a chance of winning it. Really we might as well have a SPL type set up and let the big teams play each other 4 times a season.

 

Anyway, I think the feelings towards us come down to whether you can see the bigger picture or not. Supporters of smaller clubs probably can, but the envy is misplaced. We are not joining the cabal and it is likely to be a blip. It happens from time to time, but I guess the over achieving is the interesting part of it.

Believe it or not I work in Pompey and everyone I speak to about saints always say good things about us !

Believe it or not I work in Pompey and everyone I speak to about saints always say good things about us !

 

Not.

There are already lots of snipers and doom merchants out there who continue to insist the 'bubble' will burst soon but as a very long standing Saint (58 years) I've heard them all over the years.I will never be arrogant in the way the 'we have the right to be in the top four' brigade are.I just love the place we are in,our superior goal difference and the way in which we continue to play the game 'our way'.'Up Yours' ye of little faith. I'm a Saint and proud to be so.

Believe it or not I work in Pompey and everyone I speak to about Saints always say good things about us !

 

.....who else would they be able to praise, though?

Try living in Manchester!

 

Fluck noooooooooo!

Who cares what other football fans think about us? Nice if we're their second team, but I wouldn't lose any sleep if they change their minds because we have usurped their team from the summit of the division.

I reckon we should celebrate this by singing this to other clubs,

 

"We're your second team,

We're your second team.

We are Southampton,

We're your second team"

 

I reckon that'll make their fans realise how much we care about their support and get them to get behind us.

It's early days yet. Let's see where SFC finish at the end of the league campaign.

 

Also, let's see if the club finish in the top 8 on a consistent basis over the next 8 years.

 

Whatever, this has been a great season. To be clear of relegation by January, awesome.

 

Awesome to be clear of relegation by January? You were honestly thinking about relegation at that point and not the possibility of CL football Dalek?

I have heard a lot about this second team malarkey but have never actually met someone for whom we are their second team (I live in Kent).

 

On another note, watched Pointless the other day and there was a guy from Norwich on who supported SFC so nice to see we have "plastics" too!

Awesome to be clear of relegation by January? You were honestly thinking about relegation at that point and not the possibility of CL football Dalek?

 

Yep, I was only totally relaxed when we above 40 points.

 

Mind you, I am now worrying about next season.

It's early days yet. Let's see where SFC finish at the end of the league campaign.

 

Also, let's see if the club finish in the top 8 on a consistent basis over the next 8 years.

 

Whatever, this has been a great season. To be clear of relegation by January, awesome.

 

I think we can be reasonably confident of a top 7 finish right now. But from 3rd to 7th we shall see - beating Liverpool would be huge. Let's just hope also that Liverpool/Tottenham win Europa and the cups go to Man U for FA Cup or Chelsea for league cup or whatever - will mean even in 7th off to Europe we go.

Yep, I was only totally relaxed when we above 40 points.

 

Mind you, I am now worrying about next season.

 

Every silver lining has a cloud, eh Dalek?

Yep, I was only totally relaxed when we above 40 points.

 

Mind you, I am now worrying about next season.

Me too. It's going to be difficult to get a result at the Nou Camp.

It is a damn good blog as ever by Premier League Owl.

 

And very true. Wife & I wore our old Sash shirts out at a sporting event recently and I spoke to about 15 different lads about Saints. All of them full of praise (apart from a couple of Mancs who just recited the why can't you lot JUST GO AWAY line).

 

Couple of weeks ago, in the pub with the Dubai Saints crew, Real Madrid were getting walloped in the Derby and 4 lads in Real shirts gave up the embarrassment and came over and chatted with us, again full of praise.

 

But apart from the Spanish lads, in every conversation you could simply FEEL that "British Stereotype" waiting to burst out - the one that takes great pleasure in building something up and then ripping it to shreds.

 

Right now everyone loves us. We beat the Scousers, they'll love us, we beat the Spuds, they'll love us.

 

But the MOMENT we look like we could actually join "The Elite" at the top of the pie? The whole of England will be down on us like a ton of bricks. And IF we "screw up UCL qualification? We will NEVER hear the last of it.

 

Nobody in England can ascend "The Pedestal" it is against "your" DNA

I have heard a lot about this second team malarkey but have never actually met someone for whom we are their second team (I live in Kent).

 

On another note, watched Pointless the other day and there was a guy from Norwich on who supported SFC so nice to see we have "plastics" too!

 

 

I live in Norwich and I'm a Saints fan.

 

I'm not very plastic.

 

Behave Bernie!

Believe it or not I work in Pompey and everyone I speak to about saints always say good things about us !

You lost me at work and in pompey!?

You lost me at work and in pompey!

 

exactly reading between the lines, it should be "**** over pompey"

Believe it or not I work in Pompey and everyone I speak to about saints always say good things about us !

 

It always used to be that way back just after the war Hampshire supporters rooted for their own team first of course, then other county teams second. The Echo highlighted all Hants teams. There was grudging admiration for Pompey's higher status, but we made it too. That is when local rivalry (reflecting the competition between the port of Southampton vs Portsmouth docks) started to become more intense.

 

But it will always be that neutrals support the underdog. Us vs the bigger clubs, and recently when CP and Swansea defeated bigheaded Saints.

Believe it or not I work in Pompey and everyone I speak to about saints always say good things about us !

 

I live in Gosport and everyone I speak to about Saints ****ing hate us.

I haven't noticed any of that sort of behaviour from other fans. Generally a compliment if we're not always liked and no-one wants to be seen as the plucky underdogs all the time anyway.

 

Yet. Are Man City still the widely-loved upstarts breaking the monotony of the Man U-Arsenal-Chelsea lockdown of the title? I'd say no...

But the MOMENT we look like we could actually join "The Elite" at the top of the pie? The whole of England will be down on us like a ton of bricks. And IF we "screw up UCL qualification? We will NEVER hear the last of it.

 

Nobody in England can ascend "The Pedestal" it is against "your" DNA

 

When Everton came 4th ten years ago I thought there was quite a lot of respect for them, especially as they were expected to be fighting relegation, just like us now.

 

Even when they failed to reach the group stage I don't think there was much backstabbing. Could be wrong though as I was more concerned about our own situation!

When Everton came 4th ten years ago I thought there was quite a lot of respect for them, especially as they were expected to be fighting relegation, just like us now.

 

Even when they failed to reach the group stage I don't think there was much backstabbing. Could be wrong though as I was more concerned about our own situation!

 

You are correct. Of course there wasn't.

 

No one really cares whether we qualify or not. And if we fail, far from "never hearing the last of it" no one will care. Just like no one on this forum would give two shiny sh its about West Brom or Swansea finishing or not finishing top four.

I live in Gosport and everyone I speak to about Saints ****ing hate us.

 

It gives them self-justification for still living in Gosport.