Following the emotional rollercoaster and eventual defeat to Tottenham Hotspur at Upton Park on Monday night, there were two particular disappointments that stuck in my mind.
Firstly, there was the obvious one shared by all West Ham fans. Conceding a last minute goal against your London rivals after a spirited and gutsy display was a bitter pill to swallow.
But I would like to focus on my second disappointment of the night and one which surprised me somewhat, the reception of former Hammer Scott Parker.
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As the teams were announced prior to kick off last Monday I was shocked and saddened by the number of boo’s our former midfielder received. Okay it’s fair to say that despite what it may have sounded like on TV, Parker did not receive jeers from the vast majority of West Ham fans but there were many more than I expected. Usually it is easy to gauge a reception of a returning player for example a Carlos Tevez say was always going to receive a heroes when he returned to the Boleyn ground for the first time with Manchester United. However with Parker, I was genuinely staggered by the reaction.
For me Scott Parker was exceptional as a West Ham player. His performances arguably kept us in the Premier League in the 2009/10 season and if he wasn’t, at times, carrying the side the following year, we probably would have gone down without a fight. After all it’s not often a player wins the ‘Football Writers Association Footballer of the Year’ award despite spending the season at a club who got relegated.
It was so much more than just his performances and ability though that made him so loved amongst the West Ham faithful. His spirit, passion and never say die attitude is something Hammers fans have always adored and Parker had it in abundance. You knew as a supporter he was one player who would put everything on the line when wearing the claret and blue. Arguably his best performance in a West Ham shirt, against Wigan at Upton Park towards the end of the 2009/10 season which effectively kept us in the top flight, epitomised what Parker was about. After bossing another game in the heart of the midfield with a typically lion hearted display, Parker popped up with a 20 yard screamer ten minutes from time to win the game. His celebration as he ran over to under pressure manager with clenched fists showed just how much he cared about the club. From that stage he was catapulted to hero status for many West Ham fans.
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So where did it all go wrong?
Well the simple answer is Tottenham Hotspur. Even the most optimistic of West Ham supporters wouldn’t have expected to keep Parker following relegation, especially given the season he had just had and with an England place still well on his radar.
I have no doubts if an Arsenal or a Liverpool would have come in for him, we would not have witnessed the reception he was subject to on Monday. But it was Tottenham who came and took a punt on the now 32-year-old and that’s the last thing any Hammers fan wanted.
Still as disappointing as it is to see your best player go to a rival club, it’s not like Scott Parker really did anything wrong. He didn’t, for example, hand in a transfer request the day after we were relegated now did he Jermain? He was offered a contract at a club playing European football and comfortably in the top 6 sides of in England.
Yes Parker did hand in a transfer request, something that to this day disappoints me immensely. It was not the fact that he wanted to leave and further his career in the Premier League, after all at his age, he was running out of time to be successful at both club and international level. However to perhaps keep his decision behind closed doors may have been a more sensible decision to take. As far as transfer request go though, it was a dignified one, with Parker stating: “I have had a fantastic four years at West Ham and will never forget the support I have had from the fans. I hope they understand and respect my decision and I wish the club every success in their fight for promotion this season.” As hard as it was to take and see Scotty join Spurs, I understood the decision and still held the guy in high regards.
Personally I just felt Scott deserved more respect from those West Ham fans who jeered him on Monday. As a player he never let the club down, standing up and being counted when we needed it most. He has never said a bad word since leaving. After what he had done for the club and how much he cared for the claret and blue, I’m sure he would have expected a better welcome. And for me he certainly deserved one.
James May
@JimMay89
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West Ham are not our rivals…
It just shows the sad state of your club and the cretins that ruined an atmosphere that was void of Jewish songs and hissing.
Scott Parker chose to go to a bigger and better club and to call us your rivals just because you are in London is silly.
You are not in our league and cannot see you ever being in our league.
We have got better year on year without the need to pay silly prices for players or wages and this is how a true long standing business is run.
When we once were a side like yourself watching the SKY four get richer and better, you tried to emulate that (Icelandic Ownership Fiasco) but that went tits up.
Scott Parker should have got a hero’s welcome but once again, the class-less West Ham Fans do not appreciate that, even though he is English. Shame on you.
West Ham are just now a poor mans Chelsea and cannot wait to see the Olympic stadium become a fiasco for you, just you watch.
Top article. Scotty gave more effort to our cause than virtually any player I have seen at UP since my first game in 1969.
In that simply awful season under Grant, he was one of the few, if not only player who had the guts to get out of the trenches and try to beat the opposition.
The rest of the players were rabbits in headlights or left cowering looking for something to hide behind. Pathetic.
By handing in a trfr request I presume this meant we didn’t have to pay any bonus linked to loyalty or whatever clause triggers yet more money into players pockets nowadays. It also made sure that the club didn’t take flack for selling him when, I do not doubt, that financially we needed to (or Messrs Gold & Sullivan would have to put more money into the club).
Until we have a sustained period in the Premier League, consistently being in the top 10 and challenging at least for 5th position, it is difficult to see how we can even expect as much loyalty from players as Parker showed.
I for one will always applaud Scott Parker and thank him for his attempts to keep us in the PL.
After what he did for you lot I couldn’t understand you booing him. Good to hear not all your fans did.
Totally agree with James’ comments. Too many people out there with short memories and a ‘burn the witch’ mentality.
PS Yidango, you’re quite correct. You stopped being our rivals when you were told you couldn’t have the Olympic stadium. Look forward to passing you on your way down.
and thank god we didn’t!!!
You’ve never been a rival in any way…
He signed for Spurs …. End of. A club supported by a majority of arrogant idiots … One of them has kindly put themselves forward as an example!!!
who else can see the irony in this statement?
Pmsl! A club full of arrogant idiots! Couldn’t have put it better myself! We know what you are so why do you”s feel the need to prove it by appearing all over our websites all the time? Are your own kind so sick of each other that you have to bother a real football club to be heard? Never heard a peep out of you when you were crap for all those years but now you are crawling out of the woodwork!! You really have a nerve! You want our stadium! You steal our players! You infest our websites! And you constantly go on about our club! What’s the matter? Ahh! Didn’t mummy buy you a claret and blue scarf for Xmas when you were at school? Didums! I’d gladly send you a match day programme from Upton Park if you would just take your jealousy elsewhere!
Its amazing how you can support a club for 40 years and still listen to fans who have no idea. Scott was great for West Ham and anyone with any sense would applaud him. Why can’t fans just get on with supporting their own club rather than worrying about other clubs. Truth be told we are not Spurs rivals as we are that far away from them in regards to ability. Our main aim is to consolidate and build year on year. However, if we continue to show disrespect to former players who gave everything for the club when he was here, why would any decent player think twice about joining us. This is a great article for a team who has too many fools as fans! Tonight i will be in Beijing cheering on West Ham against tonights rivals Stoke!
Err did anyone see Parkers attitude when he was still our player in the championship? The way he behaved at the Watford away game, walking around and not celebrating ANYof our 4 goals including his own was bang out of order. He was paid handsomely for turning out for the Hammers, he didnt do it for free & we plucked him from his geordie nightmare and turned him into an England international so please, dont bleat about how he was treated on his return when he did what he did to us. There is no loyalty in football these days except from us fans. COYI!
At the end of the day, all footballers are over paid and nothing will change that. As for us turning him into an England International, i think he did that by himself. Hard work and a desire to win usually goes a long way. Its amazing how you managed to pluck out one game amongst all those he was virtually a one man team. As much as i love west ham, we have so so manys fickle fans!
Spot on Ian. The way people bang on about Parker “the legend” after three bloody seasons makes me sick. Focus your fawning attention on the boys who wear the Claret & Blue and WANT to stay and play, Parker is history.
Actually there were not a few cheers for him but it was drowned out by the moronic boos.
No club is free of its knuckle draggers but WHU & Chelsea seem to have the most vociferous and the most tasteless especially when it comes to THFC.
I always admired the way WHU always tried to play football although Sam who will keep you up, may well ruin that. But the hatred they show towards THFC has always amazed me. While I can understand Chelsea who were crap for (nearly) a century until someone with more money than brains bought them some trophies and created that massive chip on their shoulders but WHU’s hatred of us I could never fathom and believe me I have seen us cop some hidings by WHU and while I will never forgive LPool for those they inflicted upon us, WHU’s were always in a friendly spirit.
We recognise that most of you are decent but Parker was no Campbell and there was no need for it. I guess I just cannot understand pointless hatred
Well said. I think when you go and watch cricket you find proper fans. I will always support west ham but a lot of the fans give me reasons to not go and watch them. I have friends from nearly every premier league club and manage to watch games with a little banter. Just a shame everyone cant do the same!
It is not pointless hatred as I will explain. We are West Ham! We are only interested in West Ham! Parker left the Hammers and went somewhere else. We aren’t interested in anybody else! End offWhat I will concede though as you seem to be genuine is scotty was diff class for us but when he left he left at a bad time and for you lot. Both these actions were very painful for us and still is today for many an irons fan! Especially as it could have been avoided. Grant was a disaster for the club at a time when we were in enough trouble as it was and being relegated and losing all our best players was a bitter pill. Hence the boos! In time who knows?
You may only be interested in West Ham and so am i but why then do fans spend so much time and effort berating former players. Basically, most football fans are morons and feel they can pay their money and therefore say and shout what they want. I just feel embarassed to be a football fan as it seems to confirm what is wrong in the world today. I’m fortunate to live away from the UK and spend my time in front of the computer streaming games are getting to pubs at silly a clock to watch. Watching fans boo former players instead of cheering the ones on there just seems crazy to me! You seem a decent fella and hope u enjoy the game tonight
Scott Parker was great for us (WHU). I appluaded him when he left the field during the Spurs game & so did many others.
Scott is a good guy but he now plays for Spurs & we have to move on. I can’t understand people booing every ex Hammers player taking the field as one of the opposition.
Like the previous blog, well said. There has been many players that have not given nearly as much effort as Scott did. Good luck to him and lets hope the next generation of football fans learn the word respect and maturity
I for one idolised Parker when he was at west ham and did not boo him at all on Monday. That said he is the kind of player who gives his all wherever he is, a good professional, but don’t get carried away thinking he cared for west ham as much as say noble. He cared about his career in the premier league and playing for England, which I suppose is fair enough, at the end of the day he doesn’t care which colour his jersey is as long as he can play at the top of the game. His loyalty is to himself, same as most players
True, football is his job and he does it well, especially for us. I wouldn’t expect any player to give loyalty and that includes Noble. Just doesn’t seen the way anymore. As fans we find it hard to gauge as i am sure if you and i were playing for the club we support we think we would stay for ever. Lets just hope we win tonight!
This is getting boring now! Parker played for the irons, Parker left the irons, Parker joined spuds, Parker no longer anything to do with us! Fuck him!!! And fuck all the idiotic spud morons who have to use our websites! If you are such a big club surely you must have ones of your own? And even like mined fools to talk to? We are West Ham, support our team and are not remotely interested in anybody else! Spuds take note!
I missed the game v Tottenham, my first of the season at home, but watched on TV in Bahrain, I was stunned by Scott’s reception. It was clear that when he came off the West Stand applauded. It’s not all WH that behave so poorly.
Scott, like us all, care about our employer, whilst we are there… but ultimately it’s a career path. For us.. it’s a PASSION, that is the key difference. Abuse Defoe… fair enough, ince… Fair enough, even Upson got stick this season as he “warmed up”.
Show some class, especially as Scott worked like a mad man for us… and stop giving Tottenham “fans” (why are they on here??) the opportunity to score cheap points.
Agreed. On a different note, i have watched many games in the Fiddlers Bahrain. Not sure if i see us win any though! Enjoy tonight!
Parker is history and of no importance whatsoever to me. I neither applauded or booed because. He came, he went, just like loads of others who use our club as a “stepping stone”. He did what he was bloody well paid to do so enough of the “Hammers legend” nonsense. Moore, Hurst, Brooking, Bonds,they are legends who spend their careers at Upton Park and turned down moves to Liverpool, Man Utd and Arsenal at their peaks.
It was a very small and idiotic minority, every club has one sadly, certainly no one in the West Stand upper, ie season ticket holders was booing. If they had they would have got proper stick for doing so. We all applauded him off the pitch because he deserved that credit for what he did while at the club. Don’t tar us all with the same brush.
Did all spurs supporters call for Sol Campbell to be hung as a judas when he played for Arsenal, or call Wenger a paedophile? That was pretty disgusting behaviour too, but again it was a dumb minority of THEIR supporters. it’s the same here with a few numbnuts booing Scotty P, as every club has a brainless but vocal minority.
Really couldn’t have said it better myself, Parker served loyally, and if you really thought that a player on the verge of securing the CM spot for England, would stay at a championship club, your just narrow-minded. Even in the Prem he was to good for us.
I respect him, and to all of them pricks that booed him, you don’t know what supporting west hams all about. The clue really is in the name West Ham UNITED. Meant to support your own, Parker is and always will be one of us.
I agree, and i sit in the Sir Trevor Brooking next to the away fans and there was no booing near us. We were chanting his name, the people that jeered him are just a bunch of twats.
Really couldn’t have said it better myself, Parker served loyally, and if you really thought that a player on the verge of securing the CM spot for England, would stay at a championship club, your just narrow-minded. Even in the Prem he was to good for us.
I respect him, and to all of them idiots that booed him, you don’t know what supporting west hams all about. The clue really is in the name West Ham UNITED. Meant to support your own, Parker is and always will be one of us.