I have not written an article for a while, been busy, new job, wedding planning and to be honest been so bored shitless with everything West Ham United related, that I have simply had nothing to say.
My West Ham background is as follows, I’m 36-years-old, been an avid fan since the mid 80s and been an on/off season ticket holder since 1992. This season, sharing a season ticket with two friends, finances have sadly dictated this.
Now it is fair to say that over the years I have certainly experienced more lows than highs when following the club, but something about the current situation feels very wrong.
I have early memories of the Bond scheme but in all honesty I was still a kid when this is all kicked off, and was not in a position to get outraged, I mean I was calling for Mike Small to get an and England call-up for crying out loud!! The club got relegated, but it eventually recovered under Billy Bonds and later with Harry Redknapp, to cement a place in the Premier League, playing football the West Ham way (yes media friends, this way does exist and we used to play that way not that long ago, anyhow you go back to your Liverpool love-in). I loved following West Ham back then and yes we lost a lot of games and we were rubbish, but we had our soul and were proud to be Hammers.
Things have not been the same since Harry left in 2001, now we all have our opinions on Mr Redknapp and his actions since leaving the club and the Billy Bonds affair leave a sour taste. Harry messed up with the Rio money and the time was right for him to depart and I would not want to see him return to the club.
The club messed up by not replacing him properly, we are a big club and the appointment of Glenn Roeder was so mind boggling stupid it still beggars belief, the club got away with it in his firs season, a very false 7th place, swiftly followed the relegation disaster of which the club has never properly recovered.
We got back up (just) under Alan Pardew, who served up some dross in the Championship, which was then disguised by that fantastic first season back up, combined with the Cup final. Thing under Pardew soon went tits up, he was out the door in came Alan Curbishley, we pulled of the great escape, then new owners soon went bankrupt (only at West Ham), Curbs, to the delight of a lot of hammers fans departed, Gianfranco Zola came in, looked good for 12 months, however, the club was skint, all our assets (the good players) were sold from under Zola, Gold and Sullivan came in, Sullivan undermined Zola, we stayed up, Zola got the boot, in came Grant, utter disaster, relegation.
So desperate times called for desperate measures and in came Sam Allardyce and he got us up via the Play-Offs which was followed by an excellent first season back in the Premier League.
I am thankful for what Allardyce has achieved in his first two years, but it was always going to come to this situation. The last two games I have been to, being Hull City and Crystal Palace have been truly depressing, I have come away from both games utterly fed up and bored out my brain and from where I stand in the Bobby Lower the feeling from fellow Hammers would appear to be the same, so Sam it is not just social media fans who have the needle with you and the way the team is set up.
What worries me so much now is that I am almost losing interest in supporting my football club and I am sorry but this is unforgivable and I blame Allardyce for this, together with the board who have been so focused on the Olympic stadium that they seem to have forgot what West Ham United Football Club is all about. The club is a business project for them and they seem content to let Allardyce run it as such, safe mid-table, no cup run, keep that Premier League money rolling in, charge top dollar for poor football, take us the fans for granted kind of way.
Sadly this is the way of modern football and I’m sure Aston Villa and Newcastle United fans will share our feelings. So when as fans we have the audacity to express our feelings we are told that we are not realists, what is the West Ham way, he happy with what you got. Well feck that I am football fan not a business man, I do my work in the week and I want West Ham and football to offer me more than what I am getting and feeling at the moment!
The media are obsessed with the so called bigger teams and when they report on other clubs out of the loop I always sense a feeling of disregard on their part, so the media are never going to offer us the fans a balanced ear piece.
So Gold, Sullivan and Brady have a look the club not the business, stop cashing in on Bobby Moore with your constant merchandising, listen to the fans please!
We have taken our medicine with Allardyce has had the short term effect, so thank you very much but time to go as I would like a bit of the old West Ham back.
This is a great club which has been so poorly run since 2001, can it be that hard to get something right?!
COYI
Level accusations like this at Arsenal who HAVE the money but chose to run the club as a business model!
Regardless of likes, dislikes, personalities and all the rest, most people are aware that this club is on the way back from the brink and hopefully looking at better times round the corner. My club isn’t doing as well as I would’ve liked…. but it is still MY club and I consider myself to be old school and made of stronger stuff. I won’t be throwing my toys out of the pram anytime soon.
Well u agree with you both to be fair west ham will always be my club but ive totaly got bored with the whole goings on at the club this year. Deffinatly agree that the club use moore as a cheap marketing tool. (Im a Big moore fan my sons name is bobby). However and ive said this a million times at the present time due to the situation sam is in my opinion the right man for the job as there is noone else for the job. I see sam as a sort of gaurdian of our premier leauge status until we move and become more attractive to managers we will just get another zola or grant. Or the davids will bring hoddle out of retirement. In my opinion sam will keep us in the top flight and that is what we need if we are to make the os move work and secure the prosperous future of our beloved club. Great thought out article keep them coming iam
Well let’s hope you are right because we still need one more win!
I agree with all you wrote
I have been going for 45 years season ticket holder for too many to remember.
Allardyce will never be accepted by old school fans. The man has no love at all for the club and none for the fans.
The fact that he is proud of the fact he has been booed by Blackburn Bolton Newcastle & now us shows the character of the man.
There is an undercurrent of graft about the transfer deals and his agent son, he seems intent on destroying the Academy
Laudrup needs a job and he plays football the right way.
Assuming 37 points is enough to stay up, the two Daves should pay him his blood money & replace him.
Totally agree about the abuse of the name and character of “Moore”. He would have had none of it. A complete betrayal rather than a genuine celebration of the Great Man. This (ab)use of his unique footballing and otherwise deserved reputation cheapens OUR club and so it reduces US just like so much else that we have been subjected to this season “on the pitch” (most of the football allegedly played having been off it altitude wise only).
I don’t want to see West Ham in the Premiership if this is way of doing things is seriously regarded as the way we have to play and/or relate to the fans in order to be WHU. This is not the West Ham “way” we love (F**K SHEARER ETC ON MOTD COS IT REALLY DOES EXIST) but is rather the poor excuse of a “professional” batch of recent imposters brought in at relatively low financial cost (but at IRREVERSIBLE long term loss) to keep some immediate profit for the benefit of the few who “know” they know best. Rise up before its too late! PLEASE.
P.S. If that no talent thug Cattermole is signed by BFS I’m finished with what’s left of this club. Its divorce time!
Haven’t been this season, haven’t wanted to… Expensive, boring, crap… Plus £50 for a SHIRT! Everything about the club currently wrong… Although PL football next year is fine for now
I know, it just goes on & on & on. West Ham should be out of this mire near the bottom of the table. Now we have Pepe Mel calling Saturdays game a cup final. I don’t call it stressfull. I call it boring. A boring load of crap we shouldn’t be involved in! When we kick off at the Hawthorns on Saturday we’ll be on 1 point, let’s make sure we finish the game with no less or better. Then we will be safe! Play Adrian, Demel, McCartney, Reid & Collins at the back. Noble, Nolan, Jarvis & Downing midfield, Carlton Cole, & Carroll up front, 4-4-2. This line up can score & lock up a clean sheet. In other words, West Brom who have only won 6 games all season, the lowest win rate of any club in this division, are nothing. Field an attacking team with 2 strikers & get the job done & this season secure once & for all West Ham. Please, we are all dying of boredom!!!
• Well folks, how about some light humour. The following is a table with a list of how results could pan out for West Ham in the most favourable way. It’s possible.
• 10th West Ham 46 pts
• 11th Stoke 45 pts
• 12th Crystal Palace 43 pts
• 13th Hull 38 pts
• 14th Swansea 37 pts
• 15th Aston Villa 37 pts
• 16th West Brom 37 pts
• 17th Fulham 35 pts
• 18th Sunderland 34 pts
• 19th Norwich 32 pts
• 20th Cardiff 31 pts
From results of West Brom v West Ham 26/4 (away win), Fulham v Hull (draw), Swansea v Villa (draw), Man Utd v Norwich (home win), Sunderland v Cardiff 27/4 (draw), Crystal Palace v Man City (away win), West Ham v Spurs 3/5 (home win), Aston Villa v Hull (draw), Man Utd v Sunderland (home win), Newcastle v Cardiff (home win), Stoke v Fulham (draw), Swansea v Southampton (away win), Arsenal v West Brom 4/5 (home win), Chelsea v Norwich (home win), Crystal Palace v Liverpool 5/5 (away win), Man Utd v Hull 6/5 (home win), Man City v Aston Villa 7/5 (home win), Sunderland v West Brom (draw), Cardiff v Chelsea 11/5 (away win), Fulham v Crystal Palace (home win) Hull v Everton (away win), Norwich v Arsenal (away win), Sunderland v Swansea (home win), Tottenham v Aston Villa (home win) & West Brom v Stoke (home win)
COYI!
And before people call me stupid, Who picked the perfect scores for the Everton v Man Utd & Man City v West Brom games? I did!
You are wrong. West Ham United is a business. Don’t be a bellend.
That is with a West Ham away win at Man City. We did that just a few years ago under Zola. Sunderland almost did it, so why not West Ham!
you are wrong, west ham is a business with exceptional leaders who have a very strong strategy in place.
step 1 promotion and stay in prem – achieved
step 2 reduce debt to bank and absorb as owner’s personal debt – partially achieved, (see below)
step 3 stay in prem with existing management until in 3 seasons time kick off at new stadium – work in progress
step 4 add1/2 quality players not near career end every year – achieved
step 5 sell upton park, pay off debt to banks and seek new manager, and new investment, which together with increased cash flow from larger gates will enable a change in footballing strategy, IN 3 YEARS TIME, patience needed.
whilst these steps are not truly chronological, they overlap, it is an obvious strategy and that is what will make the club (and business) more successful
Couldn’t have put it better myself Derek. Why so many can’t see or understand this, is probably the single most frustrating thing I’ve had to deal with for a few years now. It is obvious to me…. It’s called progress and NO-ONE can go from A – Z in one single move, unless the club has got unlimited funds. What I DON’T want is some big time charlie taking over the club (Eggy) promising the earth and gambling my club into oblivion.
I understand the steps this club is taking and the timeline involved. People have seem to forgotten (before the internet) what life was like under Terrance Brown!
Can we win our next game please?
Step 6- bore fans stupid with insipid one dimensional ‘football’
Step 7- turn off any potential fans and many existing fans with said tripe.
Everyone knows staying in the prem is important,but it is not the be all and end all,and it can be surely be done with a little flair and imagination.
I do agree that without the Daves we would be a lot more trouble than we are,they did effectively save the club from complete meltdown,but have made poor decisions with regard to managers in my opinion. Allardyce was never going to go down well with the fans and he is destroying our reputation,probably beyond repair.
We are not safe yet Derek. I am sure there are other managers that can keep us in the premiership other than Sam and not be this close to the bottom.
well david moyes is free,i would rather see him here than BFS,could we do any worse,
It’s getting very boring now! But for old times sake. Cat and Derek you are spot on! Just because we are in the prem doesn’t make things are alright again! We are still deeply in debt and struggling to get out of a huge financial mess! The only way to do this is by good business practice! Football is a business! WHU is a business! We don’t have the money to buy 20mil+ players at the drop of a hat, service the debt and plan for the move to the promised land! So we are having to cut our cloth accordingly. Don’t get me wrong, some of what’s been on offer this season has been terrible! But Even with all that has gone on over the last couple of years we are better than some of the performances being served up! And I feel that can’t be all down to the managers/owners. The players have to take their share of the blame too! At times BS has been working with one hand tied behind his back.(finance,lack of funds,lack of quality, small squad etc). However, next season there can be no excuses! This year has been a disaster and cannot be allowed to repeat itself again! We have to be ready for the OS and have a team that is fit to grace the fantastic stadium. But it’s crystal clear the current team/squad isn’t good enough and requires major surgery! Whether after this year we can find the money whilst balancing the books and whether BS is the man to do it, is another matter, but these are the most important questions in the clubs history! We must not get them wrong! COYI!
Thanks for your feedback, I am not that stupid to realise that the club is indeed a business and that football is one huge business, was not really the point I was trying to make but hey-ho! Like many of you I spend a lot of money to watch the team and this season I feel properly let down by it all. Anyway we all have an opinion right or wrong, and it is good to discuss. COYI
spot on, this is not the west ham that i grew up supporting, i have been following this club for some 50 years, and of late, i cannot be bothered anymore, so many questions to the regime that now run this club, why are we losing to teams that we should blow away, why do players we sell, go on to blossom into great players, why did we chase mr carroll to the ends of the earth, why are we playing this suicidal football, we are still flirting with relegation whilst clubs bellow us are giving it a right go.. 50 years is a long time to support a football club, maybe its time to call it a day…
This is a little off topic, but, could someone please shed some light on the reason for loaning out Mr Morrison? I know he’s a bit marmite with fans, but he did, at least, offer another dimension to our game and is clearly a quality player. When you look at our bench there is absolutely no option to the rubbish already on the pitch, with the exception of Joey, who is never given the opportunity to play in the centre where he belongs. Personally, Morrison and Cole in the centre, I think would be a breath of beautiful fresh air. Noble has been poor of late and Nolans goals have dried up. Change it!