stony said:
I would have thought a real united fan would hate those turncoat twats at FC. They took their ball home at the first sign of trouble.
You stick with your team through thick and thin or thin and thin if you were a blue throughout the 90's.
Not FC fans though, they left you like rats leaving a sinking ship as soon as they didn't like something. They are the epitome of fair weather fans and a disgrace to football.
FC United of Manchester!
Even their name is a lie. Broke away from a club that hasn't been in Manchester for most of it's life and their first home was Bury.
A petulant, odious little club, born out of treachery and built on lies. I hope they sink without trace.
Not quite as cut n dried as that for me Stony.
I do think of myself as a "real" Utd fan (tho not sure Fergie would agree) but certainly don't hate FC or their fans. Whilst I don't actually agree with their methods I have some sympathy with their reasons for making such a stand.
There's been growing discontent amongst elements of Utd's support, going right back to the original flotation in 1991, about the direction the club was taking. Despite onfield success the club has been growing ever more distant from it's traditional supporter base in their pursuit of greater amounts of cash, and for some of those supporters the Glazer takeover was the straw that broke the camels back. I think it's a little unfair to then use that to label them as the ultimate fairweather fans, in fact if they were then surely the easiest thing would've been to just shut up and continue to go and watch the trophies being racked up.
I also find it somewhat strange that at a time when this board is constantly lampooning and deriding Utd for being a monstrous corporate whore, that fans who actually made a stand against that are also being derided for being turncoats. Surely as supporters our ultimate sanction, if we are fundamentally opposed to the actions of our club, is the withdrawal of our support (both financially and emotionally)? Indeed, we'll never know now but, perhaps if enough of us had shown the courage of our convictions by withdrawing our support (not necessarily going to FC, just boycotting Utd and it's merchandise) the Glazers may not now be sat on the worlds biggest piggy bank....it's a pointless argument tho cos we didn't, and even if we had it may not have made a difference.
But I guess what I'm trying to say is that, despite FC not really being my cup of tea (tho I admire some of the principles they're trying to instill such as being community based and trying to keep tickets affordable etc) as a football fan I can see why SOME fans chose that route (tho I'll also acknowledge there are some fans that purely go along for the craic,whilst still attending OT as well - thereby having their cake n eating it). Personally, once the Glazers priced me out that was the end of live football for me as I don't see the attraction in following ANY other team but I definitely don't think I'm in a position to judge those whose principles lead them down a different path than me (let alone hate them). Sorry if this has all got a bit rambling but I've had a few drinks and this is quite a complex n divisive issue for a Utd fan to debate :-)
