[Football] What's the atmosphere like where you sit?

[ofco8]

Strange today.

We are in WSU. We are not in the north stand singing section out of choice but do our bit of singing.

Behind us are two blokes who moan and complain all match and never sing.

Incredibly, half way through the second half one of them pipes up "A bloody disgrace, you would think Villa were at home the noise they are making. Our fans need to sing and stop moaning."

I just turned to my mate and said in a loud voice, ^Have you ever heard any singing from the row behind us?" Of course, the two blokes went silent.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Strange today.

We are in WSU. We are not in the north stand singing section out of choice but do our bit of singing.

Behind us are two blokes who moan and complain all match and never sing.

Incredibly, half way through the second half one of them pipes up "A bloody disgrace, you would think Villa were at home the noise they are making. Our fans need to sing and stop moaning."

I just turned to my mate and said in a loud voice, ^Have you ever heard any singing from the row behind us?" Of course, the two blokes went silent.

Funnily enough, I know one or two people by sight. They never sing, but post rubbish on Nsc about how bad the atmosphere is.

 

[dazzer6666]

Says a lot doesn't it . Villa fans looked a sounded a different class , fair comment ?
Regards
DF

No, they were pretty quiet

 

[Weststander]

Made me chuckle when they started that...way above their station

Another wnkish club Cardiff City sing it. Guessing the lyrics:

“We’ve conquered all of Glamorgan, won ****ing nowt”.

 

[Jordy]

Loads missed the Brighton goal today.

I generally bounce between North and West Stand Lower right next door depending on when I buy tickets and was WSL today. Was extremely flat. A bloke couple rows behind me had a go as well and I even had a “two of us singing, there’s only two of us singing” with him.

I too missed the goal, first time I’ve needed a slash during a half for god knows how long, and first time I’ve missed a goal since, I reckon, the Priestfield days.

 

[Blue Valkyrie]

The atmosphere is absolutely excellent in WSU where I sit.

Unlucky you f-ckekers who sit elsewhere in seats that cause U to moan

 

[jimhigham]

I’m in N1F. First twenty-odd minutes were excellent today, then it went down a couple of notches. Sometimes noisy; sometimes a bit of a library, mostly somewhere in between, but only one shhhhh, which I suppose is something.

People around me are pretty good and always try to keep things going. A handful of “cheerleaders” (for want of a better word) do a great job of starting chants. One bloke does sterling service, bawling “blue and white” (“barmy army”) for minutes on end.

If the rest of the ground was like the North it would be amazing, but it’s hard to sing when you’re sitting down and I know a lot of the “new fans” would sit in stony silence and make those who want to join in feel self-conscious.

Sadly I don't get to many games now. A combination of full time work, part time photography and marathon training mean that games are tough to squeeze in. I've got my ticket for the Watford game though and I'm in N1F. On my own for once with no daughter to embarrass so I promise to sing my lungs off.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

NS Section D.

Loads arrived late, eg 6 blokes to my right piled in after 20 minutes. Even in the quality first half, people chatting about flat moving, the next pint, the next pie, hugging mates they hadn’t seen for a fortnight “Alwight mate”, backs turned to the football. Keep having to stand to let kids and their mums to go off to get yet more grub, then the pissheads disappear on 35/40 minutes to get the pints in.

The same every match.

The people of Sussex seem to have the attention span of a goldfish.

Amazes me how many seem to prefer buying overpriced Beer and food in preference to watching the football. First out for food/beer near me was 38mins, ten mins before first half finished!!

It’s a sign of the times. It’s the same at gigs.

 

[The Maharajah of Sydney]

My wifes been coming with me for 36 years.....I didnt know that was wrong......out of interest how long have you been going?

Enough of your tales of your explosive sex life, this is meant to be a debate about the Amex atmosphere.

 

[DarrenFreemansPerm]

The atmosphere is absolutely excellent in WSU where I sit.

Unlucky you f-ckekers who sit elsewhere in seats that cause U to moan

If you’re being sincere, and the atmosphere in the WSU is indeed excellent then the acoustics in the stadium must be abysmal, haven’t heard a song from the WS for years.

 

[Guinness Boy]

The atmosphere is absolutely excellent in WSU where I sit.

Unlucky you f-ckekers who sit elsewhere in seats that cause U to moan

If you’re being sincere, and the atmosphere in the WSU is indeed excellent then the acoustics in the stadium must be abysmal, haven’t heard a song from the WS for years.

There isn't a single club in the league where the singing starts in the upper part of the main stand and nor should there be. It's totally illogical. It needs to happen either at an end or next to the away fans. However, good songs that people know do catch on round the stands and there's always a good bit of singing in my bit of the WSU (north side of the halfway line). Albioooon always goes round our bit, always a big chant of Seagulls when we get a corner (so not much of that yesterday ) and the other ones that always go round are the "we all follow Brighnovealbion" to Johnny Comes Marching Home and the Dunk Withdean to Wembley. I and most of the people round me will have a sing song several times in a game. For central in a main stand it's as good as it can get. But.........................

I said most people.

There are a variety of types round me. There are nine of us in a group who all sit together and there are a lot of old Goldstone / Withdean faces and people who go away near us. But there are also a couple of old men who don't say a word all game and just sit there with headphones in (not sure what they are listening to, could be 5 Live, Radio Sussex or a play on Radio 4 for all I know) but they are so engrossed in it they barely move. The one exception was the one of them that's in front of me who periodically shouts "GET IT FORWARD" when Ryan plays out from the back, Then there's a group of middle class Mid Sussex types in red trousers who seem to use it as a family day out. The woman rolls her eyes whenever anyone swears or says something bad about the team.

And - I guess - that's a microcosm of the ground, because you have no control over who you sit with in an allocated all seater. We probably annoy the people around us who don't sing or swear just as much as they do me. But you'd need a massive redistribution of tickets to sort it in to "singing section", "tourist section", "old man who yells 'get it forward' section" and so on. It ain't going to happen.

The biggest irony is the one group that have sorted out a group singing area are the NSK and they've used it to sing different songs to everyone else for the whole 90 minutes

 

[goldstoneseagull]

There isn't a single club in the league where the singing starts in the upper part of the main stand and nor should there be. It's totally illogical. It needs to happen either at an end or next to the away fans. However, good songs that people know do catch on round the stands and there's always a good bit of singing in my bit of the WSU (north side of the halfway line). Albioooon always goes round our bit, always a big chant of Seagulls when we get a corner (so not much of that yesterday ) and the other ones that always go round are the "we all follow Brighnovealbion" to Johnny Comes Marching Home and the Dunk Withdean to Wembley. I and most of the people round me will have a sing song several times in a game. For central in a main stand it's as good as it can get. But.........................

I said most people.

There are a variety of types round me. There are nine of us in a group who all sit together and there are a lot of old Goldstone / Withdean faces and people who go away near us. But there are also a couple of old men who don't say a word all game and just sit there with headphones in (not sure what they are listening to, could be 5 Live, Radio Sussex or a play on Radio 4 for all I know) but they are so engrossed in it they barely move. The one exception was the one of them that's in front of me who periodically shouts "GET IT FORWARD" when Ryan plays out from the back, Then there's a group of middle class Mid Sussex types in red trousers who seem to use it as a family day out. The woman rolls her eyes whenever anyone swears or says something bad about the team.

And - I guess - that's a microcosm of the ground, because you have no control over who you sit with in an allocated all seater. We probably annoy the people around us who don't sing or swear just as much as they do me. But you'd need a massive redistribution of tickets to sort it in to "singing section", "tourist section", "old man who yells 'get it forward' section" and so on. It ain't going to happen.

The biggest irony is the one group that have sorted out a group singing area are the NSK and they've used it to sing different songs to everyone else for the whole 90 minutes

I agree with your points for the most part about the demographics of the ground, but to blame the NSK for attempting to create an atmosphere is simply unfair.

There are two albeit SMALL singing groups, one in front of the screen circa N1F/G, the other N1C (NSK). One is not trying to overpower the other, rather, neither can hear what either is singing because the mass in between do not join in. This occurs in the North where everyone is standing but not singing.

 

[Happy Exile]

Have sat in W1H a couple of times recently and found the lack of interest from those around me bizarre. It's not just that there's no singing, there's no nervousness or annoyance when the opposition attack either. It's almost as if they've come along to watch but have no desire to engage with what's happening on the pitch. One man seemed to spend most of the game on his phone describing where he was so his mate somewhere in the East could wave to him and he could wave back.

 

[*Gullsworth*]

Have sat in W1H a couple of times recently and found the lack of interest from those around me bizarre. It's not just that there's no singing, there's no nervousness or annoyance when the opposition attack either. It's almost as if they've come along to watch but have no desire to engage with what's happening on the pitch. One man seemed to spend most of the game on his phone describing where he was so his mate somewhere in the East could wave to him and he could wave back.

I agree we do have a large proportion of supporters who are just going to an 'event' rather than supporting the home team. I believe they want Brighton to win but they are sanitised supporters who have not been though the thick and thin times and experienced the total joy of supporting your team on the terraces on a wet Tuesday night in Grimsby. Not their fault it is the result of watching Premier league football from a padded seat, organised by a slick organisation ready to pounce if you step out of line and celebrate too much or chant or shout something which society now decides is not p.c (which the majority of supporters agree with) It is why away support, yes even ours, is far more fervent in their support. Away support is generally fans who follow their team through thick or thin, like to actually support their team and treat the whole day out as an experience not just an event.
Yes there are noisier grounds than the Amex but we are not unique in that a large proportion of our fans are there for the event rather than roar their team to victory.

 

[R. Slicker]

Strange thing to worry about IMO. not much you can do about it other than sing yourself. people get dewy eyed about the old days but to be honest, I remember many games at the Goldstone, after about 10 minutes all you could hear was people talking among themselves.
If you look at social media, there seem to be two groups. one group slagging off other Brighton fans as plastic
and another complaining about the lack of atmosphere ON THEIR STREAM.

 

[LamieRobertson]

Lovely warm glow in the sky created a nice atmosphere while drinking my horlicks

 

[Weststander]

It’s a sign of the times. It’s the same at gigs.

Another similarity, but far more so at gigs, people filming on their phones. Seems like half the punters at gigs.

Then mid show, uploading their videos to Instagram, Youtube or Facebook, to lifestyle ‘boast’.

Talk about NOT living in the moment.

 

[Weststander]

Have sat in W1H a couple of times recently and found the lack of interest from those around me bizarre. It's not just that there's no singing, there's no nervousness or annoyance when the opposition attack either. It's almost as if they've come along to watch but have no desire to engage with what's happening on the pitch. One man seemed to spend most of the game on his phone describing where he was so his mate somewhere in the East could wave to him and he could wave back.

It hurts me when we’re playing shit and losing/conceding, I feel euphoric when we score or win. I’ve always been a passionate, loud fan.

Many people in the NS from what I can see, seem jokey throughout, pissed out of their skulls, in incessant small talk with their mates about anything other than football.

I wonder if this was the same in the Mullery years, for example?

Perhaps football means an awful lot to me, but never has to 2/3 the people at Brighton matches?

I go to football matches in the north (not involving Brighton), and still do. Everyone seems far more passionate and obsessive, switched on to the match and its consequences.

 

[Knocky's Nose]

W1F. (Moved there from E1E to save my retinas from permanent damage when it's sunny...)

Barely any singing, the two (very unsociable) people to the left of me came for the first 2 games of the season and their seats have been empty for every single match since (if they show up for Liverpool, City and Utd I'll be even more disappointed in them) - and I've got a couple of berks in front of me who almost never sing, they only shout abuse at opposing players and coaches. Never funny stuff, either - everyone just rolls their eyes at each other and mutters 'tw4t' under their breath.

I had some 'singers' behind me in E1E, and although they made you jump when they piped up, everyone around joined in and it made for a decent atmosphere.

'Berk in front' was totally obsessed with Grealish and John Terry yesterday. He never stopped shouting at them for the whole game. I think he fancies them.

 

[Acker79]

Irritating. But not in any way I'd be in the right to complain to them/stewards about. I mean, they're not, that I've ever noticed, saying anything racist or homophobic. They're not swearing excessively. They demand the team do something, then complain when they do it and nothing comes of it ("hit it long!" long ball gets intercepted and returned and puts us under pressure "what d'you do that for?!"). They praise passes before they've reached their target (and often when they do this, the pass actually goes astray). Etc.