Well, typically, Dennis the Blemish has got it wrong. Allardyce, bless him, didn't call us delusional because we wanted automatic promotion, but because we wanted to play football the West Ham way. But why let the little matter of facts get in the way of an article when all you want to do is antagonise Hammers fans eh Dennis Penis?
The Express hack plugged his column inches with the following nonsense:
"SOME West Ham fans are outraged that Sam Allardyce has called them deluded. They were upset when I said it in this newspaper seven years ago.
Then, as now, they had been relegated from the top flight. Then, as now, fans believed anything short of automatic promotion was a disgrace.
They could not see that being in two successive play-off finals was substantial.
Other, equally proud clubs would have killed for that. But the club of Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters “deserved” better, said many.
They are also the club of Marco Boogers, Titi Camara and Florin Raducioiu.
In their 93 league seasons, 43 have been in the second tier. They have not won anything for 32 years. They do not have a God-given right to canter to promotion.
One word for the assumption that they do is delusional. Another is arrogance."
The Boogers, Camara and Raducioiu line is a particularly cheap and lazy point given we laugh at these signings. He forgot Joey Beauchamp, McBenni McCarthy, Freddi Ljungberg and Kieron Dyer of course!
He also forgets that we stuck with John Lyall when he took us down and even backed Roeder following relegation until it was blatantly obvious to everybody that he wasn't up to the job.
Yes we are the club of Moore, Hurst and Peters, but we are also the club of Brooking, Bonds, Devonshire, Alvin Martin, Joe Cole, Michael Carrick, Frank Lampard, Glenn Johnson...
We are also the club of John Charles and Clyde Best - showing the way to others - and of Val der Elst, taking another lead in the game.
It is not the failure to win automatic promotion that has enraged the genuine West Ham fans, it is the appalling style of play. It is 4-5-1 at home. It is crude tactics. It is the safety first mentality. If we win automatic promotion, Allardyce can claim justification, but if he doesn't, we could have opted for the Holloway and Hughton route, playing the game in the right way and seeking to outscore the opposition rather than out bore them.
Anyway, Dennis the Relish had the completely wrong focus for the article. Doesn't he understand that it was West Ham fans who killed Princess Diana?
a waste of time post by you h f what youl find is fat man just like redknapp always speaks to the press he has friends in low places who will back him up here and th
ReplyDeleteere with denise the tosser
your post mentions the good times we had if fat man dont go he will drag us into dark ages we have never known before
im getting used to the idea we wont get automatic promotion but will qualify for the semi finals of the play offs wich then anything can happen
in john lyalls book he said we played high risk entertaining football and under him we walked the second division with great style and skill we were promoted in march and won the title at grimsby with an entertaining 5 1 win the following week i know times have changed but the football fat man plays is a joke
Very well said HF! I read his insulting comments this morning and was totally outraged. Who does he think he is to judge tens of thousands of loyals fans. And why should we apologise to anyone if we did want automatic promotion?
ReplyDeleteBut you have put the matter right. Of course we want automatic promotion (who wouldn't) but it is the style of play and tactics that are so "not West Ham like". But I wouldn't expect him to understand.
The only thing delusional and arrogant was his article that was clearly written to intimidate the West Ham fans.
Mail@mickdennis.co.uk
ReplyDeleteSay hello!! I did
Wow! he said it seven years ago ? You can just see the sad git pouring over his old press clipping scrapbooks "hmmm...where is it...must be filed somewhere between Norwich's Greatest Moments and What Crap I Came Up With Today"
ReplyDeleteI know he was on the wrong track HF but there is no doubt whatsoever that our fans are arrogant.
ReplyDeleteLook at your blog over the years.... you criticise every owner, every manager, every player, every game, every win/draw/loss.
I know you won't agree but you are just like many of our fans.
I don't know why we have so many fans like you as we've been crap for decades.
Anony-mouse says,
ReplyDeleteDave at 12.51- absolutely spot on.
Got to say it's hilarious how grown men who regularyly c*nt off Alardyce run to mummy every time a journo does something like this. You give it, then you gotta take- those are the rules hammerettes.
Jimwhu- you're absolutely right- John Lyall did walk the league and in the right style. But he did it in 1981 at the THIRD time of asking- we went down in 1978 remember. It was quite right he was given time and allowed to rebuild and as a result we came back up with a far better team than the one that took us down.
You see where I'm going here don't you? By contrast to those days when times were indeed very different you'll only give Allardyce 9 poxy months rather than the 3 years Lyall had. How long are yo going to give the next one- 6 months?
Let's see how a typical post about Lyall in March 1981, from you or your ilk may have looked like had the internet been invented back then-
"I don't care if we are finally going up- I can't believe that (insert vile expletives here) is still there. He took us down for f*cks sake and we're the brilliant West Ham. And because of him, with no other factors involved at all, we've been in this league that frankly is utterly beneath us for three years! Of course we are now going up but it's nothing to do with him- it's cos we've got the best squad in the league. How the f*ck could he keep us down when we've got Brooking, Devo, Parkes, Alvin, Bonzo, Psycho, Goddard, etc. The guy's incompetent I tell you: Sack him."
anony mouse when we got relegated in 78 the first season down 78 9 we played some great football i can remember seeing us lose some exciting games away from home that season we dropped two nil leads at oldham burnley BUT we won our home games then when we were beating newcastle at home five nil in march brooking got injured and missed the rest of the season and we never got parkes til the oldham game in feb that first season down how after getting so near could we sack lyall ? 79 80 season we didnt go up we could have but for a good run in the league cup and winning the facup and that was lyalls season of change pearson neighbour stewart and as he did it with style in 81 anony mouse i went to most of west hams games those three seasons under lyall in division two and they were fantastic times
ReplyDeletewill fat man take us up this season ? maybe are we a stronger side now than the side that got relegated last year has fat man bought us great players or if we get promoted will we stay up fat sam in one season has brought in more players than lyall did in 3 years fat man is the one who started mouthing off about westham fans to the press hes hes a joke his football is crap he wont give youth a chance either hes far to cautious he shouldnt be westhams manager any one can see its to late in the season to sack him now so all we can do is support the team aqnd hope we go up
when we got relegated in 77 78 season i can remember going to forest who won the league that year we out played them and should have scored 4 or 5 goals that day they beat us 2 nil we even played great football that season and went down with a fight so no way did lyall deserve the sack
ReplyDeleteMouse (12:51)
ReplyDeleteLOL. I think there is a "Dear God" missing from the beginning of the third sentence of your 1981 article. Tonka Stewart and Frank Lampard senior were in that team as well. Perhaps the problem was to do with Scotty Parker wetting his nappies?
Anony-mouse says,
ReplyDeleteJimwhu- I was parodying those clamouring for Allardyce's sacking, including yourself. I hope you took my point but don't expect you to agree with me :)
The seasons you mention were some of my favourite seasons- great stuff. I saw the 5 nil Newcastle game on a lovely sunny day- Devonshire was absolutely brilliant. I still have no 6 as a lottery number- not for our most famous Number 6- but for Devo. I was there at the Oldham game as well- I was so excited that we'd signed Phil Parkes. I remember he made a great double save, one of them from the Scots centre forward whose name escapes me. I remember at the start of the news the newscaster said someone had signed him for a world record fee. Me and my mate (who I still go to games with) spent the next 15 minutes on the phone jealously guessing who'd signed him. Neither of us dreamed it would be us. The sheer JOY at the news- what it is to be young and in love with your club.
You've bought some memories back for me. Thank you. It's plain we both love this cliub, although we don't share the same views on Allardyce. Hey ho- that's what this is all about. But I agree with your last line though- we've got to back the boys.
jimwhu
ReplyDeleteI also attended nearly all the games in the old 2nd division under Lyall - some great games...the big difference - when we lost at home to Liverpool which sealed our fate Brooking, Bonds, & co didnt hand in a transfer request before walking off the pitch and Phil Parkes was prepared to sign for a 2nd Div team (albeit a world record for a goal keeper at the time) But we were arrogant...I remember the first game in the 2nd Div - cans thrown on the pitch because we conceded a couple of goals to Notts Co and only won 5-2!!! (would have made the play-offs if they had them! lol)
Sorry gone way off topic but wanted to remember the good old days of entertaining WHU
I've known mick all my life and he is a cracking guy, one of the nicest blokes i know. Although I love your blog and have never taken offence to anything you have written, I find your reaction to micks article a little pointless and immature. No need for needless insults. Fair enough you are defending us as fans of west ham, but do it in a more constructive way because this is just childish. At least mick stated facts that backed up his article. Come back with a good argument rather than calling him a prick. Other than that I hope alls rosy. Ill keep this anonymous but ill continue to post under my usual user name, enjoy your holiday squire COYI
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear it 1844. He may be a great guy on a personal level but his article was misinformed and an unnecessary swipe at West Ham fans who cherish the club's heritage. Now I wonder who you are? Visions of Green Street and a fear of admitting to mates that you like a "journo"!
ReplyDeleteAnony-mouse says,
ReplyDeleteF*ck, we're all old codgers on here aren't we :)
Happy happy memories though.
19.32- I missed that Notts County game- holiday in Wales. I was glued to my tranny ( HF- please no obvious jokes- I'm simply talking bout Radio 2). We were 4 nil up at half time. Remember feeling gutted we let two in in second half- I'd have thrown a can (of tizer given my age then) if I'd have been there. Remember shortly after seeing us beat Sheff Utd 2 nil with two Pop Robson pens. Reason I mention it is that they had an Argentinian called Alex Sabella playing- I remember thinking 'Wow- that's exotic'.
anony mouse
ReplyDeletei also have the number 6 on my lottery aswell and for devonshire i think that player parkes saved from was alan young
regards fat sam in answer to one of hfs posts i said he should be able to sign any player he wants and manage how he wants as he was our manager and we should suppoert him the player he wanted was diouf his style of football is boring predictable and lacks class or entertainment i think football should be played 4 4 2 and you attack teams with skill and pace you back your players to score more than the team your playing but that aint allardyces way all these tactics he comes out with are like getting your excuses in before you lose
the seasons almost over im resigned to the play offs and hope we can go up and keep supporting the team this season the board have come out and said they are backing fatman so its down to supporting the team and hope for the best
It's laughable that you call yourself hammersfan your blogs are allways full of negative drivvle are you an angry teenager finding it hard to get laid. If we had beaten reading on Saturday Im sure you would have complained about the price of the pies instead. How about some of the positives instead for a change like how we've been defensively very good this season for the first time in many, or the fact that we one game away from breaking our record for away wins. Do you really think that if we had played gung ho football all season that we would be four points off automatic promotion with six games to go, I don't. Quite frankly there are too many so called fans like you at the Boleyn holding on to the past and talking of days which are long gone. Wether you like big Sam or not, we are WEST HAM UNITED and we all want the same thing, so why don't you start BLOWING BUBBLES and stop bursting them.
ReplyDeleteAnony-mouse says,
ReplyDeleteJimwhu
Alan Young rings a bell- went on to play for Leicester afterwards - can't believe the random sh*te that inhabits my head.
Re Allardyce. Despite how it appears on here (and I'm not back-tracking btw, so don't grass me up to HF) I'm not Allardyce's greatest fan. I think he's a decent manager but i'd have much rather we stayed up and got someone in that that played football the way you and me are reminiscing about on here.
But in all honesty I think in the circumstances we found ourselves in we needed an Allardyce type figure- you can tell me he has faults and I'd agree with you on some of them. But he also has attributes- he has bought organisation and other attributes to this club that we never had under Zola (in his last season) or at all under Grant.
Also, realistically who else could we have expected to bring in? No-one from the very top tier that's for sure. Also essential was to have someone who could stand up to the Daves. They tormented the useless grave-digger. People talk about Hughton- but they'd have slaughtered him- notoriously at Newcastle he was bludgeoned by Ashton. He'd have been putty here I'm afraid. Maybe he was too young and that's why Allardyce has been so effective at stopping them interfering so much.
We both sound old school- loyalty is in our bones as you're showing with your get behind the boys sentiments. And I see loyalty as as important to the West Ham way as pretty football. And whilst other factors come into it there may be a link between the loyalty and pretty football. Most of the football that I've loved has been played when a manager has had time to establish his ways (Lyall/ Redknapp- even Pardew had about 4 years) so that's why I incessantly -and normally forlornly :) -plead for patience in the hope that he can produce a team like he gradually did at Bolton. Hard to beat, but studded with the likes of proper footballers Djorkaeff and Okocha. He'll need more than nine months for that.
Nice discussing stuff with you tonight jim- off to google Alan Young :)
anony mouse it was great discussing things tonight i agree theres things like orginisation that allardyce has brought i remember in the 90s redknapp started going into changing formations with 3 centre backs but he still seemed to go back to 442 with better results but one thing about redknapp he always had top quality coaches with him frank lampard frank burrows roger cross and roeder even now he has plenty of coaches at tottenham jorden bond etc not good enough to manage but good coaches maybe if fat sam got better coaches in at westham like ex players who understand the club like julian dicks martin allen maybe they could get him to understand the club a bit better when macari got the job did you notice he kept most of john lyalls coaching staff i think allardyce has missed a trick as downs and mcdonald dont really know the club it looks like gold and sullivan want him there next season maybe he can grow into the job
ReplyDeletei hope he can
Allardyce is our best bet at staying in the championship. Without him we will be in freefall, all the way down, like Sheff Wednesday, once in the first division [a.o.]
ReplyDeleteAs for the team, only Green and Tomkins would cut it in the PL if we were to get promotion.....anything else IS delusion.
You should hear what he has to say about QPR. He has a pathological hatred of us, which he wont even deny. West Ham got off lightly.
ReplyDeleteWE R QPR