Booing the opposition's anthem ?

[Gentleman Jim 0]

This practice seems to be commonplace at the start of England games, is it no wonder that when England play away they are treated with such hostility ?

Also the failure to observe completely the one minutes silence when required, was disgusting and does not enhance the English'' fans image.

If this is the norm for our national game then I feel there is little hope for it''s future !

[bananaman 0]

Two Irish boys behind me in the pub.Supporting Wales.I turned round and said "What''s that all about, are you just supporting them to be Anti-English?"They said - "You boo other countries National Anthems, and it is totally unnecessary and disrespectful."They were right.Is it any wonder most of the countries in the world hate the English?

[Mello Yello 2,572]

Watched the England game on my TV, and I have the ''good fortune'' of a dolby pro-logic sound system. When the minutes silence was in progress, I could quite clearly hear so-called England fans? telling the Welsh to "Go forth and multiply!". I was absolutely disgusted on two counts, one, that they insulted a country and it''s National anthem, and two, they chose to abuse the minutes silence as an opportunity to shout expletives to the Welsh fan''s. 

I sincerely hope the supporters seated around these scum (who thought that it was humorous to abuse the Welsh anthem and to ignore the minutes silence!) were immediately identified to stewards or the Police, and "forcibly", removed from Old Trafford! 

I don''t mind a bit of rival banter, but those scum and low-life are not welcome anywhere!  I was livid that the memory of a poor chap who tragically lost his life with two other men in such a horrible way, was ignored by a few moronic losers. Kick racism out of football, and keep the scumbags away from football!  

[Cantley 0]

[quote]Two Irish boys behind me in the pub.Supporting Wales.I turned round and said "What''s that all about, are you just supporting them to be Anti-English?"They said - "You boo other countries National Anth...[/quote]

No, you were right Bananaman. They were just being anti-English. The thing about booing was just an excuse. When they''re at home the Welsh, Irish and Scottish boo the English national anthem. And boy, when those Scots boo they bring the house down. So much venom goes into it that it quite shakes you. If you remember the seventies, when Scotland played England at Wembley they virtually took the place over. An English voice was seldom heard. And the English anthem was regularly drowned out in a tumult of booing. If the English got their booing habit from anyone, it was the Scots.

Having said all that, I despise people who boo the opposition''s anthem. It''s utterly moronic and probably counter-productive, since it must wind up the opposition so much.

[Marty 0]

well said Mello Yello, I wanted to voice my disgust about the so called minutes silence but I think you had put very well. I was disapointed that the comentators didn''t highlight what disrespectful vermin were present in the crowd after this incident but then again I guess that would give them more publicity and enable them to feel even more proud of themselves. I really hope they were ejected, I would certainly have no bother in grassing them up to the stewards / police, there is no place in football for this filth. The anthem booing is moronic too but we must realise it is only carried out by a minority of the crowd and that most footy fans are good humoured and know where to draw the line.

[norwichcasual 0]

i was there and go to many england games home and away and ours gets abused much worse.by the way we boo singing the blues when that comes on dont we ,thats their anthem

[FilletTheFishWife . 0]

I am certainly not condoning this behaviour and would always respect a 1 minute silence but without reference to specific deaths or disasters don''t you think these one-minute silence and mass mournings, condolence books and mass dumping of flowers a touch cliched and tacky?
The majority are keeping quiet so as not to offend anyone else but many of these persons to whom we are keeping schtum mean nothing to me - and I suspect the majority of the crowd - most of whom can''t wait to resume normality asap.
Bereavement is personal and should stay that way. I didn''t ask for a one-minute''s silence when my Grandfather died so don''t ask me for one when the Queen Mother did.

[bananaman 0]

Norwich on Tour - that is not a valid point.

That is like saying "Because they do it then it''s ok".

Of course it isn''t ok, and just because people boo our anthems (which I have never heard) doesn''t mean we should do the same.

When we go to Eastern Europe and they boo our black players, shall we do that too?

[Pyro Pete 2,353]

[quote]I am certainly not condoning this behaviour and would always respect a 1 minute silence but without reference to specific deaths or disasters don''t you think these one-minute silence and mass mourning...[/quote]

Without talking about specifics, I have to say I find this new public grief issue very strange too.

As for booing national anthems, I''m sure it is done on both sides mainly to wind people up and start trouble. But personally I don''t like national anthems at all anyway, and find ours vile.

[Rustyboy 2]

Was at the match and the Welsh fans were being told in an no uncertain way to be quiet during the silence as they started shouting out.

I did not agree with the anthem booing by the English fans.

[Mello Yello 2,572]

Whilst it is an individuals right to air their views and also their personal beliefs, I cannot agree with some of the comments made regarding National Anthems and the one minutes silence. Maybe we should cancel ''Remembrance Sunday'' ? "Hey, those wars were ages ago, and anyway this is now!" "I didn''t lose any immediate relatives in those conflicts, so why wear a poppy eh? or even respect the 1 or 2 minutes silence in memory of the fallen, when my time is money and I''ve places to go and things to do!" Ok, so my comments are a little OTT, but you get where I''m coming from? Maybe I''m of the ''old school'', but it doesn''t hurt to respect another Nations Anthem, (even if some think ours is a load of old tosh.) Whatever.....I have been to many Countries (stable & unstable) in my long career in the armed forces. What it has taught me, is tolerance and respect for other Nationalities, their way of life and to remain calm in the face of adversity. I remember when I was a youngster ''Abide with me'', being sung with passion and fervour at the FA Cup Final. It''s now in the history books, yep, and life goes on.

I ain''t having a cheap snipe at folk who think differently to my ethics, it''s just if they don''t wish to be part of the 1 minutes silence or hear the Anthems being played, stay in the lounge or bar a little longer before kick-off. A large majority of folk respect a minutes silence, not because they don''t wish to rock the boat, but because they are paying homage and their respects. War and any loss of life is tragic, and yes, we could have good reason to hold a minute''s silence every week. But on the odd occasion, and I sincerely hope it is an odd occasion, there is sometimes that little something, that brings and hammers it home to how a lot more fortunate we are than others.......  

    

[FilletTheFishWife . 0]

I think you''ll find the majority respect the one minute''s silence but its more to do with the fact that it''s expected of them and not due to any personal feelings.
I cried like a baby when my dog died but cared little for Princess Di etc.
All I''m saying is whilst I will show respect for the feelings of others I consider it inappropriate for 20,000+ football fans to be expected to feel the same way.
If people want to grieve then why do they need a crowd to do it with them ?

[Super Shaun Carey 0]

Mello Yello, superb post my friend. Could not agree more.

To say the National Anthem is boring/outdated etc is a disgrace.

 

 

 

 

[bananaman 0]

This is entirely un-football related, but I don''t believe our national anthem promotes "tolerance of other nations" at all.Listen to the other verses if you don''t believe me. Also, it is purely about saving the Queen (who I''m sure is a very nice person, but frankly I''m not too bothered about her) and not about the land on which we live and the values contained therein.To me, the whole nationalistic thing only promotes one thing, and that''s the need for barriers. Barriers which, in my opinion, would be less necessary if we dropped the whole "my country is better than yours" thing and just got on with it.

[nolegs 0]

[quote]This is entirely un-football related, but I don''t believe our national anthem promotes "tolerance of other nations" at all.Listen to the other verses if you don''t believe me. Also, it is purely about ...[/quote]

What on earth has the national anthem got to do with "tolerance of other nations" surely it is a nationalistic song in celebration of the fact that we are English...spookily enough the same reason as everybody elses "national anthem".

[Marty 0]

I have to admit that I have mixed feelings about the minutes silence at football matches, I guess it is OK when a footballer dies, or there has been a football related tragedy, something that unites football fans, other than that i think it is futile. Don''t get me wrong, i would still respect the silence and think the people who didn''t on Saturday are scum, but who decides who gets a minutes silence and who doesn''t? For every high profile case like the one at the weekend there thousands of other people dying, what''s the difference? OK so they may not be such high profile but that means nothing. It''s like the whole riduculous media driven thing when Lady Di died, that was so over the top it was amazing. No disrespect but I didn''t really care, in fact I think a fair few people felt the same way but felt obliged to pretend they cared because of the massive over the top media campaign. In fact I was cheesed off because for days it messed up the tv and sport schedule! it was on pretty much all channels all day, why? sorry I''m getting off the point a bit. I''m not being heartless, but some poor kid born with disabilities that struggles through life until they eventually pass away would be more worthy of a minutes silence than an over privileged royal member who lived and died like some sort of film star, or someone choosing to work in an unstable country but getting payed well and knowing the risks. I suppose the point I am trying to make is that we should not have random minutes silences for people unrelated to football.

[bananaman 0]

Ok, "NoLegs".Where''s the bit in the National Anthem that mentions how proud we all are to be English and what a wonderful country we live in? Hmm?

[Pyro Pete 2,353]

Can anyone find any mention of the English people in this national anthem? The Scots however do get a mention. I wonder why they might boo it though?

1

God save our gracious Queen,
Long live our noble Queen,
God save the Queen:
Send her victorious,
Happy and glorious,
Long to reign over us:
God save the Queen.

2

O Lord, our God, arise,
Scatter her enemies,
And make them fall.
Confound their politics,
Frustrate their knavish tricks,
On thee our hopes we fix:
God save us all.

3

Thy choicest gifts in store,
On her be pleased to pour;
Long may she reign:
May she defend our laws,
And ever give us cause
To sing with heart and voice
God save the Queen 1.

Although in the original lyrics, verses 4-5 are now omitted entirely - partly to reduce the length of the anthem and partly due to the ''rebellious Scots to crush'' line in verse five:

4

From every latent foe,
From the assassins blow,
God save the Queen!
O''er her thine arm extend,
For Britain''s sake defend,
Our mother, prince, and friend,
God save the Queen!

5

Lord grant that Marshal Wade
May by thy mighty aid
Victory bring.
May he sedition hush,
And like a torrent rush,
Rebellious Scots to crush.
God save the Queen!

(source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_Save_the_Queen#Lyrics)

[Jerzy Krukowski 5]

yes, seeing the lyrics has merely reminded us of how much of a tedious dirge it is that has little relevance the the majority of people in this country and just serves to remind most of us how small and meaningless we are to those that actually run this place.

I want a national anthem that''s about the real people of this country who''ve strived to make it a better place not the ones who''ve done nothing but protect their own power through any means necessary.

Always found it strange that the people who get most angry if anyone slags off the national anthem are just those who''ve got no power of any kind save that to live in neglected crime hotspots, work til they drop dead and pay for things that the rich should be paying for by playing the lottery in the vain hope they''ll escape their nasty little lives.

[Super Shaun Carey 0]

So Spat, what are you going to replace this tedious dirge with?

Something by Steps, Girls Aloud or maybe a little bit of Ant and Dec?

Got to be something worth putting forward.

Anyway got to go now and buy my lottery ticket, if I can escape from my crime ridden estate. Hope I win, it might change my nasty little life.

 

 

[Mello Yello 2,572]

Oh dear, it''s Wednesday, and it means I have to venture out to my local shop and collect my passport to paradise lottery ticket...... I will now prepare myself both mentally & physically, for the ultimate challenge that awaits!

Right!; body armour, "check" telescopic baton, "check" mace spray, "check" full face helmet, "check" personal attack alarm, "check" remove muzzle and attach studded leash to ''Bruno'' (my rottweiler) "check" smoke canisters and stun grenades, "check" protective gauntlets and shin-pads "check!"

Ok! deep breaths now....£2-37p for 2 lucky-dips and an evening news. Must be positive now.... and off we go!  Must not draw attention to myself, got to stop whistling the National Anthem out aloud. 25 yards to the shop door and everything seems cool OOP''s nearly tripped over a comatose drunkard  must push on! 5 yards and nearly there  

NNNNOOOOO! "SORRY, BUT THIS SHOP IS CLOSED DUE TO A ROBBERY AND ATTACKS ON STAFF".....said the sign on the door  Another 3 days living in this crime infested estate then! Ah well....."C''mon Bruno, it''s back to the fallout bunker till Saturday at least old chum!"

Yep SPat, it certainly is tough appreciating the National Anthem!

  

[Gentleman Jim 0]

[quote]Oh dear, it''s Wednesday, and it means I have to venture out to my local shop and collect my passport to paradise lottery ticket...... I will now prepare myself both mentally & physically, for th...[/quote]

Nice one Mello Yellow, very entertaining

 I only started this lot off because of the booing of national anthems, but it seems to have digressed a bit into something different than I intended ,but it''s brought out the obvious writing talent of our posters.

[gazzathegreat 0]

first of all i must admit to not being a big ''england'' fan, infact i probably go out of my way to not see a game - however, whatever your nationality, you should at least respect the other nation as just that, another nation, the people are really just like you, they were just born somewhere else, even those of a completely different culture, are, after all human beings, just like the moronic thugs who only ''follow'' england as an outlet to vent their frustrations on whoever happens to be around at the time.  It is sadly a symptom of some sections of society that some of us just won''t tolerate anyone perceived to be ''different'' from ourselves.  It will probably never change.

I feel sorry for genuine england fans, of which i know several, i believe there is a fairly elderly female norwich fan who goes to every england away game, she must be very brave - all respect to her and everyone who goes to watch football, not wreck local bars and cause trouble. 

As for the minutes'' silences, personally i feel they have now gone too far.  I respectfully stand in a minute''s silence, whoever it is for, but i do think somehow we are in danger of sanitising death and disaster.  As a nation we are not good at grieving, the typical ''stiff upper lip'' still prevails - we are not good at handling negative emotions - but i doubt two or three times a year at a sporting event is the place to do it. 

Sorry for the sociology stuff folks, i have been away a long time!! 

[bananaman 0]

Great points well made Gazza.

[Bury Yellow 2]

I am an Englishman and  of course an England supporter.

What I have never been able to understand, particularly since devolution, is why as England we have ''God Save the Queen as our national anthem. Surely this is the UK anthem. No wonder the Scots and Welsh get upset.

All sport or other representations for England should be portrayed with OUR anthem, whether it be Land of Hope & Glory, Jerusalem or similar.

I am sure this booing would reduce greatly. As England is getting recognised as a seperate nation thanks to New Labour (although not intended of couse), we are finding the yob element is reducing. It may be a bit deep but a lot of this yob problem has been almost as a cry of recognition.

A good example was the Scottish supporter problem in the 60''s. The media then bombarded everybody by telling all who wished to listen how marvellous and friendly the Tartan Army(sic) were.... and it worked. Gradually the media are saying it about the English, and that too is working!!

I have been to many England games where are supporters have been fantastic. I have also been to games involving Welsh clubs where the Welsh chanting has been racist but have never heard the great and good complaining then.

Probably been concentrating on fitting new sandals!