[Football] The 'football experience' - better or worse since 1980s?

[Guinness Boy]

Pringle jumpers, paying to get in on the gate, standing with your mates smoking, never knowing what was going to happen next, looking forward to the Cup Final because it was the only live game of the season, beer less than £1, 10 B&H, Frsnk Worthington and Evil Doug, singing what you want (or not - some grounds were terribly racist in the 80s but it was also when things like alternative comedy and acid house made a serious dent in hitherto number of bigots around). Haven't even mentioned jumpers for goalposts hmmm.

I thought I was remembering all this through rose tinted specs but looking at the other comments and poll result I'm not. 80s all the way.

 

[Guinness Boy]

Two words for everyone who voted 80s, Bradford, Hillsborough. Thread closed.

Put in context that's 150 deaths. Of those 96 were down to the police, not football.

In comparison there were 1490 drug related deaths in the UK in 2008 ( http://www.drugscope.org.uk/Resources/Drugscope/Documents/PDF/Good Practice/npSAD10thdeathreport.pdf )


Health and safety has improved since 1989 to the detriment of the experience which is what this poll is about. Ask a free climber if they want ropes. Ask a racing driver if they want speed restrictions. We knew the risks and we went anyway.

 

[Stat Brother]

Better Quality Football? I don't think so, the Liverpool team of the 80's, would have beaten Man City. Also I think the Mullery team of the early 80's would have beaten the Garcia team.

You need to watch 1980's Liverpool again, for a full 90 minute match.
That team would be on it's knees and chasing shadows after 10 minutes, it would be a rout.

Heart and a fair bit of my head says 1980's.
But the parent part of my head says present day.

If only football wasn't seen as all consuming, completely dominating all UK sport and deemed to be a matter of life or death, this would be present day all the way.

 

[The Sock of Poskett]

You'll always prefer the era when you were a teenager for music - and the same applies for football. The 70s were best for me - great football, generally good atmosphere, the North Stand experience, cheap and exhilirating.

Would I want the 70s experience now I'm in my 50s? No - while I'll still stand by choice and sing consistently, the fact that football's safer, stadiums are far better equipped and I can take youngsters along in safety mean I'm happy enough.

You needed a fence option on that poll

 

[One Teddy Maybank]

You need to watch 1980's Liverpool again, for a full 90 minute match.
That team would be on it's knees and chasing shadows after 10 minutes, it would be a rout.

Heart and a fair bit of my head says 1980's.
But the parent part of my head says present day.

If only football wasn't seen as all consuming, completely dominating all UK sport and deemed to be a matter of life or death, this would be present day all the way.

I don't agree, they could mix up short incise passing with accurate distribution.

I suppose some of it would be dependant on whether they were allowed to tackle as per 80's or whether if they 'blew' on someone they would go down. Souness, Ray Kennedy, Terry McDermott, they could pass, tackle and shoot.

I seriously doubt whether the majority of players today would excel in that era.

EDIT:- I do agree with your last comment though.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

You'll always prefer the era when you were a teenager for music - and the same applies for football. The 70s were best for me - great football, generally good atmosphere, the North Stand experience, cheap and exhilirating.

Would I want the 70s experience now I'm in my 50s? No - while I'll still stand by choice and sing consistently, the fact that football's safer, stadiums are far better equipped and I can take youngsters along in safety mean I'm happy enough.

You needed a fence option on that poll

I agree although my era was the 60s. I'm not sure about safer, as I can remember the days before segregation of fans.

 

[Hillian1]

As a young man in the 80's, it was better then.
As a middle aged man now, it is better today.

 

[1234andcounting]

Put in context that's 150 deaths. Of those 96 were down to the police, not football.

In comparison there were 1490 drug related deaths in the UK in 2008 ( http://www.drugscope.org.uk/Resources/Drugscope/Documents/PDF/Good Practice/npSAD10thdeathreport.pdf )


Health and safety has improved since 1989 to the detriment of the experience which is what this poll is about. Ask a free climber if they want ropes. Ask a racing driver if they want speed restrictions. We knew the risks and we went anyway.

Or 15 per yera on average, Yes, the 96 deaths at Hillsborough were caused by poor policing , but this was the culmination of 20 years of problems arising from hooliganism and crumbling grounds.

There is a world of difference between high risk sports carried out by individuals and high volume entertainment, I don't get searched or kettled when I go to the cinema, the theatre or concerts. Why should I when I go to football.

I love the Amex far more than I ever did the Goldstone. And I enjoy the fact that I can go to more or less any ground in the country in safety - the two exceptions being Selhurst and Fratton.

 

[KZNSeagull]

The only decent things about football in the 80's was that it was cheap and you could stand pretty much where you liked.

The rest of it - fences, falling down stadia, being treated like shit whether you were or were not causing trouble, the ambushing too and from the game and on the train etc - I cannot say that I miss that at all. And the haircuts were bloody awful too!

 

[Stat Brother]

I don't agree, they could mix up short incise passing with accurate distribution.

I suppose some of it would be dependant on whether they were allowed to tackle as per 80's or whether if they 'blew' on someone they would go down. Souness, Ray Kennedy, Terry McDermott, they could pass, tackle and shoot.

I seriously doubt whether the majority of players today would excel in that era.

EDIT:- I do agree with your last comment though.

But Souness, Ray Kennedy, Terry McDermott, et al, won't be 'there' to be effective.
It'll be men against statues.

The only time they'd see to ball is when they kick off after each goal.
Irrespective of being 'ard the ball won't be stationary long enough for them to get a tackle in.

Liverpool's only hope would be to play 1980's rules and:-
Hansen to Clements to Lawrenson to Clements to Lawrenson to Clements to Hansen

the game to death and hold on for a 0-0.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Vastly improved. The issue is the cost and the crazy amounts very very average, and below average, players earn.

 

[sams dad]

Personally I never minded the agg. It wasn't something I looked for but you know you're alive when you get through a scrape or two.

Some people took it too far with Stanley knives, darts and whatnot but the eradication of any and all matchday disorder makes it all so bloody DULL.

All of those under 30 reading this thread will have no idea what it was like then. But I'd wager that there's a lot of middle aged blokes, respectable family guys now, who remember the games when there were crowd disturbances or fights spilling out across hove park or wherever more vividly than any they've seen in the past 20 odd years. Even the most miserable lefty liberal middle class moaners who tut at it on here will still readily remember the tension and sense of danger as being life affirming at the time. I know because I have met a lot of them...so don't take the indignation now professed at face value.

It was a right of passage once. Now it's sterile and vacuum wrapped.

Well said, that man.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Personally I never minded the agg. It wasn't something I looked for but you know you're alive when you get through a scrape or two.

Some people took it too far with Stanley knives, darts and whatnot but the eradication of any and all matchday disorder makes it all so bloody DULL.

All of those under 30 reading this thread will have no idea what it was like then. But I'd wager that there's a lot of middle aged blokes, respectable family guys now, who remember the games when there were crowd disturbances or fights spilling out across hove park or wherever more vividly than any they've seen in the past 20 odd years. Even the most miserable lefty liberal middle class moaners who tut at it on here will still readily remember the tension and sense of danger as being life affirming at the time. I know because I have met a lot of them...so don't take the indignation now professed at face value.

It was a right of passage once. Now it's sterile and vacuum wrapped.

I do find these posts amusing. There was no real sense of danger. It was very very easy to watch the scuffles from a safe distance.

 

[severnside gull]

On the same day (?) as the Bradford fire I was at St Andrews watching Birmingham v Leeds. The "fans" thought it would be a good idea to push over a wall crushing a 15 year old to death. I was around thirty feet away.
I barely went to a football match for a few years after that.
Nothing good about 80's hooliganism for me.

 

[Goldstone Rapper]

Give the current generation of players the training methods and dietary plans of the 1980s, and the 1980s players the training methods and dietary methods of today, and it's the latter that would win...

 

[One Teddy Maybank]

But Souness, Ray Kennedy, Terry McDermott, et al, won't be 'there' to be effective.
It'll be men against statues.

The only time they'd see to ball is when they kick off after each goal.
Irrespective of being 'ard the ball won't be stationary long enough for them to get a tackle in.

Liverpool's only hope would be to play 1980's rules and:-
Hansen to Clements to Lawrenson to Clements to Lawrenson to Clements to Hansen

the game to death and hold on for a 0-0.

I don't agree, and think you under-estimate the quality of those teams. I think we're at completely different ends of the spectrum on this discussion.

 

[Guinness Boy]

Give the current generation of players the training methods and dietary plans of the 1980s, and the 1980s players the training methods and dietary methods of today, and it's the latter that would win...

Precisely. Smaller squads, lower wages, no snoods or gloves, cup games that didn't stop replaying until a proper win, one sub per game coupled with far stronger tackles and yet there was some astonishing play. That it was achieved on a diet of steak, lager and lime, fags and Razzle is even more remarkable.

 

[Giraffe]

I think the 80's, but it's almost impossible to compare. Given the choice I would say 80's because that was my teenage years and everything was more fun then, but it's just a different game now in every regard. The big plus the 80's would have over now is terraces and cost. So much cheaper in every way, including petrol to cover away games.

 

[studio150]

If you like hoof football, watching through a cage, being hurdled like cattle to and from the ground, being on the look out for violence then it must be the 1980s. I'm sure that everyone that suffered the mindless violence of Everton 'fans' on the bus back to the station would not vote for the 1980s. Also racism was rapent the away fa cup tie at hull being a clear example where every black Brighton player was abused not just by teenagers but also dads with children. Also has someone else has mentioned Hillsborough and Bradford.

 

[OzMike]

80's, proper football, no diving and forever falling over.
Hard tackles and no pussies.
No seats and lots of jumping up and down.