by Schards#2 »
01 Jun 2011 08:53
westendgirl Avon Royal It's a pity that some people on this thread don't put as much energy into supporting the team as they do into defending their right to sit in silence.
The posts that have been the most sensible are not those defending the right to be silent but the responsibility of thinking of others - so those who insisted on standing despite requests to sit some of the time and those who asked Radidbee to sit when he was only standing at exciting times are both intolerant.
I constantly have this arguement with my mother who goes to every away game but cannot physically stand all game and takes too long to stand up that when all around her stand the action is over by the time she gets to her feet. At Liverpool she was suffering with a cracked pelvis but still went despite the snow and now comments that at least it was on the box to be recorded so she could see the bits she missed (the best action of course). She tries to get a seat where it won't matter but it is not always easy. She first went to see Reading in the 1940s so I think she can out loyal some of the swearers but she needs to allow some standing just as the standers should allow her to see some of the game.
This sums up my views quite nicely. You have to be pretty ignorant to totally disregard the needs of the old and the young who, simply, will not see the game if people stand up throughout.
My dad's been going since the sixties but can't stand up for 90 minutes and i've been taking my children since they were 5. Neither have a hope of seeing much if everyone stands up and they have as much right to be there as anyone else. To be told 'it's football, if you don't like it f**k off' isn't good enough really.
Saying that, I can understand regular fans being hacked off that their experience is being compromised by people who only go to the big occassions and insist on everyone watching on their terms.
No real solutions, the best you can do is try and buy a seat that is most likely to suit your requirements. For Monday, I went upper tier as it's steeply banked and I thought most people would stand in the lower tier. At other times, with the children, I've tried to get tickets near the front so there are fewer potential standers in front of us. Likewise, the standers should try, where possible, to book seats at the back where standing won't impede others view. It's a shame the club can't offer this as a solution but, presumably, it would be seen as condoning standing which is, technically, not permitted.
I have to say, however, it is extremely irritating to have 3 standers near the front where everyone else is happy sitting and their not giving a toss about the thoughts of the majority whose view they are ruining for their own gratification.