16 Clubs, 16 Games, One Team

[killa_gram]

Not sure if this has been posted before. But there is a bloke who is going to one game of each club with the club's supporters and at the end of the year he will decide who to barrack for. It is an interesting read. He has already done our game. Here is the link for it.

http://whatsmyteam.wordpress.com/page/2/

[st_Trav_ofWA]

i dont buy into this guy
like its some kinda honour for us for him to be a saints supporter he needs to get over himself
your either a saint or you aint

[suss]

Yeah he's figured out a great way to get invited to the footy each week for free. Seems like the ABC have fallen for i too putting out announcements each week asking for fans to take him to their game.

[st_Trav_ofWA]

i reckon let the bumbers have him he will fit in well with their fair weather supporters

[redwhite&blackblood]

As far as i am concerned if he is buying a membership he should support the Kangaroos. They need it more than anyone does, plus they won't be to bad a team to support. They get close to making the finals each year without actually making it so he will enjoy a few wins and then get September to himself!

[Dan Warna]

I think thats how russia became christain orthodox!!!

ivan? or was it peter was impressed with constantinople under the rule of the byzantine emperors...

BTW I dont think there is THAT much difference between the clubs and the memberships and the members, its just who you belong to...

[riccardo]

I'm a bit cynical on that, too.

I'm not going to beg an impartial to support the Saints, if he wants to, he can, but you can't take something so emotive as barracking for a footy team and make it an analytical study.

I suggest the guy get the hell over himself and put the team names into a hat or something.

[killa_gram]

He just posted this over at the Saints site on bigfooty.

I am digging up a very old thread here, but my blog has suddenly just come to life with people looking at it from Saintsational. I've gone over there to have a read and it seems they're a bit narky about me - i suspect it might have to do in part with the fact that i made some jokes about Saintsational and how i couldn't post anything there in my St Kilda reviews.

It's driving me mad because it's and nearly a full month after i signed up there but i STILL haven't been approved to post at Saintsational. I've emailed the fanforum address at SS twice and i've even emailed the guy who apparently registered the domain name. Posting here is the best way i can think of to draw attention to this.

I got this on the 12th of April and i have replied to it TWICE but still no action:


Quote:
Welcome to Saintsational.com Forums

Please keep this email for your records. Your account information is as follows:

----------------------------
Username: whatsmyteam
Password: *removed*
----------------------------

Your account is currently inactive, the administrator of the board will need to activate it before you can log in. You will receive another email when this has occured.

Please do not forget your password as it has been encrypted in our database and we cannot retrieve it for you. However, should you forget your password you can request a new one which will be activated in the same way as this account.

Thank you for registering.

Anyhow, if anyone knows anyone who knows anyone who can do anything about this, that would be great...

[st_Trav_ofWA]

I'm a bit cynical on that, too.

I'm not going to beg an impartial to support the Saints, if he wants to, he can, but you can't take something so emotive as barracking for a footy team and make it an analytical study.

I suggest the guy get the hell over himself and put the team names into a hat or something.

or sit down and watch each team play and see what one gets you cheering
that can be done in one week not this epic journey he go's on about supporting a club is not about what the club can do for you its what you can do for the club

[whatsmyteamagain]

What a weird experience joining this board has been - i've been trying to do it for nearly a month and my last attempt got stuck in limbo, registered but never approved by a moderator so i could never log in. Ok, well i have done it again. I had to register a new email address but i've arrived...

Wow... It's a bit harsh around here but i'm not really sure why? I really enjoyed my saints experience, and ended it by saying that the Saints fans deserve a flag or two and that i'd be celebrating it when it happened. Obviously, the season hasn't played itself out yet - but i felt very keen on the Saints...

The whole project is a bit of fun. A lot of you guys grew up with a team, i didn't. I'm not sure why you guys are so hard on it. I moved here from NSW a few years ago and i like footy but haven't picked a team for various reasons. My brother moved to Melbourne a couple of years after i did and got immediately sucked in to Collingwood because (IMHO) they recruit like a cult over there. Same deal with Essendon.

I'm from Newcastle, I didn't grow up with a team. When i arrived the bigger clubs were everywhere trying to suck me (actually, ANYONE) in but it didn't feel right. I thought it would be a bit of fun to try out all the teams over the course of season and then make a call. And the point of it is as much about meeting people and getting to know the histories of the clubs and the people that follow them as it is about picking a footy team - and fills up one arvo and 20mins to half an hour of radio each week.

Do i think "its some kinda honour for us for him to be a saints supporter"? DEFINATELY not. I went to see the saints in round three and it came off the back of two weeks of VIP treatment and a hard sell from the Roos and Bombers - when i wrote about the Saints "soft sell" i was writing about the contrast. I wasn't writing about what i expected or what works on me. I was just writing about the experience i had and what was different about it. The people, the game, the epxerience are much more important and interesting than whatever is or isn't laid on.

Have i "figured out a great way to get invited to the footy each week for free", well sort of. I'm not getting paid for it, but the ABC are picking up the cost of my tickets (when they don't go through the wash as has happened twice). I am paying my own way there and back and my own way to the ABC on mondays and fridays to talk about the game. I'm generally paying my share of rounds of beer with my hosts so they're not out of pocket. I am definately enjoying it but i'm new to the game - if you're a footy fanatic you might see it a bit differently than i do but i had NO IDEA what i was getting into when all this started.

"i reckon let the bumbers have him he will fit in well with their fair weather supporters" - Ouch. That's harsh, not sure where that idea came from, but it didn't come from me! I saw Richmond's worse ever loss on Sunday night and that made me feel a lot closer to the team than watching a club cruise to a victory that they expected.

"you can't take something so emotive as barracking for a footy team and make it an analytical study" - yep i totally agree. If you think this is an exercise in grpahs, charts, facts and figures you are missing the point. It's 16 afternoons or evenings with 16 groups of people to find out what fits.

"I suggest the guy get the hell over himself and put the team names into a hat or something"- Ouch again. Well that's kinda gonna nip the whole exercise in the bud isn't it? Its not about the goal, its about the journey - I think the clubs and their fans that i haven't seen or talked about will fell a bit dudded if i drop out now...

The whole exercise is just my a bit of fun, an amusing idea for a blog, and a bit of a way to spend 20mins or half an hour on the radio each week talk about the clubs, their cultures, and most importantly their fans. Yeah, yeah, yeah i know there are hundreds of hours chewed up talking about who Ben Cousins got arrested fighting with in an ecstacy deal gone wrong, but focusing on the fans and how they relate to their clubs is worth doing occasionally...

I'm not pretending that it will be a great honour on whichever club i end up with, it will just be the one that fits...

Good to finally be talking to you guys!

marcus.
http://whatsmyteam.wordpress.com

[Solar]

I think coming from interstate, you still do not yet understand the culture of melbourne. The whole tribal thing is a step further then the league clubs up in NSW. The club is you, and you are the club.

Most victorians are extremely loyal to their clubs, it is almost love and war over the water cooler on the monday after a round of football. There is a understanding between to strangers of the same team, the type of identification that goes deeper then even families.

I guess some might has a cynical view upon what your doing. We have all different ways we came to the saints, but you become a saint, not recruited to us. I find what your doing interesting but don't take a few rants from some supporters to heart. But when you do choose a team, choose it for life. Otherwise you lose "that" feeling.

[whatsmyteamagain]

or sit down and watch each team play and see what one gets you cheering
that can be done in one week not this epic journey he go's on about supporting a club is not about what the club can do for you its what you can do for the club

Hey Trav, that's actually what i am doing. "sit down and watch each team play and see what one gets you cheering" is exactly it. Except that if i did it one week, that would mean i did it at home in front of the TV and by myself...

As for the "what the club can do for me" thing, i am starting to realise why all the angst from the Saints fans. Because i made a bunch of jokes about the Saints botching the VIP treatment thing? Well, if you read through pretty much all my posts there's some kind of bad running gag running through most of them based on the stereotypes of the club. There was a Richmond spit and eat their own thing, there was a "i can't believe all melbourne fans aint rich" thing, and - in the case of the saints - there was a basically a running gag about Saints fans being satisfied with being "almost" there and not really wanting to inflict their pain on anyone else.

I seriously had a week where most fans told me NOT to support the saints, where i couldn't log on to this forum and talk to you guys, and i where the person i went with with tried to get some passes to the rooms and was told to bring me back next week.

I thought that was funny. It didn't turn me off the saints, it was actually just the opposite, i felt this strange sense of empathy for how hard it must be to be a fan of this club. Which is what all the fans told me it would be.

I reckon Essendon (the week before) must have had an army of fans that plug into a 15 person marketing department that just makes stuff like that happen, the Kangaroos (the week before that) are soooooo desperate for one new member they took me to meet the club CEO! It wasn't important to me to be treated like this or that, it was just a set of observations about my experiences of the different clubs.

Of course that's a one week impression, but basically what i am doing is writing up those little snapshots and observations.

marcus.

[st_Trav_ofWA]

fair enuff you explaination but you blog does give the feel that if you dont have a good time at one teams game your gunna bagg em out for it
the point about the bombers if mainly due to with me being in perth in 99 the hordes of ppl over here who suddenly became Bomber fans who have suddenly turned in to west coast fans my fellings are that when you chose a team you stick with it through think and thin through wooden spoons board challanges merge talks to premierships
to be a saint you have to live the motto 'Fortius Quo Fidelius'
to be a saint you have to be everything stkilda no half ass fans we are proud of our club and will fight to keep its good name
to be a saint you have to feel the respect for our greats even if you have never seen them play you know they were supermen
as a saint you LOVE (yes its a big word but you have to ) Robert Harvey other teams can call us what they like they can laugh at our lack of flags and our ubundance of spoons but you knock our SAINT bangers then watch out !

[DK27]

I think Marcus would make a great StKilda supporter. He is obviously educated and literate, so that excludes Collingwood, Essendon, Port Adelaide, Fremantle and a few others. He is insightful and analytical which would hold him in good stead to be a Saints fan. He writes like an Age reader rather than a Herald-Sun reader so our sponsorhip deal with the Age would suit him.

I would be happy to take him to a Saints game to assist him in this project if he needs to go again. It might be fun. Better than last week with a Scotch and Coke drinking, boorish Carlton wanker spitting obscene crap next to me.

You may say I should sit on the Moorabbin wing with some of you posters but some of you sit there bagging Saints players so much it is worse than sitting with opposition supporters. Can not stand the sledging. Give our boys support, that is what supporters are.

Cheers

[Teflon]

I'm not pretending that it will be a great honour on whichever club i end up with, it will just be the one that fits...
Good to finally be talking to you guys!

marcus.
http://whatsmyteam.wordpress.com

Ive got no problem with any of this...I too like your saints game host was an ex-Fitzroy supporter forever....my allegiance took years to change but a saints transformation felt right...

Anyways....good on you for experiencing each team BUT Id like to turn this around a little if you wouldnt mind..Id like to know whether you will "fit" our club......maybe posters could add some questions to these below to guage whether or not from a saints perspective....you fit?

Here's my saints "fit" questions:

1. Do you like pain? y/n?
2. How does the phrase ..."big investement....modest returns..." sit with you?
3. Is winning everything?
4. Was there a man named "Robert" in Nazareth Xmas night??
5. What type of creature is a "Baldock"?
6. Have you ever met a Baker thats been screwed by 14 Commisioners?
7. What does RIX ROX RUCKS mean to you?
8. As a Saints fanatIC could you tell if omeone was Lyon to you?
9. If you owned a car would be a Ferrari or a GT?
10. Complete the following song line....."there's only 1................"

get those right....nice to have you on board...

[Persuader]

Marcus, I know a bit of what you're going through.
When I came over from the West years ago I didn't have a clue who I was going to barrack for . But my first game at Moorabbin changed all that. I think the clue lies not with the crowd but with the team.
It's always about the team - who they are, how they play - you form an attachment to certain players (check out number 35) and that's that. Gone forever.

Although a friend of mine suggested it was St Kilda's colours.
In his words 'they remind you a bit of Nazi Germany. You mightn't agree with the way they go about things, but you love the outfits'.

[Teflon]

In his words 'they remind you a bit of Nazi Germany. You mightn't agree with the way they go about things, but you love the outfits'.

Gold....

[goodie]

Can't say I'm too fussed about which team you choose, as long as it's not Adelaide, Brisbane, Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon, Fremantle, Geelong, Hawthorn, North, Melbourne, Port Adelaide, Richmond, Sydney, West Coast, Footscray (Bulldogs), Carlton or Collingwood

[evertonfc]

Good on you for having the guts to come here and post. I respect that.

I'm also glad you've landed a gig on the ABC doing this, power to you.

I'm guessing you're a Knights fan, so it's a bit pompous for some posters to suggest you won't understand passion. I don't know what Solar was getting at with this:

"I think coming from interstate, you still do not yet understand the culture of melbourne. The whole tribal thing is a step further then the league clubs up in NSW. The club is you, and you are the club. "

Geez, I'm guessing he hasn't been at Belmore for a match against Parramatta...or Newcastle at home.

Newcastle's passion for the Knights is very much all-consuming and they have some of the most passionate fans in the country.

I'd say football in Melbourne actually isn't all that tribal anymore, given the geographic spread of supporters. It's more culturally endemic; people in Melbourne have a team, but that team could be anyone...regardless of geography.

In Sydney, largely due to the more diverse nature of the city, tribalism is far more apparent.

What Solar has failed to identify is that while Sydney is more tribal about its geographic segregation, Melbourne has a more consuming sporting passion.

[BakesFan]

There are three things that I feel Saints supporters have in spades above above any other club's supporters.

Loyalty.... no-one can top us on this one. Simply because no-one else has suffered the anguish we have.
Respect.... for great opposition performances or players; but especially for eachother (Saints supporters); even when we vehemently disagree amongst ourselves.
Love.... for this club that is unequalled by anything but our love for our family...... then again, you must realise; every St. Kilda F.C supporter IS a part of my family.

The French Foreign Legion have nothing on us.

Best wishes on your quest, Marcus. We won't beg you to join us... but we will embrace you if you do

[whatsmyteamagain]

I'm guessing you're a Knights fan, so it's a bit pompous for some posters to suggest you won't understand passion. I don't know what Solar was getting at with this:

"I think coming from interstate, you still do not yet understand the culture of melbourne. The whole tribal thing is a step further then the league clubs up in NSW. The club is you, and you are the club. "

Geez, I'm guessing he hasn't been at Belmore for a match against Parramatta...or Newcastle at home.

Newcastle's passion for the Knights is very much all-consuming and they have some of the most passionate fans in the country.

Well spotted evertonFC...

I have had that line of argument thrown at me a few times and i don't bite but it bugs me. If you took up watching your football on the old hill at Newcastle you know what passion is.

I think that's a big part of it actually. Why I haven't picked a team yet and why this way of doing it makes sense to me. People ask me which rugby league club i follow and i say Newcastle without hesitation because i feel it. I am not a fan of Newcastle, I am Newcastle. I'm a member, i live 1000km and i go to one game a year when they play in Melbourne but when they win i feel like i contributed something and when they lose i take it personally. I follow their injuries, their form and watch almost every game on TV. I am scheduling my games for this around their games. Since i've been here they've gone from contenders to wooden spooners two years ago to fourth last year and i've felt every bump on that road.

I enjoy watching AFL footy. I respect, i appreciate it. I've found myself reading about coach sackings and draft picks and the last two grand finals have been almost as good to watch as Newcastle's 1997 RL grand final win (it was their first, they came from well behind and scored the winning try with less than 10 seconds on the clock!). I've sat at home watching AFL games on TV for the last couple of years and i could have randomly picked one of the teams. I probably would have picked Sydney or maybe St Kilda or Geelong as they rose up and had some hopes pinned on them but i would have been lying if i said i really supported them because i'd never felt it yet.

That's what this whole mission is about - feeling it. Or at least trying the feeling on. I've felt it a bit - a tragic loss or a savoured victory seem to have that effect so far. I've certainly felt much more of it than i ever could have at home and i know that when i get to the end of this i won't have just picked a team but i'll actually know a bit of what its like to be part of them.

marcus.
http://whatsmyteam.wordpress.com

[OneEyedSainter77]

The thing about Saints fans is we do as other opposition supporters say "accept mediocrity" - and if the year goes well for us we generally do accept that as a good year - what certain people don't realise is that compared to what we're used to (ie - wooden spoons and the like) finishing fourth is pretty good for us.

We've bled more than other fans (not literally but you get my drift) and we love our club with such undeniable passion, sticking by them through thick and thin.

So if that's the type of experience you're after, welcome to the wonderful world of being a St.Kilda supporter. It sucks! You're gonna love it!

[OneEyedSainter77]

Oh also, I think the whole concept of what you're doing is a terrific idea. What better way to decide between 16 different teams than to experience each of them first hand? I think some people on here are just being too sensitive.

[st_Trav_ofWA]

I am not a fan of Newcastle, I am Newcastle. I'm a member, i live 1000km and i go to one game a year when they play in Melbourne but when they win i feel like i contributed something and when they lose i take it personally. I follow their injuries, their form and watch almost every game on TV

swap newcastle for stkilda and melb for perth and your me !!!!

[Troy's_Gal]

Every single one of these posts have made me shiver. they have all said very clearly why we are the most loyal club in the AFL. Out of all the mottos around ours is the only one that really does suit. STRENTGH THROUGH LOYALTY.
once a saints supporter you are one for life there is no doubt about that.