|
 |
TO BOO OR NOT TABOO - 18-12-07
Louis Spence
I have never in my life booed a Boro player, nor will I ever. I have, as you may expect, shown vociferous disapproval for members of opposing teams. It does seem, however, that booing members of your own team has become more and more widespread.
I am not claiming the moral high ground on this one for one very good reason. I would DEFEND THE RIGHT of any fan to boo his own side's players if HE felt they were not 'putting in a full shift'. We live in a country of free speech and to me, that includes vocally disabusing your team's players who are not pulling their weight.
I performed for years in the pubs on Teesside. As one wag once put it: 'If they like you they don't applaud, they let you live'. On occasions I have felt the wrath of the crowd and it comes with the territory.
Nothing riles me more then, than footballers on stupendous salaries complaining because some of their own supporters have opted to boo them. As in, 'How dare they, don't they know who I am!' Only too well, Mister, walk a mile in MY shoes.
I have rarely seen a home player get booed if they are trying to do their best. The great majority of fans instinctively know the difference between someone who is having a real go, regardless of their shortcomings, and someone who is just 'swinging the lead'.
The cost of watching the game these days is not a cheap option. Why should fans have to put up with gutless performances from pampered divas, some of whom THEY would never have bought in the first place and who are now, it appears, sullying the beloved team shirt so proudly worn by past heroes?
And from here disillusionment turns to disgust.
It was only a couple of years ago that an exasperated Boro fan threw his season ticket at manager Steve McClaren in the full glare of TV cameras. I would never have done that but maybe that is conscience getting the credit that belongs to cold feet.
I had to admire this course of direct action. It was not daylight yobbery, more a cri-de-coeur from a loyal fan who had simply had enough of the pathetic fare he was paying handsomely to see, week in week out. He must have thought: If you can't be direct, why be?
It's attitudes not platitudes we want. If you pay a lot of money for a meal and it is awful you have every right (and some may say an obligation for future diners) to send it back. Similarly if you pay out a lump to see a much vaunted entertainer and he is very poor you would not go back to see him again. If a TV show is pathetic you switch over or off completely.
However all of these examples are just one-offs. Your expenditure is limited relatively.
And therein lies the difference.
Football is the only show in town where you are expected to renew your season ticket (or risk being called 'disloyal'), regardless of the previous season's diabolical displays. You are then meant to fully endorse any hare-brained decisions foisted upon you for the new season with wholehearted and unabated cheering (or risk being called apathetic). You couldn't make it up!!
Fans are then tied in to attend or lose their hard earned money regardless of the standard of football they may have to endure. Refund? Stop it!!
What recourse do fans have then if the team is playing in a dispirited and disinterested fashion? Walking away moaning gets you nowhere and walking out early deprives you of your money's worth.
I am fed up of the blame always being directed at supporters for not giving undying support to teams who are patently not giving their all. It's a two way deal this one, fellas.
At the Boro we have a manager who is attempting to introduce a new style of play. The fans understand that as a rookie, Gareth Southgate needs time and as such are, in the main, backing him. This is despite some poor early results.
The backing comes because fans know he is doing his best, as he ALWAYS did as a player. And you can do no better than that. The chairman is also rightly regarded as the best in the land because once again the fans know he has ALWAYS delivered and remains an ardent fan himself.
Booing always causes dissension and discussion but the fault does not lie the majority of the time with the braying public. It rests with players who are only too happy to accept the unbelievable rewards without earning the right to the crowd's approval. The fans have carried out their part of the deal - they have paid out handsomely to be entertained and more importantly THEY have paid the players. On you go then Buster, entertain ME.
If you disagree with this article, you are more than welcome to have a go at me. It's called freedom of speech which is incidentally where we came in.
Better still, post a reply on the message board - the best and funniest in the land.
Riverside Red, loyal and true Riverside Red, I wanna be like you
Singing your songs to follow your dream
And make my voice heard for my Middlesbrough team.
Have a great day y'all.
JOIN THE DEBATE AT THE COME ON BORO MESSAGEBOARD
RETURN TO LOUIS SPENCE INDEX PAGE HERE
A GUARANTEED PROFIT OF AT LEAST £41.20 ON PORTSMOUTH v FULHAM
Did you know that it is possible to win money on Sunday afternoon's Premiership clash between Portsmouth v Fulham, whatever the result?
The game kicks off at 3.00pm and we can guarantee you a profit of at least £41.20, whatever the result of the match. All you have to do is follow the simple instructions below and then sit back and enjoy the game. At full-time, you will be at least £41.20 better off, whatever the result of the match.
We must point out that if you want to take this bet, you should do it now because if the odds change, then the figures here will be invalidated. If they have changed, let us know and we will rework the bet for you.
You can still do this if you have a Betfair account but your overall profit will be reduced by £25.00 as you won't receive the £25.00 cashback as an existing account holder.
If you are unsure about this bet, you are most welcome to call us on 01642 223229 and we will help you as much as we can.
We're going to lay out a total of £71.00 on the Portsmouth v Fulham match and we will collect £115.00 if Portsmouth win, £112.20 if Fulham win and £114.13 if it's a draw. That's a minimum profit of 58%, a much higher interest rate than you will get in any high street bank.
Here's how it's done. Just follow these simple instructions.
1. Open an account with Coral. It is really important that you enter the bonus code of CORALTD when prompted. This is to ensure that you receive your bonus.
Open an account with Betfair. It is really important that you enter the promotional code of BFB425 when prompted. This is to ensure that you receive your bonus.
Open an account with Extrabet
 .
This shouldn't take you any longer than a few minutes.
2. Make the following deposits into your new accounts.
Deposit £20.00 into your new Coral account.
Deposit £26.00 into your new Betfair account.
Deposit £25.00 into your Extrabet
account.
3. Now make the following bets.
Place £20.00 on Portsmouth at 3.00 (2/1) with Coral.
Coral will now add a £10.00 bonus to your account. Place this on Portsmouth as well. You will now have £30.00 riding on Portsmouth.
Back the draw with £25.00 at 3.7 (11/4) (or higher if available) with Betfair.
Place £26.00 on Fulham at 2.2 (6/5) with Extrabet .
Extrabet match your first bet up to £25 so you will now have £51.00 riding on Fulham.
The £25.00 matched bet will not show in your account but you can read all about how it works on the Extrabet site. It's the purple box that says '£25 FREE BET FOR NEW CUSTOMERS' on the top right hand side. Click here to visit the Extrabet site.
If you are unsure about placing these bets, please feel free to mail us or call us on 01642 223229 and we will talk you through it, no problem at all. There is no such thing as a stupid question.
You have temporarily laid out a total of £71.00 on the Portsmouth v Fulham match. I stress, temporarily... Now sit back, crack a beer open and enjoy the match.
4. Here's what happens at the end of the game.
If Portsmouth win, you collect £115.00. That's £90.00 from Coral plus a £25.00 cashback from Betfair.
If it's a draw, you collect £114.13. That's £89.13 from Betfair plus a £25.00 cashback from Betfair.
If Fulham win you collect £112.20. That's £87.20 from Extrabet plus a £25.00 cashback from Betfair.
5. This means that the worst case scenario on the Portsmouth v Fulham match is Fulham win and you make £41.20 profit. However, if it is a draw you make £43.13 and if Portsmouth win you make £44.00. That's a minimum profit of 58%, a much better rate of interest that you would get at any high street bank or building society.
6. It is absolutely vital that you click on the links on this page to open the accounts with the two bookies and enter the correct bonus codes or you may not qualify for the bonuses.
Also, before you place your bets, you should check that the odds haven't changed. If they have, let us know by mail or phone us on 01642 223229 and we will rework the bet for you.
Please feel free to contact us or phone us on 01642 223229 if you have any questions at all about this bet and we will help you as much as we can.
Please note that the bonuses are valid for new customers only so if you already have an account with one or more of the bookies we are using, you won't be able to do this. If that is the case, mail us or phone us on 01642 223229 and we'll create an alternative bet for you using different bookies.
This method of betting was used very successfully during the 2006 World Cup and you can read all about how it was done right here.
We guarantee this bet
It's understandable that some people will not believe that it is possible to do this. "What's the catch?" I hear you asking. My answer to that question is that we have been publishing arbitrage bets for four seasons now and literally hundreds of people have profited from following the advice on these pages.
Only twice has our refund guarantee been triggered and that was when we did all the figures wrong and sent refunds out to those who had followed our advice and made a small loss.
Our refund guarantee works like this. If this bet doesn't work like we say it will and you end up out of pocket, we will refund your losses. Simple as that.
That means that you simply cannot lose on this, whatever happens and even if we messed up the numbers.
The only stipulation here is that you must click on the links on this page to be eligible for the refund guarantee, not that you'll be needing to claim anyway. Just enjoy the profit and stay posted for many more of these throughout the season.
|
|
|
|
