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Do You Support Your Local Team?


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Yea in the past the BB would have been the starting point for many a young player however now (well in Perth) there are many youth teams who start as early as under 8 ' s and with most BB groups being small there is no longer a Saturday league. We have boys in our company section who play or train in a variety of sports 6 days a week and on a Friday come to BB.

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what's wrong with the Imps ( my sister lives in Waddington)

who do you go to watch down there

I'm sure there's nothing wrong with them but I'll never be a supporter. I'm a Saints fan. Simples.

I'm not in the habit of going to games down here but when I've had the time I've taken in a few lower league and non league games local to me.

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  • 6 years later...

of course! born and bread in dundee and my dad (Aberdeen fan) told me i had to pick dundee or dundee united. i went for the tangerine side of the city and have never regretted it. stuck with them ever since and great to see them finally back on they’re feet again. 

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9 minutes ago, Macky said:

of course! born and bread in dundee and my dad (Aberdeen fan) told me i had to pick dundee or dundee united. i went for the tangerine side of the city and have never regretted it. stuck with them ever since and great to see them finally back on they’re feet again. 

From the Sunblest city of Dundee - a loafer. 40 years since his/her team was on a roll - been getting panned ever since.

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This old chestnut - I suppose if you turn the question on its head, what are the reasons NOT to support your local team?

Most common ones I can think of....

(i)  "Team that my father supported" - maybe he came from elsewhere

(ii)  "My local team play in front of 400 fans" - I look out for them, and go to the odd game, but I would rather watch top flight football

(iii)  "I was bullied at school and badly needed some kind of identity" - therefore took the chance to go to Parkheid or Ibrox and sing songs about something I previously knew nothing about related to an island where I have never been, with the added bonus of supporting a club 20 times richer than my local one

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Local team growing up: St Johnstone
My Local Team now: Hearts

I think it would be deeply weird behaviour to support the latter and not the former, and if I have kids would encourage them to support Saints with me. So can kinda see how people get into the cycle of not supporting their local team, especially when lots of people have to leave their roots for work.

Think exception is that if your parents support the old firm the moral thing to do is object and start a tradition of supporting your local team instead and go with your school pals.

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43 minutes ago, Macky said:

of course! born and bread in dundee and my dad (Aberdeen fan) told me i had to pick dundee or dundee united. i went for the tangerine side of the city and have never regretted it. stuck with them ever since and great to see them finally back on they’re feet again. 

Hi Son, i need that £50 i lent you 15 years ago back.

Call me. 

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I used to as a kid when I started supporting football. Now there’s an East of Scotland League team closer to home. You don’t switch teams though. Not as an adult anyway. I remember a couple of kids at high school who switched teams from one SFL/SPL team to another. Always just wrote them off as weirdos after that.

Sandy Clark describes it in his autobiography. If you grew up in Lanarkshire, Ayrshire or Renfrewshire at that time, you had two teams: Your big team (one of the OF), and your wee team (local club). The problem with this nonsense however, is:

1) A generation or two later, most of the kids and grandkids of these types stop bothering to support their wee team anymore.

2) The success of the big teams outstripped everyone else, and folk from areas further away from Greater Glasgow started to do the same thing. Fife and Dundee for example. Even Edinburgh and Aberdeen where the last remaining non-OF “big teams” are located, are riddled with OF glory hunters.

The highlands is a bit different as they had their own league outside of the pyramid for most of history. I find it easier to understand OF supporters from the highlands proper.

Sad that it’s got to the stage that it has though. Nothing worse than some bellend from a local area with no links to Glasgow, giving it the big one to his neighbours about how shite their local team is. Always seems lost on them, that they and their ilk are a big part of the reason.

No point in complaining about it now though. You’ll not get the genie back in the bottle.

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I don't. I'm from Livingston but support Rangers. I like to see Livi doing well, but I wouldn't consider myself a supporter of them.

As far as the why goes, similar story to a lot of people here. My Dad was born in Glasgow and supported Rangers. His family then moved to Livingston not long after it was established as a New Town. He continued attending Rangers matches with my uncle and that then rubbed off on me after I came along.

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47 minutes ago, Kyle Reese said:

Sandy Clark describes it in his autobiography. If you grew up in Lanarkshire, Ayrshire or Renfrewshire at that time, you had two teams: Your big team (one of the OF), and your wee team (local club).

Sandy Clark is a non entity and should never be allowed to have a view on anything.

I have no issue with supporting any team if say you have family from that place and it is who they have supported and passed down.

It's up to anyone who they support, but I find it strange that if you are born and bred say Dundee and you choose a team you have no connection to, just because they are successful. 

What I do think is changing is that in generations before, if you wanted to support a successful team in Scotland at a distance, it would likely be either Rangers or Celtic, partially because of influence in school and partially because that was the big teams you had exposure to. I'm not sure that is so true now. If you are minded to just support a big successful team and only watch on TV, then as likely to be Man City, Real Madrid or Bayern Munich. That in a way poses a potential problem to Rangers and Celtic long term.

Equally, if you are a 2nd 3rd generation ex pat, again, you may be less inclined as in say the US, Canada or Australia, where there was no real domestic leage, there is now and EPL, La Liga is all on TV. 

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11 minutes ago, AJF said:

I don't. I'm from Livingston but support Rangers. I like to see Livi doing well, but I wouldn't consider myself a supporter of them.

As far as the why goes, similar story to a lot of people here. My Dad was born in Glasgow and supported Rangers. His family then moved to Livingston not long after it was established as a New Town. He continued attending Rangers matches with my uncle and that then rubbed off on me after I came along.

As much as some would want to have a go at a Rangers fan living elsewhere, this is precisely the reason why places like Livingston do have Rangers, Celtic, Hearts and Hibs fans and is entirely a valid reason to support Rangers.

Livingston, East Kilbride and Cumbernauld are all probably much the same. Taking a chunk of traditional clubs supporters out of the city in which team team plays and relocating and expecting them not to still support their team or their kids too is a bit ridiculous. 

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2 minutes ago, Theyellowbox said:

As much as some would want to have a go at a Rangers fan living elsewhere, this is precisely the reason why places like Livingston do have Rangers, Celtic, Hearts and Hibs fans and is entirely a valid reason to support Rangers.

Livingston, East Kilbride and Cumbernauld are all probably much the same. Taking a chunk of traditional clubs supporters out of the city in which team team plays and relocating and expecting them not to still support their team or their kids too is a bit ridiculous. 

Yep, I think I can count at least 8 or 9 Rangers and Celtic Supporters Clubs based in Livingston which does show you how prevalent it is.

I don't think it helps Livingston either that there wasn't actually a senior Livingston Football Club based in the town until the mid 90s.

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14 minutes ago, Theyellowbox said:

Sandy Clark is a non entity and should never be allowed to have a view on anything.

I have no issue with supporting any team if say you have family from that place and it is who they have supported and passed down.

It's up to anyone who they support, but I find it strange that if you are born and bred say Dundee and you choose a team you have no connection to, just because they are successful. 

What I do think is changing is that in generations before, if you wanted to support a successful team in Scotland at a distance, it would likely be either Rangers or Celtic, partially because of influence in school and partially because that was the big teams you had exposure to. I'm not sure that is so true now. If you are minded to just support a big successful team and only watch on TV, then as likely to be Man City, Real Madrid or Bayern Munich. That in a way poses a potential problem to Rangers and Celtic long term.

Equally, if you are a 2nd 3rd generation ex pat, again, you may be less inclined as in say the US, Canada or Australia, where there was no real domestic leage, there is now and EPL, La Liga is all on TV. 

I don’t like what he pointed out, but it was honest and true. I disagree/disapprove of that mindset myself, as I thought I’d made clear. He’s probably more entitled to an opinion on the subject, than most, as he grew up in Airdrie and describes himself in the way I relayed.

I’m more aligned with your thoughts on the matter really. I’m just pointing out something that we all know is the case anyway, and using the account of a player most of us will know, to illustrate it. 
 

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3 minutes ago, Kyle Reese said:

I don’t like what he pointed out, but it was honest and true. I disagree/disapprove of that mindset myself, as I thought I’d made clear. He’s probably more entitled to an opinion on the subject, than most, as he grew up in Airdrie and describes himself in the way I relayed.

I’m more aligned with your thoughts on the matter really. I’m just pointing out something that we all know is the case anyway, and using the account of a player most of us will know, to illustrate it. 
 

Don't disagree with you, only stating that Sandy Clark is a twat and doesn't deserve an opinion.

I think his view is likely a lazy one to justify why he was a Rangers fan and if I was an Airdrie fan whose club was an afterthought to one of our players who grew up and played for his local club, but was very clear about them being 2nd choice I'd be well annoyed.

He is probably from the last generation where it is likely true and probably roundly accepted by clubs fans.

It's fair to say Sandy Clark, like Billy Stark is not liked by Saints fans, but it's as much to do with their attitudes as it is to do with their performances as managers.

I think it was clear that they viewed a club like St Johnstone (and likely all other sized clubs) and their fans as inferior and I think that stems from the likes of Clarks mindset of having Airdrie as his 'wee' team.

I'd argue that a fan of say Rangers or Celtic under the age of 50, that might have a 'wee team' probably has a different attitude towards them now. Still will probably take the piss every so often, as should be the case, but probably a greater recognition of what that club is all about and what it brings to the local community. Likely have kids that attend local soccer schools etc and that will impact mindsets. 

 

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17 minutes ago, Theyellowbox said:

Don't disagree with you, only stating that Sandy Clark is a twat and doesn't deserve an opinion.

I think his view is likely a lazy one to justify why he was a Rangers fan and if I was an Airdrie fan whose club was an afterthought to one of our players who grew up and played for his local club, but was very clear about them being 2nd choice I'd be well annoyed.

He is probably from the last generation where it is likely true and probably roundly accepted by clubs fans.

It's fair to say Sandy Clark, like Billy Stark is not liked by Saints fans, but it's as much to do with their attitudes as it is to do with their performances as managers.

I think it was clear that they viewed a club like St Johnstone (and likely all other sized clubs) and their fans as inferior and I think that stems from the likes of Clarks mindset of having Airdrie as his 'wee' team.

I'd argue that a fan of say Rangers or Celtic under the age of 50, that might have a 'wee team' probably has a different attitude towards them now. Still will probably take the piss every so often, as should be the case, but probably a greater recognition of what that club is all about and what it brings to the local community. Likely have kids that attend local soccer schools etc and that will impact mindsets. 

 

I’d like to think you were right about folk no longer having the big team/wee team thing, but I don’t know. Unfortunately I think many still do. Also, sadly I think the damage has already been done now anyway.

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I don’t understand the big team thing if the team you support is already big.  I am a Motherwell fan from Motherwell, but my working life has been in Stirling so I have a fondness for the Albion, I live in Bannockburn and they have a team, I have gone to watch both of these sides.  But I am a Motherwell fan. That’s it.

Edited by ropy
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