Cheering the team after a sub-par performance

[Mike_B]

I've been of the opinion for a while that the Sydney crowd often cheer the team off the field when it isn't warranted (as opposed to booing them off the field). This happened again on the weekend when the team was cheered off the field at halftime despite playing very poor football.

I found it interesting and even amusing that Gerard Healy's parting comment in tonight's On The Couch was about this very issue and that he feels it was pretty silly to hear a cheer from the crowd as the Swans left the field at halftime on Saturday night.

Why does the crowd seem to cheer, even when a performance doesn't warrant it???

[TheHood]

Re: Cheering the team after a sub-par performance

Originally posted by Mike_B
I've been of the opinion for a while that the Sydney crowd often cheer the team off the field when it isn't warranted (as opposed to booing them off the field). This happened again on the weekend when the team was cheered off the field at halftime despite playing very poor football.

I found it interesting and even amusing that Gerard Healy's parting comment in tonight's On The Couch was about this very issue and that he feels it was pretty silly to hear a cheer from the crowd as the Swans left the field at halftime on Saturday night.

Why does the crowd seem to cheer, even when a performance doesn't warrant it???

Some people are easily pleased i suppose. Thank god or otherwise I'd never have kept a girlfriend for longer than a night.

[taurus]

Re: Re: Cheering the team after a sub-par performance

Originally posted by TheHood
Some people are easily pleased i suppose. Thank god or otherwise I'd never have kept a girlfriend for longer than a night.

[Jeffers1984]

i think i started the clapping in my area but it was more of a "pump them up cheer" and telling them to get stuck into it for the 2nd half...

[stellation]

yep, we sit just over from where the boys walk off the field into the sheds and they are always cheered off at half and fulltime, if they have played badly it is usually for pumping them up for the second half or next week... at least that is what I always thought... don't really think that too much should be read into it... I like people calling out encouragement to them to play better when they are down.

[Barry Schneider]

I was cheering in encouragement.What is wrong with that?

[The Boot]

Ok people, let's just think carefully about this. We get all rozzed up when there's a few points the difference late in the last quarter, and a sensational win is beckoning ... sometimes against all the odds. It lifts the boys and the first thing the interviewed player says is "the crowd got us home".

It stands to reason that as supporters .. yes, SUPPORTERS .. we encourage, enthuse, etc etc (get out your own thesaurus) and not "bag".

The players know when their backs are up against the wall. Everyone knows when they're not getting it completely right. Its the coaching staff's job to rev them up or kick them up the bum. And on the latter point are we not all impressed by Roosy's beautiful way with words .. "if we're going to go down, let's go down swinging". I tell you, if I was standing on the paddock after having heard that I'd think "yeah, bugger it .. let's have another red hot go at it!!"

And lo and behold, you win the game. Leave the recriminations, analysis and finger pointing for later. At THAT time, you need TOTAL support and encouragement.

Imagine if things were like that at the office .. well, one can only dream.

[JF_Bay22_SCG]

Re: Cheering the team after a sub-par performance

Originally posted by Mike_B
I've been of the opinion for a while that the Sydney crowd often cheer the team off the field when it isn't warranted (as opposed to booing them off the field). This happened again on the weekend when the team was cheered off the field at halftime despite playing very poor football.

I found it interesting and even amusing that Gerard Healy's parting comment in tonight's On The Couch was about this very issue and that he feels it was pretty silly to hear a cheer from the crowd as the Swans left the field at halftime on Saturday night.

Why does the crowd seem to cheer, even when a performance doesn't warrant it???

I didn't think that was so bad at half time against the Cats. In days gone by when we were down by 6-8 goals and not putting in an effort, there'd be no way I'd be clapping them off. But last night where we weren't playing very well, but were MORE THAN CAPABLE to lift our game and steal the match (as we finally were able to do), I didn't find it so unnerving.

Perhaps there is this belief from all of these days that even though we may be playing awfully, we can still come back and win the match.

Why are crowds in Sydney so passive? Well, we aren't brought up with the hard-nosed attitude most footy fans in southern climbs are brought up with. Plus Swans crowds are pretty much guaranteed to be 50-50 Men and women, hence the more "feminine" or "soft" response when things aren't going that well.
If the Swans start losing, many will just get up and leave without the slightest amount of guilt or embarrassment. Hence I think the attitude of many of them is to show loyalty by showing support in the face of this, even if this seems somewhat odd and weird to a traditional Victorian footy supporter.

Yes, we in Sydney run to the beat of a different drum, that's for sure!

JF

[Damien]

I must admit I have always found the sydney crowds weird!, sometimes it is like I have wondered into a meeting of the Vaucluse branch of the Liberal party. It can be so damn conservative!!!

I would prefer to hear a massive sydney sydney chant go up at half time when we are losing or whatever then just plain clapping, something to really rouse them. The clapping seems to validate the performance as if we don't care about the result.

Mind you I grew up in the Northern Suburbs of Hobart and would go to watch Glenorchy play each week (while listening to the Swannies on radio of course!!), where the supporters would eat the players alive if they weren't putting in! Very much in the style of Richmond I guess, I wouldn't like us to be going that far, but a happy medium would be nice.

I think as high percentage of our supporters are reasonably new swans fans (post 96) and not brought up on footy as a way of life, we are generally going to be different to how other club supporters operate.

[Pink_Lady]

Originally posted by Damien
I must admit I have always found the sydney crowds weird!, sometimes it is like I have wondered into a meeting of the Vaucluse branch of the Liberal party. It can be so damn conservative!!!

I would prefer to hear a massive sydney sydney chant go up at half time when we are losing or whatever then just plain clapping, something to really rouse them. The clapping seems to validate the performance as if we don't care about the result.


I think as high percentage of our supporters are reasonably new swans fans (post 96) and not brought up on footy as a way of life, we are generally going to be different to how other club supporters operate.

Agree. ON Sat. night at the match, I was getting frustrated, like most of the crowd was, and I sit in the Members area, and still I had people around me who sit there and read, or cover their ears when there's stuff to be said to the Umpires etc. It's so infuriating that there is sometimes a sense of 'be seen and not heard' at the football, especially in the Members area. If they want quiet they should be in a library, it's not even though myself or the people I'm around are loud....for what it's worth!

[Bunyip]

aren't we supposed to be one-eyed, parochial swans *supporters*?? There are 7 other games on during the weekend where you can be a more disinterested observer/critic...

also, the idea that sydney crowds are weird, conservative etc etc is such a cliche. sure, there are a lot of footy tourists who go to swans games (i especially dislike the ones who arrive towards the end of the first quarter and those who stand up, farting around to go and buy drinks 1-2 times a quarter). anyway, the hard-core, 'footy has been my life since i was 2 years old' supporters of melbourne teams are a small minority among footy fans - but they seem to be the ones sydney crowds are always measured against.

[Schneidergirl]

Originally posted by SsYwDaNnEsY
Agree. ON Sat. night at the match, I was getting frustrated, like most of the crowd was, and I sit in the Members area, and still I had people around me who sit there and read, or cover their ears when there's stuff to be said to the Umpires etc. It's so infuriating that there is sometimes a sense of 'be seen and not heard' at the football, especially in the Members area. If they want quiet they should be in a library, it's not even though myself or the people I'm around are loud....for what it's worth!

Agree.... as I was sitting next to you.

Also if you are the parent of the two girls sitting in front of us, please tell your children that it isn't nice to stare. Not only is it rude, but it is also uncomfortable as I scream at the umpires/players/auskickers () when they are having a crap game.

A football match is there to be watched and shouted at!

[Ruda Wakening]

Originally posted by SsYwDaNnEsY
Agree. ON Sat. night at the match, I was getting frustrated, like most of the crowd was, and I sit in the Members area, and still I had people around me who sit there and read, or cover their ears when there's stuff to be said to the Umpires etc. It's so infuriating that there is sometimes a sense of 'be seen and not heard' at the football, especially in the Members area. If they want quiet they should be in a library, it's not even though myself or the people I'm around are loud....for what it's worth!

We sit in the members too, and sometimes it is pretty quiet.

Might have something to do with many of the people in the members only being at the football in the first place for a night out, to make use of their expensive SCG membership entitlements in general.

In other words, they aren't there to support their footy team, they're just there getting their moneys worth.

[Damien]

Originally posted by Bunyip
aren't we supposed to be one-eyed, parochial swans *supporters*?? There are 7 other games on during the weekend where you can be a more disinterested observer/critic...

also, the idea that sydney crowds are weird, conservative etc etc is such a cliche. sure, there are a lot of footy tourists who go to swans games (i especially dislike the ones who arrive towards the end of the first quarter and those who stand up, farting around to go and buy drinks 1-2 times a quarter). anyway, the hard-core, 'footy has been my life since i was 2 years old' supporters of melbourne teams are a small minority among footy fans - but they seem to be the ones sydney crowds are always measured against.

Hmmm.... it isn't as simple as being a 'cliche'. The Sydney fan base is clearly the most conservative and fairweather in the league.

I am not saying that 'our hardcore' is that, but our hardcore is without doubt a lot smaller than our membership.

I am not sure what you are basing your theory regarding a small minority of Melbourne fans being hardcore AFL fans -I have a fair few Melbourne based friends, some that don't get to all games but still have a heavy interest in the game and their club and spend all week talking about it. There is of course a fairweather element to all teams (except Adelaide for some reason?!). but generally the interest remains very high.

This compared to two people at work here, who are FULL CLUB MEMBERS, they asked me the result on Tuesday morning....

[Ruck'n'Roll]

Originally posted by SsYwDaNnEsY
I had people around me who . . . cover their ears when there's stuff to be said to the Umpires etc. It's so infuriating that there is sometimes a sense of 'be seen and not heard' at the football, especially in the Members area. If they want quiet they should be in a library, it's not even though myself or the people I'm around are loud....for what it's worth!

Footy crowds have changed. we sit in the Bradman and there's so many kids around that last year my brother was getting so exasperated by the decisions of James Hirds favourite umpire that when he finally exploded - he took the little people into consideration by bellowing

"Aargh, McLaren, you complete and utter ba. . . . . bad person"

Everyone in the area burst into laughter.