Touch Down in sunny Perth

[anniswan]

Report just in is that they are eating pizza in Hay Street Subiaco, drowing their sorrows I spose.

[JF_Bay22_SCG]

Man, what can I say, but how awesome is Perth!!! Seriously this place is so nice. A mixture of the relaxedness of Qld with the planning and infrastructure of Canberra and Melbourne. A really really nice place to be, with friendly locals, even in blue and gold! In Sydney we have 2-3 expressways with one lane taken away for buses and taxis. Here they have 5 lane freeways, plus 2 extra lanes for buses!!!!!

Subiaco is a really good ground. I was SHOCKED at the amount of Swans support over here. A near-packed after-match of highly passionate Swans supporters, most highly eager to meet the travellers from 'over east." It was ten times as much as we have had at matches in both Adelaide and Brisbane combined. Lots of expats from both Melbourne and Sydney, including a family who lived in Turramurra (where I was brought up!!!!) with a boy who played for the mighty St Ives Saints.

Sadly they split us up, so half the Swans continent was upstairs and half with us in the Cheer Squad area. We made a racket, stirring us the brigade of plastic people who follow the Eagles into some sort of chanting. The Eagles are the most sad plasttic excuse from a football club that I have seen. Even worse than Adelaide. They had these Mitre 10 flags without the words eagles on them anywhere. And a group of people in Carlton Midstrength red polos standing there doing nothing. Taped chanting "SGIO, GO EAGLES GO!" (*VOMIT*) and a ground announcer who was on the verge of saying "Let's get ready to rumble." 15 years into the club's history, they STILL have the words of the club song on the screen. And their Cheer Squad's brown floggers, ICK.

Yes, Perth is a tad dull of a night, but you seriously have to get over here. I'll be back for the Dockers match for sure.

It was great to meet you DPW and Port1978. Hopefully the supporters from the excellent WA Swans Supporters Club who I told to get on RWO will be able to stay in touch with the club. They are true supporters ; I'm still tripping that we had a FULL Irish club 5000 km from home.

Yeah, we lost. But I'm still enjoying myself over here. Just wish they could fly me home in a Concorde. 5 hours in a cramp Virgin jet, ICK.

JF

[port1978]

Originally posted by JF_Bay22_SCG
The Eagles are the most sad plasttic excuse from a football club that I have seen. Even worse than Adelaide. They had these Mitre 10 flags without the words eagles on them anywhere. And a group of people in Carlton Midstrength red polos standing there doing nothing. Taped chanting "SGIO, GO EAGLES GO!"

LOL won't argue with that!

It was great to meet you DPW and Port1978.

Nice to meet you too.....you're not bad for a Sydney supporter I guess! And don't forget sWAns63.....you met him too.

Glad you enjoyed your time over here (apart from the loss that is) and we'll see you again for the match against the Frockers.

BTW, the really loud guy behind me...who was that? I see him on the TV all the time. Does he post here?

[robbieando]

Originally posted by port1978
BTW, the really loud guy behind me...who was that? I see him on the TV all the time. Does he post here?

Thats Peter Hatley and yes he is on this site.

For more info, this is a thread about his trip over to Perth

http://redandwhiteonline.com/forum/s...&threadid=4746

[JF_Bay22_SCG]

Originally posted by port1978
LOL won't argue with that!



Nice to meet you too.....you're not bad for a Sydney supporter I guess! And don't forget sWAns63.....you met him too.

Er, ok. Where was he sitting?

Met heaps of people including Tim Taylor and his big mate who won the signed Swans guernsey. As well as Tooth Fairy, who has moved to WA from Perth.

I was trying to plug RWO at every opportunity. So hopefully a few of them can get on here and be more a part of things. There was so much passion in them. We even had WA-based floggers at the game!!!!

They were just so eager to meet the players. Some like God's gift to football Jason Saddington were more than happy to have a yarn with the rank and file. Others like Nic Fosdike and Nick Davis were stuck up tosspots giving either patronisingly insincere 'speeches' up on stage, or in the case of ND refusing to say anything at all. (I've copped similar treatment from Fosdike in the past, so I'm not surprised.)

Several members of the club board were at the after-match (and are on RWO under assumed names). It is quite obvious that not everything on here meets their approval.It is also their right to disagree with several of the hot issues that have reared their heads of late on this forum.

But it is great that the club is moving in a direction where the opinions of the supporters are considered important enough for the board to be WANTING to checking out alot of what is on here. From a personal perspective it is nice for people in the club to start recognising my face as well. They all knew about Peter's trip, thanks to RWO. :-) Steve Brassel seems to be on every flight I'm on these days. And when Tony Morwood came up to me and said "So Julian, will you be needing tickets for the Geelong game?", I couldn't get the smile off my dial. Because that is what a club is about, about developing a sense of community, of "us", a sense of connection from the big man in the club tie and suit to the (not so) little man in his Cheer Squad cap. Our lil ol' club is seriously starting to mature. Yes, the legacy of private ownership does linger in some respects. But things are DEFINITELY improving.

Yes, it is frustrating to lose, but I'm still weirdly upbeat about things. Yeah, we lost, but god I had fun in Perth. You should have seen the sight of about 8 chirpy Swans fan (and one Geelong fan) running along Hay St in the pelting rain trying to find a place to eat. We were even chucked out of one place because we didn't have a reservation (um, Perth is a ghost town at night,it was raining and there were spare seats!)

Even the flight home was cool. 180 km/h tailwinds meant it only took 3h30min to go from Indian to Pacific Oceans. Very weird flying over 3 Oceans in one day. Even bought a Virgin Blue jet with wingtips that I'll be putting on my desk at work next to my Swans beanie bear.

JF

PS:- Did anyone see that feral woman I gave a patty to going off both at the match and at the after-match? She was unbelievable, screaming drunken obscenities and waving her patty around. The old South supporter in front of me was saying that she must have been an old Port Melbourne gal; we both agreed that Sydney women aren't like she was. Then she topped that by getting up on stage at the after-match and wanting to know where Barry Hall was. After nearly mobbing him, she give him this mini Buddha statue-thing and said that he had to pray in front of it. She then set after Nick Davis. I reckon she scored too, as ND seem rather pleased to have her around.

[anniswan]

Originally posted by JF_Bay22_SCG
Er, ok. Where was he sitting?

Met heaps of people including Tim Taylor and his big mate who won the signed Swans guernsey. As well as Tooth Fairy, who has moved to WA from Perth.

Wow that was a big move!!!!

[monopoly19]

Originally posted by JF_Bay22_SCG
Others like Nic Fosdike and Nick Davis were stuck up tosspots giving either patronisingly insincere 'speeches' up on stage, or in the case of ND refusing to say anything at all. (I've copped similar treatment from Fosdike in the past, so I'm not surprised.)

Wow, tell us what you really think...

Glad to see you had a good time though! Would love to make it to Perth someday...

[Tooth Fairy]

Originally posted by anniswan
Wow that was a big move!!!!

Sure is Annie . Say hi to Kate, Phil and the kids for me when you see them next.

[Captain]

The aftermatch sounds great. I wish I could have come, but I was catching up with mates I haven't seen in years.

I had a terrible experience with the crowd. I was sitting at the opposite end to most of the swans supporters and was cheering quite loudly. After we kicked a goal in the second qtr, a WCE supporter in front actually turned around and asked me not to make so much noise!!! Can you believe that!!

Another gripe I had is that their supporters boo after we kicked a good goal. This is the pinicle of bad sportsmanship. I hate it with a passion when any supporters boo an opposition goal (unless it is from a free kick).

Oh I forgot to add that people were actually happy with what happened to Kirk - saying thats all a dirty tagger deserves!

[Tooth Fairy]

Originally posted by Captain
The aftermatch sounds great. I wish I could have come, but I was catching up with mates I haven't seen in years.

I had a terrible experience with the crowd. I was sitting at the opposite end to most of the swans supporters and was cheering quite loudly. After we kicked a goal in the second qtr, a WCE supporter in front actually turned around and asked me not to make so much noise!!! Can you believe that!!

Another gripe I had is that their supporters boo after we kicked a good goal. This is the pinicle of bad sportsmanship. I hate it with a passion when any supporters boo an opposition goal (unless it is from a free kick).

Oh I forgot to add that people were actually happy with what happened to Kirk - saying thats all a dirty tagger deserves!

The booing really irked me too. Sure you have every right to boo a poor umpiring decision or when a player does something philthy behind play and then gets the ball. But EVERY shot at goal?! (maybe I've been watching too many sydney home games ) And the kirk incident, the crowd was trying to justify it as a fair bump. And from where I saw it, yeah it was a fair bump... TO THE HEAD! Definite free kick.

[Bart]

Originally posted by JF_Bay22_SCG
Several members of the club board were at the after-match (and are on RWO under assumed names). It is quite obvious that not everything on here meets their approval.It is also their right to disagree with several of the hot issues that have reared their heads of late on this forum.

Any specific issues JF did they agree/disagree with ? Did they actually admit to this ?

Also wonder who they are. It surprises me that there are so many members registered on this site who have never made a single post.

Why don't we invite a board member to join under their real name and make comments where they see fit.

One further observation. Isn't it disappoitning that the aftermatches in every city seem better than those in SYDNEY !!!

Understand player commitments in Sydney, but what about the board, senior staff etc etc

[port1978]

Originally posted by JF_Bay22_SCG
Er, ok. Where was he sitting?

LOL, the guy you gave the flag to right next to me.....but I guess I don't really give him miuch of a chance to post on here....

[JF_Bay22_SCG]

Originally posted by port1978
LOL, the guy you gave the flag to right next to me.....but I guess I don't really give him miuch of a chance to post on here....

OH, I thought he was DPW.

Ooops!

JF

[JF_Bay22_SCG]

Originally posted by Bart
Any specific issues JF did they agree/disagree with ? Did they actually admit to this ?

Also wonder who they are. It surprises me that there are so many members registered on this site who have never made a single post.

Why don't we invite a board member to join under their real name and make comments where they see fit.

One further observation. Isn't it disappoitning that the aftermatches in every city seem better than those in SYDNEY !!!

Understand player commitments in Sydney, but what about the board, senior staff etc etc

Yeah, it is irritatiung that the Sydney ones are so weak yet in other states justing hanging with other supporters and players etc is seen as enough to warrent having an after-match. I klnow supporters who refuse to turn up to Sydney-based after-matches these days because of the gaffaw. Don't blame them to be honest, as we all seem to find ourselves over by the big picture from the Hawthorn game in 1986.

As regards the issues of what was discussed, I'd rather not open up a can of worms publicly by blabbing comments that have been made privately at an after-match.

It is a huge step forward to have people involved in the running of the club actually interested in the views of supporters. This is proof that with time we are distancing ourselves from the days of private ownership when people at the office would approach with this "Who are you and what do you want?" kind of attitude.

By discussing here what was said in Perth I am only hindering the board members actually talking to us about things as all in future. I don't want to jeopardise that right now, especially considering the paper put forward by SSI to both the club and AFL as regards pushing for member voting rights.

JF