It's been a rough season, we all know that. We had so much potential and yet we threw it away somehow. Thats common knowledge so I'll just leave it at that. Anyway, I know we are all sick of the piss poor play and the cluelessness, to the point of some of us questioning whether it was even worth going to the remaining games. Hell, even I was debating whether I should go this weekend or not. However, after a couple nights of taking everything in, reading these and thecrew.com boards, and just thinking about the team (past and present), I've decided that not only am I going to go but I'm going to be as loud and obnoxious as I can be. This brings me to my major point. I challenge every Crew fan that reads this to show up at both this weekend's game and the game against the F*re and give these teams everything you have. As Hang said in his thread, DC is a team that we all hate. And none of us care too much for Chicago as well. Let's all give these teams as much venom as we can. Try and get as many people as possible to these games and try to get them to be as loud as they can be. Maybe the players can feed off of us and play with some pride. If not, then at least us fans can hold our heads up high. If we fail to make the playoffs, let's go out with a bang. Always remember, the Crew is bigger than any one of us. It's the undying support and pride we have as fans that makes this team worth giving a damn about. While players and coaches may come and go, we will still be here. Let's give em hell. C14 P.S. -I would like to meet up w/ some of the V-Army/North End people and discuss ways we can try to improve support. Either PM me or I'll try to get to your tailgate Sat.
As sad and sorry as this sounds, I might not want to go to the last game vs. Chicago. I'll probably see what the girlfriend and kid want to do, but after Saturday's debacle it will probably boil down to this: Reasons to go a) it's the right thing to do b) might be entertaining if we win c) microscopic chance I might get a jersey (shirt-off-back?) d) get lazy ass out of house Reasons not to go a) it's on the tube b) hockey season is starting c) just got Fox Sports World little over a month ago, still saturating my brain with EPL, Bundesliga, etc. enough soccer to make me one with the couch... d) MXC might be on e) the $48+ will easily buy a pizza that weighs about 5 pounds f) no fighting traffic g) if we lose, can abuse self immediately, not after a 45 minute drive home (too much time to get rational about things, that's no fun). h) very remote chance gridiron football might be entertaining i) lazy j) girlfriend might have more interesting sports to engage in and k) if watching and supporting your team ever gets to the "chore" or "duty" level then you really can't call yourself a fan anymore, it's more like going to church or something. Maybe it was the cold, but about the 50th minute on Saturday I knew the Crew were going to piss the game away, yet I stayed until the bitter end. Entertaining losses I can deal with, but everyone from Jim Smith on down have to be wondering to themselves why people keep showing up.
You've got bratwurst, you've got beer, and you've got yourselves a stadium. How bad can it be? Next year you'll have new coach and a revamped team. Bear with it. Days like these will make even the hard times seem good. And come what may, you still aren't Dallas.
We're fuct. I can't even get myself to believe that we're going to be good enough to pull of the "ambush" tactic if we make the playoffs. We were beaten by an A League side on Saturday, Crew should've looked prolific, instead we looked impotent. Start scouting the draft, start scouting for our "we suck" allocation, we're done. I'm tired of spending over 50% of my disposable income for the next two weeks on pure rubbish.
I have tickets for the game in Chicago Friday and I just don't care. No way am I driving 3 hours to watch this team suck. The only reason I wanna be there the last game is just to give Andrulis hell.
I'm pretty sure I'll be at the last game as well. The biggest reason will be the plethera of good quotes I should be able to get. I'll probably skip the post-game conference w/ Greggy and just talk with the players about the miserable season. I'm hoping the players will be disgusted enough that they'll stop hiding behind the usual Andruloserus crap that I hear. You can only handle so many "We just have to keep trying hard" quotes. The end of the season, when players stop being polite and start being real... (ok, bad Real World rip)
The fact we have brats, beer and a stadium makes this even worse. It's like being within walking distance from a fine dining establishment that has top-level world soccer on twelve different 60" HDTV widescreens, but when you get there the dish isn't working and the food tastes like scrapings from the grease trap at White Castle. Until it happens, we can't count on a new coach or a revamped team. I can easily see Greg given "one more year to make better" and the majority of the team plus an acquisition or two (to sit on the bench or force someone else there) returning next season "to make better". Yeah, at least we aren't Dallas... Yet... What makes me even more sickened in the stomach is the thought that because we have the stadium, are not in a "large market", and already have a large core of return business regardless of what happens; we will be last on the list for upgrades while MLS fixes the rest of the league; like Dallas (new team, coach, stadium), NY/NJ (new stadium), Colorado (new stadium), etc...
The first 30 mins of the DC game were entertaining...and then it got frustrating. I'm not sure how to match that off. If we're getting hammered I'd just as soon watch on the TV, but if not I'd like to be there to support the players during and after the game. Can you imagine the Crap they've gone through this year?
All Grouchy's points are valid, but I guess I just think, complain as much as we want, but you can't be a fair weather fan. I've rooted for the SF Giants all my life, from hundred loss seasons, to winning 103 and not making the playoffs, to being six outs away from winning the World Series and then pissing it all away. I knew from the start this year they wouldn't go anywhere. But I still love 'em, and I always will. I'm only halfway through my life, but I firmly believe I will never see them win the whole thing. Bobby Thomson's home run happened 6 years before I was born, and it's still one of the most important moments in my life. I stood in the upper deck at Riverfront Stadium for the last game of 1992, what was at that time supposed to be the last game of the San Francisco Giants, before they moved to Tampa. I stood there sobbing, waving goodbye. Will Clark waved back at me. I will always be a fan. Now, the Crew have been around what, 7, 8 years? And we think we've suffered? C'mon, lets get real here. If you're a fan, you're a fan. I may be booing my lungs out, but I'll be there for the last game. Let's hope the organization gets its *#*#*#*#*# together soon, and gives us something we can root for again. But if you're a fan, you don't really have any choice -- somewhere in your heart you have to stick with the team, even if you can't stand the current coach and players and their losing attitude. (Man, I just previewed the post -- when did this "####" s**t start happening? That's not what I typed.)
Being a Cubs fan, you gotta realize what the hell we've been through all these decades. Now look at us!!! We're on cloud freakin' 10!! So it could be better, but it could be worse i.e. league folding??
A Cubs fan? Lemme guess, you think Harry Caray was THE Cubs broadcaster. Grouchy has been on a roll. Too bad by the time this club returns for its final home match, it will likely be an exhibition game.
I'm not sure it is being a "fair weather fan", more like making informed choices with what's available. I'm not bad off, but I still have to look at where my entertainment dollar goes. Some of my friends are in horrible shape, lost their jobs, and simply can't afford to go to games. Still, I have to budget and major league professional sports has priced itself outside the means of many (MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL especially). I now have a family to support, a kid who is getting very interested in soccer both watching and playing; just spent money (through allowance) on a McBride jersey, soccer ball and gear. At least I'm local, some fans are driving from Cleveland, West Virginia, Kentucky and Indiana. To me, a "fair weather fan" is someone who switches allegiences at the drop of a hat and doesn't respect the sport and club. I still respect soccer and the Crew and I'm not about to be a Fire fan because they are at the top of the table. I will still attend Crew games, but maybe not the one in Columbus against the Fire. More than likely I will be home in front of the TV watching the Crew, with a pizza and some beer, playing Uno or some other game with the family. Or, perhaps, the kid will want to see one more match before next season. But, I won't meter attendance solely on club record. BTW, I also think Crew fans deserve better. I think Zak has pointed out in the past that the Crew is, statistically, a slightly below average team. We have never been to MLS finals, and although we have been in the playoffs and won an Open Cup; Crew fans have been supporting those below average results for all those years; in a league where players are owned by the league whichs strives each and every season for parity. Parity, yet we continue to be average or worse... Yet we still show up in average 12k-18k ...