You mean here: http://www.reddit.com/r/PhillyUnion...esponse_to_the_sob_leaders_thread_what_would/ looks like it is a lot livelier than here....
Bryan's been out of the picture a while now. He comes to a number of matches, but is not really actively involved it seems
Better amd more informative communication would go a long way. Definitely better than the "shut up and do what we say" method or the current method which seems to be ignoring the majority the members and talk among themselves.
Sounds like opening up SoB leadership should be a positive thing if the current leaders have become insular. Some interesting comments on reddit, esp. the young guy that was put off by the 'mid-life crisis' types. Guess I would be that demographic, but I was always put off by the drunken frat boy demographic, lol.
Dills seems to be only marginally involved nowadays, if at all. 4LC while I enjoy, I wish more people would get into it. But right now it seems to be an arbitrary chant that really has nothing to do with the team or the SoBs.
RE has been a little light a few times this and last season....never a good look on ESPN when your supporters section has glaring vacancies. fill the seats. period....or we will be another sports team memory.
every one of that kids posts revolves around drinking. look, i'm no prude (have 3-5 beers before each game, keep a keg in the garage) but drinking doesnt rule my life
I never understood the get drunk to watch the game thing. It didn't appeal to me when I was 20 and it still doesn't at 40.
i honestly feel like thats all it is sometimes. i've expressed this thought on here before. from people stumbling out, to people asking "did we win?", to respected members of our SG getting carted out in a wheel chair before the game starts due to being wasted, it just seems like a huge high school house party many nights
Sounds like the same group that I call the "look-at-me" contingent. They also try to start chants that have nothing to do with the game, the Union, or even Soccer at all! All so that they can be the center of attention.
I think that the SOBs bring a lot of energy to the game and are a great marketing tool, but I have learned that I much prefer watching soccer from my midfield seats than from TRE. This was very evident to me at Saturday night's game at RBA. I was sitting in the second row of the upper deck. The SOBs were directly above me in rows 10-20 or so. The singing, chanting and energy was fun but I couldn't hear anything on the field. It was like watching the game on mute. I much prefer to watch (and hear) the game than yell and scream which tends to distract me from what's going on during the game. Without the ability to hear what was happening on the field, I felt like something was missing.
I like to enjoy a good beer from time to time, especially with a friend or two while watching a game. I have never understood the whole get drunk thing, even at a game. I have been part of the SOB since almost the beginning. I enjoyed the camaraderie and going to the different events and tailgates. I found those folks who were in the leadership, at that time, to be genuinely welcoming. They were the kind of guys who were interested in you and what you had to say. They were the kind of guys that you could have a beer or two and talk soccer. Much of that changed just after the team began playing. The whole thing became very clique-ish. In my opinion, there is a great deal of sophomoric behavior that takes place now. There are the amateur drinkers who are looking for cheap beer, cheap seats, and an excuse to get drunk and act like an ass with the protection of a crowd. There are the oddballs who have found a home to congregate with others like them. There are the lonelys who need the group to act as a family for them. There are also the never was folks who never belonged to anything, and SOB allows them to feel like they belong. Honestly, there are alot of great folks still involved as well! The last tailgate that I attended earlier this year, I talked to exactly two people. One of them I know, and one actually approched me to talk. It was great people watching though. I belong to SOB because I support the team. I will always belong to SOB, as long as there is an SOB, because for me it is about tradition. I do not agree with much of what is done. I am not as active as I was in the past. I pay my dues and attend the occasional event. However, I usually tailgate with my family, I do not sit in the River End, and I support the team the way that I want to. I do not need a family or a place to belong, I have them. I just want to support the Union. I get that things like supporters groups tend to evolve over time. However, it is not always for the better. I know that there are those folks who will immediately say that "if you don't like the way things are run, you should speak up or do more work". Honestly, I do not have the time nor the inclination to do either. That is why I rarely even have a public opinion regarding SOB. I, like many, liked the way things were at the onset of SOB. The sooner things return to that the better! I doubt that it will ever happen, which is why guys like me will continue to pay their dues and remain on the fringes of the group.
This is a good post and I agree with most of it. I think that this issue is not necessarily an SOB issue or a Union issue but an issue that is present in most sports. Fans tend to fall into three categories: (1) the diehard vocal (i.e. loud and/or drunk) fans; (2) the diehard subdued (i.e. sober or one-two drink maximum) fans; and (3) casual fans. Clearly, the Union have those three categories of fans. Go to almost any sporting event and you'll see this as well. The Eagles have the crazy drunks, the rich people in the club seats and the casuals fans that go to games every few years. To be clear, I'm not saying that the SOBs are inferior to other fans. In fact, I really like their presence. Imagine how quiet PPL Park would be without the singing. It would be eerie. Groups tend to form cliques over time. Even on this forum, threads sometimes turn into entitlement disputes about who is a better fan than others. The nice thing about the Union (so far) is that there still is room for everyone to be a fan.
people just have to accept that not everyone is a superfan. some people just go there to have a good time on a saturday night, without much emotional investment on the outcome. reality is, these people are needed to keep the team afloat revenue wise. if the casual fan stops coming, were kinda boned. also, newsflash- people like to get drunk at sporting events.
The Sons of Ben are in a slightly unfortunate situation, as well. Being the only acknowledged SG, anyone who wants to sit in TRE has to be a member. So you get a larger member base that doesn't necessarily consist of people who are looking to uphold the SOB ideals. I've always wanted other SG's to pop up, so that the SOB membership didn't become diluted with those just looking for cheap seats. Everyone is correct that there are people there for different reasons, so, perhaps, different SG's are for the best.
I am definitely a die-hard #2. I am sure you and I are quite similar actually. We support the team financially, emotionally, and vocally. We take our kids, spend our money, travel to away games, but most of all, invest our lives in following (supporting) the Union. Amen to your last statement! I do accept that not everyone is as interested in the team or the game as many of us are. Hell, many of those people who haved just showed up for a bit of weekend entertainment have gone on to become season ticket holders (my sister and her husband are two of them!) It is not a "newsflash" that people like to get drunk at sporting events. However, the "public drunk" who is obnoxious and infringes on others abilities to "have a good time" should not be welcomed at PPL or any other venue. They will always be there, and there are a great many of them in TRE, it is a given. At the point where someone's getting drunk as a good time takes away from my good time, they need to go.
Yes that is the policy. However, it is not always enforced, especially at PPL. There is a whole lot of public drunkeness that goes on there. I have witnessed a great deal of underage drinking, as well as, folks who have been so far gone that they have required medical attention. Myself, I believe that these go well beyond "having a good time". Sorry.... do not want to derail the thread into an alcohol discussion! Back to the SOB chatter.