Given Arsenal out- chanted, sang, cheered -us from before the opening whistle, it would't be strange if the boys thought they were playing an away game.
Where is our passion?
We were at times silent.
The only time Arsenal fans shut up was for about 30 seconds after we scored.
Even the travelling fans from Parma in the friendly ( there were no more than 50 of them) sang the whole game and out cheered the 7 odd thousand home fans.
I'm new to the cottage and this board, but home advantage requires vocal support.
Or am I wrong?
Should I just shut up like the home crowd does?
T 094.gif
Nothing to cheer??? No in all honesty we are not the most vocal of supports, but I guess the early goal didnt help us.
We have to at least make an effort at showing support. We're all quick to criticise on the board....lets make a home game feel like a home game. Where in the Fulham fan rulebook does it say we sit on our hands?
Most teams have better vocal support away, as you usually get the more 'hardcore' fans who travel and when you are away all your support is in one area as opposed to being on 3 sides at home, also going 2-0 down didn't help
The supporters, as a group, are pretty poor. The only real atmosphere is the back of the Hammersmith. I don't think I can blame the acoustics because the Europa League run was amazing for it's atmosphere. Noise needs to come from all four corners, which it's doing.
Its a matter of choice. Freedom of choice. Politicians want more people to vote it doesn't happen. You want people to sing why, are you to embarrassed to sing on your own
It's always been like that. That's not to excuse it - you make a good point. Only part of the Hammersmith End makes much noise, the acoustics are cr@p and the other 3 sides are quiet except for away supporters.
We only really get going when we get excited, like Juventus. We seem to need the team to inspire and excite us whereas they'd appreciate it from us.
Too busy reading The Guardian or the Week-end FT I'd imagine.......but seriously....FFC supporters are not noted for their vocal skills.....best proper singing that I ever heard ...Cardiff Arms Park.....
Yep it's pretty bad unless you sit at back of H4 or H5, even then its not exactly great
Too many toffs and tourists im afraid
Your absolutely right, home advantage does require vocal support. It's the one thing that frustrates and embarrasses me as a Fulham fan, but it ain't gonna change. There's more atmosphere on the moon than in the riverside stand.
Allways been the same... i love a good sing song at the back of the Hammy. 049:gif
Yeah the riverside has always been quiet... You can hear a pin drop over there.
As for the best singing, being in Hamburg square for the European final wasnt bad :)
I remember at loftus road in the uefa cup we played Zagreb... Their fans know how to sing, there was only about 200 of them but they were bloody intimidating....
Quote from: Frankie-Peter Taylor on August 26, 2013, 06:29:52 PM
The supporters, as a group, are pretty poor. The only real atmosphere is the back of the Hammersmith. I don't think I can blame the acoustics because the Europa League run was amazing for it's atmosphere. Noise needs to come from all four corners, which it's doing.
European games the Putney End was "home" supporters, away fans were restricted to part of the Johnny Haynes, acoustics do make a difference
Hammy End acoustics don't help...
Are'nt we in the Riverside a terrible lot, we don't sing or make a noise. Surely it's everyone's right to behave how they want. I think it's fair to say that there is noise in the Riverside, it's just not as loud as elsewhere. Does that make less of supporter than the rest?
It pis**s me off that no one cheers aswell! apparently I'm the only person in the riverside that isn't too posh to cheer - I like to think that most fans have there butlers at home cheering for us
...that acoustics wouldn't have made any difference on Saturday Burt as there was very little singing, and what there was petered out rapidly. I too have joined the mutes as there was little on display again to keep me singing for most of the 90 minutes as I used to. Even the guy around row MM four seats in from the H6 aisle who starts the Great Escape chant or the Jol blawhiarmy chant did his usual perservering whilst few lasted more than a few lacklustre repeats to the extent that even he gave up eventually!
A surprising number of empty seats around where I sat (No the former occupants haven't moved because of me, I have moved to a different seat right next to the £100 divide between H6 and H7) didn't help the atmosphere, and a lot of new faces indicate the new breed of Fulham fan who doesn't know the words to songs or just want to take photos. The guy two seats to my left took several photos with his 'phone in the first half and didn't even bother to return for the second.
Add to that the club don't seem interested in filling in that whacking great void at the back of the HE so even if the faithful had made a noise it would have just been dumped onto the concourse below.
Overall it was a strange atmosphere to an opening home game of the season...
Quote from: Peabody on August 26, 2013, 10:01:14 PM
Are'nt we in the Riverside a terrible lot, we don't sing or make a noise. Does that make less of supporter than the rest?
Less of a supporter? No.
Less of an inspiration to the players? Probably.
I'll support the team however I want, thanks very much.
I thought before the game people seemed really up for the game.
Then the match started and we were on the back foot early. A goal down and little goal mouth action. It is difficult to be encouraged to sing loudly when the team are not showing the drive.
I thought the atmosphere was really poor on Saturday especially as it was our first home game & we won last week. I don't understand why the back of the Hammy End was so quiet. I don't sit near the back but join in (with others around me) when they start the songs. I think the atmosphere has been getting steadily worse at CC and yet you can guarantee every man and his dog will be singing at Burton. We need the Hammy End to generate more noise because it helps us wins games and we have lost our last 5 at home. COYW's!!!
We have never been a loud crowd. We have had our moments but in general its bit of 'come on fulham' and thats it. Its just the style of fulham.
BUT its also a reflection of what we eee on the pitch.under Roy in europe we seemed to raise our game and hence the crowd joined in.the lge was dull.
The city game when we drew 2-2 the crowd was great, but again partly inspired by the team as well.
As a team we are on five home defeats in a row. There is tension about Jol. We are poor and dull in many ways at the moment.not much to get us cheering.
Sent from my GT-P3110 using Tapatalk 4
To add to my previous comments I also think it was a poor show that we didnt show Mohammed al Fayed more love for his reign over the club throughout the game
Again why oh why do people care about others? We have this thread every bloody year and every year the answer is the same...PEOPLE CAN DO WHAT THEY WANT.
Yes it is acoustics and numbers and whats on show. But lots of factors come into play as well. We had at least sixty Japanese tourists behind us, several rows of Gooners and the usual numbers that could not match the number on a ticket with a number on a seat. The away fans invariably get away with standing up and that immediately generates more atmosphere and noise. We stand up and the sleepy, useless security stewards are up like a shot. The Putney end full of 'home' fans was awesome.
Quote from: SouthfieldWhite on August 26, 2013, 06:29:30 PM
Most teams have better vocal support away, as you usually get the more 'hardcore' fans who travel and when you are away all your support is in one area as opposed to being on 3 sides at home, also going 2-0 down didn't help
Exactly. We out sung The Arsenal at Ashburton Grove last season...
When 20 people travel away with Fulham, we can usually hear them. Fact is when the home fans have very little to sing about the away fans can usually out sing them. I have been to many away games when the away support made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up as if they still believed. The Cottage can be an enclosed couldron of home noise, at least in the old days. But frankly what happens on the stage needs to be the trigger for the audience.
Doesn't help that most of the well known/crowd favourite chants are redundant as they involve al fayed, the pog, dempsey, dembele, Aj, Zamora etc Duff wasn't doing anything of note to warrant a spontaneous Duff chant. Off teh starting line up, Kasami, Tarbat, Sidwell, Parker, Riise, Hughes, Reither, Stockdale do not have a chant that I can think off.
Quote from: WhiteJC on August 26, 2013, 07:41:20 PM
Quote from: Frankie-Peter Taylor on August 26, 2013, 06:29:52 PM
The supporters, as a group, are pretty poor. The only real atmosphere is the back of the Hammersmith. I don't think I can blame the acoustics because the Europa League run was amazing for it's atmosphere. Noise needs to come from all four corners, which it's doing.
European games the Putney End was "home" supporters, away fans were restricted to part of the Johnny Haynes, acoustics do make a difference
I've always wondered why we can't do this for league games. I think it makes quite a big difference not giving the away team a set of away fans to attack.
Personally, I don't sing much as I don't like to disturb the rowing club.
Quote from: Enter the Frei on August 26, 2013, 11:57:06 PM
Quote from: WhiteJC on August 26, 2013, 07:41:20 PM
Quote from: Frankie-Peter Taylor on August 26, 2013, 06:29:52 PM
The supporters, as a group, are pretty poor. The only real atmosphere is the back of the Hammersmith. I don't think I can blame the acoustics because the Europa League run was amazing for it's atmosphere. Noise needs to come from all four corners, which it's doing.
European games the Putney End was "home" supporters, away fans were restricted to part of the Johnny Haynes, acoustics do make a difference
I've always wondered why we can't do this for league games. I think it makes quite a big difference not giving the away team a set of away fans to attack.
I guess a lot of season ticket holders would have to move and as shown by this new tv gantry, that doesn't go down well. The atmosphere for Juve and Hamburg was crazy though. I remember going to an FA Cup game at the Cottage aginst Peterborough once and I don't think I heard a Fulham chant all game. Nothing will change however much we moan. We sing when it matters. Though every game matters ;-)
The one thing I can't understand about English fan culture is why a new chant has to be about a player. Players only have a limited spell at the club and therefore their chant becomes redundant when they leave. Instead of creating a chant for a player who has played a handful of games, why don't fans sing about their club who will be there long after the player has gone? The atmosphere at English games is appalling. It's not necessarily Fulham who are bad, 99% of clubs are the same. The only thing I enjoy about the atmosphere at games is when it's very late in the game, Fulham are chasing the lead and we collect the ball on the edge of our own area, the roar from the crowd cannot be topped.
Its funny as a youngster I had no inhibitions and sang and shouted at any opportune moment, but sadly today I have people who will look as if the two heads are on display when I get involved, and believe me I do try and carry on, but am left on my todd. Feel like a spare at the wedding. And this for me takes the fun out of it, so away for me if I can!
I guess it comes down to that favourite old saying
"you only sing when your winning"
Funny you raise this old chestnut. Walking through Bishops Park on Saturday I had the misfortune to hear a Glaswegian 'lady' telling everyone how it was weird there weren't Fulham fans marching in unison to the game like back home. If this were Glasgow, there'd be banners erected all along the park & stalls setting up, blah blah blah. All that stuff seems to suit them I'm sure but has never been the Fulham way. I'm sure things will change if we continue to grow at the current rate, but, personally, I perfectly happy with the Fulham package as is.
It is because there are to many supporters spending time moaning instead of getting behind the team 065.gif
Quote from: Jack Fulham on August 27, 2013, 12:22:13 AM
Personally, I don't sing much as I don't like to disturb the rowing club.
my mouth is always too full of prawns sandwiches or chablis
Ok well some people say " shut up I will support the team the way I want".
Yes you can but that ignores the fact that your support helps the boys and really you can get the same experience watching on TV.
Others say " we only cheer when we are winning"
That makes you a crap fan in my book- go support Chelsea or ManU
Others say its the "toffs and tourists"
So the away fans don't cheer because they're intimidated by toffs? Blaming it on others is pathetic. as for tourists.....I bet they would heartily join in and you may be gaining the club a new fan.
I can't really expect this to change but people should realize that we are negating the one advantage a team is supposed to have playing at home. I' m not going to bother on this anymore but will close in saying that maybe inspiring the players with vocal support might produce play further inspiring more singing and chanting.
But maybe you all enjoy sitting and watching the away fans chanting and singing making their team feel totally at home and inspired to hand us our heads in "our house" if so then stop bitching about our state of play at home
Quote from: TerryR on August 27, 2013, 10:06:57 AM
Ok well some people say " shut up I will support the team the way I want".
Yes you can but that ignores the fact that your support helps the boys and really you can get the same experience watching on TV.
Others say " we only cheer when we are winning"
That makes you a crap fan in my book- go support Chelsea or ManU
Others say its the "toffs and tourists"
So the away fans don't cheer because they're intimidated by toffs? Blaming it on others is pathetic. as for tourists.....I bet they would heartily join in and you may be gaining the club a new fan.
I can't really expect this to change but people should realize that we are negating the one advantage a team is supposed to have playing at home. I' m not going to bother on this anymore but will close in saying that maybe inspiring the players with vocal support might produce play further inspiring more singing and chanting.
But maybe you all enjoy sitting and watching the away fans chanting and singing making their team feel totally at home and inspired to hand us our heads in "our house" if so then stop bitching about our state of play at home
I know chanting can help a bit on occassions but Jol and the players are responsible for the state of our play at home. Fans have a right to bitch or criticise regardless of whether they have to chant or not.
Think it's a bit of a vicious cycle -
Noise made from Hammy doesn't really get heard, so people don't join in, self-consciousness kicks in and those singing stop.
I do think that getting people to join in relies on sustainable noise - stupid as it sounds noone wants to hear themselves singing for a prolonged period, they want to hear the people around them drown them out! I'm not too embarrassed to say that's the problem with where I sit (H4 Row G).
Solutions include relocating the singing area (perhaps more centrally in the Hammy?)/ Preventing the loss of Hammy End noise out the back/ an initiative designed to get all fans interested in making noise in the same area. Preferably all of these.
As far as the argument goes about fans and their choice to sing - I agree with both sides. People should be allowed to not have to worry about this, and these people should be sitting in the Riverside, JH or Putney. The Hammy should really be for the more vocal crowd, who particularly in the second half should make noise in an attempt to 'suck the ball' towards the goal. It's a real phenomenon, honest!
We were good at home vs QPR last year though. So it can be done.
P.S - This is something I'm very naive about but where do songs come from!? I presume Away games - I don't get to enough of them. But I think that creating new chants is an area we as fans need to be more proactive in, especially as we've lost so many good ones recently!
Quote from: TerryR on August 27, 2013, 10:06:57 AM
Ok well some people say " shut up I will support the team the way I want".
Yes you can but that ignores the fact that your support helps the boys and really you can get the same experience watching on TV.
Others say " we only cheer when we are winning"
That makes you a crap fan in my book- go support Chelsea or ManU
Others say its the "toffs and tourists"
So the away fans don't cheer because they're intimidated by toffs? Blaming it on others is pathetic. as for tourists.....I bet they would heartily join in and you may be gaining the club a new fan.
I can't really expect this to change but people should realize that we are negating the one advantage a team is supposed to have playing at home. I' m not going to bother on this anymore but will close in saying that maybe inspiring the players with vocal support might produce play further inspiring more singing and chanting.
But maybe you all enjoy sitting and watching the away fans chanting and singing making their team feel totally at home and inspired to hand us our heads in "our house" if so then stop bitching about our state of play at home
I feel your frustration. Noise and energy from a vocal crowd can lift a team, and it is surely even more important when the team is struggling for form and confidence. If you attend and remain quiet, then you are supporting the club financially, which is vital of course, but not really supporting the players on the field IMO.
Im to posh to sing loudly
I'm guessing that unlike the team the average age on this board has plumetted.
People in their teens and twenties will usually WANT to sing and chant. Older folks won't.
There is a noise issue at Craven Cottage in that noise from each of the stands doesn't carry well but in truth there aren't too many stadiums which are truly noisy. Stoke for sure but there was no way that Sunderland, for example, created an intimidating atmosphere. Actually that's as much about closeness to the pitch as the noise the crowd makes.
Those supporters old enough to remember the olden days before last season may know that our home record used to be, in those long gone halcyon days, extremely good.
I sit in the JH stand in the family zone with my daughter.
I try to join in with the Hammy End or when a song from along the JH makes its way near me, but apart from the (other) middle aged bloke behind me, hardly anyone joins in.
The atmosphere on Saturday was quieter than I expected for the first game of the season (compare and contrast with last season in the sun watching us put Norwich to the sword), but I did wonder if it was because so many of our songs are about Al Fayed?
Quote from: alfie on August 27, 2013, 08:24:51 AM
I guess it comes down to that favourite old saying
"you only sing when your winning"
+1 it's completely this ^^^^ not had much to sing about in last 12 months
Quote from: BenjyUK on August 27, 2013, 11:22:15 AM
Think it's a bit of a vicious cycle -
Noise made from Hammy doesn't really get heard, so people don't join in, self-consciousness kicks in and those singing stop.
I do think that getting people to join in relies on sustainable noise - stupid as it sounds noone wants to hear themselves singing for a prolonged period, they want to hear the people around them drown them out! I'm not too embarrassed to say that's the problem with where I sit (H4 Row G).
Solutions include relocating the singing area (perhaps more centrally in the Hammy?)/ Preventing the loss of Hammy End noise out the back/ an initiative designed to get all fans interested in making noise in the same area. Preferably all of these.
As far as the argument goes about fans and their choice to sing - I agree with both sides. People should be allowed to not have to worry about this, and these people should be sitting in the Riverside, JH or Putney. The Hammy should really be for the more vocal crowd, who particularly in the second half should make noise in an attempt to 'suck the ball' towards the goal. It's a real phenomenon, honest!
We were good at home vs QPR last year though. So it can be done.
P.S - This is something I'm very naive about but where do songs come from!? I presume Away games - I don't get to enough of them. But I think that creating new chants is an area we as fans need to be more proactive in, especially as we've lost so many good ones recently!
A good analysis. I think doing away with standing hasn't helped. One (or you, if you prefer) used to be able to move towards where the noise was coming from if one (you) wanted to join in.
I also think that some think that they are too young/old to sing. And I agree with whoever said that chants/songs shouldn't just be about playeres. We used to have some good general songs but not so much now. It is embarassing to get outsung by some of the fantastic noise that comes from some of the away supporters. Basel (the supposedly reserved Swiss) was a case in point.
It has to come from the pitch, the team need to give the fans something to cheer about, at present it is difficult to get excited about the way we play.
This topic seems to crop up on a monthly basis.
Anyone whose been away at all will know that most grounds are pretty quiet places unless it is a derby or other crunch occasion.
There are pockets of noisier fans in each ground but very few have a constant buzz and noise from all stands.
Perhaps if our noisy fans were concentrated in one central block rather than spread thinly along the back of the Hammy End, then the momentum might gather.
The loudest matches I can recall were our relegation clash with Brum and our Euro matches against Hamburg. Whether that's because those matches drew more hardcore support remains to be debated but that's the only time I've seen all 4 stands up on their feet singing.
OK
So we're not going to change everything overnight.
I think we all agree that giving a bit more encouragement to our boys would a) help the team and b) make the game more fun.
How can we move step by step to improve things?
I really don't know but suggestions may move things along. I for one will do my best to champion whatever we come up with.
T
Quote from: TerryR on August 27, 2013, 11:29:53 PM
OK
So we're not going to change everything overnight.
I think we all agree that giving a bit more encouragement to our boys would a) help the team and b) make the game more fun.
How can we move step by step to improve things?
I really don't know but suggestions may move things along. I for one will do my best to champion whatever we come up with.
T
clappers? :54:
Maybe we could record some crowd noise and play it over the PA system?
