controversial subject

[Mr_Moon]

Doesn't Peterborough have the largest Polish community?

[Quills]

But there's always people in the wrong end aren't there.  The other week there was an Everton fan wearing full colours sat a few rows behind me in the JH who was cheering them on quite openly.

I actually like the club's neutral end and think it's a good compromise.  Sometimes it's quite good fun to meet some fans from the other team and have a chat with them, the banter's quite good and pretty insightful sometimes.  At other times you want to be with your own. 

I wouldn't say we need to segregate fans, but if you've chosen to be in the segregated end that should be respected and enforced. 

[supersub]

I think we should segregate the moronic Fulham fans into one area.

Good plan - there were some right idiots sitting behind me last night.

[Berserker]

But there's always people in the wrong end aren't there.  The other week there was an Everton fan wearing full colours sat a few rows behind me in the JH who was cheering them on quite openly.

I actually like the club's neutral end and think it's a good compromise.  Sometimes it's quite good fun to meet some fans from the other team and have a chat with them, the banter's quite good and pretty insightful sometimes.  At other times you want to be with your own. 

I wouldn't say we need to segregate fans, but if you've chosen to be in the segregated end that should be respected and enforced. 

Apart from last night when I was damn glad I wasn't in the Putney end, the only times I have felt upset being there is when we lose badly and most of the stand including P1 & P2 is full of the other side e.g. against Liverpool  at the the end of last season. At these times it's comforting to be with other Fulham fans, then you can share the sorrow without the rest of the stand and every body around you cheering their side that is whalloping us : (

[epsomraver]

The truth is that had there been a limited number of tickets sold to Polish fans -- say 2,000 -- there would have been a half-empty Cottage last night with the match being played in deathly quiet. As it is, the club made some money and the match was memorable.

Mind you, the idiot with the flare should have been arrested on the spot.

Spoken by someone who wasn't there, the club made money? debatable,  There could have had serious disturbances had not there been a very large Police presence,how much do you think that cost Don?  the JH stand could have been set alight, cost of that ????match memorable for all the wrong reasons , why would the match have been played in deathly quiet? the previous campaign had limited away support  and the cottage rocked with home support on all 4 sides of the ground.A lot of people i know stayed away because of potential trouble caused by greedy Fulham selling so many tickets all over the ground,  not one of your best posts mate.

[TheDaddy]

For me i thought it was a great incentive by Fulham to have a neutral end and thats were the poles should have been...
I watched the match on Tv and i would have most likely left if i was with my kids or misses in the Stevenage Rd stand ,As one post stated, one eye on the match one eye on the crowd "you just cant get comfortable with that "!

I have been to some very intimidating grounds in my time and have been glad i was on my own or with fellow fans without the family,Burnley in the 80s warm piss thrown at us ,Birmingham bricks and stones just to name a few as Sliver Fox says it really hasn't changed. Football seems to still be very tribal.Fulham made a mistake however nobody was hurt lets hope they learn from it .

[Rupert]

When I left work yesterday, I went to get the train from Luton station, and there were several dozen already-tanked-up Poles (we have rather a large number here) on the platform, singing, chanting, having a good time. Fortunately they seemed to think their tickets only worked on First Capital Connect trains, so the East Midland train was half empty, faster and quieter.

It worked on the way home too, I just caught the last intercity going to Luton, while swarms of Poles were piling onto the slow train on the adjacent platform.

I am not opposed to the odd fan being in the wrong end. I've done it myself. The thing is, you behave yourself, if you have any sense. I've seen us stuff Luton 4-1 and 3-0 while in amongst the home fans at Kenilworth Road, and I've managed to keep my mouth shut both times, just enjoying the view. I saw us lose 1-0 to Northampton at their place, sitting next to a Cobbler friend in one of their stands, and did not get much grief from him or his mates as I was not being an idiot. I didn't wear colours, I didn't shout for Peschisolido or Morgs, I didn't tell the locals how wonderful we were, running away with the division (under Keegan). I did not provoke, so was tolerated, though most around me probably did not even suspect I was an alien.

I am opposed to large numbers of away fans, especially those who are well oiled, being in the wrong area, because they can not behave. It just does not happen. Boisterous, even happily boisterous rather than menecingly so, does not sit well in the wrong place. You may know that you and your dozen mates are harmless, the home fan swiftly moving his two kids out of the ground, and resolving never to return, does not.

I fully respect the point that the original poster was trying to make, and in an ideal world, yes, you would be absolutely right, but we live in a far from ideal world. As said below, the neutral end is a great idea, you just do not go there for the tribal stuff, and it is a shame that more clubs do not try it. Imagine a football tradition where you had home and away areas for the chanting, grunting, gesticulating stuff, and a neutral zone where everyone understood that you behaved in a civilised manner.

The problem last night, as already noted, if a UK resident wanted a ticket, what was the club to do? Also, the touts were out, selling tickets to anybody. That's one thing the club really should be able to do something about. Find out what season ticket bought the ticket that the away fan in the home area has and cancel it. It doesn't stop the tout buying it again under a different name, but it does start to cost him more money.

Mind you, it was funny seeing some of the Poles in home areas getting Fulham fans right in their faces after the third and fourth goals. You could tell it was upsetting some of them, but what could they do?

[Scrumpy]

But do we really need to massively segregate fans?

I think there's a distinction between the (from my point-of view, slightly silly) 'outing' of away fans who are pretty much minding their own business, or perhaps even there because they've even gone with a Fulham friend, and someone trying to cause trouble; somewhere, in between, there's the slightly annoying but not-really-any problem away fan who I reckon it's best to treat with stoic indifference.

Agree with that exactly. I have no problem with an 'Away' fan sitting on his hands in the home end. It's when they leap up and cheer when their team scores that they deserve to be ejected. In fairness, most of them were.

[epsomraver]

But do we really need to massively segregate fans?

I think there's a distinction between the (from my point-of view, slightly silly) 'outing' of away fans who are pretty much minding their own business, or perhaps even there because they've even gone with a Fulham friend, and someone trying to cause trouble; somewhere, in between, there's the slightly annoying but not-really-any problem away fan who I reckon it's best to treat with stoic indifference.

Agree with that exactly. I have no problem with an 'Away' fan sitting on his hands in the home end. It's when they leap up and cheer when their team scores that they deserve to be ejected. In fairness, most of them were.

I agree mate, we had two behind us who watched the game, no comments, fine, 6 in front tanked up, colours all over their faces jumping about and celebrating the goal.that is taking the pee, just hope they try it at the new den!