Happiness Outside the Prem - from Oliver Holt's column in The Mirror published today

[maninasuitcase]

Happiness outside of the Prem

I went to Roots Hall on Saturday to watch Southend United play Stockport County in the first round of the FA Cup.

It was £10 to get in at the away end, the stewarding was friendly and efficient, the interaction between the two sets of fans was good-natured and fun.

Oh and there was no diving, no play-acting and no controversy.

The lower leagues are not a football nirvana but after everything that has afflicted the top echelons of the English game in recent months, for 90 minutes at least, Roots Hall felt like heaven.

 

[Silencer]

Amen to that.

League One downwards is still honest enough at the moment. With crazy prices and the fact the experience at the top clubs does not quite feel like football anymore, it won't be long before Premiership grounds are half full and fans either stop going to football or filter down to lower league and non league games etc

 

[Boreham Shrimper]

You still get a few wrong 'uns like Karl Duguid, but apart from that, League One and Two is not a bad place in terms of player behaviour compared to their Premier$hite cousins

 

[dannypav]

Happiness outside of the Prem

I went to Roots Hall on Saturday to watch Southend United play Stockport County in the first round of the FA Cup.

It was £10 to get in at the away end, the stewarding was friendly and efficient, the interaction between the two sets of fans was good-natured and fun.

Oh and there was no diving, no play-acting and no controversy.

The lower leagues are not a football nirvana but after everything that has afflicted the top echelons of the English game in recent months, for 90 minutes at least, Roots Hall felt like heaven.

Not something I'd expected to see in print , but nice all the same.

 

[Blues 'n twos]

Nice comments, unusual to hear any media coverage outside the Prem these days.

 

[buffalowolf]

That gladdens my heart to read comments like that, gives me faith that there is a rainbow at the end of a dark tunnel,and hope for our beautiful game, the sooner the so called prima donnas leave and form their own european league the better off the english game will be , what do you people think?:unsure:

 

[LennySUFC]

I swear if we played Liverpool at home and Suarez dived on the RH pitch, I would go on the pitch and give him something to roll round screaming about!

Cannot stand him. Cheat. At least we don't get that in this league, besides grants ability to "buy" a free kick!! ;)

 

[FarmdogSUFC]

Still plenty of ***** in this league that play act, just not as many and they hardly get away with it which doesn't really bother me too much

 

[Westcliff Shrimper]

Still plenty of ***** in this league that play act, just not as many and they hardly get away with it which doesn't really bother me too much

**cough** Anthony Grant??? **cough** Used to "buy" free-kicks all the time. Didn't mind though...

 

[Rattus Norvegicus]

**cough** Anthony Grant??? **cough** Used to "buy" free-kicks all the time. Didn't mind though...

Right are you. Jedi master was he.

I would say that Division 2 (renamed Division 1 and then renamed Championship .......... yawn) is the most interesting league in that there is an excellent balance in the range of teams and performances. I can't wait until we (Southend) get back to Division 3 and (hopefully) are edging towards play-offs - marvellous. I can dream, can't I?

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

The 2nd division was shocking last time we were there. We out-passed most teams but got relegated. It was so negative and cynical and a really physical division. Fourth division teams would just get bullied. The general standard of play was disappointingly bad: it's full of players who have the physique and the ability to play premier$hite football but lack the consistency to do so and only occasionally flash it. That doesn't make for good football.

I didn't enjoy our championship season.

The third division is almost certainly the best division in England. Although can't comment on conference and below.

 

[Jai]

It's just not cheap enough to get the area's Premiership fans to come and watch us on a regular basis. £21 when you think about it is an awful lot of money to come and watch a team you don't support. They'll come for the £10/£5 ticket offers but when it goes back to full price they'll just go back to their local and watch their team on Moldovan Sky.

 

[Shrimper2thecore]

Pleasure to read.

Grant never dived, he was very inteligent and let players foul him

 

[eastling]

Great piece and very nice of him to say that especially as his team lost! Perhaps the good natured applause that we dish out to the away support die hards when the attendance is read out helped him form his opinion!

 

[southend4eva]

Good to get perspective... Great read :thumbsup:

 

[Davros]

Happiness outside of the Prem

I went to Roots Hall on Saturday to watch Southend United play Stockport County in the first round of the FA Cup.

It was £10 to get in at the away end, the stewarding was friendly and efficient, the interaction between the two sets of fans was good-natured and fun.

Oh and there was no diving, no play-acting and no controversy.

The lower leagues are not a football nirvana but after everything that has afflicted the top echelons of the English game in recent months, for 90 minutes at least, Roots Hall felt like heaven.

A nice read, but on reflection, its a little lucky for us he didn't turn up the week before!

 

[Rattus Norvegicus]

A nice read, but on reflection, its a little lucky for us he didn't turn up the week before!

:hilarious::hilarious::hilarious:

 

[Up the Shrimpers]

Would he have been so happy if he had to pay the normal match day price of £21

 

[Napster]

Bloody Stockport fan.