Hmm not entirely true if you ask me. Some people just don't like to lose an argument and end up arguing for the sake of it.

leaving early if team losing u consider not real fans that alot fans that go to old trafford, emirates, anfield are worse than u guys man... they do leave stadium early do u consider them real fan or not? best is how about own fans boos the team off field when play badly u call them real fans or passionate fans or glory hunter?

real fans will back the team all the way = will not boos the team off the field

passionate fans = maybe will cos care too much about the team

glory hunter = sure will lar cos no glory mar boos the team off... to justify the ticket price

I'm actually one that disagrees with fans leaving early. I've personally felt the compulsion to turn the TV off especially when the result feels like a forgone conclusion but I simply could not bring myself to do so. I felt guilty because to me, it was like abandoning my team in their time of need. If everyone left when the chips were down, who would be left to sing YNWA to the players as they trudged off the pitch? People leave early for a number of reasons. Some claim they cannot bear to see their beloved team lose whilst others don't want to get caught up in the traffic leaving the stadium. My take is that it's more important for you to be there when the team loses. The players will already be distraught. The sight of fans abandoning them will compound the misery, will it not? Imagine if your loved one was ill in bed, and all you did was leave the room to go home. Would he/she not want you by their side during this time? This is why the argument of leaving because you "care too much" for the team does not hold water to me. If I cared for you that much, I'd be by your side in the most trying of times.

I'm sure you'll try to justify leaving early or turning the TV off, and you are entitled to your opinion. At the same time so am I and mine makes a whole lot of sense to me. I really wanted to leave when we were 3-0 down against AC Milan and I'm glad I didn't. It showed me that no matter what the scoreline is at the time, miracles can happen.

As for booing, it all depends on it's nature I suppose. If you have greedy useless owners who are driving the club in the wrong direction i.e. Mike Ashley, I feel fans have a right to voice their grievences. Booing the team is apt if the team shows no heart or desire over the course of the season. While we cannot expect the team to win every game, they should at least show that they tried. This to me is compulsory. At the same time, it's the responsibility of the fans to help drive them on during games. Premiership games are becoming increasingly quiet with the rise in number of tourists to the stadiums, who don't know the songs or are too shy to sing and shout.

So Duke, you have the intention there. But does that make you a glory hunter?

Mmm don't quite understand your question. Care to elaborate?

We are debating that leaving the game while your team is losing, and some ppl here suggesting by doing that you're a glory hunter.

You mentioned that you really wanted to leave the game when Liverpool were trailling 3-0 to Milan. My point is, you had the intention "abandoning" your team there. And I do not know why at the end you didn't.

The question is, is having the intention to leave is the same as leaving the game? I certainly think so, but it does not make a person a glory hunter. For all I know, I left the game because it's pain and frustrating to continue watching. But that doesn't mean I stopped supporting them.

Intention is one thing, action is quite another. Have you never felt like giving up when faced with a really tough task? I have. There are some people I really feel like killing but I don't actually go to the extent of doing it. Why didn't I stop watching? It's simple really. I looked around me and I saw hundreds of fellow fans who were equally distraught as I am. I saw some in tears. I saw how much the team meant to them and it reminded me just how much it meant to me as well. No man's an island and we do sometimes need the support of others. In 2007, we lost the cup to AC Milan, and were I was at, NO ONE left. We all stayed on to applaud our lads as they went up to claim the runners-up medal, much like our fellow fans in Athens. We stayed on to applaud AC Milan as they went up as well. Did we do this just to prove we're the "better fan"? I for one don't give a rats ass what other people think. I just did what came natural and that to me, was to show solidarity and support. All I know is that whenever I'm down, I'd like someone to help pick me up. I'd like to know that if I were getting beat up, my mates would be there to back me up. It's only my opinion but it matters to me.

I can't help it if some claim this to be an anti-Man Utd thread or whatever, because the examples I gave are fact. I've not made a single reference to any other team because I'm more interested in mine. All I know is when someone claims that all that matters is the silverware in the trophy cabinet, they don't have their priorities right. Are trophies important? Heck yeah but they don't rank no. 1. Someone quite rightly pointed out that if it purely a matter of shiney metal cups, smaller clubs won't have any fans. How long since Newcastle won their last piece of silverware? What matters most to me is loyalty and undying devotion, but that's just me. Perhaps it's the reckoning of a loser but who cares? I don't. I just try to be sincere in my opinions.

This post has been edited by Duke Red: May 19 2009, 01:10 PM

I dun see why i need a reason to justify why i leave early or turn off the telly when losing, at the end of the day the club is in my heart..

Everyone will have their own reason to justify leaving early no matter winning or losing..we cant control them at all, what i am trying to said that, we cant said ppl that leave early is not a real fan.. we cant quantified loyalty, is in our heart n soul..loyalty cant be bought.. we cant brand someone that leave early as not real fan..

booing team off the field does not happen when the owner make wrong decision, the coaches that send out the team that lack of heart to win the match also will be booed by fans esp at home..for me they are trying to let the team know , they have dissappointed them with thier display...are they the real fans? for me they are because they care about the team...

its no point arguing who is the real fans who is not by their action... what important is what the club meant to each fans individually...

That's the thing. Who is asking you to justify yourself? I merely stated my opinion. Just because you don't agree with someone's opinion, it doesn't mean you can't accept or respect it. You just said that loyalty cannot be bought but with isn't the whole point of categorising fans who support winning clubs as "Glory Hunters"? They prove that loyalty can indeed be bought.

Once again I don't see why you need to keep justifying yourself. To me, the best judge would be the fan himself. Deep inside, we all know where we stand. We can post here all day long and cite examples of what makes us loyal but I feel that how you carry yourself and how you act matters most.

As for your last sentence, you are right as well. The club means differently to each individual. It's when fair weather fans claim to be know-it-alls, that arguments usually arise because they don't know enough to put forth a solid argument.

Not trying to teach anybody on how to be a better supporter. Just wanna share my input.

Barca lost 1-4 in Bernabeu in EL Classico last year. Plus, we, the supporters, had to watch our beloved players, to perform the guard of honor for the Madridistas, in their own stadium. For them, it was a dream came true. For us, it was the biggest of nightmares came true.

But nothing won't persuade me to switch off my PC (I was streaming). I didn't. I watched the whole 90 minutes. Only God knows how painful for me to stay. But I stayed, because, well, it was Barca playing, and I had to watch. Because its BARCA!! I dare to say, I am proud of myself that night

For me, Glory Hunter is a term which carry the meaning of - football fans who like to enjoy/watch/feel a glorious sense of winning from their team. These hunters will run away when they think they are not getting the glorious sense from their team, in other words, their team is loosing. Of course they still feel the pain, since they are still the fans of the team. But they just can't see their team go crushing down, hence they leave.

I won't ever do that to Barca. It is just ridiculous. Plain ridiculous.

Buying merchandise, season tickets or whatnot won't make one a better fan. Material is nothing, it is all about one's passion to the supported team. I will still hail one as a true fan if he stays loyally to his loosing team, although he has no team merchandises, because, for me not everybody can afford them.

Somebody gave out the girlfriend analogy before. I am agree with the analogy.

Actually, our stance during and after the match are all that matters bro.

And actually it is not about the TV we are focusing now, its our willingness to stay by our team's side

don get what u meant here correct me if i interpret wrongly; supporting winning team u term them as glory hunter?

Mostly I leave before my blood boils and forces me to buy a new tv the next day.

You're a fan if you can scream at the tv when you're watching it by yourself, and causing your mum to come out in alarm wondering if there's a break-in.

Been there and done that mate. You're not alone.

This post has been edited by JonC: May 19 2009, 02:20 PM

You had said that loyalty cannot be bought. I countered by saying that it can, hence the term, "Glory hunter". You can support a winning team just so long as you stay a supporter when the winning stops. If you ONLY support winning teams, you'll be changing teams like you change underwear.

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Added on May 20, 2009, 11:07 amThis is precisely what I said way back. It's like a fear of commitment. Why do people fear it in relationships? It's either they are on the lookout for a better option, or they fear getting hurt. When you do this however you also prevent yourself from experiencing true love. Some may not agree with this analogy but as we commit our emotions to relationships and our clubs, I find it that much more relevant.


This post has been edited by Duke Red: May 20 2009, 11:07 AM

Duke understand what you mean...for us like me...i only start watch EPL coverage when i'm 13 or 14...that time man united was so hot that i have felt in love with the player they have....especially beckham goal from the half way line....since then man united got stronger every year and continue to win....yes you are right that a true supporter should not be stop supporting the team when the team dun win a single thing...

but that is definitely not the case for some ppl that is around the age like me....we have yet to go through the barren run hence how can most of you all assume that man united fans are glory hunter? you all just can't judge most of the man united fans that way....for you that support liverpool through out that barren year...you have the point to prove...coz you experience it....but for us we do not have a point to argue that we still stay with the team when they don't win a thing....simple as that...

but during the 3-4 barren year when man united dun win anything...i still watch them even i felt frustrated...and how do you define that?

My definition shouldn't matter to you. Like I said, I'm only voicing my opinions on the matter. I can't look into your soul to see how committed you are. Only you know and that should suffice.

You did indeed go through a 4 year run without winning the title but in all honestly, I did you'd agree it wasn't all that tough to stay loyal considering you've won the Premiership 11 times. 4 years without winning it is hardly a disaster. Whether or not some fans would still stay loyal after 10 years or more is debateable. We can all hypothesise but our conclusion would be purely hypothetical. I'm pretty sure there are fans who will stay and those that will leave. Heck, I myself am ashamed to admit I know a Liverpool fan who is now a "proud" Chelsea supporter. The one positive from winning nothing is that you weed out the glory hunters. The thing is you'll never know until the situation presents itself to you. I'm sure many would claim to remain loyal but at the same time, it's almost certain that some will jump ship. How do I know this? Well it's happened before.

You can't at the same time blame some of us for bringing up the issue that we've been true tough times, because it is plain fact. I admit to having doubts over a person's lay to claim until they've actually been through such a predicament. If the circumstances were different and we weren't talking about football clubs, I think you'd agree with me.

i once said, when ppl reach a certain age, usually around mid-20s or so their club loyalty is usually already cemented...
unless they feel a need to keep changing clubs to make their penis grow bigger.

Lol....i love your comment there...

I think it's getting a little out of hand, let's not point fingers at anyone in particular. Man U fans, the term is not aimed at you lot, if you feel it, perhaps you should refrain from retaliating, or maybe have a look at why the other person is calling you a glory hunter.

I started this thread expecting fireworks, but not a full on war, the thing is this, as mentioned many times, many started out as a bit of a glory hunter, but they become proper fan when they grew with the club at heart.

Let's not get blinded by the real issue this thread is trying to achieve, there are glory hunter for every club, I am willing to say that if Hull beats Man U this weekend and stay up, there'll be many who claimed that they supported the club throughout.

Fellas, don't get confused by Glory Hunter and ABU, it is 2 different thing, there are a lot of ABU around, they support their own club / team, but since their team can't properly challenge, they become ABU.

And like Duke said, everyone supports their team in different way. And have their reason in doing so, while it disgusts me to see fans leaving early / turning off the TV, it's their prerogative, and I would not hesitate to classify them as prawn sandwich brigade, and if you have a problem with it, SO BE IT. It's me opinion, and you have yours.

Everyone supports their team in their own way, I know people who would not watch the match at all (live match0 because they think they jinx the team, instead, they'll record the match and watch it afterwards. That doesn't make them a glory hunter. Glory hunter are those who sees you in your team's kit and come up to you, asking, "what's the score ah? We playing tonight right?". No excuse, if you don't know whether you're playing on Saturday or Sunday, ON THE SATURDAY, then you probably should be classified as a glory hunter, but then again, there are too many exceptions to this, and I am banking on someone to come here and said they missed a match or didn't know when they were playing because they were in Botswana or something, granted, if you take offence in what I said, I don't give a flying fcuk, and if you don't like what I write, go fcuk yourself. In the end, it's suppose to be a discussion, and if you're hell bend on dissecting every single word I use and the manner I use it, I say, GET A LIFE.

This got me thinking. Whats your take on players who switch allegiances for further glories. We all know how many players leave their boyhood clubs to gain greater success at rival clubs. Rooney (Everton to United) and Carragher (was an Everton fan as a kid right? Or was it Gerrard?) springs to mind. Owen as well.