ok guys..we have seen enough arguements and have had enough stress over comparing ourselves to the so called glory hunters and lalangs..so im very interested to see this rivalry in a new perspective..

i had a heated debate with a friend of mine over dinner today, who is what i would like to call a 'casual' supporter..who dare admits that over the years,he had supported man utd,arsenal and chelsea..glory hunter??in my eyes yes..but his idea of watching football is totally different from mine..

for me,ive followed man utd for years and i find it hard for me to 'bond' with any other team no matter what..even when we were having one of the worse results since i first started watching football..

this friend of mine pulak, watch football for the beauty of the game which everyone does,but doesnt support a particular team..currently,he supports chelsea of course,but he mentioned that if the likes of lampard,cech or terry leaves the club,he wouldnt think twice of supporting someone else..so basically he supports the players more then he supports the club..he had a fairly rational reason to support this idea of watching football although i didnt give up trying to prove him wrong..

ive seen a number of football fans who watch football but dont relli have a team they support..so where do this group of supporters fall under?
would really appreciate it if u guys could share some thoughts..

This post has been edited by aztechx: Apr 10 2008, 12:43 AM

Love a lot of football teams because they play beautiful football - Lalang.
Love one football team and hate all their rivals - True supporter.

This post has been edited by meaj: Apr 10 2008, 12:55 AM

true supporter doesn't mean he has to hate the rivals...

They can't be categorized under any groups. Those are just people who watch the game to pass time

Btw you didn't include another group of supporters- those who support teams which win them money

Honestly, I do. Can't help it. But it's hate in the sense that I don't want to see anyone else better than us.
Hmmm... I've always thought the feeling is mutual.

in my opinion , a true supporter hates all the rivals and the feeling comes naturally but who am i to say lol i live in malaysia never been to old trafford never met af poyo juga la lol , the same can be said to most of u as well no matter what club u are supporting tbh .. but whatever it is , i will always support United and ive been supporting them for almost 16 years now . .

i know, they are called "investor"

Technically, that kind of fans love football by players, because of player's technical ability, skills, experience and good looking... dunno how to categorized them, but they are football fans too...

I have one friend like that, he admirer Henry a lots, so he had supported Arsenal before and current Barca.. Just because of his skills, not because the club...

In the sense yes. But I would hate my club more when I see no effort from them. It's the passion involved which sometimes problems comes internally.
I hate Pools for seemly being lack of motivation this season and their inconsistency so called cannot score goals. But I still love the club. I hold no grudges and this season I really felt that Arsenal is superb until recent dip in consistency. I applaud Chelsea for coming back on form after Jose left. United had been quite consistent albeit a slow start this season.

As a fan of Liverpool and soccer, yes I do hate teams performing better but like I mentioned; I hate the team I love most whilst they can't seem to perform.

Credit is given when credit is due vice versa with acknowledgment of problems in own team.

Back to the topic of "casual supporter". IMO there's nothing wrong with them. They love the game as a whole. In some sense, they might see things better and clearer than us as we're sometimes clouded by rivalries and fail to see things in perspective. Defensive mode all the way without acknowledging the club's problems or incapability of certain players.

But I do not agree calling them glory hunter or lalang.

Lalang to me is those that when they stick to one side of the fence they would sing praise over there and trash the other side. But when they crossed the other side of the fence, same thing is repeated. That's lalang.

Glory hunters are those that came out of nowhere to seek attention without any knowledge. Ignorant type of ppl.

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Added on April 10, 2008, 1:22 amIn certain extend that's what we called clubs of preference. But when we're talking about true supporter, there's only one club.
When it comes to Serie A, I always have hots for the Old Lady. Spanish league I only followed 5-6 yrs back and saw Real Madrid as one of my favourites. But when it comes to showdown between clubs.....Liverpool is still the one.


This post has been edited by b00n: Apr 10 2008, 01:22 AM

Haha. A true London Gooner would despise Spurs the most. But I dunno, I don't hate them that much. Maybe it's because I don't see them as much of a constant threat.
This hate towards the rivals should come naturally when you see the threat that they pose.

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Added on April 10, 2008, 1:27 amI dunno man. That just can't happen to me. What happens when your teams clash in a CL?

This post has been edited by meaj: Apr 10 2008, 01:27 AM

i couldnt have found a better reply then this..you finally drew the line between lalangs and glory hunters..two things i never could see the difference before this.. this friend of mine,although being a 'casual' supporter,he does know ALOT about footie,loves football as much as i do and i dare say that at times,he knows things that i havent even heard off..but i just hate the way he questions 'why do you stay with one team?' his point was,imagine if they lose all their star players one day and end up playing boring football..will you still watch them?which of course i answered i definitely will,but he questioned the point of watchiung when u can no longer enjoy the beauty iof the game,the slick passes,the wonderful finishes and etc.so why bother about loyalty to one team?i dont know,but i just couldnt imagine supporting any other team and i cant accept watching football without a team to support..

just like you,i acknowledge a good team when i see one..credits where credits are due,i admitted that ac milan played one of the best football ive seen to beat us last season..we were completely outplayed and i admit that..about the beautiful football that arsenal play at times..i admit being stunned at times by the way they move the ball around..i love watching football and if it was possible for me to watch the big 4 play during the weekend,id watch them all but man utd will be my priority of course..the rest would be watched just for 'footies sake'..it doesnt mean that by watching chelsea play my blood would turn blue ovenight etc.

i used to regard this guy as a lalang but after tonight,i actually had a new perspective over things..they are actually 'honest' lalangs out there..and yes,i still insist on the word lalang..

Just watch the football match only...... just normal only.....

i am a hardcore supporter .. i have beaten up liverpool, man city, arsenal fans up ...
hahahaha

verbally la tu haahahah

try do that at hartamas / damansara where all hardcore fans watch football at mamak...

Hmm,interesting topic. As for me, i'm a man utd supporter through and through. Been supporting them for about 10 years now. Truth be told, of all the big 4's in the EPL, every team has its "specialties" in my opinion, Arsenal with beautiful football, Liverpool with their supporters, Chelsea for their style and Man Utd with beautiful football,style and great supporters! . But i always keep a look out for West Ham games, they're one of the teams which i really enjoy watching them play. So i do think that one can support more than one team at a time, its just a matter of how MUCH you support it. For me, it'll always be Man Utd first and foremost. If its West Ham vs Tottenham,i'll be rooting for West Ham.

My humble 2 cents

btw, i really feel that there is another group besides mentioned..
a group which likes to bet on football, n claims that they love the game..

now my question is, which is true? they like betting or they like football?
can they love one team forever just like TRUE SUPPORTER, without involving betting?

They are just gamblers.......
They support the odds.
But one of my friend who gambles never bet against the team he supports. He either bet for them to win or don't bet at all. The rest of the other matches he just analyse performance and odds.

Don't gamble.....

well, I bleed Liverpool RED...probably coz i grew up at a time when Liverpool was the top dog then...I am not a glory-hunter, just that when you were a kid, you want to support the best team at the moment, and at that moment, it was Liverpool...so I guess if you're a kid now and you support Man Utd, you can call yourself a supporter, provided that you stick with your team even if they get relegated etc. If not, then you're a glory-hunter that switches alliance to suit their ego...

I am a Liverpool fan, but I can also be a casual fan of other clubs, simply for their style of football... like how I admire Barca and Arsenal for the way they pass the ball around. Like how I admire how certain teams can be so compact and steady in defense (usually Capello's teams like Roma, Juve)... so, I am casual fan in footballing style / philosophy...

One can only choose one team to support (same region, coz I also happen to support a local Malaysian team when I was a boy) and stick with them through everything.

This is my take on the casual fan:

On one hand I can appreciate where they are coming from. I watch rugby, the F1 and basketball. I must admit I have my favourites especially in basketball when I've been a fan of the Lakers since the days of Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul Jabaar, AC Green, James Worthy and Byron Scott. I also however concede that I'm not mad over them and these days especially do not follow their games religiously. As such, I don't get in the face of rival fans who I know take it more seriously because I know what it feels like to support a club/team and have some less serious fan, give you shit.

The issue with casual fans is that although they do no support a particular club, they will have their favourite flavour of the week. I have a strong sense of hate towards casual fans who start getting in your face when their flavour of the week beats you. They have no understanding of what it feels like to support a club from the heart. In a sense, you could compare them to a person who fears commitment. They don't want to get hurt and thus, are reluctant to give their heart to anyone. Screw them.

There are a portion of casual fans however that do claim to be big fans of their respective teams. Dig a little deeper however and you'll realise that they are superficial fans. Enter the realm of the glory hunter, a breed of fan that fears commitment but at the same time, loves to be there during the good times. They don't bother to find out more about their club because they fear that the more they know, the more they will love her, or vice versa. Why take the risk then? Let us keep this relationship casual. Sex without any expectations after. No cuddling, no talking in bed. When the sex gets bad, they look for a new mate, scoffing at those who choose to settle down and be in a commitment with just one girl. I'm sure you each know people like that. "Aiyah why settle down? So mar fan. One day sure sian one you." - the glory hunter.

Arsenal is my only team i'm really passionate... I had to agree with meaj here... Some ppl love football, so they tend to support lots of teams. This ppl however are not lalang ler... they're just ur odinary football fan...

Glory Hunters? I've seen lots of them. U go kopitiam la, then u'll see lots of them in Kuching... Cheer for their team when they score & leave when the team concede a goal... typical glory hunters. I remember a lot of ppl support Arsenal when they won the league in the 2003/04 season unbeaten. They were growing like mushrooms! I wear my Arsenal jersey out, these glory hunters will like "Yo, Arsenal mate!" & i didn't even recognize them. This past few years, these so-called "Arsenal fan" have dissapeared rapidly. Mostly now a "MU fan"... lol

Try asking some of the ppl who have completely no idea what football is... a few years ago, i have some friends who support MU coz most of my classmates support support MU (I'm the only Gunner)... U ask these friend of mine who's the current no.7 in MU, they'll answer u... DAVID BECKHAM! My goodness... I lol'ed...

Glory hunters are everywhere, guys... They don't dare to stay loyal to a team coz they kiasu... they scared other team's supporter jeer them, they couldn't take it... Some of them leh, just want to win.

casual supporters, glory chaser, bandwagon supporters, prawn sandwich supporters are all here to stay. They will come and go as time moves on.

I used to hate them. They have no passion. Can u imagine someone claim to be a Man Utd supporters but at the same time he is a Liverpool's fan ? It doesn't make sense at all.

However, lets give them a chance. Dont close the door yet.They have to start somewhere right? Encourage them, let them learn to love the team. I was once a 'casual' fan before I turn hardcore.

United, kids, wife in that order!