Echo News Comment: This is as bad as it's been for Southend United in 30 years

[Spenser]

To celebrate the view that things are not as bad as in the mid 80s is setting the bar incredibly low.

 

[Blueronron]

To celebrate the view that things are not as bad as in the mid 80s is setting the bar incredibly low.

But not as low if Carl Pettefer was a limbo dancer in the old days

 

[rigsby]

To celebrate the view that things are not as bad as in the mid 80s is setting the bar incredibly low.

No one is celebrating our current situation but certainly some of us have a clearer perspective about the life of a lower league fan. It was far worse in the 80's.... Any one who went to places like Ninian Park, Bramall lane or the old Den will tell you so.

 

[Blueronron]

No one is celebrating our current situation but certainly some of us have a clearer perspective about the life of a lower league fan. It was far worse in the 80's.... Any one who went to places like Ninian Park, Bramall lane or the old Den will tell you so.

Some of us remember Workington, Southport away now they were dark times

 

[Spenser]

No one is celebrating our current situation but certainly some of us have a clearer perspective about the life of a lower league fan. It was far worse in the 80's.... Any one who went to places like Ninian Park, Bramall lane or the old Den will tell you so.

I have been to all those places and many more since my first Blues match in 1967, but thanks for the wisdom.

 

[rigsby]

I have been to all those places and many more since my first Blues match in 1967, but thanks for the wisdom.

So what was the worse time to be a fan?

I would say the mid 80's were bad for the whole of football. The violence on the terraces peaked with Heysel. The football was very negative with teams playing for 0-0 by back passing to the keeper at ever opportunity and the rise of long ball football.

That was reflected in the record low crowds and for SUFC it was also our lowest point....Position wise and financially.

To top it all they banned beer in the stadiums.

 

[Rayleigh boy]

i am loving it ... absolutely fascinated by the drama..

can Sol survive the chaos ?

Was Cox Mr Wrong Un..

WTF was Bond on ?

IS Kelman really good ?

loved Jason D and Macca doing the Toney wind up at PBoro ..

Elvis

Hutchnson

loving it ..

Humphries ... busted - Lennon busted ...

the new physio..

the Macc Lads

Herman H ..

tony Colbert ..

beating Lincoln with a kids 11

bishop to Man U

Kinali, Egrebi, M-M whatever

Clifford.

and a glimmer of hope ... still...

more memorable than many a year ..

even love all the wailing and moaniing from the leagues most miserable "fans"

love it - Southend United !

 

[Swiss Tony]

The last paragraph sums up most of the older posters thoughts Rigsb

So what was the worse time to be a fan?

I would say the mid 80's were bad for the whole of football. The violence on the terraces peaked with Heysal. The football was very negative with teams playing for 0-0 by back passing to the keeper at ever opportunity and the rise of long ball football.

That was reflected in the record low crowds and for SUFC it was also our lowest point....Position wise and financially.

To top it all they banned beer in the stadiums.

Those far off lost days when a 0-0 was possible.

 

[BARNETBLUE]

For me this is the worst period, because we look in freefall andare just Southend Creche FC..Great to see the emergence of Elvis, Charlie etc but a disaster that we rely on Kids...Mr Martin; your time is up, big style!

 

[Rob1920]

i am loving it ... absolutely fascinated by the drama..

can Sol survive the chaos ?

Was Cox Mr Wrong Un..

WTF was Bond on ?

IS Kelman really good ?

loved Jason D and Macca doing the Toney wind up at PBoro ..

Elvis

Hutchnson

loving it ..

Humphries ... busted - Lennon busted ...

the new physio..

the Macc Lads

Herman H ..

tony Colbert ..

beating Lincoln with a kids 11

bishop to Man U

Kinali, Egrebi, M-M whatever

Clifford.

and a glimmer of hope ... still...

more memorable than many a year ..

even love all the wailing and moaniing from the leagues most miserable "fans"

love it - Southend United !

I thought that was going to end with “We didn’t start the fire..”

 

[SheldonW65]

So what was the worse time to be a fan?

I would say the mid 80's were bad for the whole of football. The violence on the terraces peaked with Heysel. The football was very negative with teams playing for 0-0 by back passing to the keeper at ever opportunity and the rise of long ball football.

That was reflected in the record low crowds and for SUFC it was also our lowest point....Position wise and financially.

To top it all they banned beer in the stadiums.

I remember being on one of the coaches to Derby.

Animals ****ing in carrier bags, waving their cocks at women in cars, steaming into the services cafe and not paying and the tosser that had Chelsea tattoed on his neck being taken down inside the ground by several plain clothes old bill.

Very cultured.

 

[Chairman Trigg]

I remember being on one of the coaches to Derby.

Animals ****ing in carrier bags, waving their ****s at women in cars, steaming into the services cafe and not paying and the tosser that had Chelsea tattoed on his neck being taken down inside the ground by several plain clothes old bill.

Very cultured.

You do realise your talking about someones Grandad...
For a moment I thought you were talking about one of our school day trips!

 

[kentblues]

The thing is we often look back nostalgically and think things in the past were better than they were. I remember in the early 80s (84 or 85 I think) going to a Div 4 away game at Chester. That was pretty dire with very few hardy souls. I've blotted the game out of my memory, but clearly remember the pub afterwards. Came back on the Sunday.

Actually we lost 4 or 5-1 in font of about 1,000 people - horrible season, relegated from Div 3 the year before and bottom 3 or 4 in Division 4 that season i think, Dreadful crowds, dreadful football.

In all honesty its been a lot lot worse in the past- its just we tend to remember the better stuff- bit like the golfer who might shoot a 100 but will always remember the birdie at the 5th or the great approach shot at the 18th.

 

[Billy Bests boot laces]

I remember being on one of the coaches to Derby.
the tosser that had Chelsea tattoed on his neck being taken down inside the ground by several plain clothes old bill.
.

Hmm, several suspects come to mind.

 

[C C Csiders]

Hmm, several suspects come to mind.

Definitely Brains.

 

[SheldonW65]

Definitely Brains.

That's it I remember now. That moron also tried kicking a car of an elderly couple in the service station car park.

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

That's it I remember now. That moron also tried kicking a car of an elderly couple in the service station car park.

Just one of the reasons he was nicknamed Brains.

 

[lombard]

For those that were about watching SUFC in the eighties, things were bad, but financially the football club owned Roots Hall.Dodgy Ron has scalped that and the training ground.We have nothing now.We are on a massive downhill slide that will only end one way, unless a Guardian Money Angel appears !!! There are also rumours about the EFL wanting financial information from every club on a monthly basis.If they are not correct, points will be deducted immediately. If true, we are doomed.

 

[kentblues]

For those that were about watching SUFC in the eighties, things were bad, but financially the football club owned Roots Hall.Dodgy Ron has scalped that and the training ground.We have nothing now.We are on a massive downhill slide that will only end one way, unless a Guardian Money Angel appears !!! There are also rumours about the EFL wanting financial information from every club on a monthly basis.If they are not correct, points will be deducted immediately. If true, we are doomed.

If true that the utter idiots at the EFL in their abject stupidity are going to start doing that all the divisions will be decided by them off the field on the basis of who gets the least points deducted and the game is dead.. maybe that’s their true goal. Certainly the clubs, the players and the fans are at the very bottom of their priorities

 

[HypoTypo]

Quite an interesting and varied thread to be fair.

I am not so optimistic about the future though. And I also don't keep looking back into the past to make my mind up. There are too many variables that make our current situation a lot different. Players wages, rents, league rules, rules that affect planning etc etc. Everything has changed since back in the day.

I honestly believe we have a 90% chance of doing a double dip and/or going into administration within the next 18 months/2 years whether it be with the help of the EFL or otherwise. I don't think FF will happen, and if it does, it won't be in time to make a difference. I don't think RM has any money (based on the fact his Bentley has potentially been repossessed over a credit card debt), the fact players and staff were not paid and about a thousand other reasons. RH is falling apart, a dead rat was found in the South loo's this week, no speakers in the west ..... It really has lacked TLC and now showing it.
To make everything worse, we don't have any assets, which means if we go into administration, we lose the lot. Well done Ron.

I really hope I am wrong though.