Fairweather Fans

In our years in the Prem, we picked up a number of new Watford fans. It was hard to get a ticket. All sold out.

Now we're not doing so well, the crowds are starting to thin out a little bit. Demand and supply you see. Now we're going to be a middle rankin' chumpionship team there's not so much interest.

For those who are thinking in lean times of going to 'support' another club, I would urge them to stop thinking! If who want to go, go now! The sooner, the better.

Go cowards, somewhere else with your fears! Your departure won't hurt the club. Go and take your "support" somewhere else. Go on, you traitors.

Because this club is not for one or two seasons. When you're a horny hornet, you're pushing the yellow, red and black tri-colour in the first or the fourth. Come good owners, come bad owners. Come good players, come bad players. Come good managers, come bad managers.

Forward Hornets and Hornettas! Into a new season!

Win or lose, better or worse, we'll still be here.

 

Chico, I remember going when at 5 to 3, I thought "I hope more people are coming".

A hornet is a hornet. More beautiful than a flower! We have it in our hearts.

We have seen Hornets in these very pages. The most eternal critics. All renewing their season tickets.

Once a hornet, always a hornet!

 

At the start Of G.T’s first season, I could park at 1445 in a road behind the main stand, walk through the alley and arrive before the players had taken to the field, at the end of that season that 1445 had become 1415 to get parked in the same area!, when we reached the first division (top division for those supporters under 40) we regularly got crowds into the 20,000’s with a maximum of around 28k

 

Every level has its advantages and disadvantages.

Yes, the pretty football and yes the surviving by the skin of our teeth. Yes the occasional whupping of a big team.

On tbe downside, getting ourselves whupped most weeks, VA fackin' R, mercenary don't care arrivista players, a parade without end of managers and unable to even see a live game for want of semi-fans who are just as interested in seeing Ronaldo or some arsenhole player than us.

Well sorry, but good. Go fairweather middle class fans. Where Mr Big Mouth half fan used to sit, now sits a proper Hornet/ta.

 

Look, you know me, I am not one to blow my own trumpet, but I have been in many places. Many, many. When the talk has turned to el futból, and English football, I have been unequivocal in that no, I am not for Manchester United. No. Not leeverpool tampoco. No. Well its watford actually. Well, have you heard of Elton John? No? John Barnes then? Well he played for Watford! Yes! John Barnes!

I have given away 80s home and away shirts to Algerian comrades when I was living there on the edge of the Sahara and playing games with them after work.

I've carried around a short wave radio just to tune in to tbe fading in and out second half of some damn 1st division/Prem game ("and we welcome listeners to tbe World service to the 2nd half") just to listen with the hope they'll mention how we are doing against Swansea City. Which often they didn't. (unhappy smiley)

I went with my father to see watford when my belly button was still green. Now I'm in a fackin' bath chair with a tartan rug over me knees. Don't talk to me about Hornets!

Go on middle class faint hearts. Take your picnic hampers and contraband flasks elsewhere! Adios!

 

But Hornets and hornettas let's go! A season of new hope! Strong and united whatever comes!

Hornet yes! Hatter no!
Hornet yet! Gooner no!


Gino, Gino. What does Gino want? That Watford win every game!

Valérien, Valérien. What does Valérien want? That Watford win every game!

Hornets, Hornets. What do Hornets want? That Watford win every game!

Junior Hornets! Forwards, Forwards!

Hornettas Femininas! Forwards, Forwards!

Yellow Army! Forwards, Forwards!

,

 

U Orrŕrrrnnññnsssss!!!

 

I hate every minute of watching football at Vicarage Road.

away games are different as it’s somewhere new (or different), an excuse for a few beers and if we’re lucky we’ll stumble upon a decent curry house.

I’ll always love Watford, I just don’t like them very much at the moment.

Hoping you’re well Clive.

 

Did you cut and paste this from the official club site?

 

I don't think that it is a "Watford" thing as I'm guessing all teams will have an upturn with attendance during successful periods and a downturn during the not so good times . As long as some fairweather fans stick around after the good times then I generally have no problem.

 

Should make getting tickets easier!

Looking forward to the first home and away games already.

 

Given the way the club has been run the last few seasons, the Mogi stuff, endless manager changes, unmotivated playing staff and of course the cost of living going up is it any real shock to see attendances go down?

 

Despite all of that, if we somehow end up being top 6 most of the season the stadium will soon be sold out week in week out!

 

The strange and unfortunate thing about that time was that our finest era coincided with attendances plummeting in reaction to the hooligan problem and that it was extremely unfashionable to be a football fan then. Vicarage Road had an official capacity of 28,000, but only in the first season after promotion to the top division did we approach an average league attendance of 20,000; it then tailed off to the 14-15,000 mark for the rest of our time there. (It should be noted that there were some much bigger attendances for Cup games, which were much more popular then.) Sadly, our relegation after GT left meant that we didn’t enjoy the increased popularity of football after the PL was formed until he returned and got us back to the top in 1999.

 

I'm very fairweather due to a number of factors. I'm Cat A Fan ID, I did not go once last season.

1. Became single last year, after a 2o year relationship ended, had to take a new mortgage out, less cash to spend on stuff.
2. More bills to pay by myself, less cash to spend on stuff.
3. Live in Wiltshire, Trains are pretty unreliable (due to strikes), to get advanced tickets and pay on the day tickets are an expense I can no longer really justify to watch a half-assed Watford team.
4. Cost of everything going up, less cash to spend on stuff.
5. Can't get anyone to go with me to watch Watford play in the champo, find going by myself a bit boring.
6. Started watching my local team. They play in Toolstation Western Division 1, 5 min walk up the road, £6 to get in, £3 a pint, get about 100 people in, not toxic when we lose.
7. See Number 6.

 

Fans got to watch games either for the enjoyment they get out of watching a match, or a sense of loyalty and responsibility to support.
I'm very much in the former camp. I get no sense of enjoyment out of investing half a day watching us as cannon fodder in the prem, being outplayed and losing most games to megastar teams funder by ME states, with no real chance of staying up and playing like we know and accept that.
I also get no enjoyment out of watching us bumbling around in the lower reaches of the champ showing no fight and effort.
However I do get enjoyment watching a team pushing hard for promotion/PO spot or fighting tooth and nail in a relegation scrap to stay up. The win at Oxford to seal our survival in the 90s was one of the best games I've attended.
The weather doesn't come into it but I guess in many other respects I'd be classed as a fairweather fan in terms of physical attendance, though I always desperately want us to win whether I go or don't. Attitude and performance will depend how many games I go to this season. I barely bothered last season, or the season before.

 

As a season ticket holder, going to home games is relatively easy to maintain, although it’s just become a bit of a habit since Covid. Away games however are more of an effort when you’re not enthused by the team. We tend to go away just to enjoy a nice part of the country, like the Peak District, for a weekend and not so much for the football experience. I agree about the Oxford game in ‘91 and I assume you also enjoyed the madness at Peterborough a few years later.

 

Have been to PBoro before (when we won 1-0 with a Blissett goal in 78/79, Mr Tibbett from WBGS took a van load of pupils) but not this game as it was midweek I think. I still have the highlights on a dvd somewhere, awful goalkeeping, esp that Digweed drop, but great entertainment and a vital 3 points.

 

Serve up some exciting committed football and they will come. Continually deliver the turgid crap they have been in recent years and it's going to be diffcult to retain an aging fanbase and attract a new one.

 

I blame the parents.

 

I blame Bassett.

 

Yes, it's all her fault.

 

Devils advocate: I never had trouble getting tickets during the popular Premier League years (other than Bournemouth away a few times), maybe you weren't in a very high category and therefore low down the ticket sale priority? Like, I dunno, a fairweather fan might be.

 

Fairweather,low numbers I’d have thought. All wide eyed and legless.

 

94% of our fans support arsenal.

 

Whilst I will always be a Watford fan, I'm not throwing my money away anymore. Last season I didn't get a ST in decades and went to about 10 matches. Most were awful, the 4-0 defeat of Luton aside. I'll go to a few matches early on this coming season, but if it's the same paltry diet as last season, I'll not bother.

 

Who do the other 6% support ?

 

When are the club likely to release sale of tickets for QPR game?

 

Arsenal Under 23s.

 

There is a big difference between losing fairweather fans picked up after a bonus season in the PL, and losing fans that were fans of the club well before Pozzo rolled in to town but don’t like how the club is currently being run.

 

Odd.
The club have decided to make it more difficult to purchase tickets by removing 4 yrs of purchasing history. To remove those who previously qualified for a group completely or down grade your group status.
They have also failed to include all games attended since the new cut off date of 2019 or updated previous records.
To allow Season Tickets holders to purchase tickets for friends who have never before attended a Watford game before other Fan ID holders is ludicrous.
It seems that they don't want fairweather fans, but we all started out as fairweather fans. Taken to games by our Parents, older siblings or friends. We then grew into following Watford.
With the actual attendances being around 13,000/14,000 last season, good luck to the club when 10k turn up if Watford sink into the lower half of the table.
The club were even too lazy to inform Fan ID holders by email. They want fans to tell each other the news.