The game was between Fulham and Portsmouth and we were sitting on the Fulham side. In our typical fashion, we strolled into the stadium about ten minutes after kick off, found our seats, started to say hello to the people who gave us the tickets, but were quickly told by them to sit down and be quiet (they weren't mad or anything, but I guess we shouldn't have gotten there late). All around us were the Fulham fans--mostly middle aged, white men with their sons of various ages. The mood was vicious and, in our section, we were surrounded by yellers, who oscillated between screaming curse-filled insults at the players and the fans of the other teams, and singing curse-filled songs at the players and the other fans. Fathers and sons alike (even LITTLE sons) dropped the f bomb left and right and made racist comments and death wishes aimed at the Portsmouth players. There was no drinking going on and I was scared to talk (which is usually what I do at sporting events. I can't remember one game in the past where I actually paid attention). We were sitting so close together that whenever the guy behind me screamed, "Come on Boys!!!" the back of my sweater moved and I could feel his breath on my neck. Someone also had gas, which was making things even more unbearable. You would think that wouldn't be an issue in an open air stadium, but when you are packed in like sardines, it is.
Just before the half-time, an outburst erupted in the row before us. Doug, the man who gave us our tickets, was being screamed at by a VERY angry Fulham fan who kept saying "don't laugh (f-bomb). I'll get you (f-bomb) kicked out of here right now! You won't (f-bomb) be (f-bomb) here for the next half." He then raced off to get one of the many security people. It turns out that Doug is a Portsmouth fan and, I guess to reduce the riots, the fans are supposed to remain segregated--Fulham on one side and Portsmouth on the other. The Fulham man, as Doug put it, "Would rather eat his children than sit next to a fan from the opposing team," and was hell-bent on getting us kicked out of the game (although I don't think he really had factored Jim and me into the equation. We were staying very quiet.) A few minutes later, the security guard came over and told Doug that he wasn't allowed to be in the seats if he was a Portsmouth fan and then went off to talk to his supervisor about having us re-seated. I was shocked that someone can have a valid ticket and be told to leave because someone else was so much of a baby that he couldn't bear the idea of having "the enemy" sitting behind him. The supervisor never came, our host swore not to make a peep about Portsmouth, and when the angry man came back and found out that we were still there, he asked "WHY ARE YOU SITTING HERE!!!??" Doug explained that his boss had given him the tickets and the guy said, "YOU SHOULDN'T BE HERE!!! HE SHOULD BE HERE NOT YOU!!!" Then he said, turning to all of the other fans and pointing at Doug, "THERE'S A PORTY HERE! RIGHT HERE!!!" You would have thought that we we were mass murderers or something, the way that he was reacting. Eventually his wife told him to be quiet and he was, but after that I felt so anxious about getting jumped or pushed down the stairs that I couldn't enjoy the game anymore and all I wanted was to get out of there. When the game finally ended and we could leave, I felt a huge sense of relief and realized that I haven't been that stressed in about three months.
So, football isn't for me, but Jim liked it and might write his opinion of the game. He's already looking for more tickets....
Here are some pictures from today:
We were very happy that even though the District Line was partially shut down for "planned engineering," the part that we needed to use was fully functioning.
While we were waiting for the tube, a huge group of people dressed in super hero costumes walked by. This isn't a great picture, but you get the idea. Later we saw some people dressed up like hippies. We haven't figured out whether or not there is another Halloween in London this weekend. Maybe they dress up for April Fools Day?
We followed the crowds through a park and into stadium. From the park, we could hear the screaming and singing from inside the stadium. Portsmouth, it turns out, had scored a goal during the first te minutes, which added to the anger that our ornery neighbor was feeling.
A Fulham player somehow jumped onto the shoulders of a Portmouth player, while kicking...and JIm caught it on film. Much to the dismay of the fans behind me, the Fulham player got charged with a foul.
And,the stadium, after the game. Did I mention that there was practically an entire police force outside of the stadium, in addition to the hundreds of security guards inside? If I were a criminal, I would definitely commit my crimes during the neighborhood football game because I can't imagine which police officers would be available. It was ridiculous!
Thank you Mom and Dad for making sure that I never had any interest in any sports besides tennis, a nice, peaceful game which only gets as violent as someone throwing a racket around and the occasional heated argument with the judges. I'm definitely going to Wimbledon.
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