Often Partisan

Only At Blues…

Do you want to know something funny? Just before the Fulham game, I confessed to Andy (head honcho at SHA) that I was concerned about what I was going to write over the long summer months. Even at the start of June, things seemed quite peaceful and the good ship Birmingham City looked to be sailing peacefully on, despite relegation.

Tomorrow sees the start of a new month, and the end of one of the most turbulent months in Blues’ history. Losing McLeish to the Villa proved to be quite funny; talk of a player exodus hasn’t quite materialised yet but looks to be starting and our club president is stuck in Hong Kong having spent the night in chokey. When people describe supporting Blues to be like a rollercoaster I don’t think they had this in mind.

There are the obvious doom merchants out there; you only have to read the comments on some of the articles on this blog to know that people are not happy with some of the players that are leaving and what has happened with Carson Yeung. And yes, right now the outlook isn’t looking good; despite what Pannu said I can’t help but think Yeung’s legal troubles are going to negatively affect the club. Whilst it’s been pretty much established that neither the FL or UEFA are going to do anything right now about Blues, if Carson does pick up a conviction down the line that could spell bad news for us. Even if he is proved innocent the allegations are going to be continually dragged up, and the old truism of “there is no smoke without fire” is going to be trotted out.

Yet it’s good to see that the majority of Blues fans out there are taking everything with good grace; it’s just something else to sigh, shrug your shoulders over and say “Only at Blues.” It’s a sense of fatalism sure, but what else can you do? Despite what Shankly said, football isn’t that important really and as people have seen with other clubs in queer street, it will continue – even if it is in a lower league. Blues fans had their moment in the sun in February, and whilst a few people (including me) are probably rethinking the Faustian pacts they made just before Obafemi Martins scored, would I change it? Would I hell.

Football isn’t about the Premiership. Yes, it’s good to see the best players in the world yadda yadda yadda, but I don’t pay to watch other teams, I pay to watch Blues. I don’t give a shit who we’re playing, I want to see us play. If that means we’re in League Two kicking lumps out of the likes of Crawley Town, then so be it. Whilst glorious days out like the one at Wembley are something to savour, and to tell the kids and grandkids about, I didn’t become a Blues fan because I thought we’d win things. And thus it doesn’t matter if the club has no money and we end up with a team of Bosmans – as long as they do their best when they pull on the shirt that is all I’d ever ask for.

Fans who can take the pain of relegation with a smile on their face; who can laugh off the latest catastrophe and still support the team they love. Only at Blues.

6 Responses to “Only At Blues…”

  • JohnR says:

    I think the gypsy’s have taken revenge with a new curse after we had the audacity to win something. Ever since the Carling Cup win we’ve had one thing after another, injuries, relegation, McLeish jumping ship, financial meltdown and now the owner being arrested. As you rightly say ‘Only at Blues’.

  • Nick V says:

    Nice article, I dont think blues fans would know how to handle themselves if we was successful all the time. We are used to the constant ups and downs and never expect to much from our team. As long as they perform with willingness and heart then blues fans will be happy which is why we have loved players like damien johnson, quedrue and savage.
    This Yeung business is just another hurdle for blues fans but at the end of the day we will keep right on.

  • Wingman Blue says:

    All we now need is BCFC to become The Official Taliban Team and then we really will commit professional suicide. Scott Dann for Chelsea, anyone?

  • Daniel says:

    Only at Blues can you find people writing the truth in such a crystal-clear, down to the point manner like this.

    “Football isn’t about the Premiership. Yes, it’s good to see the best players in the world yadda yadda yadda, but I don’t pay to watch other teams, I pay to watch Blues. I don’t give a shit who we’re playing, I want to see us play. If that means we’re in League Two kicking lumps out of the likes of Crawley Town, then so be it. Whilst glorious days out like the one at Wembley are something to savour, and to tell the kids and grandkids about, I didn’t become a Blues fan because I thought we’d win things. And thus it doesn’t matter if the club has no money and we end up with a team of Bosmans – as long as they do their best when they pull on the shirt that is all I’d ever ask for.”

    Thanks. :-)

  • macca salop blue says:

    We’re only 6 months into the year and we’ve won the Carling Cup, gone down, lost our manager to our city rivals, our owner has been arrested, we’ve signed Rooney. What else can happen in next 6 months? St Andrews blows up as someone left the gas on in one of the kitchens, Pannu resigns and there’s no one left to run the club, the Carling Cup gets stolen and is never seen again, we end up being part owned by he Chinese government. Ridiculous these may sound but then so are some of the things that HAVE actually ended up happening for real this year. What’s next?

  • Rich says:

    Great article. Isn’t it fab being a Blue Nose, life is never dull. Relegation is never great but it usually brings change, a fresh start and something different to look forward to and whilst no one could have imagined the sort of things that are going on at the moment, I for one can’t wait to see what team lines up on the first day of the season. The Championship will be really competitive next season and I am certain we will see some great games and hopefully we will have more victories to celebrate than we did last season. KRO


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