Fans boycott Betway Cup in protest at ticket price rises
Hi everyone, hope you are all safe and well.
I totally missed the memo on this and had bought my tickets for me and the boys as soon as they came out as I believed we would miss both of the first two home games due to holidaying in Scotland throughout the second half of August.
As it happens, we will be able to make both matches and in the end one of my boys was still quite unwell with a nasty cough he has had all week, so it was just myself and my second eldest who made it to the game.
On the day of the match I was reading some comments on social media and then discovered the story of the fans boycott and of the support from ex-players such as David Cross, who joins Tony Cottee and Frank McAvennie in condemning the club’s policy of above inflation ticket price rises and changes to concessionary rates, which is an attack on both long standing fans of the club and many ordinary families who will be priced out of attending football matches.
These changes threaten to create an even greater rift between fans and the club, and their claim that this is the only way for the club to compete with other Premier League teams do not wash when you do the math. I have signed the petition and now donated my ticket price and the cost of a programme – which I don’t buy anyway – towards Irons Supporting Foodbanks and have now put myself in the loop to keep updated on the latest developments.
That said, and hopefully I may be forgiven for my previous ignorance, I attended the match and saw the team clinch the Betway Cup via a penalty shoot out after a 2-2 draw in normal time.
The walk to the stadium takes just a few minutes as we are lucky to live close by. And the Olympic Park is a beautiful legacy from the 2012 Olympic Games that makes you feel outside of the city.
You could tell the attendance was going to be very low for the match, with very few fans mingling around the stadium before kick off, and only some food stalls open with the usual atmosphere lacking. Inside the stadium there were lots of families with younger children, and I guess this was probably a good game to bring the family to, especially as an introduction to watching the Hammers.
But there were lots of empty seats in the lower tiers and no one, apart from a handful of visiting RC Celta de Vigo fans in the upper tiers. They out sang us throughout the match.
I was curious to see some of our new signings and hoped everyone who had put pen to paper to commit themselves to the club before this match would play some part in the game, even as a late substitute.
For much of the game it played out like a friendly, in the first half we had goals from Bowen and Paqueta, with Mihailo pulling one back before half time. During each half the game paused for a water break that gave the teams and the managers a chance to regroup and adjust the game plan whilst taking a break.
Bowen’s goal was a peach and shows how lively and alert he can be. He controlled Paqueta’s cross perfectly to bring the ball down to his right foot and slot home from close range.
Paqueta took advantage of some great interplay with Bowen and Antonio and showed some individual brilliance to lob the keeper to restore the lead.
Out of the first half team, Bowen (now team captain), Kudus and Coufal stood out for me. Bowen was lively, Kudus determined and strong and causing the defence all sorts of problems, and Coufal solid down the right trying to snuff out any threats. Killman seemed solid in defence but Aguerd looked out of his depth.
There was no half time entertainment or quiz, and once the game restarted it was clear Celta de Vigo players were taking it up a level in terms of going heavier on the tackles. If this hadn’t been a friendly I’m sure the ref would have issued quite a number of yellow cards as the match progressed.
In the second half Fabianski made some outstanding saves and we didn’t really get a good enough look at our other new signings who came on. Was hoping for Fullkrug to score, but that was a big ask. It was great to see Earthy back on the pitch and was hoping for a flash of his excellent movement and positioning for his first senior goal against the Hatters last season, but not to be this time.
Apart from the Pablo Duran equaliser, the second half was pretty drab and it became inevitable the match would end 2-2 and be decided by a penalty shoot out. With virtually the entire visiting team substituted and most of our side changed, it’s no surprise the game didn’t really get going.
I was asked by a fan sitting next to me ‘During the Premier League games, are the upper levels open as well?’ I feel that for many people, this was their first game at London Stadium and there was very little, if any atmosphere apart from a few chants from a sparse crowd. I did not recognise anyone around me during the match and the usual voices and characters that help make the atmosphere were absent, probably in solidarity against the hike in ticket prices.
Overall, I think there is still work to do with the team, especially considering the new signings not having had enough pre-season play time for them all to settle in and for Julen Lopetegui to establish his style of play, especially with the recent signings. Not sure how much of that will be achieved before our season opener against Aston Villa on Saturday. It felt pretty much like last season, lots of sideways, backwards balls and slowly playing out from the back putting ourselves under pressure. Not enough forward movement for me, although Kudus and Bowen were both actively making runs and looking for forward balls, and players turning inside instead of playing the ball out wide. I didn’t really see anything to get me excited about the coming season, but then it was just another friendly and the priority was surely for every player to get their match fitness up and avoid any injuries.
I’m going to mix it up this season as I have finally found one of my film cameras – a Nikon F100 ( with all the moving we did over the past couple of years it was hidden in a box and the batteries had leaked, so I also got it repaired) – and I will be shooting film for some of the matches, giving myself just 72 exposures to capture the match! As I’m going away the day after the Villa game, I’m planning to use it then, so I can send the film away and get a digital download I can then upload here during my time away. Unless the film doesn’t load properly and it comes back blank!
Take care everyone and looking forward to capturing the new season ahead and sharing it with you wonderful people.
Dawud
From the Stands 