Pre-match entertainment. I seem to recall army personnel climbing over things before some games at The Valley. The ground seems to be empty these days until about 10 minutes before kick off.
Not that it ever effected Charlton, but when the European Cup was a proper knock-out competition and not a glorified money making machine, part way towards some envisioned European super league.
I feel like there is a distinction that needs to be made between nostalgia/things that were different in the past and things that we actually miss.
Having to wait to find out scores from a newspaper etc strikes me as more of a nostalgia thing, but when that went it was replaced by something that was even more convenient (for example - the excitement of knowing that your nearest relegation/promotion rivals are losing on the final day of the season). I don’t think we as football fans ‘lose out’ there.
However, things like ‘old school’ grounds are things where something was lost and not appropriately replaced in the example of many modern day corporate style stadiums. That is something where really there is no going back and getting that atmosphere back into games at the top level
I feel like there is a distinction that needs to be made between nostalgia/things that were different in the past and things that we actually miss.
Having to wait to find out scores from a newspaper etc strikes me as more of a nostalgia thing, but when that went it was replaced by something that was even more convenient (for example - the excitement of knowing that your nearest relegation/promotion rivals are losing on the final day of the season). I don’t think we as football fans ‘lose out’ there.
However, things like ‘old school’ grounds are things where something was lost and not appropriately replaced in the example of many modern day corporate style stadiums. That is something where really there is no going back and getting that atmosphere back into games at the top level
More convenient yes but I honestly preferred the excitement/anticipation of having to wait for other scores ahead of simply knowing them from BBC live text etc.
Picking up a news paper and finding out transfers that way - not 3 days before it happens.
transfers being able to happen up until the old deadline day (think it was towards the end of March)
Only one game being on live tv each week.
Games being played in pissing rain and thick mud. I remember a game at Upton Park circa 88 it pissed down and there were puddles all over the pitch - some tackles that were practically GBH we’re flying in.
Old style grounds - St Andrews, Ayresome Park, Roker Park etc etc.
The natural build up of atmosphere as the crowd got bigger up pre match. I hate all this deafening music and video bollox that we are subjected to now. That bloody “this is the valley” video that we have to endure before every game that nobody watches and renders your ears numb and means the crowd seems quiet in comparison when it’s finished. It’s as bad as goal music. If we start that I’m off.
Tuning into Grandstand at 4.45pm on a Saturday for the classified results and marking them on the fixture list printed on the inside back page of the daily newspaper.
Tuning into Grandstand at 4.45pm on a Saturday for the classified results and marking them on the fixture list printed on the inside back page of the daily newspaper.
And getting shouted at by the old man if you dared to even breathe as he needed these to check his pools coupon
No internet or social media, so information about events other than the actual game, was word of mouth fan to fan. Never ceased to amaze me that we could go to Plymouth And they would now we had a big off with Man Utd 2 weeks earlier in Birmingham. The grapevine of information was immense.
Standing..... I started going to Charlton at the age of 5. I don’t think I sat down at a game for the first 25 years anywhere, ever.
Comments
Never particularly liked them myself, but still remember the blast of heat from the coal as I passed by. Very evocative of the 60s/70s.
The Soccer 6’s in Manchester (the competition that Charlton won in 88. I remember we beat Liverpool 6-3, think we might have been 3-0 down.
Having to wait to find out scores from a newspaper etc strikes me as more of a nostalgia thing, but when that went it was replaced by something that was even more convenient (for example - the excitement of knowing that your nearest relegation/promotion rivals are losing on the final day of the season). I don’t think we as football fans ‘lose out’ there.
However, things like ‘old school’ grounds are things where something was lost and not appropriately replaced in the example of many modern day corporate style stadiums. That is something where really there is no going back and getting that atmosphere back into games at the top level
Floodlight pylons.
Mud.
Slightly heavier ball (Minerva was good).
Proper goal nets/posts and slightly different styles depending which ground you were at (not these shitty box things with stupid extra posts).
Tackling.
Diving headers.
Published transfer fees.
No transfer windows.
Pink 'un
Green 'un
By the time a combination of the scores actually appearing and one's inner Alan Turing cracking the code the second half was nearly over!