Probably been done a hundred times before on here and elsewhere, but since this seems to be the thread for it, can anyone, genuinely, explain to me the appeal of fighting over football?
There's been a ton of tit for tat over the last 6 pages accusing people of glorifying it, which is denied, but then the same deniers talk about "good lads" and "top blokes." I might be a bit naive, as a child of the 80's/90's who has never really encountered this side of football, but I really don't understand how you can speak in such positive terms about people who went to football looking to engage in physical violence with opposing fans?
To me, and I honestly don't mean this as a personal attack on anyone in this thread, anyone who does that is as far from being a "good lad" as you can get. They cause stress and misery for other fans, and all it seems to achieve is that they get nicked/banned/locked up (delete as applicable).
derbysufc you seem like a bit of an authority on the subject. I guess you were a bit of a naughty lad back in the day so please, explain to me, a 37 year old who has been following the Blades for nearly 30 years without ever getting involved in any violence, what is/was the appeal of it? Personally, if I was at a match, anywhere, watching United, and I saw something kicking off, I would high-tail it in the opposite direction as fast as I could. If that makes me less of a Blade in your eyes, then fair enough, but again, I just don't see the appeal.
I love the tribalism of football. I love that for 90+ minutes I can sing, scream and shout in support of my team, and against whoever we are playing. I just don't see the need to carry that on outside the ground afterwards. I'd much rather have a beer with opposing fans after a game, and discuss the match that we've just watched.