Woody’s Weekly Wound Up – Wenger, Gervinho and Ramsey don’t deserve to be scapegoats

Before I start I’d just like to say that it’s an honour and a privilege to have been asked to throw my two bobs worth into the ring with these guys on @WTTGT. I couldn’t believe it when Dave (@goonerdave66) contacted me to see if I’d join up, as you see, I’m not a blogger as such.

I’ve written one for Dave in the past but that’s been it really, so to be asked to join in with these guys, who are some of the best writers around, was an offer I couldn’t refuse.

So after some celebratory lashings of alcohol (cheap alcohol, may I add), it dawned on me; “Shite, I can’t write!” well, not blogs to the standards of these guys. So amidst the drunken panic, it came to me. It won’t be a blog, it can be a nice weekly round up, mmm, nice… “Can I do nice?”… Probably… at certain points of the year/season, but then I switch on Twitter and see that the transfer silly season bollocks has began already, with four games left at the time and Champions League qualification nowhere near being secured. And nice went out the window, and “Woody’s Weekly Wound Up” was born.

So I’ll try and sum up some of the things that were said, done, printed or typed from the previous week, from the sublime to the totally ridiculous; oh and I might even throw in some football and Arsenal too.

Anyhooo I’m waffling on…. Well better get used to it – haha..

First off, viewing many convo’s on Twitter, it’s come to my attention that we seem to have an awful lot of supporters who don’t really seem to be supporters… as if they’ve chosen to support Arsenal during our magnificent era, and thought that it would last forever like a sweet little Disney movie, but alas life and sport don’t work out like Hollywood chick flicks, and now they seem to regret becoming a Gunner. It’s the only conclusion I can think of, as seeing someone wishing that we fail to make top four, and hoping that we get knocked out of all the cups just in order to get our manager sacked; doesn’t sound like a supporter to me.

Others are saying that Arsene Wenger is trying to ruin our club, so that whoever takes over won’t be able to gain immediate success, therefore making him look good… FFS, I ask you, “Does this look like a man that wants his team to fail?”

No! I didn’t think so. Now this on the other hand “IS” what a manager who doesn’t give a f*** looks like:

So I decided to dig out my dictionary, and check out the exact meaning of the word “SUPPORT”…

SUPPORT , adjective:

(of hosiery) made with elasticized fibres so as to fit snugly to the breast, therby aiding circulation, and relieving fatigue for a lady.

OOOP’s, wrong support…

sup·port

  [suh–pawrt, –pohrt]  Show IPA

verb (used with object)

1. to bear or hold up (a load, structure, etc.); serve as a foundation for.

2. to sustain or withstand ( pressure, strain, etc.) without giving way.

3. to undergo or endure, especially with patience or submission; tolerate.

4. to sustain (people, the mind, spirits, courage, etc.) under trial or affliction: They supported himthroughout his ordeal.

5. to maintain (a person, family, establishment, institution, etc.) by supplying with things necessary to existence.

Sums it up really. Tolerate and endure the rough, stick with it, don’t jump ship at the first sight of a rough wave, see it out together, or as our club motto says so rightly “Victoria Concordia Crescit” – Victory through Harmony…

We’re in it together, all of us as one. Yes some have differing opinions on how we gain success, but that doesn’t give the right to abuse someone, be it a fellow supporter, or a player, or our manager.

We’re great as a fan base at spouting out our former great leader Tony Adams’ quotes on signing contracts/showing loyalty or the legendary and much missed Rocky’s quotes on representing the shirt. But these quotes don’t just stand for the players but for us supporters too, we represent the club as much as the players do, in fact more so, as we’ve only got a squad of 25 but a stadium full of around 60,000 Gunners, and 100’s and thousands more worldwide representing our great club, its iconic jersey and it’s wonderful traditions, so please catch a fucking grip on yourselves and represent us with the class you so often claim that we have.

Woooah, where did I go off to there? Apologies. I’m trying to be calm on my maiden voyage, and the fact we gained three points away from home on Saturday is helping do just that, all is good, the sun is shining and we just await the wheels falling off the Spuds bus again midweek and we’re well on course…

One final thought. On viewing a conversation on Twitter this week between Pete Martin and Steve Gooner (permission been given to use names) (no Twitter users have been harmed during this write up), they summed up a lot of things that are wrong with our fan base at the moment… 

@merse10 I just hate the culture at the moment of this incessant need for a scapegoat. Just enjoy it, we actually aren’t that bad!

— Pete Martin (@PeteMartin1981) May 2, 2013

Perfectly put, and so true, we always need a scapegoat, one to blame and gang up on, be it the manager, the foreign support, or more likely Aaron Ramsey or Gervinho.

I remember back in the day (tips hat, and takes a pinch of snuff) that we’d leave the grounds and be giving out about “SAID PLAYER”, “Jesus man he was shite tonight” etc. and that chat would continue for an hour or two in the pub afterwards, and then again for an hour after reading the match review in the paper the next day, but then that was it, by the next matchday we went back with the anticipation of it being a one off, a “bad day at the office” and we moved on. But now with Twitter, a bad day is scrutinised for every waking hour between the game and the next one, and if the said player doesn’t play in the next game, for whatever reason, it continues again and again until he does re-appear, but by that stage people can’t move on, and that player is labelled shite for life nearly, and barring a run of three games with a hattrick to win the league from 2-0 down, a last minute overhead kick to win the Champions League, and a red card for kicking John Terry or Gareth Bale on the bridge of the nose, will carry that tag of “shite” and therefore “scapegoat” for every performance.

And by the way, when I say back in the day, I’m not talking about hob-nail boots and a cuppa Bovril at half time and then back to the pits effort, I’m only talking about maybe seven years ago; I think I’m right, I think Twitter is only seven years old.

Oh crap, there’s a thought. We spend “x” amount of hours a day staring at a seven-year-old…

Oh Jesus, I feel like Kevin Webster or Freddie Star….

John Woods

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John Woods

I’m a 37 yr old Irish Gunner, and have been for 27-28 years now….

(Really 20, but trapped in a 37 yr olds body)..

Answer to ‘Woody’, as normally when ‘John’ is used, it means I’m in trouble for something..

I took my time deciding, didn’t follow the mainstream, and definitely chose wisely…

I let the club choose me, and didn’t let other people’s views or successes choose my club for me..

Seen the good times, the great times and the bad and really bad…

And strangely, enjoyed all of them, as you can only relish the good and great after you taste the bad…

Thats why I try to keep on the level-headed side of things, when things don’t go our way,

as it’ll make the successes all the sweeter when they arrive…

… and they WILL arrive…