Why

[Elgrande]

I come on this site every day, but it seems it has been taken over by the "no humour, total recall, pick a line up brigade. Does no one enjoy GFC for the sake of being part of a group of people rather than being a statistic. We are in our time honoured position in the football league. Mid table 3rd division, but no heart or passion anymore, just cold hard facts. I watch updates on the BBC for he said this, he did that; I come on here for a bit of banter, but it seems I am the only one?

[Robpthegills]

shut it d**k head

[Elgrande]

Thank you Rob; I can always rely on you.

[Elgrande]

I just can't remember even in my most passionate times being so worried about who might play where, who did what when. It just seems so dry and fact filled and no joy or camaraderie now. The Gills were our football team and we went and supported had a few beers before and then went out on the pull on a Saturday night or even after a midweek game or went home got SS and S and went out with the other half. We might have a chat about the team in the week, but it was always about the fun, not so serious!
Times change I guess, for the better????????????

[Robpthegills]

Must confess, I never really think about who the team will be until I am walking to the ground. I kinda feel it does not really effect me as I will still cheer them on regardless.

I suppose I would have worried if Ken Price or Danny Westwood was fit and later Cascarino etc etc, just as its good to have your best striker on the pitch.

Also statistics are very misleading.

A really rubbish shot that trickles its way towards the keeper who picks it up counts as a shot on target.

A screamer that rattles the cross bar counts as a shot off target. I know which one would have excited me

[Garawa]

But they are only a small part of it. I like it, I like to build up to the game as it adds to the whole thing rather than just waking up and going and coming home again (which possibly loses the appeal and leads to the apathy you dislike). Banter is fine, people just need to respond more. I have tried to give the board as many areas to facilitate it. If you want information its there, if you want to talk Gills or have banter its there. If you don't post it, then there won't be any!!!

I like to read about who is out, what has happened etc otherwise I don't feel part of the game as much. With the immediacy of how news is reported these days it is no wonder, it is how the world is changing. Banter is totally separate to the issue and needs more of our "readers" to post a bit more often to make the most of it.

[Robpthegills]

I get your point gary but as with everything nowadays players exploit statistics.

On the subs bench for saturdays game with Reading v Arsenal was a young lad called Jake. He was a youth kid who played for a team called california park near finchampstead.

I was talking to his father who was saying that goalkeeping coaches are now telling the goalies not to accept back passes unless it is a real need.

Players were doing regular back passes to increase there opta standings for passes, and passes completed.

He also said that is why you often seem to see pointless passing between midfielders when no one is near them and there is no real point. They are playing the statistics game rather than the real game.

Statistics as with everything is easily exploited.

[Rimshot]

The obsession with data, plans, charts etc amuses me. How often do you see someone from the management team flicking through pages on a flip chart with the sub about to go on, accompanies by lots of animated chat ?
What can they be saying, especially when there are just a few minutes of the game remaining ? In my fevered imagination I hear...
'Now son, here's the gaffer's wife's shopping list; go to Waitrose, none of that Trashco rubbish, straight after the whistle and don't forget Yaya's birthday cake or we're all in the crap. Oh, and if you can help out at corners and free kicks that'll be great '

[Garawa]

I totally agree Rob. I prefer to deal on the trivia side of stats rather than the micro detail that is irrelevant (and isn't available at our level at any case)! That said the managers often use ProZone stats (available only to clubs) that use that exact data however I'm sure the coaches would see through any such massaging of figures. I don't bother with all of that and tend to stick to stuff people generally find interesting (like the stat about McGlashan not losing a game when he has scored for the club which he himself seemed to enjoy). Doesn't mean anything but then neither does any question at a quiz night either!!

Now I am the first to acknowledge not all people like them. This is why I separated the actual matches away from the chat. If you want to know anything and everything about a particular game or to discuss it you go to the "Match Centre". If you want to chat Gills without all the gumph then go the "Gills Discussion" forum. This is not only the best way to separate the two but it also gives people more to read potentially. This is why I scratch my head a little if people feel it flows less. It should flow more without extras people don't want to see whilst our more casual users will see more threads of interest rather than being full of match only stuff.

[Robpthegills]

I dont mind stats gary. They have a place, they form part of the conversation and the pre match chat, but football is now getting obsessed with them.

In a pub we would all be talking about if we were playing someone who we had not lost to for ages etc etc, or that so and so had not scored for ages.


Totally agree Rimshot, I see them with all those bits of paper and I am thinking what have you got written down that is not in your head that you can pass on to the player coming on

[Rimshot]

Rob,

I just don't understand how any player would have reached professional ranks without being able to understand what playing full back or midfield entails, especially when you have been watching the game. Being shown a series of charts before you come on ? WTF !!

[Elgrande]

I don't think it is the flow at all Gary, just that the newer fan seems to be more obsessed with facts and news than raucous support. They seem to know what make of boots a player wears, how many shots they have had all season etc, but seem to shy away from what in my day was the normal have a beer and make some noise attitude. It is not a criticism just an acceptance that my day is pretty much gone. Passion has been replaced by stats and facts and figures and the see you Saturday by a break down of who might play, why and the style of play we might adopt and what time the coach leaves!

[Garawa]

I thought you were referring to the board as a tool, whoops. I agree. I like them to add a bit to the game. You can then have a drink before, a chat about it and be more enthused at the game as a result but football is going the way life is.....unless it is being broadcast by their phones people have little interest or at least ignore it. It is easy to look at stuff on a phone sitting at home without any work needed. Heck people are soooo lazy with this now that it is too difficult clicking links or doing a search. How many times have you seen people asking others something a Google search would have thrown up in seconds?

I am on the committee of my local pre-school. We have a real job getting parents to do anything, the apathy is astonishing and even direct messages rarely administer a yes or no and the same can be said about this board, some people must live in caves! The pre-school has a nice new website with tons of info on it and only requires a bookmark saved on the phone to know everything a parent needs. All we get is "I didn't see it". When we put one about a free Easter Egg EVERYONE CAME but many couldn't give 5 minutes to vote acceptance of the accounts and to re-elect the committee which would result in closure had it not been done.

I'm guessing this isn't an issue with football but rather with how life is now, mobile phones are an amazing tool to make life easier but has made us dangerously lazy.

[Robpthegills]

Rimshot...

maybe you ought to install this practice in your office.

Morning meeting.............ok guys/gals I have some diagrams here so that you know exactly what your doing today. Sheila see how the diagram shows the phone being picked up and placed by the ear so that you can hear what the caller has to say, that is what I want you to do today etc etc etc

The next day, you get the same diagrams but now you can say. Congratulations to Sheila, she picked up the phone as per the diagram over 50 times yesterday, well done sheila


Might try it in my office come to think of it...................Anybody know what is good for bruising lol

[Garawa]

You joke but some need that. I was due to interview a girl who brought her mum to it. I asked the mum to wait outside but she said no as she needed to do the talking as her daughter didn't speak to people. As the job was till work I politely said there was no point wasting anyone's time! She felt the right training would help her. What? To talk to people? That was something her family couldn't teach her before she hit 18? I fully accept some people have problems but it's not future employers jobs to do these basic things! Anyway a lot of people I saw just seemed to lack very basic common sense so perhaps your diagrams might come in useful Rob!