Topic: We're Not English We Are Scouse - Club vs Country - Where Do You Stand?

[professorj]

Two of my pet hates are Peter Alliss and Sky Sports News.  The third is International Breaks. 

Waiting with bated breath for them all to return injury free and it seems that seldom happens, whilst having to watch the 'great' Hodge presiding over the country's mishmash of over-rated 'talent' and listen to the media once again hyping England's potential to 'go all the way this time' in whatever forthcoming tournament is on its way.

In the event of the tournament itself I find myself unable to cheer for England, made up as it is of Plastics and Mancs, and instead plump for a nation with style like Spain or Italy, ending up on the receiving end of stick from the family, calling me contrary and unpatriotic.  Personally I feel its totally hypocritical to be spitting bile over someone like John Terry (or Stevie G if you're a blue or a manc) one week and then lauding them as national heroes the next.

And what about Liverpool? Do we have a special place in this country with regards to the national team and in light of the chant in the subject title, that I've heard so often at Anfield?

I wanted to start what will probably be a heated debate, but please if you're going to respond don't just write 'F**k England', but say why you harbour these strong feelings.  Or do you simply not care?  Or is international football your real passion?

[Funky_Gibbons]

What's wrong with Peter Alliss? He's a legend.

[professorj]

Haha! I cannot stand the guy, plus I was influenced by my TV-shouting grandfather who used to tell him to shut up and talk about, you know, the actual golf.  But it's getting worse with age.  For example:

-camera shows young boy eating ice cream near the fairway-

"Oh my word, that's it lad eat it all up or no supper.  You know in my day they were ha'penny." ....five minutes of droning later..."Neopolitan, there's a funny word isn't it Sam? Oooohh hello he's got a flake..."....ten minutes later...."we just missed Tiger Woods birdying the fifth to go 2 clear but here's a replay"

Sorry, off topic, my fault.

[kopite.keith]

Club. England don't matter.

[Mad Max]

Club all the time, not arsed about England.

[paddysour]

Nothing against Internationals, I just hate any week where Liverpool don't have a match. It sucks waiting.

I do hate it when our best players are made to play 90 minutes needlessly though, very annoying that.

[Swright90]

I'm very much English but I would say England are probably my least favourite international team. I find myself supporting their opponents each and every time they play.

I find it impossible to want a team to succeed when it used to consist of the likes of Ferdinand, Beckham, Neville, Terry etc. whilst players such as Ashley Cole and Rooney are still involved. I spend an entire season hating on them, why should an international break be any different?

[sattapaartridge]

Do some people assume that "the RAWK fan" are all typically english?

CountryHereRed will say "Club" no doubt.

For me, I don't have a passion for England anymore, I used to when i was about 14-20 because i was more football crazy than i am now. Its definitely a more interesting international tournament when England are in it. But really, its the media hype around it I hate.  I hate the stupid trumpets in the crowd too.

But as long as Gerrard, Johnson, Sturridge, Downing, Henderson, Shelvey, Sterling play, I will support them.

[CraigDS]

I just can't get excited about a football match which doesn't contain Liverpool playing in it. I want any Liverpool player who plays in an international match to have a good game but that is equal for England as it is does for Papua New Guinea if we had someone playing for them.

[rhylred]

Went into Yates Southampton last Saturday after the game to watch the rugby,usually enjoy it,last week couldn't  give a toss..

[Koplord]

Never have or never will support England I only support the Liverpool players in the England team.

How can you spend every week hating Rooney , Cole , Young etc then support them ?

I hate internationals and I just hope our lads make it back injury free

[OperationIvy]

I'm very much English but I would say England are probably my least favourite international team. I find myself supporting their opponents each and every time they play.

I find it impossible to want a team to succeed when it used to consist of the likes of Ferdinand, Beckham, Neville, Terry etc. whilst players such as Ashley Cole and Rooney are still involved. I spend an entire season hating on them, why should an international break be any different?

Why support another nation?

I hate Cole and Rooney too, but they are just one generation of the team. England will always be England.

Would you start supporting another club if Liverpool signed Cole and Rooney?

[Funky_Gibbons]

Haha! I cannot stand the guy, plus I was influenced by my TV-shouting grandfather who used to tell him to shut up and talk about, you know, the actual golf.  But it's getting worse with age.  For example:

-camera shows young boy eating ice cream near the fairway-

"Oh my word, that's it lad eat it all up or no supper.  You know in my day they were ha'penny." ....five minutes of droning later..."Neopolitan, there's a funny word isn't it Sam? Oooohh hello he's got a flake..."....ten minutes later...."we just missed Tiger Woods birdying the fifth to go 2 clear but here's a replay"

Sorry, off topic, my fault.

That's what I like most about him, he's as mad as a balloon.

Anyway, back on topic, hate international football, it's slow and boring and we just end up with injured players.

[andyrol]

usually i cant stand international weeks, i think we should do what rafa said and have qualifiers at the end of free seasons, BUT im quite glad theres no games THIS weekend looking at the snow! 

[Quaid]

[Kashinoda]

Usually cheering whoever's against England, pisses off English fans to stupidly irate level. Though I'm not based in Liverpool so that's more expected.

Do like me some Holland though,

[Snail]

This has been done to death, but yeah international football is shite.

[tommy LFC]

Most of the players and fans don't care anymore. And unless Spain are playing, the level of football is painful to watch.

And I'm not English, but I can imagine that Hodgson having his tongue firmly up Alex Ferguson's arse lately would put many scousers off the national team.

Actually, Hodgson alone probably does that.

[Kashinoda]

This has been done to death, but yeah international football is shite.

Every thread has been done 30 times over in some capacity.

[Big Red Richie]

This has been done to death, but yeah international football is shite.

What she said.


Club.
Club.
Club.
Club.
Club.
Club.
Club.
Club.


And incase I forgot to mention, club.























When there's fook all else to watch. -  Country.

[Alf Garnett]

Used to enjoy watching England before the families and face paint crowd got involved, got to blame Gazza crying and Euro 96 for ballsin it up.

[007.lankyguy]

I don't really feel anything for England to be honest but I don't think it's the fact I support Liverpool. I just find the way the whole media and country go so overboard with supporting England when a major tournament comes around and everything that comes with that really irritating so I just kind of go against it. I think it's more my personality and ego that makes me not really support England than anything else. I support England (and Britain) at other sports, it's just football I find annoying.

Thinking about it, I think it's down to the bloody band that plays during the matches

[Kashinoda]

[Samie]

Don't care about International friendlies/qualifiers but I do love watching the Euro's and World Cups.

[Hyypia headers]

Belgian team is doing good again, all my friends going crazy over it. I didn' t care when they were good 10 years ago, when they were crap for years in between and I still couldn' t care less now.


I always care about both LFC and my local Club.

[El Lobo]

Don't care about International friendlies/qualifiers but I do love watching the Euro's and World Cups.

 

[Samie]

I only like Internationals when it gets to tournament's because I get to see all the different nations play.

[El Lobo]

I only like Internationals when it gets to tournament's because I get to see all the different nations play.

Oh ok...don't you get that with friendlies and qualifiers then....?

I'm with the OP. Can't stand the hypocrisy of it all. I don't like Roy Hodgson, I don't like anyone else in the England side besides our lads, and a couple of others. I don't like Rooney, I don't like the massively hyped players like Welbeck, Walker and Cleberson...no I mean Cleverley, I don't like Brave Scott, I hate how the media fawn over the side one game and then destroy them the next. I hate that such a corrupt instituation like the FA is in charge of it all.

[Camarero25]

Not Scouse, but I don't give a shit about England. I like to see our players doing well if possible (though I'd rather they didn't play!).

Now that the Hodge is manager though I find myself actively wanting them to lose. And as others have said I find it difficult to cheer on a team with the likes of Rooney and Terry in anyway.

[lobsterboy]

I find it impossible to cheer on players who I spend most of the season disliking. The lampards, beckhams etc.
Haven't watched Ingurland matches since I was a kid.
Can't stand the media treatment either - all The Scum love and the xenophobia that runs through everything associated with Mingland.

[Durlmints]

Don't care about International friendlies/qualifiers but I do love watching the Euro's and World Cups.

Same here. I don't even watch the Friendlies anymore, where the players don't even look arsed.

However I get just as into World Cup/Euro matches as much as I do a Liverpool game. When Walcott scored against Sweden I went crazy.

I genuinely believed that by copying Chelsea's counter attack tactics we would get to at least the Semi's last year. Maybe if Cahill hadn't got injured, who knows? I would have loved to see us play Germany last year, as a lot of the German team players for Bayern, and the back four for England could have been nearly all Chelsea (Cole, Cahill, Terry,).

Then add Lampard and Bertrand in to that and you have a lot of the team that beat Barca (essentially the Spain squad) and Bayern, (home to key members of the German squad) and with the inevitable defensive tactics and I logically thought we could do well.

[El Lobo]

Same here. I don't even watch the Friendlies anymore, where the players don't even look arsed.

However I get just as into World Cup/Euro matches as much as I do a Liverpool game. When Walcott scored against Sweden I went crazy.

I genuinely believed that by copying Chelsea's counter attack tactics we would get to at least the Semi's last year. Maybe if Cahill hadn't got injured, who knows? I would have loved to see us play Germany last year, as a lot of the German team players for Bayern, and the back four for England could have been nearly all Chelsea (Cole, Cahill, Terry,).

Then add Lampard and Bertrand in to that and you have a lot of the team that beat Barca (essentially the Spain squad) and Bayern, (home to key members of the German squad) and with the inevitable defensive tactics and I logically thought we could do well.

Hmmm not sure if this is an elaborate fishing trip.

The Chelsea/Bayern comparison somewhat falls down when you consider Chelsea had Drogba bullying Bayerns defenders, and England had Danny Welbeck....

[swoopy]

Don't care about international football in the slightest, and especially not England. Wembley is just full of these whoppers from league 2 clubs that go and get their faces painted so they can cheer on "lamps" and "big JT" or such bollocks. It cringes me to hear these radio/tv presenters saying "player's think there's no bigger honour than to play for their country". Actually, if I was in their shoes, the biggest honour for me would be to play for Liverpool, and no one else.

Just want all our players to come back ok.

[scared_person]

Most of the time I just find it gets in the way of the proper footy. We don't really have anything to play for this season so its not so bad, but I remember when we were chasing trophies breaks like this were just so fucking irritating (and so of course are the inevitable injuries). When I watch a friendly or a qualifier I have only one hope - no LFC injuries.

The tournaments are a little different, but with Hodgy in charge I even struggle to be bothered about them.

[JustDan]

This is a pointless question, of course everyone will choose club over country.
I hate players playing pointless friendlies in the middle of the week then coming back a few days later and obviously not being as fresh, often even injured.
Saying that though, I really don't get those with a severe hatred for the England team. Not just "I don't really care about them," but go out of their way to cheer anyone who they are against.. despite 2-3 of our own players being a part of that team.
The funny thing is, looking at the U21s and below, not too long in the future we could realistically see half the England team be Liverpool players. Will the same people still hold the same hatred for them if this happens? Probably.

[bevanite_shanks]

Always Liverpool.

It's not even the England team's pedestrian style and some of its more obnoxious players that have ruined it for me, but everything that the team has come to represent: snotty xenophobia, press-led hype and witch hunts, a bloated fat cat old boy F.A, a hubristic and corporate 'national' stadium, the weird coerced jingoism that occurs right around the time of an international tournament, that fucking brass band playing the Great Escape ad nauseum (let's face it, it wouldn't be an England match without at least some nod to the Second World War, even if it is the 21st century). Supporting England is an alienating experience to me now, which is a shame as I used to really get into it (probably up to about the late nineties).

Not to mention that the Scottish, Irish and Welsh influence on LFC (and even the city) has always meant that I've had less affinity to a purely 'English' identity.   

[Coutistar]

If we play a match of current Liverpool team vs current England team, we will win hands down.
Obviously Gerrard and Johnson and Shelvey will be on our side.

[Alex7]

I've never quite understood the hatred some Liverpool fans have towards England... you don't really get it from other clubs. Of course, I put club first, and friendlies are infuriating, but cheering on opposition teams playing against your own country? Puzzling really. I think our Captain has it right, personally.

[the 92A]

Always Liverpool.

It's not even the England team's pedestrian style and some of its more obnoxious players that have ruined it for me, but everything that the team has come to represent: snotty xenophobia, press-led hype and witch hunts, a bloated fat cat old boy F.A, a hubristic and corporate 'national' stadium, the weird coerced jingoism that occurs right around the time of an international tournament, that fucking brass band playing the Great Escape ad nauseum (let's face it, it wouldn't be an England match without at least some nod to the Second World War, even if it is the 21st century). Supporting England is an alienating experience to me now, which is a shame as I used to really get into it (probably up to about the late nineties).

Not to mention that the Scottish, Irish and Welsh influence on LFC (and even the city) has always meant that I've had less affinity to a purely 'English' identity.

Sums it up for me as well

[Jake]

I'd rather Liverpool beat Accrington in the third round of the League Cup than England won the World Cup.