Thetownend.com

Seems like an appropriate question with the WC coming up and Greg Dyke's proposals.

Yes but the whole system is broken and Dyke's proposals will not fix it.

Would love to see them do well now that we have finally got rid of the majority of the so hilariously called "golden generation"-only Gerrard to get rid of now.

Might be worth waiting until we can find someone who can hit a pass/dead ball like Gerrard, as well as being one of the few players that actually gives a shit about playing for England.

Yes. But Dyke's proposals have nothing to do with benefiting England, any more than creating the BSkyB Premier League did.

Somewhere in between.

I don't 'care', but would love it if we ever win something.

Not really, I can't really bring myself to 'support' the likes of Rooney or the FA money machine. I went to the England v Denmark game in March, I found myself finding it hard to feel enthused.

I love the World Cup Finals (biggest sporting competition on the planet) and I'd love England to win it (again!)

I think the "new crop" do give a shit,as long as we play them

The apathy shown towards international football belongs in the 'what's wronf with football' thread. International football should be the pinnacle of any footballers career, not playing in the fucking champions league.

The fact the masses seem to have swallowed UEFA and the media's champions league propaganda leaves me numb, but not surprised, as let's be honest on the whole the masses are morons who can't think for themselves.

Make international football great again, make people dream of representing their country, not dream of their club reaching the premier league, or finishing 4th in said division.

International football all the way, and that's from someone who who's not had the fortune of seeing their side in a major tournament since St Etienne in '98. I still believe...

Please excuse the spelling, on my shite blackberry.

I might watch some matches but the whole WC experience has been ruined by Blatter and his cronies.

The England team are mostly filled with prima donnas. whose most concern is the money earned on the next contract, and these plans won't do diddly squat to fix the situation.

Ronney worth £300k a week...Fuck off.

ouch

I find international football kind of dull because the qualifiers are horribly drawn out and watching England (or whoever) play Andorra really does nothing for me. It's exciting once every two years.

My childhood memories of international football makes me a little protective of it.

And I do hate the whole champions league is now seen as football nirvana. When it is only due to the millions of quid on offer. And like I say the masses have bought it, the cocks.

I dont care.  Im finding everything harder and harder to care about.  Why bother when people refer to football fans as stake holders in a market.  I know its all a business.  Everything is a business and I hate it.  I cant get excited about a share price.  They've won.

We just need a run like 1990, that was amazing, and was on a par with the play off final in 93 in terms of the emotions it generated. It's got nothing to do with money.

Greg dykes proposals are a joke and I hope we have a national campaign of demonstrating against what he's proposing to protect our football culture for the next generation.

Totally agree Jan. International football should be THE pinnacle of football. Whether you're playing Andorra or not. Fuck everything else. In fact the fuckers should be fined if they don't perform well enough or 'decide against playing' after being selected in the squad. It should be the one area of football where money means nothing and desire for the game and the team means everything.

It should be celebrated that small nations compete on the same stage with the large, that the powerful can be defeated by the weak, and that multi-million pound players can be beaten by people who had barely seen  a spherical object until the start of the tournament.

I may have got carried away somewhat, but that's the dream anyway.

Currently, all the current generation of people at FIFA/UEFA/The FA have done is destroy the credibility, pride, and belief in international competitions that should be the thing that pushes football on as a sport, communicative tool, and force for good.

I want to see teams of players crying if they fuck up in the World Cup. That's how much it should mean to them.

I still believe.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyoy2_7FegI

I enjoy watching the CL. I watch football for entertainment.

Been to 2 world cups, wont ever go again. Will I watch this years? maybe, If there aren't any repeats of wheeler dealers on.

I'd like England to do well but I'd rather Swindon do well.

International football in general is brilliant though

I pretend I'm not arsed, but once a major tournament gets going, England's performances dictate my quality of life for whatever period they remain in the tournament.

In other words, I'm the same as every other cunt in this thread who says they don't care, but actually they do.

Funnily enough we had this discussion in the pub last night.

Anyone who proclaims to not care, watch Owen's worldie against the Argies in 98, and try and tell me it doesn't matter.

Greatest footballing moment ever.

Pretty much my view as well.

Pretty much this.

Club>Country.  I felt more nervous/excited about the Millwall p/o final than any big England game I can remember (Euro 96 semi for example). That's not to say I wouldnt get a bit stiff if we did something decent in Brazil but it wouldn't get the juices flowing as much as a serious Town promotion push

For me as a Town fan there is no detriment to supporting and hoping (mostly in vain) that England do well.

If ever in my lifetime they win the World cup again, the scenes in this country would be mental and I would love to be part of that !!

When I was younger I cared a lot, I followed the national side home and away from my first England game in 78 until my last in 96.

Now the attitude of the players in the main and their own "couldn't really care less attitude" makes me care less and less but yes I do still care just not to the extent that I used to.

It's like watching a PL game on TV.

I'm interested insofar as I'm hoping to be entertained - but I don't really give a shite who wins

Swindon or England? Swindon every time.... but I remember when Don Rogers might have been called up, and the pride I felt, and even Rod Thomas and a few others playing for Wales, I always felt that deep-down desire to see them do well....  But England v Spain or Chelsea v Barcelona?  England every time, and football authorities need to find a way of ensuring that our best players get to play regularly at the top level....no other country has allowed foreign players so to dominate the top level.

It's not down to the Country, it's down to the finances of Teams in the PL and teams trying to get into the PL. Rich clubs will try to get the best players they can and that means buying, not developing. Spain is being lauded as the model we should follow, but over 50% of Real Madrid's squad aren't Spanish, probably because they can afford to buy talent.
It would be interesting to compare how successful National Teams have been over the last 30 years against how rich their domestic league was at the same period.

Yeah I'm pretty much here as well

 When people ask me who I support it is Swindon and England only - Swindon a majority of the time, especially when England are only playing "friendlies", then England in competitive matches.

Went to the "old" Wembley quite a few times to support England but have not considered going in recent times as it is a pain to get to and from, and watching on television is a damn sight easier.

Really want us to do well in Brazil but realistically getting out of the group stage is even going to test us.

Think DMR has it spot on.

I remember 1990 (just) and was glued to Euro 96 and WC98. Recently the magic of International football and tournaments has faded somewhat.

England are the Everton of international football.

Not in the top four and never going to be, but better than most of the rest.

We will nearly always qualify, always get out of our group, but never have that final bit of quality to get beyond a semi-final. The only England games where there's any real uncertainty are the quarter finals (which sometimes we win) and semi finals (which we almost always lose) of major tournaments.

I can't get that excited about two games every four years.

I remember being gutted when  England went out to Argentina. Then euphoric when Beckham scored the penalty against them in the next world cup.

Maybe it's age, but I gently missed a few world cup qualifiers this time round because I forgot England were playing.

I'll still love the world cup, watch us play, etc. But expectation is so low that England will not be able to spoil the tournament this time!

I keep telling myself this. It will still be fucking brutal when we get knocked out.

I tell myself this every tournament and even manage to convince myself most of the time. Right up until a week or so before it all kicks off.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJqimlFcJsM

For me it doesn't get anywhere near Flint's goal at Brentford. In fact, I'd rather witness any STFC goal than an England goal.

1990 for me is where it's at.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_YiG7yN7PY&feature=kp

No England song has since has touched that.

I presume there will be a new car crash of a song out soon by someone like One Direction.

Loved that, but think I went slightly more ballistic at Brighton when Fallon's went in. I seem to remember it nicked off the keeper and popped up in the air a bit, and nobody was quite sure if it was dropping wide or dropping in, so when it lollipopped in to the net everyone went proper mental.

I actually want both Swindon and England to do well - I don't see why supporting your national team always has to turn into a club v country debate. One probably edges it for me but it seems irrelevant to the initial question.

There's plenty of bullshit and twattery associated with both international and domestic football, but at least the Andorra national team aren't going to get taken over by a Qatari oil billionaire and stuff teams like England out of sight without much merit. I think there's something to be said for that in comparison to league football.

Practically identical to me in era and attitude (I finished in 1990 except for Euros here).  Going to a world cup final was a fantastic experience but somewhere in the 2000's I stopped believing in England.  Now I'd like them to do well but I no longer invest any emotional capital in them.  When England go out it won't bother me unduly, particularly if the cricket is going well.  Whereas I still find watching Swindon nearly as gut-wrenching as I did in my youth.

Apparently it's a rehash of Take That's 'Greatest Day'.

I use to go up to Wembey regularly in the 80s to watch England. I stopped when the kids were born etc as I didn't have the money. Now I've got the money again I can't be arsed.
I still watch the games on telly and hope we win but its fucking difficult to support a team that has had such a bunch of cunts playing for it. Rooney makes my fucking skin crawl and his outburst in South Africa was a fucking disgrace and he should have had his bollocks chopped off for it. I know people who gave up their jobs and spent over £12k going to that World Cup to be told by Shrek that they were a fucking disgrace.
Then you have Terry, Cole Lampard etc.
Then the golden boy Gerrard who when the going gets tough, fucks off nowhere to be seen to then have a stormer against Andorra and everyone is knocking one out over him again.
The golden generation were nothing than a pile of fucking hateful spiteful gobshites.
England pale into insignificance when compared to the Town. A Town win over the Scum is better than any England win. In fact a Town win over anyone is better than an England win.

 

For me, as much as the 1990 World Cup was fantastic, for me it was ruined by the Football League relegating us which just left a bitterness when everyone else was ecstatic

It all relates to where you are in life,  90, 94, 96, 98, 2000 living in various houses with mates who loved football - watched all the games and loved it!
Now wife young family etc... generally means less,  will no doubt watch lots of games but not really care!

Still think that Woy should take a young squad (the squad for the next Euros) we will go out early whatever happens so give the kids some experience.

Maybe he should take the England B team instead

I'm Welsh so whilst I'm interested in England enough to watch I don't support them. I don't know whether it would be different if the Welsh international side were better, but I also find I don't really care as much as I do about Swindon.

Totally agree

Explains everything.

I am just glad we are there...

Plus...

Nothing beats watching England play when you are on holiday abroad.....mind you I'm away after the group matches so I think that's out the window.

 :)

This is sort of why I think England players probably don't give a fuck. At one point Gerrard was in the top 3 midfielders in the world but 3 different managers decided to play him right back left wing and right wing. Cole and Terry arguably are absolute massive fucking tits but have always played well for England yet you slate them. Again Rooney I kind of agree with you but when the bloke retires he will be Man United and Englands all time top goal scorer and won every domestic trophy going yet us England fans just want to crucify our good players.

On that note it isn't even just the good players who get slated,the same people who have a pop at these players are the same people who will slag a player like Milner off.

To sum it up I think the fans seem to enjoy slagging off the players than want them to do well at times

It's not about whether certain players play well for England or not.

Its that ALL England's players are so far removed from the fans, most are disgustingly rich and thick as pig shit with it.

Now, you can say that that applies to nearly all footballers at every level to some degree, but that's when club attachment comes into it and overrides everything.

Following a club for year upon year gives fans a feeling that they ARE the club and not the fleeting egos that pass through it.

It's club football every time

International football should be the be all and end all.

You can't beat those 4 weeks in June/July, nothing comes close to it imo.

The big word there is SHOULD.

It SHOULD be.  But its not.

I absolutely love the international competitions... Terrible looking fixtures made great but the whole occasion and the added joys of listening to people getting irate because Coronation Street has been re-scheduled because a game like New Zealand vs. Slovakia is on.

I Enjoy the tournament.  Its a different issue I guess but I don't give a toss about the national team really but do enjoy the tournament.  Sad to say these days I'd probably be more excited by New Zealand Vs Slovakia than our games. 

What day is that game on Costanza?

Four years ago!

We're going down to Devon for the first week of the World Cup, rented a country house with four other friends. It's going to be great but there are some terrible sounding games on show :)

Yeah. England v Italy sounds a bummer!

"some"

(http://media0.giphy.com/media/Rhhr8D5mKSX7O/giphy.gif)