Presto":2y1ajb8w said:
Stuart House":2y1ajb8w said:
They are alienating people. I know alot of people that have been kicked out for standing or other minor issues this season. All on instruction from above apparently.
If you want to sit in a sole less stadium watching the game then so be it, because that's the way its going. The atmosphere is being destroyed.
And a lot of it does stem from complaints from those who previously sat in the grandstand and are not used to their current surroundings.
Rightly or wrongly this is diluting the atmosphere, and making many feeling alienated in the respect that their match day experience has had to change because of their new neighbours.
Been going to HP for 60+ years. Never had any problem with stewarding. So a few are being alienated because they want to stand without regard to anyone else. Notithstanding like it or not HP is an all seater stadium and if someone pays for a seat they have a resonable right to have an unobstructed view of tbe game. There remains blocks behind the devonport end which persist in standing and the stewards do nothing about it. So where is all this alienation about standing.
I Have seen one incident in the last 10 years when a fan has been warned by a steward. That occurred this season. The individual concerned persisted in jumping up every few minutes and yelling obscene abuse. He was not thrown out but warned and quietly sat through the second half of the game. Unfortunately only one side of a story is reflected here. The stewards are easy targets invariably being blamed for the unacceptable behaviour of a few.
What about those complaining whose views are unobstructed by people stood?
Fwiw I've never had an issue with a steward either, at any ground home and away. That's not to say that I'm not concerned with the behaviour of some of ours, particularly regarding the treatment of those in the incident to which this thread refers.
The details we have is that one of the teenage lads hoped over the seat in front in order to not inconvenience others while popping to the loo. The stewards overreacted at this and have kicked the whole family of season ticket holders out twice.
Some will always side with the authority that is the hi-vis and assume undisclosed wrongdoing from the family. That is an assumption that goes against the personal character references offered.
This overreaction in contrast to the casual approach to Sunderland fans in home areas is frankly bizarre. As Gaspar said, it's almost as if some, emphasis on some (few even), stewards are looking for trouble. They should be looking out for trouble, not desperately seeking it. Have they a quota to hit?
