On Arrogance and Money II...

Ever since I started writing this, one of the things that has impressed me the most are the thoughtful comments seen from those who read-there are clearly some very knowledgeable and erudite hockey fans out there, and many an article here has come from a comment either on a forum or from here-the latest gem of a comment, in response to this post, comes from Becky, and takes issue with my mentioning Manchester fans as the most tolerant...

Manchester fans hit the panic button incredibly quickly earlier in the season but are now content to sit back and bitch, whinge and moan. I guess they know changes are unlikely and would probably be harmful because of the budget but there's no end to the negativity in our fan-base, even when we win.KC was the target of a witch hunt for a while and finally went. Cloots and MacMillan have also been slated and Tony's always being told to hang his skates up.

This did surprise me-Brett Clouthier in particular has been impressive for Manchester when I've seen him-there are few better in the league at screening the goalie, especially on the powerplay...

However, Becky then really set me thinking with this point...especially as I support a "big-budget" club...

I think that money means you can and do make changes and smaller budgets work with what they've got. I guess if that's the way you deal with it, it's what the fans will come to expect rather than arrogance driving a constant need to win. That doesn't mean that doesn't grow as fans get used to it tho ;)

I find this interesting-I remember the first BNL season in Coventry, where the team started like an absolute house on fire and Coventry as a city went mad-after all, it's not like we as a sports city have a history of winning, unless you watch speedway...However, when it all went wrong due to injuries, there wasn't anywhere near the reaction that occurs today if things go off course slightly...or indeed in the season after the treble year...So can we say that winning breeds arrogance, money is to blame or is it just healthy expectation rather than the more negative emotion of arrogance?

This issue was further brought into sharp focus by the news that Sheffield have placed their entire team on two week's notice, despite having a season which many teams in the league would kill for (second in the league, Challenge Cup finalists, etc, etc). The Steelers fans are also criticising their team to a seemingly ludicrous degree on forums recently. Sheffield has always been a demanding place to play thanks to the standards set by the powerhouse teams of the late 90's and early 00's, but even so, chopping or attacking a team for being second best in Britain seems a little harsh even for them...

Compare this with Basingstoke fans, who are proud of their team and their effort despite the problems this season, or Cardiff fans-who still roar their team on whatever the result, or even the injuries. Or Isle of Wight Raiders fans, who turn up despite their side likely suffering defeat against far superior budgets and players in the EPL every week.

Admittedly, of the above teams you could argue that only Cardiff have a genuine history (recently at least) of success, but even so...all teams apart from Coventry (in the Skydome era) have suffered some hardship-does this mean that the only way for the Coventry (or Sheffield, or any) crowd to truly appreciate the successes of their team is to suffer catastrophic failure in the future?

I know I'm only asking questions rather than coming up with constructive answers-but I'd love to know whether there genuinely is a divide between "big budget" and "small budget" teams, not just on the ice (which is fairly obvious at times, although thankfully it's getting smaller in the EIHL) but on the ice, in the way their fans are perceived. Are Coventry, Sheffield, Nottingham fanbases arrogant for expecting their big budgets to carry the day? If you're a fan of a smaller club, do you feel bigger clubs look down upon you? Certainly this was a complaint of Newcastle as they sped to the playoff title in the first EIHL season...

Food for thought as you munch on your period-break hot-dog...I have a feeling that thinking about this will leave me with more to say on this subject....

...perhaps even tomorrow. :)

Keep checking back, keep making those insightful and thought-provoking comments, and keep keeping your eye on the puck...