Davis cup QF venue

Ratty · County player

RE: Davis cup QF venue

scottie1 · Futures level

Ratty wrote:
RJA wrote:
Passionate support from the crowd is a good thing.
Tribal loyalty is an interesting thing. It has been the cause of countless atrocities and genocides. It flies in the face of reason and logic, both of which are perhaps more universally regarded as GOOD THINGS.
And yet .... although I regard myself as a citizen of the world and generally couldn't give a monkey's whether England beat Germany at football (honestly, does it really matter?) or whatever, I confess to every now and then feeling a burst of patriotic pride at some English sporting performance. (Not very often mind, the last one I can remember was Mo Farah winning his second gold at the Olympics in 2012.)
Plus of course a sporting event with a crowd politely clapping is a tad dull. (But IMO not as dull as the Stirling University bores, at least Queen's is a good long way away from them ...)

I thought Mo Farrah was British when he won Olympic Gold or was that a dream!

indiana · Tennis legend

Of course England vs Germany at football is worth caring about.

Germany every time !

Joking, and Andy passes his regards too :)

Rather more seriously, a good lively atmosphere can so much enhance sporting occasions. General polite clapping just isn't Davis Cup, it needs noise! But I do agree you can have bad 'enthusiam', be it boorish or very repetive behavior.

indiana · Tennis legend

To be fair scottie, Scots and Welsh would have taken pride in Scottish and Welsh Olympic successes.

Of course they were all competing for Team GB, but I for one saw say Chris Hoy as British and Scottish.

I am not then going to have issues with English folk saying that they were proud of 'English' Olympians. Or indeed Yorkshire people particularly getting behind Sheffield's Jessica Ennis as one of them.

Just, of course, don't anyone simply make England and GB interchangeable. That tends to get right up the nationalists and generally irritates the rest of us non English.

indiana · Tennis legend

As an aside, loved it when the BBC showed a medals table quite a way into the London Olympics with Yorkshire ahead of Australia :)

scottie1 · Futures level

indiana wrote:
To be fair scottie, Scots and Welsh would have taken pride in Scottish and Welsh Olympic successes.

Of course they were all competing for Team GB, but I for one saw say Chris Hoy as British and Scottish.

I am not then going to have issues with English folk saying that they were proud of 'English' Olympians. Or indeed Yorkshire people particularly getting behind Sheffield's Jessica Ennis as one of them.

Just, of course, don't anyone simply make England and GB interchangeable. That tends to get right up the nationalists and generally irritates the rest of us non English.

The Olympic team is British and is not Scottish English Welsh or Irish. Farrah won his medal for GB and not for England same as Murray won for GB and not Scotland. It irritates me that we are supposed to be one GB in sport like athletics tennis etc but doesn't seem that way with some comments! I can remember being on holiday abroad where a guide told me it was the English flag when indeed it was the Union Jack I advised her that it was the British flag and not the English flag rant over lol

daisy · County player

Ratty wrote:
RJA wrote:
Passionate support from the crowd is a good thing.

Plus of course a sporting event with a crowd politely clapping is a tad dull. (But IMO not as dull as the Stirling University bores, at least Queen's is a good long way away from them ...)

RJA - it certainly is. Andy Murray was very quick to acknowledge how much the support at the Emirates meant to him and the team.

Ratty. The usual Queens crowd don't know their volleys from their BHDTL's and and politely clapping isn't just a tad dull it borders on being disrespectful to the British players (and all players to be fair) who they're supposed to be there watching and supporting. But then Queens crowd are usually quaffing not watching...

... as to Stirling University. They got involved because Colin Fleming knew a lot of them from his time there and he encouraged/instigated their involvement at Braehead a few years back. Aegon like having them there (for their vocal support and cheerleading) to the point that they've ensured a Stirling Barmy Army presence at the last 9 or 10 ties (including overseas ties) and provided them with Aegon t-shirts and very good seats!

The chants might be repetitive (and originally based around footie and rugby chants) BUT for several years at Braehead they kept the cheering going and certainly outdid any attempts from our AMFF groups which numbered 25-40 on most DC occasions over the last 5 years. I fully expect the LTA to make sure the Stirling mob are at Queens ... and glad we'll be of them too!

As a very committed Davis Cup fan (that's 40 years of going in the UK at least) I can tell you now that the vocal support is not only appreciated by the team but in many instances a deciding factor in their success. So, I'll be there again in July cheering like crazy - even if it is an endless refrain of "Let's go Wardy, let's go" ... because I WANT TO CHEER THE LADS ON!!! And I really don't care whether you think it is boring or not because I love Davis Cup tennis and it's a chance to let rip with some very emotional support for our team.

I'm a supporter. If I was at a football match I'd be yelling my head off and I'm going to do just that at Queens. As wlll the 60/70 fellow fans coming with me. We don't particularly care what anyone thinks of us cheering on the British Team ... Why don't you join us and see first hand what it's all about? And then make a judgement about the value of cheerleaders like Stirling Barmy Army.

smile

philwrig · Hall of fame

Hear, hear.

Ratty · County player

daisy wrote:
Ratty. The usual Queens crowd don't know their volleys from their BHDTL's and and politely clapping isn't just a tad dull it borders on being disrespectful to the British players (and all players to be fair) who they're supposed to be there watching and supporting. But then Queens crowd are usually quaffing not watching...

Well of course I take your general points, the point I was pretentiously making was just that I find it interesting how partisan behaviours are in general terms anti-social and should be discouraged, but they contribute enormously to the "atmosphere" of a sporting event.

But I do take mild exception to the quoted bit above.

Firstly, people who pay to watch a sporting event are surely entitled to do whatever they like within reason. The players owe them respect, not vice-versa.

And rich people who can afford to be members of Queen's are no better or worse than the, er, "real" fans who they may displace. For the middle-classes aged over about 30, shouting and screaming at the Davis Cup could be regarded as unacceptable eccentricity, and maybe this is because (like me) they like watching sport but don't like partisan behaviour.

Pretentious, moi?

indiana · Tennis legend

I want people who attend a Davis Cup tie to play their part in encouraging the team towards victory.

Of course they are entitled to pay for their ticket, admire the tennis and hardly make an audible contribution to supporting it, but that is rather selfish behavior.

As has previously been discussed hopefully there is a large public sale ( with limited member sale ) so that a great atmosphere is obtained.

Just think how much worse, certainly for these who dislike the Stirling Uni chanting, it would be if just about the only large noise came from them.

Hoping for a loud, raucous yet respectful atmosphere, the kind that the team says really helps them.

Shouting and screaming at a Davis Cup tie is not unacceptable partisan behavior, it is welcome supportive behavior. Part of being a fan.

-- Edited by indiana on Wednesday 22nd of April 2015 05:08:18 PM

KK · Club Coach

People who are members of Queens play tennis - that is why they are members. So it is ridiculous to say they don't know much about tennis. You are probably referring to those in corporate boxes. Hopefully there will not be any of those at a Davis cup match.

indiana · Tennis legend

My own concern about too many tickets being directed towards members is not their general tennis knowledge, but their possible lack of audible enthusiasm.

But, yes, hopefully we do also avoid the normal Queen's less than fully attentitive corporate element.

-- Edited by indiana on Wednesday 22nd of April 2015 05:04:38 PM

philwrig · Hall of fame

Only 2500-3000 going to the general public out of 7000, not looking ideal to say the least !

A131 · Intermediate Club Player

philwrig wrote:
Only 2500-3000 going to the general public out of 7000, not looking ideal to say the least !

Purely from a general public standpoint in as far as ticket sales are concerned would Eastbourne have been a better venue? Or is that getting too nearer to France!!

philwrig · Hall of fame

From a tennis point of view Queens wins by a wide margin, from a more of the public getting to watch the tie point of view Eastbourne probably wins by a couple of lengths.