Blue scarves, blue shirts and blue hats for a blue day were all I needed as the traditional Spring sight of daffodils was overwhelmed on Wednesday morning. By Wednesday night, the agenda had changed for the media. Some dickhead had decided to canvas contributions for an aircraft based at Barton Aerodrome to fly over Old Trafford with an anti-Moyes banner attached.
Years ago, we all laughed at attention seeking City fans who had arranged an aircraft with the legend “You’re The Pride Of Singapore” attached to it on the day United won the title. We all chuckled at how small time it was. Now a truth more painful than the defeat the other night has become apparent; there are some real pricks amongst United fans. I’m struggling to think what’s worse – that a small amount of United fans are prepared to pay good money on this pathetic stunt or a significant amount are prepared to chip in small amounts to facilitate it.
As some Reds had said yesterday, the publicity generated for a gleeful media over this whole sorry episode meant that it had actually become academic as to whether it happened or not. How many times has a ‘Glazer Out’ plane been hired since 2005? I suppose that a few bad results are fair game for something like this but the extracting of hundreds of millions of pounds on absolutely nothing is fine. David Moyes, a decent man who might be out of his depth, doesn’t deserve this (and don’t give me any of that bollocks about how much he gets paid). It is shameful.
For the second season in succession, the visit of Aston Villa has been completely overshadowed by events off the pitch. The build up to today’s match was eclipsed by the banner fiasco. The contrast in atmosphere in the two respective fixtures was stark. Last season’s fixture was one of celebration as United regained the title; today’s match had the feeling of an end of season game with nothing resting on it. The sun, like Alexander Buttner, was making a rare appearance at Old Trafford. After watching today’s game I can say with some confidence that the sun will get a far better welcome than Buttner on their next respective appearance.
About five minutes into the game, a ring of boos rang out from the Old Trafford Main (South) Stand. They could see the aircraft hovering over United Road with the anti-Moyes banner attached. About five minutes later, I could see the plane flying over the Stretford End from my seat in the K Stand. The idea of hiring a plane to do this was bad enough but to actually have it flying over the ground during the game just showed up the clowns behind this piss poor excuse of an idea for the attention seeking knobheads that they are.
As the plane was hovering over the Stretty in the thirteenth minute, Ashley Young played Rafael into trouble. This lead to the Brazilian full back fouling Gabriel Agbonlahor from 18 yards out and earning him a booking. From the resulting free kick, Ashley Westwood shot past David De Gea’s right and into the Stretford End net.
Players warming up pre-match
Seven minutes later, Rafael fed Shinji Kagawa on the left flank. Kagawa worked the ball onto his right foot and made an inch perfect cross to Wayne Rooney to make the score 1-1. The game was cagily easing to a half time deadlock when from a Shinji Kagawa pass, Leandro Bacuna fouled Juan Mata to gift United a penalty in the 45th minute. Rooney took the penalty and put United 2-1 in front.
Twelve minutes into the second half saw Juan Mata score his first goal for United after some good work by Marouane Fellaini. Aston Villa shown no fight once 3-1 down and when Javier Hernandez scored in the first minute of injury time, they could consider themselves lucky to have only lost 4-1. The Villa team were nearly as bad as the half-hearted half-wits that follow them. I’ve stood incognito amongst villains at Villa Park when United have been there. It’s like being amongst 3/5,000 Benny Hawkins clones from Crossroads (younger readers, please look at video below). Their chants of “Oo are ya?” have to heard to be disbelieved.
The most heartening thing to be heard this afternoon was when, in the 65th minute, the Stretford End started singing “You can stick your fucking banners up your arse”. There were other songs of defiance in support of David Moyes. As a protest, it has backfired so badly that it has actually galvanised some people, who last week wanted Moyes to go, to come out in support of him. If there’s one good thing to come out of United’s relatively poor season, it will be the imminent departure of the mard arsed, scabbing bastards that arranged for that banner to be flown today. Good riddance when they do eventually vanish.
The fact we didn’t have a similar protest for the Glazers and now have one for Moyes is related as you allude to. Soft arse United fans who are too bothered about short term results and not the club itself.
They wouldn’t know a real cause if it came into Manchester looking like a family of leprechauns with American accents and a known history of fleecing every one they had done business with. As long as we are winning.
Gone are the days of supporting a team through thick and thin. Lose a few results and the customers want to express their imbecilic thoughts. You have to ask if they are actually match going reds (not that this is black and white any more) as if so how come there wasn’t more protest inside the ground first before making United fans look (if possible) even more like fuckwits in front on the rest of the world.
Great read and spot on.. moyes will get it right given time…
Great piece as always Murph.. Couldn’t believe the carry on with this plane over the last few days but I guess united have more fans than most so unfortunately that’s gonna mean a fair few dickheads too. I’m questioning moyes as much as the next fan but can’t even bring myself to suggest out loud that he should be sacked, as I feel that’d be acting quite spoiled after years of success and 1 bad season so to see this was mind boggling.. I now want him to succeed more than ever. could just about pick up on the boo’s on tv, commentary on bt suggested it was ‘pockets’ who were booing but reading this seems it was more prominent which I’m glad to hear
I don’t mind people saying Moyes should be sacked, even if I don’t agree with them. We live in a (sort of) democracy etc… To spend over £800.00 on an aircraft to display that message for the entertainment of none United fans to me is unforgivable. So much for closing ranks around our own and what have you. The people who have hired or contributed to the hiring of that plane don’t even understnad the word united, they have no chance of understanding the club, United.
As always a great read
The banner, IN MY OPINION, was a media fuelled stunt. When the team need the support the idiots decide to fly a banner over OT. Rather than get behind the team. True, we are not playing well but interesting that away from home the team look more comfortable could it be the support they get away
Am I a Moyes fan – jury out.
Am I a united fan – need not answer
I wouldn’t be surprised if a media outlet had contributed to the stunt. There was a well known bookmaking chain who are very good at promoting themselves who jumped on the idea and sent another plane around the vicinty of United’s ground a few minutes after Biggles with the anti moyes banner had been round.
I know I’ll be accused of being a bit anal (But compared to what you compared me to with city doing Liverpool a favour 😉 ) … but how does a plane hover?…
An expected good read, spoilt by you doing what Scotty couldn’t for Kirk, and “Breaking the laws of Physics”…
See ya soon!
I had a few emails about that last night Phil. Obviously an airplane can’t hover but by circumnavigating the ground over a twelve minute period early in the game, it gave the impression of hovering. Now for Christ sake, get back to cheering your boys on to the title. Gotta stop the scouser from winning it. i quite like the fact that Tom Cleverley has got more League title medals than boyhood Evertonian, Steve Gerrard.
Spot on as usual mate. I’m not sure what I look forward to more these days, the game or your blog.
Great read again Tony and as the lads above have already said quite a few reds are now questioning David Moyes ( me too ) but I could never put money towards a banner that is totally embarrassing and just makes our great club look cheap and tacky !!
My German friends visit us on Tuesday and in a daft kind of way it was probably the best draw we could of had !!! nobody and I mean nobody gives us a cat in hell’s chance so I just hope that we go down fighting against a team that is quite rightly considered to be the best in Europe and we dont just roll over ( like we did against Liverpool and City ) !!
ONCE A RED ALWAYS A RED !!!!!
Looking at the quarter final draw before it took place, there wasn’t a single side I fancied United against on present form. To actually get drawn against a side that I believe are the best in the world at the moment just about signifies the luck David Moyes has had as United manager. That will have to turn sooner or later if he is to stay at Old Trafford. As I said the other week, if Moyes has the last laugh, you bet your life it will be the longest. He deserves it
How brave of those United fans to hide behind a flying banner. If they truly believed in their point, they’d look into the whites of my eyes to convince me of their dismay and wow.
At which point I’d get the opportunity to convince them that our beloved club is going through change. We were at the summit of the highest peak; there is only one way to go for now – and that’s down. I accept it and know that we will rise again, standing on the shoulders of giants – Law, Edwards, Charlton, Keane, Beckham, Scholes and so many more. Ferguson being the tallest of them all.
Until then, all I can do is hope that these big money gamblers, who dispense with Managers as if they were nothing more than mouthpieces, go and royally fuck off and offer their custom to City or Chelski. I’m sure they’d fit in a treat.
Then we can get on with trusting and working and believing and supporting THE greatest club in the world.
I truly love United.
Among some crackers, arguably your best blog of the season Murph, bang on.
Point fingers at whoever you want, the regressive Jones and Cleverly, the impotent Fellaini, the hapless Young, the lesser-spotted Nani, the Lou Carpenter look-a-like Lumsden, the ageing and floundering Moyes or the square peg which is Round.
Are the players putting it in or are those responsible for motivating, coaching and selecting them getting it all wrong on a continual basis?
Probably plenty of both in truth, but the real problem is something far deeper and more sinister than either of those.
Profiteers from the Everglades, a cancerous bunch of parasites from Florida, who’ve put the minimum in and taken the maximum out, that’s the problem, irrespective of who is in charge on a day to day basis.
I’d suggest than even Maureen would’ve struggled with what’s available this time around.
An ageing squad, for whom the best central midfield pairing is still – BY SOME DISTANCE – Giggs and Carrick.
That’s the same Giggs and Carrick who were overwhelmed in the European Cup Final in 2011 by Barca.
Three years on and still that’s where we’re at.
Others have sped on relentlessly, we’ve stood still, or perhaps gone backwards in some areas.
United might be champions at bringing in official haemorrhoid cream suppliers from Timbuktu, but they’re anything but champion on the pitch.
Think back to the drubbing at Bilbao in 2012 – that was a lesson, and what we’re seeing now is a continuation of that, just with an older, frailer squad (one minus Scholes but plus Mata and Fellaini).
Why? Look no further than the current ownership.
Complain all you want about the manager and players, but the real problem is the Glazers. End of.
Imagine how we’d all have laughed our cocks off if the scousers were bleating and whining and sending planes ‘hovering’ up above Anfield demanding Bwendan bring an end to his ‘project’.
If we’re going to deploy airborne tactics, I suggest something somewhat more to the point, like a simple but to the point ‘FUCK OFF GLAZER’ banner or, better still, a long range jet loaded with a nuke to drop directly above his mansion in Florida.
Now to that I would contribute!
See you all in Munich.
Nail. Head. Hit.
Having followed the thread from an early stage, once it became apparent that the plane was happening, there were numerous calls to change to it ‘GLAZER OUT’. Especially once the media were all over it, and so the original point had been made. Which would have been perfect- media storm generated, and then an unexpected message directed firmly at the parasites.
I said I would contribute to this, as did many others. Apparently those that had already paid had done so to see the banner that we did all see. But at the very least it got people talking about the current owners, and thinking about how that could be brought back into the public domain.
For what it’s worth, I think the whole episode escalated directly as a response to an existing banner at Old Trafford.