HOME AND AWAY

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

Thought I would bring this thread on ere as I did predict at the beginning of the season that our style of play and passion of support would bring us more points away from home..but I never thought that the gap would be so wide!!

PLAYED WON LOST DREW FOR AGAINST DIFF POINTS

HOME 16 3 6 7 18 21 -3 15

AWAY 18 8 7 3 28 17 +11 28

-3 AND + 11 is feckin ridiculous!! :shock:

And lets look at some of the feckin Away Day Stats:

Second best Away team in the SPL, only Cellic have a better record BUT Ninth best at home, JUST in front of LIVI.

Second most away wins in the SPL.

Second least away defeats in the SPL.

Second highest Away scorers in the SPL - averaging 1.55 Away and 1.12 at home.

JOINT top in respect of Away goals conceded but the BEST average.

Only Cellic, Jam Tarts and ICT have a positive away goal difference.

We are averaging 1.72 points per game away from home and 0.93 at home.

We have more away points than Livi, the Arabs and the Pars put together.

SO I AM FECKIN SMUG AND PROUD TO SAIL AWAY ON THE HMS SNECK

[RiG]

Allegedly, and I hasten to add allegedly, some players do feel intimidated playing at home because they feel there is extra pressure on them to win every game from the Home fans :?

[kencar]

Don't expect them to win every home game - a few more than 3 would be nice though :roll:

[Guest InvernessC***y THISTLE]

Don't expect them to wine every home game - a few more than 3 would be nice though :roll:

Pressure :shock:

If they had a flawless home record then there were be pressure to maintain it but as we don't achieve at home surely the opposite would be true i.e. no pressure at home as we don't expect it :?: :?:

[us2]

Sorry and I thought the whole point of playing football was to win please tell me that the team don't just go out on the pitch playing for a draw. :shock: I REFUSE TO BELIEVE IT!!!! WHY Should they feel intimidated at home?

[caley100]

Realistically it looks like we are a one play team, our tactics suit when we are the team under attack, abosrbing pressure and scoring on the break.

When the roles are reversed, and we are at home the team are confused as to what to do, even against lower league oppostition ala Ayr and Partick.

Its about time this was addressed, it could have a negative effect on season ticket sales.

I'm feckin sure i'd prefer to see 8 home wins instead of 3 home wins, maybe mantis and the rest would argue, but more wins at home might produce bigger crowds.

[Interthenet Jnr]

I went to the home game against motherwell. No noise was made by the home fans and then when we lost after the game the players were booed off the pitch. Then people say there is no pressure....... :? . If i was a player though i wouldn't be worried about it being intimidating, i would worry about about the fact there is no vocal support from the home fans :shock: . Thats why as you say IHE, I am fecking proud to sail away on HMS Sneck:D

[us2]

One of the reasons why it is very quiet at home with not alot of support singing etc is when you do make an attempt to sing, cheer STAND UP you are glared at by the stewards and some of the HOME Supporters. WHY don't they join in????? You are right, with a not so hot home record, season ticket sales might struggle this time.

[Interthenet Jnr]

I went to start a song and the people about me turned round as if to say WTF you think your doing. They just sat on their hands..... although the girl next to me that day could sit on my hands anytime she wnats 8)

[RiG]

..... although the girl next to me that day could sit on my hands anytime she wnats 8)

Oh for the love of Geoff! :roll:

Who was that like? :?

[Interthenet Jnr]

You know you would of if she wasn' that intent on getting you thrown out

[RiG]

You know you would of if she wasn' that intent on getting you thrown out

Was that the one that said I was a Motherwell fan because I didn't think we should get a penalty?

[Interthenet Jnr]

That's the one

[kencar]

I thinks its fair to say we really need to improve our home form next season.

Obviously our fantastic away performances have papered over the cracks somewhat.

Without sounding too pessimistic its unlikely we will be able to match the points haul we've gleaned on our travels!

[Guest Caley83]

Has our play at home been poor or have we just been unlucky?

Im based in edinburgh so I have only been to away games this season!

[Guest Von]

Personally, I think that atmosphere has a lot to do with it. Noise means encouragement and I am convinced that if we made more noise at the home games, the players would be much more motivated. I don't go out of my way to make home games now, as more often than not, I come out with disapointment at the result and at the atmosphere, but I don't miss many away games.

We also seem to be quieter when the so-called bigger teams are there. We seem to sometimes appear intimidated by celtic/rangers and a few others. Obviously a huge number of supporters home or away, but we seem to go a bit sheepish

Come on guys, make some noise !

[Scotty]

Can only speak of one game at home and it was an absolute belter !!! Dargo scored just as we were getting into our seats but the wee baldie welshman equalised a while later and spoiled what would have been a perfect day ! ICT 1-1 Celtic 18/12/05

The team were up fer it, the fans were up fer it, and the stadium was buzzing, certainly in the Bridge End where i was. i joined in with the singing and chanting ... it was great

My own feeling, from hearing people comment on other games is that we have 2 main problems

[*]A large number of the crowd who dont (& wont) make any noise. This problem is not new, it has been around for years. Call it what you will - lack of enthusiasm, the stereotypical 'highland reserve', or maybe even shyness and not wanting to look like a prat, but the 'sweetie rustlers' have always been around in the main stand. Some of us tried hard each game to get the atmosphere going, but it very rarely happened. However, each to their own, if some people dont want to sing and chant then thats up to them ... they dont have to ... but please dont look at those of us who do as if we are disturbing your nap or farting loudly in a library !!!

[never done that BTW ;)]

[*]Over zealous 'management' of the crowd that means that sometimes (especially at 'smaller' games and moreso in the main stand) you are not allowed to make any noise or are chastised for showing your support for your team.

Time and again since we reached the SPL we have heard stories of heavy-handed stewarding. I am not specifically talking about a number of incidents that have been well publicised and discussed, but the stewarding in general. I can fully appreciate that its a different era now that we are in the SPL ... and I have no problem with stopping racist, sectarian, offensive or otherwise inappropriate comments or songs from happening, but why do some (not all) matchday staff take great delight in hassling the home fans for having the audacity to try and start an innocent song or shout encouragement to the team while at the same time letting away fans away with far worse ...... especially when 'certain' teams come calling !

[/list:o]

If the management and players want fans to make more noise to urge the lads on (as they have said in the past), and the club actually do want the fans to start making some noise to help urge them on, then they have to take a step back and have a full and frank look at the way fans are being treated inside the ground instead of pretending problems dont exist.

There IS an issue with the way fans have been treated over the last couple of years and it is getting progressively worse. If the club want to bury their head in the sand and pretend it doesnt exist, then thats up to them, but if your head is in the sand, your *** is in the air and someone is going to come along and kick it hard at some point !!! A club of our size cannot afford to lose a few hundred season ticket holders .... and thats the sort of size 10 kick I am talking about !

I appreciate that not every fan is well behaved, and not every song or chant is appropriate so affirmitave action from the safety/security staff is appropriate at times, but being over officious is always inappropriate and that coupled with a 'guilty until proven innocent' attitude and a complete lack of 'customer service' mentality when complaints are made is already creating a wedge between 'them' and 'us' that i never thought i would see happen to MY club .... or maybe that should now be the club !!!

[kencar]

I'm going to have to disagree with you Scotty.

I think the team get more than a fair response from the home support. They get cheered onto the pitch every game and all there good play (and not so good sometimes) is suitably rewarded with cheering, clapping and applause.

Even when we are losing any positive play is encouraged, even for corners the north stand is thumping to stamped feet.

OK we aren't the greatest singers in the world but noise is made

Saying all that there is only so much a crowd can give!!

For whatever reason our home form this year has been poor. the majority of fans don't get to witness our amazing away results and if you are paying £X for a season ticket and seeing us losing, for example 3-0 to falkirk how are you meant to respond??

[Guest cantbeatus]

You're atmosphere must be absolutely non existant if that tit sutherland reckons Tannadice is a cauldron :lol

I was up on the last day of last season, i know it was an important game for us but yea there was non existant backing from you lot, to be fair tough, generally away fans make more noise and it is no different for ICT or DUFC although our home fans can create a good atmosphere(hasnt happened this season though since MyPa which deflated everyone apart from at Brews homecoming)

[Scotty]

Sorry Kencar - I didnt mean to imply that they got NO support, merely that a large number of our home fans dont get vocal in the same way that other teams do .... far smaller numbers of our support give it laldy away from home and make it a completely different atmosphere and that has been true for years.

I spent many years directly above the tunnel and always applauded the team onto the park and off it at the end of a game .... some days my applause was more enthusiastic than others and yes I got frustrated too when we put in bad performances (ICT 1-5 County springs to mind) but I dont recall ever booing them off the park !!!

You are quite right when you say that there is an element of our support who always try to make a noise. However, that element always seemed to increase/decrease depending on who the opposition were. Quite a few around me were just as vocal as me but we were always outnumbered by those who wanted to sit quietly for whatever reason. I am not criticising those who want to do that, its their choice, although sometimes the odd one did annoy me because they would give you a look that seemed to say 'shut the **** up !!'

I was impressed with the atmosphere in the north stand when I was home at Xmas, but it was a game against Celtic so the whole ground was buzzing ... If the North Stand is like that regularly, then great - I am happy to be proved wrong.

I wholeheartedly agree that there is only so much a crowd can give, and many of our fans do that .... But I also think that when you hear of some of the 'treatment' dished out by (some, but not all of our) stewards since we reached the SPL the enthusiasm to give quite so much or so freely wanes. The club need to address that rather than ignore it.

It pains me greatly to criticise the club in such a manner. I am ICT through and through, have followed them from day 1 and I will never fail to support the team that goes out on the park.

However, as important as the club are to me as a 'normal' supporter, the club also need to realise how important the 'normal' supporters are to them as a club and treat them with at least a modicum of respect. Respect that they used to be treated with but that seems to have been diminishing rapidly over the last couple of years. By all means eject troublemakers or those who are behaving badly, but dont brand people troublemakers and 'unofficially' ostracise them for raising an issue with the club, treat people differently in different areas of the ground, or chastise them when they do try to increase the atmosphere (in a legal manner !).

I hope that events like the Supporters Forum the supporters' Trust are running will help to bring these kinds of issues to the club in an open and fair manner, enabling sensible dialogue and the opportunity for fans to raise concerns without fear of reprisals. I also hope it will highlight issues to those at the club who may not realise the scale of the dismay felt by some fans ....

I may be ranting on here, and putting myself in danger of being completely ostracised, but there are plenty who are 'festering' silently or who have emailed me about this issue both since we have moved here and also on the old site who want to say something but are scared of the repercussions ....

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

It has all been said before fer fecks sake. Away from home is a feckin day out, we are usually well lubricated, we usually have great craic in and out of the ground. We are usually herded into small areas of the ground, the Singing section congregates and most of the mental diehards are together, there is a hard core Central Belt following as well. And then there is the standard of play away from home and the results. I have only seen us get beat once this season cos I swerved the Cellic games.