Club or Country?

[-matthEw-]

been reading a few footy message boards tonight and being on the eve of an international match i've read an alarming amount of people who have a really strong dislike for all things regarding "The Tartan Army".

its something i just can't quite wrap my head around. to me it has never been a dilema. i've never ever seen the contradiction in supporting the Dons and Scotland 100%, yet, as far as club football forums seem to show, i'm in the minority.

the main issue seems to lie in that you can literally hate Barry Ferguson in a Rangers' top one week then cheer him on for Scotland the next. it just got me thinking of how fucked up the psyche of a football fan is and how maybe these international haters had a point.

so...discuss

[Alan Cynic]

I hate Barry Ferguson as much as the next person....but when he's in a Scotland shirt I'll root for him. Hell, I'd even cheer Kirk Broadfoot on, should plague wipe out the defence and he gets a game. The only players I've had reservations about have been non-Scots drafted in because their granny was Scottish (although even some of them I've come round to if it looked like they'd have kicked their other (non-Scottish) granny for the cause.

[Guest idol_wild]

I'll always be club over country. I have invested a lot of time, money, and emotions into supporting my club and I am just not fussed about doing the same for the Scottish national team. To me, supporting your club is more tribal and evokes more passion.

The Scottish national team has never really grabbed me. I usually watch the games and cheer them on and, yes, I do get caught in the emotion of it all if I am watching the games with friends in a pub, but not nearly to the same extent as cheering on my club.

In essence, I relate to my club a lot more than the national team.

[Larsen B]

I'll always be club over country. I have invested a lot of time, money, and emotions into supporting my club and I am just not fussed about doing the same for the Scottish national team. To me, supporting your club is more tribal and evokes more passion.

The Scottish national team has never really grabbed me. I usually watch the games and cheer them on and, yes, I do get caught in the emotion of it all if I am watching the games with friends in a pub, but not nearly to the same extent as cheering on my club.

In essence, I relate to my club a lot more than the national team.

I agree, but I really do enjoy the rare opportunity to come together with my friends in support of the same team.

[KimyReizeger]

The Scottish national team has never really grabbed me.

In essence, I relate to my club a lot more than the national team

.

Compare with:

I was...encouraged to adopt the local dialect, but actively chose to speak in a more general Scottish tongue because of how repugnant I find doric

So you love the local tribe but actively dissociate yourself from their disgusting way of talking. How do you get by singing 'Stand Free'?

[TR!ΔNGL€ T€€TH]

I've always had a certain detached feeling towards both my club and country (Celtic and Ireland respectively) due to 18 years residing in Shetland, so I have never had the camaraderie that Larsen B has felt about his country.

I'm certainly not one over the other...

[Larsen B]

I've always had a certain detached feeling towards both my club and country (Celtic and Ireland respectively) due to 18 years residing in Shetland, so I have never had to camaraderie that Larsen B has felt about his country.

I'm certainly not one over the other...

Well, I perhaps came over too strongly. I'm no patriot (not that you said I was), and the degree to which I follow Scotland can be judged by the fact I've never attended a Scotland game. It's only the rare opportunity for some football related camaraderie amongst my close friends really, as opposed to with the whole nation.

[StewCat]

i support the scotland team although its full of players i dispise which, at times makes it hard to support them.

watched the macedonia vs scotland game today and found myself screaming at the tv like a crazy person.

i was reading something in another post when someone (or somehun) said "kenny miller is underrated as a scotland player"...YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING! he's sooo shite its unbelievabe. he gets two flookie goals agains celtic last week now everyone has a boner over him. he's shite. so are rangers.

as for the rest of the team. it wasnt entretaining football. i found myself flicking over to sky sports 1 for entertainment (i pressed the red button during the wales match and selected the welsh commentery - priceless!) ....none of the scotland players had any flair about them or had the hunger to win, playing against a shit team...who we should have drawn with AT THE VERY LEAST!! although i will say playing away from home is never easy and the ref ignored two blatant penaltys.

...but if it was a case of Scotland national team vs Aberdeen FC...i'd support the dons.

and for the record if it was Rangers vs a team of Italian Nazi Child Rapists i'd support the latter.

[Guest idol_wild]

Compare with:

So you love the local tribe but actively dissociate yourself from their disgusting way of talking.

Yes. You can try and make out like it's a contradiction, but it's not. Plus, by tribal I don't necessarily mean regional or local. Aberdeen have supporters from all over Scotland (quite a lot in the central belt, too). I just mean one group of people supporting the same team week-in and week-out.

And besides, when Aberdeen supporters sing/chant they don't sound collectively doric. So I get by just fine, just like other other non-doric speaking Aberdeen fans.

[Alan Cynic]

i support the scotland team although its full of players i dispise which, at times makes it hard to support them.

...but if it was a case of Scotland national team vs Aberdeen FC...i'd support the dons.

and for the record if it was Rangers vs a team of Italian Nazi Child Rapists i'd support the latter.

Agreed on the Dons vs Scotland,..........not so sure about the Gers.....I usually want them to win in Europe.

[TR!ΔNGL€ T€€TH]

and for the record if it was Rangers vs a team of Italian Nazi Child Rapists i'd support the latter.

Does it matter that the child rapists are Italian?

[get lost]

Difficult one, but simple really!!,

The question should be what do you see yourself as?

Scottish 1st, Local to your area 2nd, or visa ve!

I think as Im getting older, Im becoming more parocial, so Aberdeen 1st

[KimyReizeger]

I couldn't really give a toss because the two teams occupy entirely different spheres and never come into direct conflict with one another. I will say though - club football is geographically unspecific. Club players can be bought in from anywhere; national teams are limited by borders and heritage, and are supposed to drive on passion, grit and pride. Therefore I find the achievements of a national side more admirable and enjoyable, particularly with an underdog side like Scotland, whereby success is determined solely by hard work and intelligence and not player-pulling capacity.

[calum]

I will say though - club football is geographically unspecific. Club players can be bought in from anywhere; national teams are limited by borders and heritage, and are supposed to drive on passion, grit and pride. Therefore I find the achievements of a national side more admirable and enjoyable, particularly with an underdog side like Scotland, whereby success is determined solely by hard work and intelligence and not player-pulling capacity.

Interesting point. However, I would say it depends on which club you support. In the Dnipro-Aberdeen game last season, we started with 11 Scottish players. 7 of these came through the Dons' youth system, 4 of whom are from the North-East itself, including our goalscorer. I for one was pretty proud of that.

It must be fun to support Athletico Bilbao.

[Paranoid Android]

Like Kimy I've never really thought of it as an issue, I support Aberdeen at club level and Scotland internationally and for me it's never been a case of one being more important than the other. I've never had any problem with cheering on players from clubs I dislike.

[Guest Jake Wifebeater]

I support my club side and couldn't give a teaspoon of fuck-toss for the national side. Agree with Lenin on the infantile nature of nationalism.

[KimyReizeger]

I support my club side and couldn't give a teaspoon of fuck-toss for the national side. Agree with Lenin on the infantile nature of nationalism.

As though there is grown up rationality behind other forms of football support?

However, I would say it depends on which club you support. In the Dnipro-Aberdeen game last season, we started with 11 Scottish players. 7 of these came through the Dons' youth system, 4 of whom are from the North-East itself, including our goalscorer. I for one was pretty proud of that.

This is an unusual case. I also like the fact Aberdeen did well with little cash and a homegrown bunch. This does little to argue either eay though, because few teams have this level of geographical specificity (particularly the high-achievers), so by admitting your respect for the homegrown bunch you must concede the same logic applies (even more so) to the Scotland team, who, money and chance rendered irrelevant, will always be local.

[StewCat]

ok im maybe paranoid or something but how come players like Barry Robson (who is still shite imo) never played for scotland when he was at dundee united yet a move to celtic gaurentee's him a spot on the team for some reason...maybe?

and although he's ingured he was picked for the scotland team - Kevin McNaughton who if i remembered during his time at aberdeen, played his socks off every week, was never in the first national team and yet now he's at cardiff its like "oh he's good now!!lol!"...och, i dunno maybe im wrong - maybe the better scottish players only play for Rangers, Celtic or Clubs in better leagues....but come on...KENNY MILLER???naysmith? you've gotta be kidding me. and who the hell is Kris Commons? am i missing something?

although saying that, im glad to hear Steven Fletcher fae Hibs has been called from the Under-21s for the Iceland game. He played well against Czech Republic U21s.

[Lemonade]

Supporting Scotland is an afterthought for me, I support the Dons week in week out, read all the stories coming out of Pittodrie in the Evening, pay attention to who's performing well, talk incessantly about the Dons over pints at the weekend. Scotland games happen like 4 times a year and I really don't give much of a fuck about the national team. If it was full of Dons players I'd pay attention, but the first thing I do when looking at a Scotland squad is see if any Dons players get called up, and when looking at match reports, see if any Dons players got a game. The squad is generally full of players that I despise regardless of whether they are in light blue, green and white or dark blue, and I just can't switch off my hatred of the likes of Ferguson, Boyd et all for one weekend. And it fucks me off that as soon as a player signs for one of the old firm they instantly warrant a call up, even if they were nowhere near the squad before. I like to see Scotland do well, but it comes well down on my list of footballing priorities.

We often debate which would you prefer to see, The Dons win the league or Scotland win the World Cup. For me it's the Dons but many others disagree.

[-matthEw-]

Scotland to win the World Cup, easily. Dons to win Champions League or Scotland to win the World Cup though? I hate myself for even having this eternal debate given how ludicrous it is but its gotta be Dons to win the Champions League. Although I think the World Cup is far more romantic trophy to win for a team like Scotland I just get giddy of the thought of Aberdeen lifting the old European Cup.

[KarmaTsunami]

I'll support Scotland as well as Rangers happily. I have no problem cheering on other teams players once they've got a Scotland top on.