The Fighting Cock by Martin Cloake
There are some great independent Spurs blogs and podcasts being produced at the moment and I always try to make my small contribution to raising their profile when I can. Lately I’ve been picking up on The Fighting Cock and the 1882 movement. I’ve followed a couple of the lads involved on Twitter and recognise some names from back in the day on the old TopSpurs message board, and there’s a real energy to what they are doing.
I’m going to sound as old as I feel when I’m listening to the podcast now but it’s really encouraging to hear what sounds like a new generation creating something and questioning the blandification of modern football. The Fighting Cock is above all passionate about Spurs, but there’s a recognition of the bigger picture that chimes with a growing feeling that’s coalescing around the Stand Against Modern Football initiative. Having come from a generation at Spurs that, despite our fanzine experience and efforts with various independent supporter initiatives, has not really made the impression we once thought we could, what’s most encouraging is the can-do spirit that pervades The Fighting Cock crew. They are a reminder of what football supporters are capable of, and of a spirit that is, in one of the great Steve Perryman’s favourite words, “proper”.
Hate the shirt
The mad cocktail of Spurs offers a necessary diversion from the freefall of our lives. But if you boo or abuse a player in a Tottenham jersey, you are hating the shirt. Loving the shirt, for me at least, means supporting the person in it through ninety plus minutes of pleasure, pain and misfortune. A fan is for air-conditioning, support is more than the silky boost of a Victoria’s Secret bra on supple, young skin, it is something that lifts you higher and forms a brick wall in the face of adversity. No-one shines in the face of dog’s abuse […]
Seven minutes of mind-blowing pleasure
Even Mila Kunis would struggle to provide seven minutes of such mind-blowing pleasure. Spurs’ late, three-goal salvo against Champions Manchester City touched the realms of fantasy and provided the best happy ending available on a Sunday afternoon in North London. This was one of those rare, great days for Spurs fans to savour. A past experience of pain only serves to heighten the joy and purity of the moment. If you truly love a team, as most of us do, it often feels like a harsh and unrequited love. Those listless 0-1 home defeats to mid-table non-entities and dogged relegation […]