There was a time not so long ago when it was much more difficult to follow football from great distances. Times have changed; this “Internet thing” seems to be here to stay as my father still tells me when I visit, and the advent of a plethora of social networking applications have made following the Beautiful Game that much easier, and as a result fans are that much closer to their clubs.
As a lad from Canada, I didn’t grow up watching English football for many reasons. For one, my father always liked the game, but didn’t follow at the club level – he still recounts the Magnificent Magyars led by Puskas from the 1950’s. There was also the fact that it was not nearly as readily available as other more traditional North American sports such as American or Canadian football, hockey or baseball. When the highlights did make the evening news or the only specialty sports station available at the time (TSN in Canada, ESPN in the US), the players were far too exotic and “untouchable” for me to really get into it. For me, I remained mildly interested for most of my youth.
But as the Internet and e-mail became necessary parts of life, fans like me in far off places were put directly in contact with the game the rest of the world seemed to adopt as their own already. Add to that factors such as the World Cup being played in the US and the formation of Major League Soccer, and suddenly folks were taking notice on a much greater scale than ever before. Modern technology has changed the game more than anything else – not the game itself per se (though that’s an article for a different day), just its audience. Want proof? Just check the average fan’s Twitter timeline.
I have followed Arsenal for some time now – a little before the Invincibles to be more specific. Clearly I’m not as versed in Gunner lore as most of my #GoonerFamily, but I believe I am every bit as passionate. One necessity of mine, which is as habitual as the changing of my undergarments, is checking my Arsenal news every morning. EVERY morning. And my first stop is perhaps the mother (err, father) of all Arsenal fan sites – Arseblog.com.
I can’t say specifically what I appreciate most about the site – it’s just a general feeling I get having read it religiously. It’s almost like it revs my day and steers me in the right direction. Perhaps it’s the fact that it really is published daily, without fail. I have come to rely on it, and hopefully in some silly way it relies on me. It certainly doesn’t hurt that I appreciate the honest, no holds barred approach the site’s caretaker has towards my club. Like it or not, his hands are not so far up someone’s ass as to skew his opinions and make things all honky dory. You get what you get. I like that… I don’t have time for something else.
Arseblog is not just a website though. The app associated with the site is top-notch. It comes complete with a fantastic widget that gives the daily blog, guest writing, news, and even a gameday live blog. And can any Gooner’s week be complete without listening to Arsecast, the site’s podcast? Thought not.
Let’s change pace for a minute…
I’ve never told anyone this, but when my then two-year old son was sick, I mean really sick, lain up in hospital, I would always make just a couple of minutes every morning to read up on Arseblog. Why? Because for that short time I could feel things were normal, even when they weren’t for the rest of the day. No joke, it was therapeutic.
Last April, after my son was completely healed, my life was back to normal, and my daily habit continued as is. A friend of mine on Twitter, also a Gooner, shared with me the title of a book he’d just read – So Paddy Got Up. The book was created by Andrew Mangan, Arseblog founder, and it is essentially a collection of stories from some of Arsenal’s most wild supporters. I have recently decided to write a full book review, which I will publish next week right here at LWOS.
Recently, Andrew agreed to answer a few questions for us at LastWordOnSports, which we are wildly thankful for. It went as follows:
Mike: In your book you explained how you came up with the title, “So Paddy Got Up”. Can you give our readers who may not make the connection how that name came about?
Arseblog: Well, it’s a well known Arsenal song, and as I’m an Irishman that gets up first thing in the morning to write a blog it was a little play on that too.
Mike: Writing Arseblog, which is a hobby of yours, is literally read by thousands upon thousands of Arsenal supporters every day. Do you ever feel unmotivated to continue, or that it is just a “job” and no longer a “passion”?
Arseblog: No, not at all. I’ve always said it’s a labour of love, and right now it’s more than a hobby too. Anyway, even when things don’t go well it’s nearly always interesting.
Mike: Your book is essentially a collection of writings from some of the foremost authorities when it comes to Gooner lore. I’m wondering, is there a particular blog or news source that you go to every day like so many flock to you?
Arseblog: I read a lot of Arsenal blogs, of course, but it’s about looking at a wide-range of outlets to see what’s going on. Obviously the definitive sources is the official website, but you can also find a lot of interesting stuff in the foreign press which they can’t really cover. So it’s important to look around as far and wide as possible.
Mike: Living in Ireland, do you find it difficult to support the club as London-based supporters?
Arseblog: I don’t think location has any real bearing on how much somebody supports Arsenal, or any club. Being close to it makes it much easier to attend games/enjoy the social aspect of it, that’s for sure, but I don’t think a person is any less of a supporter because they live in Dublin or Dallas or wherever.
Mike: Living in North America, it’s hard to get a sense of the atmosphere in some particularly notable derbies such as Arsenal and Spurs. Can you put into words how important and utterly relentless that rivalry is?
Arseblog: There are some rivalries that are borne out of competitiveness (see Arsenal – Man Utd) in the late 90s, early 2000s, but Sp*rs is one of those based on geography. They haven’t won the league since 1961, so it’s all about location and everything that entails. The same as Everton – Liverpool, Rangers – Celtic and to a certain extent Barcelona – Madrid.
Mike: What are your thoughts on the Premier League schedule – should there be a mid-season break?
Arseblog: I don’t think it would be a bad thing really, but one of the great traditions of English football is the fact that there are fixtures played over the festive period. I guess they’ll have to weigh up the benefits to the game (which I think are quite minimal) against discarding that tradition – especially when so many others have been thrown by the wayside in recent years.
Mike: Has the FA Cup lost some of its magic, or do you still feel it is the same wonderful trophy it has always been?
Arseblog: It’s certainly lost some of its sparkle, the emergence of the Champions League (in which more than one English club can compete) has seen it lose importance. Now, from a financial point of view, it’s better for a club to qualify for the CL than win the FA Cup. It’s a competition I still love though, my first Arsenal memory is winning it in 1979, and I’d love to see us do it again this year.
Mike: Finally, and I’m sure you’ve got this questions 1001 times already, but Arsene Wenger has come under a lot of scrutiny from supporters due to lack of spending. Considering the Board and Arsene himself have acknowledged there is money to be spent, do you feel is is a sign that the Professor’s time at the Emirates should soon come to an end?
Arseblog: I think the main frustration comes not from the fact that we haven’t won, but more because it appears that we haven’t done as much as we could have to compete. When the team needs improvement and the money stays in the bank, unspent, then it’s hard to convince people you’re as ambitious as you keep saying.
I think that age, and contract, suggest that Arsene’s time is finite, but should Arsenal not buy anyone and fail to finish in the top four or win the cup, then his position is going to under real threat.
Once again, LWOS would like to thank Andrew Mangan for his time in answering a few questions. But more importantly, we thank him for the time he puts in every day to help satisfy our craving for everything Arsenal. Don’t forget to check back next week for our full review of his fantasy book, “So Paddy Got Up”.
Until then, visit Arseblog.com, and find his app and widget on Google Play and iTunes store. Follow him on Twitter – @arseblog and @arseblognews. And while you’re at it, follow us as well – @LastWordOnSport and @PintRunnethDry.
Main photo credit: atomicShed via photopin cc
