The Sol Campbell Saga
Let me make my position perfectly clear. If Sol Campbell got hit by a bus tomorrow I wouldn't feel anything. He is, as they say, nothing to me. And I couldn't care less if he's gay, straight or Australian.
And so then to the 'The Sol Cambell Song' which I reproduce here, "Sol, Sol wherever you may be, not long now till lunacy, and we won't give a **** when you're hanging from a tree, you Judas **** with HIV".
Personally I go to games to cheer on our lot. I used to be bored by the 'Stand Up If You Hate Ar5ena1' chant. Now I'm embarrassed by it. When sung when we're not even playing them is an even more desperate reminder of how thin we are for songs. But anyway...
I don't sing the Sol song. It's a bloody angry bit of verse and as I said at the top of this, he's nothing to me now. But I don't sing it primarily because for all of it's venom, to me, the net result is to highlight a low in our Club's history. I'd rather get involved in something a bit more cheery, a little less grim of a Saturday afternoon.
Don't get me wrong. Barracking is good for the soul. Bellowing 'w*nker' repeatedly at one of their lot or the referee can be very theraputic. In fact, I'd recommed it.
The Sol Song. Is it racist? Based upon my own understanding of the Bible and it's tale of Judas combined with the fact that I wasn't raised in say, in the Deep South of the USA, to me it isn't. I'm not an apologist for this vicious bit of verse, just stating my personal opinion.
But we have had this hateful song doing the rounds now for what, seven years and what has it achieved? Well right now it has every bleeding heart in the media not to mention Hampshire Old Bill chasing our ambulance.
Brain Reade's sensationalist piece last week set the tone.
He was later joined by the ever outraged Peter 'F*ckwit' Tatchell in the Guardian.
Next on the scene was FA Chairman Lord Triesman.
Rio Ferdinand made an excellent statement in relation to the two bob fine Croatia got for the awful Heskey abuse. As a result of the 'renewed interest' in the Sol Campbell Song, Tottenham secured a mention in virtually all the coverage Rio got.
It's time we moved on. Unless we lose this song, we are going to be mentioned in dispatches every time the race issue rears it's ugly head in football.
Let's play football and not into the hands of the politically correct.
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you say its time we moved on. It ain't. Such chants bring shame on our Spurs family, and turn what should be an enjoyable (and very expensive day-out) into a depressing experience.
Don't focus on whether the chant was racist or not (as this suggests if you can prove it wasn't, then everything is cool). The chant was vile and has no place anywhere, least of all at a place of so-called sporting entertainment where people spend 40 quid plus for a ticket and are seeking an escape from their daily lives for a few hours.
Harold - do not move on. Use your forum to let Spurs fans know this is unacceptable. Call people out on your board if it happens again. And a message to Levy - do more, do much more. Increase policing and ban those who you catch throwing abuse. Do a Cloughie, and post notices around the pitch to tell the morons there is difference between banter and abuse. Get the players to publically speak out on the issue. Make a tannoy announcement during the game; better still, stop the game if you have to and forfeit the points.
Being bottom of the league I can cope with. Having the good name of my club and fellow fans being dragged into the gutter by a bunch of humour-less morons is something I can't stand for.
Harold - don't walk away from this. Stand and fight for our club.
HH
We all know for one reason or another the papers or more importantly 'sensationalist' papers such as The Daily Mail seem to dislike Spurs and enjoy writing derogatory articles about our club. The Camp*ell saga is another example of that.
Arsenal fans taunted Ashley Cole for being gay, Le Saux used to get taunted for being gay. Unfortunately, there will always be a minority of football fans that just shout abuse at players. Thats just the way it is.
The most annoying thing about the S*l saga is that Spurs fans are being called Racists. HOW can we be racists?? We come from North London, one of the most ethnically diverse places in Britain nay Europe or even the world. Our club captain is black among other star players that are also coloured and we have over the years had many black players in our teams. A good percentage of our squad is foreign, and we call ourselves yiddo's in response to our harsh treatment from other fans due to our team coming from a jewish area of london!
Why was the FA and police force not so keen to punish West Ham whenever we play them? They firstly 'hiss' to immitate gas chambers (the holocaust) and also when Mido played for us the chant of shoe bomber was rather unjust too.
In my opinion the the press and other people have very short memories and in terms of papers like the Daily Mail there is no point in even looking at their vitriolic, nonsensical rubbish.
I agree, I've heard this sung quite a few times and never joined in. I'm not offended by it I just think it's a bit homophobic. It clearly isn't racist of course. I think we should come up with a new song about Sol steering clear of these issues.
First, grazza you have a point about the adebayor song, it is racist - and gets sung all over the place no matter who we play - interesting none of the hacks have complained about it. I have heard at every game home and away I have been to over the last few years but none of these journo's of higher moral status have mentioned it. The campbell song however is not racist and I don't believe it to be homophobic unless HIV is a disease that only affects gay people, I may be wrong but I don't think it does. that idiot deserves everything he gets.
Reply to Grazza:
I think its time we left the Adebayor one alone as well.
Call a c*nt a c*nt is what i say, but this sort of stuff is asking for trouble....
Interesting that none of the hacks (that i read anyway) picked up on the "Yids" category on our playlist.
What are the press banging on about??? Don't they know that Monday was the start of:
'Black History Month' on the official site???
Next thing you know we'll do a 'Gay History Month'
Just for Sol we'll do a 'Black AND Gay History Month' Or maybe just a hole weak!
Sorry for that one people, foolish and immature. I just couldn't help myself!
Reply to jamiespurs:
HH
We all know for one reason or another the papers or more importantly 'sensationalist' papers such as The Daily Mail seem to dislike Spurs and enjoy writing derogatory articles about our club. The Camp*ell saga is another example of that.
Arsenal fans taunted Ashley...
What has that got to do with the price of fish in wartime?
By your own lips, you acknowledge John Terry to be a racist, yet he plays in a team richly populated with black fellas and is not remiss with the hugs when any of them score.
Denial is futile. We've been caught with our hands in the cookie jar. Now, it's hands up, straighten up and fly right time.
278 Comments
I think its time we left the Adebayor one alone as well.
Call a c*nt a c*nt is what i say, but this sort of stuff is asking for trouble....
Interesting that none of the hacks (that i read anyway) picked up on the "Yids" category on our playlist.
Exactly right.
And what's more, if he wants the furore to die down, all he has to do is apologise for his defection. Acknowledge the fans he deceived, betrayed and scorned. Say that it was an ill-advised action and the he shouldn't have lied about hsi intentions.
If he did, I'm sure the majority of fans would allow him some measure of dignity. Some may even find it in their hearts to forgive him and start treating him as a player who did well for us while here was at WHL.
Stop whining Campbell! Put your hands up and admit what you did, instead of hiding behind Harry's skirts.