The World Cup - what's irritating me

I shouldn't let it irritate me as much, because it happens at every big televised match. But it seems to me that people have travelled all around the world to get to Brazil, to sit in some fantastic looking stadiums, probably using tickets that cost them a few quid too, only to watch the game on the telly. Every time the camera shows a crowd shot the fans in questions suddenly get excited, point to the big screen and start gurning. Is anybody in these stadiums actually watching the game? They could have stayed at home and watched the telly...although, to be fair, listening to Clive Tyldesley and Jonathan Pearce have made me considered walking to Brazil.

At least it served one purpose, as it seems to be as quick a cure for misery for the Spanish fans as winning a free kick and getting the opposition player booked seems to cure Fernando Torres' really, really sore leg that has just been kicked, honest ref. The camera spots a depressed looking Spaniard in the crowd, who looks ready to launch themself off the top tier, but as soon as they spot themself on the big screen the black cloud lifts and all of a sudden they're no longer a depressed Spaniard, but a pointing, waving, gurning one!

I therefore make a pledge. If I have the good fortune to follow the Reds into a game big enough to have a big screen in a televised game, should the pointing, gurning person next to me excitedly tell me that we are on the screen I will respond with a salute made famous by Billy Casper and Harvey Smith. It's a ruddy football game, not a Take That concert!

 

hmmm - Victor Meldrew esque

 

To be fair, it normally takes someone a while to spot themselves on it and they have to tell others. It's also when the ball is out of play so perhaps they are looking up at the scoreboard at that moment to see how long is left.

Let's face it, whilst there's play on the field at Oakwell (I was going to say action but that's stretching it a bit), I often get some tw@t behind me who feels it necessary to read out all the latest scores from the scoreboard.

 

They're mostly showing these crowd shots when the ball isn't in play, aren't they? I'm sure that everyone with a decent view at the screen would take at least a brief glimpse at it when there's nothing going on on the pitch.

 

I get worse than that in the Ponty, usually two or three lads on their phones, reading the scores out all afternoon. I doubt they watch more than 10 minutes of the game. They might as well stay at home and do that. Supporting the Reds though, I suppose. Does irritate me a bit though, cos I think they're usually pissed up and they can't remember who they've back in their 10-fold or whatever it is they do. Continually shouting over at one another, "Who's tha backed" "Es tha got Man U" etc. etc. every 2 minutes.

 

Oh I get them making comments when the scores aren't up, so looking on their phones. Bloody annoying when I like to watch Match of the Day without knowing the scores.

 

pppfffh. You wanna sit where I sit, you'd know scores, goalscorers, times, MoM etc. etc all before 5 pm. Oh, and updates at regular 2 minute intervals.