The Supporters & The Scapegoat | Vital Football

The Supporters & The Scapegoat

Galaxy42

Vital Football Hero
Having been visiting the City Ground for more years than I care to remember it seems to odd to me that I can not remember a single time, even in the successful years that there wasn't a scapegoat, a player singled out as the week link.

It's Pantilimon now, but it's also been Osborn, Fox, Michael Mancienne, Ishmael Miller, James Perch, Gino Padula Nigel Quashie, Danny Collins, Nikola Jerkan, Simon cox, Justin Fashanu, Simon Gillett, Simon Gillett, Wes Morgan (now Premier league winner), Danny Sonner, Sammy Clingan, David Philips. Scott Dobie, Djamel Abdoun, Barry Roche & even John McGovern who lifted the European Cup for us.

That's just a list off the top of my head as I sit bored in my office, I'm sure you can all name a couple of dozen others that I've long since forgotten had ever played for us. There are some names on the list I've been non to kind to myself, but the one thing that those listed have in common is that they all tried their best at Forest, they may have lacked some talent but that's hardly their fault they were the best we had at the time, yet here we are criticising another player in Pantilimon that is doing the very best he can with the talent at his disposal.

Is it not our job as supporters to get behind the lesser players who probably need our backing far more that the stand out players, the terrace darlings that everyone loves.

It does feel at the moment like we are turning a corner as a club, from the owner through to the manager, coaching staff and players we are becoming a vastly more impressive club, maybe it's time for fans to turn a corner too & begin supporting the players most in need of it.:rocker:
 
I know why we do it. Its because the vast majority of Forest fans are idiots

I can understand why you would think that because I have heard people saying some pretty idiotic things, but in truth it seems to be more of a learned pack mentality acquired over the years, it's almost like bullying the runt of a litter.

We seem to seek out the weakest link in the chain & abuse them, it almost always becomes a sell fulfilling prophecy in the end.
 
Pants has kept 9 clean sheets this season. The 2nd best in the whole league. He isn't the runt of the litter. That's that joke of a player Hefele
 
For me, the term scapegoat by its nature implies someone being unjustly blamed for failure.

For the first time in a long time, we are not failing.

So what exactly do you feel Pantillimon is being (unjustly) blamed for?

Surely something has to be going wrong for someone to be made a scapegoat as a result?

I can't think of many goals that Pantillimon has been blamed for, let alone dropped points.

But having said that, his kicking on Saturday was appalling. It's not scapegoating to say that- he kicked it out for a throw in far too many times and it was shite
 
Was it the Millwall game that Pants had an absolute mare ?
Other than that he's not been as bad as some have made out .
 
Pants scares the living crap out of me whenever he has the ball in his hands, I just don't think he remembers which colour ours guys are in sometimes...
But as far as weak links go, hes no Gary bannister.
Best season we've had in ages and as long as we hold onto and keep everyone fit with a few good additions in Jan I think it will be a cracker!
 
I wouldn't describe Pants as a scapegoat. He's better described as a player who is one of the weaker links in the team and who we may wish to replace if we aspire to be a Premier League club.

For such a tall man he really doesn't command his area. When crosses are put in, he doesn't inspire the confidence of his fellow defenders, who do far more to keep clean sheets than he does. Also his distribution is at best indecisive and, at worst, calamitous.

Jordan Smith is not perfect, and has similar faults, but he can consider himself to be unlucky to be frozen out by Pants, IMO.
 
Has anyone else noticed that since Pantilimon has been given dog abuse off the "fans" hes stopped going over to the kids, signing autographs etc which he did every match at warm up? The abuse in the ground and on here has been scathing. When I get back from the match I look at the fantastic match thread and read several pages of tripe attacking Pantilimon. The shit he is given, well, no wonder his form has dipped. When he came, he played a big part in keeping us up. Football fans are twats.

But Mancienne was shit
 
Having been visiting the City Ground for more years than I care to remember it seems to odd to me that I can not remember a single time, even in the successful years that there wasn't a scapegoat, a player singled out as the week link.

It's Pantilimon now, but it's also been Osborn, Fox, Michael Mancienne, Ishmael Miller, James Perch, Gino Padula Nigel Quashie, Danny Collins, Nikola Jerkan, Simon cox, Justin Fashanu, Simon Gillett, Simon Gillett, Wes Morgan (now Premier league winner), Danny Sonner, Sammy Clingan, David Philips. Scott Dobie, Djamel Abdoun, Barry Roche & even John McGovern who lifted the European Cup for us.

That's just a list off the top of my head as I sit bored in my office, I'm sure you can all name a couple of dozen others that I've long since forgotten had ever played for us. There are some names on the list I've been non to kind to myself, but the one thing that those listed have in common is that they all tried their best at Forest, they may have lacked some talent but that's hardly their fault they were the best we had at the time, yet here we are criticising another player in Pantilimon that is doing the very best he can with the talent at his disposal.

Is it not our job as supporters to get behind the lesser players who probably need our backing far more that the stand out players, the terrace darlings that everyone loves.

It does feel at the moment like we are turning a corner as a club, from the owner through to the manager, coaching staff and players we are becoming a vastly more impressive club, maybe it's time for fans to turn a corner too & begin supporting the players most in need of it.:rocker:
I'm old enough to remember a young Sammy Chapman being a scapegoat, as an inside forward who kept fluffing scoring chances. That changed when he was converted into a big bad centre half.
 
Perhaps you should have been watching in the real old days Galaxy, when this sort of action didn't exist. And that's the truth, I'm not kidding.
I do remember groans and moans, that's typical of fans at any time but the sort of stuff you're talking about just didn't happen.

And there's nothing wrong with my memory either.
 
Of ffs of


Yes I know.

This always reminds me of an old song which goes something like this, maybe not quite but something like.

Two lovely black eyes, two lovely black eyes,
Only for telling a man he was wrong,
Two lovely black eyes.

I can still sing it in tune, must have learned the hard way.

:thumbup: