No Standing at the Grove

I opened my inbox this morning to discover an email from Arsenal regarding standing at the Grove. They say;

In one or two sections of the stadium, it is becoming increasingly apparent that supporters have been standing throughout some of the matches.

Although;

[the Club] have no objection to people standing in order to see a particular move or at crucial points in the game.

They cite the general welfare and comfort of other supporters as their main concern, although safety is a major factor.

Let's deal with 'general welfare and comfort' first. The club felt the need to point out that when you stand up, people behind can't see, and not necessarily just the person directly behind. I sympathise with young supporters and supporters who cannot stand for great lengths of time, I really do. I've been in a situation myself where someone standing directly resulted in me being unable to see. At 6' something, that's no longer an issue - so long as I stand up myself. 

I never stand up unless it's absolutely necessary. For example, when a goal has been scored. When the guy ten rows back shouts to stand up if you love Arsenal/hate T*ttenham. When we get to the tenth man to have gone to bed with a certain number three in east Fulham. You get the idea. 

Standing up at matches helps engineer an atmosphere. I have no doubt in my mind that the atmosphere at the Grove improves tenfold during periods of standing, and I think it would improve more if standing were allowed in the stadium. (But then let's face it, it wouldn't take much at certain matches.) 

Now for the safety issue. They talk about a potential 'domino effect' of people falling over onto each other, potentially causing injuries. Potentially. I understand their concerns, but I feel they've gone too far. Firstly, the stewards do their jobs properly; I've never seen the gangways blocked by fans at any match except at the ends when the stewards attempt to stagger the emptying of the stadium. Secondly, there is just as much risk at the start and end of every match when fans are flocking in and out of the stadium, especially upper tier. The 'elf 'n' safety crew at the Grove would have heart attacks if they saw King's Cross during rush hour. 

There is a point to my rambling, and it's this; I understand people enjoy standing and singing at matches. I also understand that people enjoy sitting and get annoyed when people disrupt their view. The solution is simple; bring in an all-standing area. This way, those who want to stand can. Those who want to sit, can. Kids and those who can't stand for a great length of time can enjoy the game without their view being disrupted. Safety concerns about the standing areas could be alleviated by building in several large exits to the concourses to avoid crushes. I know it's an odd conclusion to come to following an email saying we should remain seated as much as possible, but there you go.

Finally, I've had a look at the seeding for the up coming Champions League season. Qualifying could potentially be tricky, with Atletico Madrid and Galatasaray potential opponents. In the group stages, assuming all the seeded teams qualify, we could end up in a group with; Bayern Munich, Roma or Villarreal; Juventus or Zenit St. Petersburg and; Spartak Moscow, Shakhtar Donetsk or Fiorentina. There's a real group of death lying in there. That'd be great!

Til next time.