in town for West Ham match 2/23

Hey y'all. This will be my first foray into London and I'm pumped to sit in H5! The Golden Lion sounds great, too. I've been a BigSoccer guy for a while, but I'm new on here so my apologies for any redundancies. Couple questions, if any of you fine folks have the time to answer them:

- Are there any songs/chants I should know? Tough to discern on the tele.

- Is it appropriate to wear a US Dempsey jersey to the match? How easy/affordable would it be to purchase Fulham gear in town?

- Any other suggestions for a solitary yank heading to the Cottage?

I appreciate your input, guys. I'm looking forward to using my vocal chords to keep us in the prem next year!

 

RE: in town for West Ham match 2/22

It would be great to read about how things go and any tips you can pass along for those of us who haven't been there yet. Have a great time.

 

Welcome RightPants have a great time and definitely share your trip w/the rest of us. February in London makes me think your jacket won't be coming off so no worries about the Deuce jersey (one of those great black and white scarfs looks to be the call). There should be a few chants in a thread on the fan-dom, travel section.

 

Hello right pants, glad to hear you are making a grip to the historic Craven Cottage to see a Fulham match. I'm a fellow yank and season ticket holder so I'll do my best to answer your questions

Some songs you need to know:
The simple: Come on Fulham

The just as simple: Cooommmeee ooonnn yyyyoouuuuu wwwhhiittteess

For Jimmy Bullard (to que sera sera):
Jimmy Bullard Bullard
He's better than Steve Gerrard
And Thinner thank Frank Lampard
Jimmy Bullard Bullard

We are Fulham , We are Fulham, We are Fulham, FFC
We are Fulham , Super Fulham, We are Fulham, Fuck Chelsea

For our Chairman:
Al Fayed Whoooaaaaa
Al Fayed Whoooaaaaa
He wants to be a brit and QPR are Shit
Al Fayed Whoooaaaaa
Al Fayed Whoooaaaaa

That should keep you busy!

You can wear any USMNT jersey to the match and the local Fulham faithful welcome it. They hold our yanks dear. It's easy to purchase a jersey on matchday but do it EARLY! I'd suggest the Fulham road shop found here: http://www.fulhamfc.com/Contact/Directi ... ttage.aspx (hint, it's just down the road from the Golden Lion.

Buy me a beer in the Golden Lion. No seriously, chat to the locals, walk through Bishops Park to the Ground. SING.

Hope that helps. COYWs

 

RE: Re: in town for West Ham match 2/23

Thanks, fellas. I will be glad to share details of the trip with everyone. Thanks for the local info, Mike. I will be sure to drop by the pub with my newest Cottage scarf. And by the way, Mike, how EARLY do you mean?

 

Re: RE: Re: in town for West Ham match 2/23

To be safe, I'd say get to the club shop no later than 11:30am/noon and then get right over to the pub after that. Come 1:30, the Golden Lion starts to get really packed although if the weather is good, the beer garden will help with any overflow.

 

RE: Re: RE: Re: in town for West Ham match 2/23

Hopefully you get this before the match, but we are changing venues for the prematch festivities. A Local Fulham pub is having a Beer Festival thus it would be a great place to grab a few.

Called the Bricklayers arms and its in Putney, not far from the Golden Lion or Craven Cottage, just on the other side of the Bridge.

Found here: http://www.beerintheevening.com/pubs/s/ ... rms/Putney

 

Thanks to everyone who provided input. The trip was great, despite the finaly tally.

For anyone who is interested on how it went:

I ended up linking up with a coworker of my London friend, a guy named Luke who was overjoyed to hear I'd come all the way across the Atlantic to watch his struggling club. Within 5 minutes of speaking with him I had been invited (urged?) to join him in the Hammersmith end--no matter that I'd already secured an H5 ticket, he was part of a group season pass holder and would ensure I had someone to chant with. Luke also instructed me on the ways of nudging through a crowd at the Golden Lion (great environment, if not a tad intimate for match day), as well as how to place a bet (one pound each for dempsey and mcbride to score, at 15:1 odds) and order a meat pie.

Luke was 23 and very curious about the American fan. He and his friends had a lot of questions about our access to football and were impressed at the lengths we take to enjoy their league. He countered this by saying he enjoyed attending the 2007 NFL match at Wembley (the Giants, was it?), but it seemed more of a youthful attempt to reciprocate, as if he was so greatful I was supporting his club and sport that he would return the favor by complimenting my country's sport.

The match itself was great. Fans remained seated most of the time (thought that wouldn't be the case in The H) and no bottles were permitted in the stands. The chants were all very simple, as I knew thanks to FFC-USA, and the crowd's errant comments were pretty straigtforward as well. Luke said at one point about my comments (maybe the skirt comment following a Boa Morte dive), "Where does he come up with this shit?"... I guess 4 years attending SEC football games builds a broader base of commentary. Point being that the crowd was not as rowdy or imposing as I thought it might be. Whether this is a club- or match-specific thing, I don't know.

All the same, haven't seen as much public urination as I did outside the grounds after the match since college...

Overall, it was a great experience. I would highly recommend going if you're considering it and can afford to do so.