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Some hilarious but true analysis of the Wanderers' weakest link - the behaviour of their fanbase.But whatever the merits of Tony Popovic's side, what cannot be argued is that their fans are the most irresponsible in the entire competition. Unlike their team, they are in a league of their own.
As Wanderers took the early sting out of Melbourne Victory at Etihad Stadium their boisterous, loud and abrasive travelling fans decided to make themselves, rather than their team, the centre of attention.
Normally they wait until late in the game when they perform their "look at me" celebration, the Poznan, when they turn their back on their team and chant in affirmation of themselves.
Wanderers fans in the crowd let off flares as police personnel look on. Photo: Getty Images
This time the match was less than a quarter of an hour old when they decided to make themselves the main focus of the game.
Wanderers supporters let off a series of flares and exploding firecrackers that caused a series of bangs and booms down in the bay they had occupied. More than that, the ground was enveloped in so much smoke that the players simply could not see.
Referee Ben Williams blew his whistle, and the game stopped for
several minutes as the haze cleared before proceedings could recommence.
Such behaviour might be fine in the Balkans, Southern Europe and South America, but they are not in Australia. It is not part of the culture of the sport here.
Such activities only give the critics of the game ammunition to denigrate it, belittle it and run smear campaigns against it.
In effect, those who argue that they are bringing passion and commitment to the game by letting off flares are in fact potentially stunting the potential growth of the sport they purport to love.
The irony, of course, was that it was the Wanderers who suffered from the stoppage.
They had begun the game brightly and were getting on top when the interruption of several minutes came.
From a corner shortly after the restart Victory got their goal.
Of course - it's never the fault of those RBB/Wanderers fans themselves!
The stories about the behaviour of this self-interested bunch of thugs do tend to write themselves....
Thanks for the tip... but that's why I added the underlines as well;-).
