Do we hold out the hand of friendship to Manchester United?

Ant · September 17, 2012

This week has brought home that either the whole of the country are either a bunch of bandwagon jumpers, or genuine sadness, and shock has been shown by football fans all over the country.

Since the official release of the papers it seems not an hour goes by where an individual, a club a group or organization regardless of their complicity in the cover up has expressed sadness and sympathy not just to the victims but Liverpool Football Club itself. YNWA has been played at various venues and on our visit to Sunderland, their fans greeted us with very kindly both before and after the game. Our grief and anger is apparently now shared with the rest of the country.

Some Manchester United fans however, have not shared that, and seemingly have never shared that. Though it would be wrong to say that they are all brainless morons. Because they aren't, like our club, they have an unsavory element which we try to hide, and in some instances try to justify. I was listening to this account by a United fan on the chants which he heard in the Stretford end, and a few words resonated with me that he might just have more in common with their 'worst enemy' then he may do with fans who support his own team, and it got me thinking, is there something in that.

We're separated by a motorway and an Ikea, but our clubs are United in rivalry, United in tragedy and United in the fact that sadly some of our fans mock the dead. In a week where vindication has been the word most used to describe this weeks events. Is it about time we really addressed the issue of the unsavory elements of both our support. If there is to be a lasting legacy from this weeks events, I hope both clubs can work together as a whole to remove this sad culture from our rivalry. No doubt next week will bring Evra and Suarez to the limelight, however I have no time for either of them. In the context of our history, and their history. Their 'squabble' doesn't register, I'm fed up of it being used as ammo on both sides to ridicule and and to discriminate against either set of supporters.

Manchester United and Liverpool Football Club in my opinion are two of the greatest supporting institutions in the country and always will be, the history of both clubs, the huge fan-base, everything about us both exemplifies the culture of a big football club in Britain, and I f***ing hate Manchester United, but we shouldn't let our rivalry brew over to mocking of the dead, a 'one cap fits all' approach to both sets of fans. It's no surprise to me that our first home game after the truth came out is against Manchester United, and just like the 50th Anniversary of the Munich Air Disaster and their rivalry with City. We have to find a unique way, and a respectful way to acknowledge the history that was made this week. The true Manchester United fans will put something together, and I hope it will be well received.

We owe it to the history of both clubs, our own institutions to make this the end of an era of animosity. Our rivalry is historic, lets keep is historic. Our fan bases are famous, lets keep them famous for the right reasons. It's up to Manchester United fans to deal with their own fans, but we should do the same to our own.

cymrococh · September 17, 2012

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