Toronto FC, Aston Villa, The Red Patch Boys, and Frustration

Original Post Date - July 29, 2007

So, once again, it's been awhile since I've been at this. However, since it seems to me that all you voyeurs and vagabonds would like to stay abreast of what's going on in my life, I'm going to attempt to be at least a little more frequent with this thing. Truth be told, I, like so many of you, have found a new outlet for my online time-killing - Facebook. And since I just figured out how to properly RSS the damn thing, it seems fitting that I should marry my two cyber-vices (ok, ok, so there are a few... let's not talk about that =).

Where to begin? For me the choice is obvious, for you it may be a touch nerve-racking, but here we go. Wednesday evening marked the long-awaited friendly between Aston Villa and Toronto FC. I'd been looking forward to it since I managed to score the tickets a few months ago. I went down to the game with my brother, Dan, who's just returned to civilization after spending 18 months in Alberta (poor bastard). We had been having a relatively good day, having just watched the Jays slam in 11 runs in the 6th inning to complete the sweep of the Minnesota Twins. We got to BMO just after 6, and did the walk around, as it was Dan's first time at the pitch. We took our seats about 15 minutes before kickoff, in section 104 - traditionally not the loudest section at BMO, but not bad nonetheless. It didn't take long for me to realize that this was going to be a loooooong game - we happened to be sitting directly in front of the most obnoxious c*nt in the whole place - that being said, there are a few things I need to address. God willing, someone will read this that knows her and smack her for me:

1) Remark: 'This section sucks! No one ever chants here, nothing but fair-weather fans.. Fuck all of you.'. Let me respond with this: I've been following the team since Brennan was signed, can name the entire squad by number, own home-and-away kit, and have been to 5 home games and 1 road game this season. You couldn't even name the backup keeper (Djekanovic #18, btw) - who's fair-weather?

2) 'Can you hear _____ sing?' is an away chant. Not to mention the fact that Aston Villa fans are in Birmingham, England - almost 3500 miles away, so you probably won't hear them singing.

3) 'This is our house!', also an away chant, but nice try.

4) It's a friendly. Settle down. Not to mention the fact that they don't care.. here's a little history about AVFC that you probably didn't know - They won the Champion's League in 1982, are 7-time First Division Champions in England, have won 7 FA Cups, and 5 League Cups. On top of that, they've also won the European Super Cup, and the InterToto Cup.

5) Gareth Barry (who holds 37 caps for his country) was nearly hit with a beer cup while taking a corner kick - show a little fucking respect people.

To boot, we were sitting with a bunch of fans who had made the journey from England to see the game. I've never been so embarrassed to be a Torontonian. What kind of stories do you think they'll be telling about how the hospitality in this city was? The OSA has dealings with Everton FC, and it'd be nice to see them come over sometime.. is that realistic when the members of the largest supporters' club (the Red Patch Boys) are allowing their members to conduct themselves in this manner?

To all you regular RPBs out there, keep up the good work, but remember this: We're here to support the team, and the game - not further the prosperity of your little 'club'. Keep your people in check.. TFC is a experience that different people appreciate in different ways, who are you to take that away from them?

Chicago tomorrow.. 'Put out the Fire! TFC!'

Cheers.