25Sept20-Shelbourne-01_A5 25/09/2020 12:35 Page 28
Stephen Bennett
@stebenn15
Covid: The robber of lives, the thief of happiness As we battle through this barren period in the club's history, it is Covid - that robber of lives, that thief of happiness - that is preventing supporters from being there to watch it. Of course we'd all love to be in our spiritual home of Richmond Park today, venting, ranting, but above all supporting. I'm firmly of the belief that this horrible goalless, shot-shy run we're on has something to do
with a lack of fans. Fans bring pressure, and if a squad is up for it, a good kind of pressure. An expectation that we will score, we will attack and we dare not lose. The hardened support at Pats will tolerate a lot. We keep coming back regardless. Teams respect that. 'If you can't be there when we're losing, don't be there when we're winning' is the familiar refrain that, let's be honest, few in this country heed. Results of late have been patchy. But wild horses wouldn't stop us from being there for a Dublin derby against Shelbourne in normal times. However, these are not normal times. We are living in a sort of fan purgatory, being able to watch the matches but not being able to properly support your team. If there isn't a hotline for 'Concerned neighbours of LOI fans' there should be.
The irrationalities of life on the terraces don't transfer well to home life. The dog, if you have one, is probably wondering what you have become by now. And we wonder how those armchair fans do it, year-in, yearout. Gawking and sometimes screaming at a rectangle in the corner of their living rooms. There is no outlet for them. Well, there technically is an outlet for them, as in their local football team, but that would be like Donald Trump tweeting his support for Black Lives Matter. If our LOI life is purgatory (at least we know the turnstiles will click again), the armchair fan is in hell, probably thinking they're in heaven. Fake crowd noise might trick them into believing that there is an atmosphere in the Covid Leagues. WatchLOI, however, doesn't go there. It's raw, unfiltered football.
Hallows be thy name...
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2020 Season • Vol. 32 • No. 6 • St Patrick’s Athletic v Shelbourne
