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Whose bright idea was this?
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Having lived in Norway for nearly 30 years now and finding out how passionate the Everton supporters here are about the club, I can imagine there were a few that were really pissed off to find out that the club had for sale a t-shirt mocking the supporters here. Picture here: http://www.evertonfc.no/Webdesk/netblast/pages/index.html?id=1200723
I mean, what a kick in the nuts this was from the club we follow through thick and thin...
The fan club has now stopped sales and sent an official apology to ESCNB (Everton Supporters Club Norwegian Branch). I hope none of you bought one! I expect the "Norwegian Blues" would love to meet the person responsible for putting it out on sale.
Tony Cheek, Posted 22/04/2011 at 08:04:19
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I'm also sure they understand humour.
As far as the club is concerned, let me reassure you that, great as the team are, the club officials treat the fans just as badly over here ? you can't imagine anyone in their right mind would produce a T-shirt like that and consider it funny. What is amazing is the club has apologised... because they never say sorry to the fans in England.
He's probably from Liverpool so his city's team does play in a red kit. I'm sorry but it is a common taunt in Liverpool towards Liverpool fans that their fans are glory seekers that are mostly from Ireland or Scandinavia and that the real scousers are Evertonians. It's just a joke; please don't take it too seriously.
As funny as it is, it is more inappropiate than anything else. The t-shirt should never have seen the light of day, and the club where correct to recall it and issue an apology.
Problem solved. Time to move on.
Maybe I should explain my humour & interpretation again. The furthest thing from my mind is to condone something offensive to Norwegians. (Although Gazza's famous remark did tickle my 12-year-old brain ? at the time!!)
I look at it from a completely different angle:
If I was a Norwegian, I would wear that t-shirt. For me, it would be obviously ironic, and I would want people to know that I'm from the Everton family, as well as making a humourous statement on my sheep-like compatriot Glory Hunters.
It would suggest that I'm more nuanced than them. That I've genuinely fallen in love with a club, that isn't part of the fashionable set, and that therefore, there's more DEPTH to my Evertonian-ness.
In a humourous, self-effacing way...
For instance: I would happily wear a top bearing the legend: Scouser (above a Blue kit), and Kopite (above a Red one).
To indicate that those who support Everton are a better class of people than Liverpudlians. Again ? just for fun.
Mick Wrende, you say you've NEVER heard "any old joke about redshite fans being from Norway?" Really?
And yet you claim to know what "typical Everton fans," are like.
I don't believe you.
You must have led a sheltered life if you have never heard anyone taking the piss out of the redshite saying their fans are from Norway/Sweden etc
You show that to someone at the match and I guarantee you that 90% will think it is funny and a high percentage would probably ask where they can get one from.
If not, nip into town before any Liverpool home game and have a look around Williamson Square - full of Scandeswegians (as we used to call them)
It's been a very long-standing joke about Liverpool fans being from Norway ("Oh you'll never see a Scouser on the Kop" etc)
I was in a pub in Essex and got skitted by a couple of locals wearing Liverpool tops who saw I was a Blue. My reply was simply that they were a credit to the Norwegain educational system - their English was very good! Shut the buggars up
I like it.
The joke is that Liverpool supporters are just a bunch of Norwegians - I'm Australian.
However if the joke was that Liverpool supporters are all Australian, I would still find it funny and still wear the shirt.
Shit, some people need to just get over themselves. Wouldn't mind a tshirt that says 'LOUIS SAHA IS FRENCH' either...
The tshirts will probably be collectors items now they have been recalled.
The recalling and attention its getting will cause more harm as its a nap someone else will start printing to make a few bob.
But serious nearly all RS fans are from Norway and Dublin and i dont suppose it was meant as a insult to anyone other than RS supporters.
If you have seen the film " Reds And Blues,The Ballad Of Dixie And Kenny" there is a running joke about reds being Norwegian and blues being Welsh.It's funny. It's a joke. I cannot believe you have never heard such comments.
People aren't "thick" because their sense of humour is different to yours. Your view that they are thick is actually more conducive to posters thinking you are the thicko.
I saw one little kid in a Chelsea shirt and a feller with a Utd trackie top - that's it, everyone else it seems supports IFK or Gais.
And as (it appears) I'll be here a few months and Gais are the Everton of Gothenburg, that's who I'll be going to see.
Went last Monday in fact (V Djurgardens) - only 5,000 or so there but they were well into it, including two young lads from work who were quizzing me all night about about 'hooligans' ("does Everton have very many hooligans?" "Er...yeah, thousands mate and they're fucking nails")
Anyway, 'WE' won 2-1 and 'WE'RE' currently top of the league!
COME ON YOU GREEN AND BLACKS!
With a comment like that I'm guessing that not only are you not a Scouser, you're probably don't even live in the UK. Is Wrende a Norwegian name?
The best flag I've seen ar European away games is "Stop global warming, stop kopites flying to home games"
How can you use statements such as ?no Evertonian could wear that T-shirt with pride? ? you are hardly an expert on Evertonians judging by the fact that you have never heard any jokes about Norwegian reds, so what gives you the right to make such a general sweeping statement.
Finally, get a sense of humour!
And of these Norwegian Blues how many are offended? Ten, one hundred, a thousand, a hundred thousand? I think the population is only 4 million isn't it?
RIP the Limp Bar. I like the Gueye Bar now.
My 7v7 team (named Grand Ol Team) has myself and a native Liverpudlian as Blues. We have a really great guy whom we count as a good friend originally from Norway on the team.
Guess what club he supports?
Yep, the RS.
Seems the stereotype grew legs and made the trip across the pond....
PS Suggested solution for offending shirt. Take your glasses off.
Wouldn't mind buying a few for my future in laws... them being red and all.
That'll be you, then.
No sooner had I pointed out to my girlfriend that the United fans seemed very "cosmopolitan", coming from all over the world to a "home" match, than a brash American burst through the crowd, and asked "Does anybody know the local area, as I need to buy cigarettes?" Of course, everybody shrugged, mumbling in weird and wonderful accents that in fact none of them were local!! The Yank shuffled off, confused!!
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1 Posted 22/04/2011 at 13:47:25
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Hence the old, "Anfield was half empty today, as the airports were closed" kind of jokes.
People in the UK would have no problem with the shirts but that doesn't make it right.