Villa fans unstuck by the Toffees on their travels
By Charles Cox
Making the long-distance trek from London to Merseyside for another frantic Aston Villa away days experience, it seemed many had made the same decision to make a return journey to Liverpool after a fabulous away day at Anfield, the fortnight before. Dozens of Aston Villa away supporters joined the train as we made our way to the North West of the country. The arrival into Lime Street, however, didn’t present the warmest of welcomes, as hundreds of Everton supporters concluded their journey from the same train. Awkward.
The initial intention to have relaxed pre-match wander through Stanley Park, to admire a few sites of Liverpool, turned out to be in vein. As per normal on away trips, the best laid intentions for a bit of tourism, soon go out of the window when you know there’s only one real focus. Greeted by choruses of Villains making their voices heard at the gates of Goodison Park, the day was always destined to be a good one, whatever the result turned out to be.
Sat in Row E, Seat 53 of the Bullens, the old school wooden seats were like a portal into the past of football. An upgrade on cheap plastic ones, they seemed from a time when money wasn’t an issue, or so it would seem.
Come kick off, it appeared that the away section was obviously over-sold. With around a hundred fans standing in the aisles of the Bullens. Two people per seat became a familiar feature for the game, but it still didn’t stop the deafening chants of “Villa, Villa, Villa” echoing around Goodison.
After the back of that brilliant derby victory over the Baggies in midweek, the Villan supporters were always going to be in fine voice. The sheer velocity and volume of the support swiftly silenced the home crowd. However, we were almost silenced ourselves, after just four minutes, as Everton rattled the outside of Brad Guzan’s far post. It was an early warning sign and a cue for dominant Everton possession.
A breakthrough seemed soon to be on the cards, and it came shortly after the half-hour mark, but it was villa that struck! It was the first shot of the game for Villa. The sublime counter-attack had started from a supposed “foul” but actual brilliantly timed tackle from Player of the Season so far, Fabian Delph, then Bacuna latched on to the loose ball and played an equally impressive one-two with the tank of Benteke, before cooly slotting past the newly-shaved, Tim Howard.
Cue jubilant scenes in the small, but loud away section of the ground. Seats were leap-frogged and pile-ups of ecstatic Villans could only mean one thing, Villa were in the lead again on Merseyside.
As the half-time whistle sounded, another potential scalp on the River Mersey was on the cards and Villans were once again dreaming of another three points on the road. While Everton provided some half-time musical entertainment on the pitch, the Villa fans were creating their own entertainment.
A clumsy Evertonian had dropped their winter hat into the Villa section. For five minutes, attempts were made to reunite the fan with their hat. ‘Ole’s’ were heard for much of time. But this wasn’t to be the only garment to become trapped over the course of the 15 minute break. During the ecstatic celebrations for the goal, another hat became caught on a hook above the Villa faithful, but luckily, this hat heartbreak was short-lived, as a steward was on hand with a long stick. Half-time hat trauma number two, diverted.
Parodies of Liverpool’s famous “You’ll Never Walk Alone” anthem were heard through-out the entire match. You know the one: “Sign ON! Sign ON! With a pen, in your hand! And you’ll never work, again! You’ll nevvver work, again!” Fair to say, as per usual, the chant didn’t go down so well with the Everton crowd.
As the game restarted, Villa had the Merseyside deja vu of attempting to hold on to a one goal lead in the second half, but it was always going to be difficult.
Corner after corner flew in for Everton, but the Villa defence held strong. Villa seemed to be in control of the situation, despite not seeing much of the ball, until Everton, made a decisive substitution. Naismith on for Stones. This was the game decider right there. Within minutes of the change, the Villa defence was broken. Guess who scored? Who else, but Martinez’s super sub, Stephen Naismith. We were no longer holding out for three points; we were clutching on to our unbeaten away record in 2014.
An unwanted injury came Villa’s way, as Vlaar was replaced just ten minutes from the end, clutching his hamstring. The heart of the defence was gone. We needed to stand strong. The Villa faithful feared the worse. It took just five minutes for that fear to become reality. Clark made an clumsy challenge, and Mirallas claimed a brilliant, dipping and curling free-kick to seal the three points for the Everton.
While the away end was distraught, it was only then we noticed that the Evertonians had started to make themselves heard, with what was pretty much their first chant for 85 minutes. Appalling support. The travelling lions soon made a statement to the Everton fans with the repetition of “YOUR THE WORST SUPPORT, WE’VE EVER SEEN!” over and over.
The whistle blew. The game was over. Villa had lost the match. Gut-wrenching after the half-time score promise, but the travelling Villans stayed in the same voice as they had all game – loud, proud and high in spirits (and alcohol!). Heads never dropped in the Villa camp.
A badly timed injury to Vlaar and a superb freekick had ultimately cost us, but at least teams always know they’re in for a game when Villa come to town. Everton have only lost one game at Goodison this season, so there was no shame in the result. Anyway, we’ll win away again soon enough. UTV!
(Main photo: Kevin Joynes)
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Typical scene with a big man standing behind a pillar with a little boy behind him with no chance of seeing anything!
All these comments are rich from the 2nd rated team in a shit city. There away sells out away does it? lMAO. Never mind this will soon end the government are on mission to cut back benefits and anyone making money without declaring it. So without the drug money and housing benefit which covers 90 percent of Liverpool this so called great away support of 500 will be non existent. UTV
I was at villa park this season to watch everton win 2-0…. Not exactly a great atmosphere from the home fans that day!!
Re our home support. If you lost at Birmingham 4-0 just days before your next home game. Just how vocal do you think your home support would be during that game?
Like seriously, do you honestly believe that the Holt End would be rocking?
The players owed us, and we got behind them when they finally got their shit together in the 2nd half.
Shows how biased fans can be. Everton SOLD OUT the UPPER VISITORS section, which just shows how great your away support if. Anyway, I enjoyed singing for most of the second half, i’ll give you that we were quiet in the first.
One of the worst away supports i’ve seen at Goodison, especially given how far most of you have to travel.
Villa fans were great until we scored our second then a few scuffles broke out, the police pulled out. And arrested one idiot an then coins were thrown, one hitting my 9 year old son. He wasn’t bothered as he picked it up but luckily it didn’t hit him in the face. Some villa fans should be use to losing and throwing objects is completely out of order.
Sorry to hear that. Unfortunately, there’s always idiots about. Hopefully, it was a £1 coin, at least! It’s a slow burn reaction to losing so much over the last three seasons. To be honest, a few Villa fans have had enough.
Scouse
Less of the stereotype brummie bashing – moronic accent , that coming from an area where they have an accent that sound like a scalded cat
Diim witted yokels from the second biggest city in this land and proud
Next time you visit one of the best stadiums in the country that is called Villa Park, you will hear and feel atmosphere from the fans of one of the most famous teams in th world
Where is the blue scouse figure in that level
UTV
Oh dear. Never let the facts get in the way of a clichéd and biased load of tosh. A few things to set you straight my old Villa friends.
1. Villa sent back their allocation in the upper tier of the Bullens Rd stand. Awful numbers for a so called big club and embarrassing compared to Everton’s away following.
2. Google 2013-14 Premier League average attendances and I think you will find Everton’s is higher than Villa’s.
3.Villa’s fans are some of the biggest beauts seen at Goodison for years. Sad songs , scruffy clobber and that moronic accent. Dimwitted yokels the lot of them.
4. Villa scored with their only attack of the first half then showed zero ambition thereafter. Can’t actually remember them having a shot in the 2nd half – and I was there as an EFC season ticket holder.They got exactly what they deserved – nothing.
So as you have seen our owner is so much shitter than yours that he doesn’t even want us to attend games. But we still made more noise. Benefits Street is filmed in Birmingham. We’re from where again? (we were annexed in 1907, to save you the google). When its filmed up your way it will be called Benefits City (its how Channel 4 work).
Haha. Exactly, it’s just one street… Channel 4 tested the show there first, because they wanted to make sure it worked, before they invested in all the cameras and crew it would take to cover the whole city of Liverpool to do next season’s show. UTV
Sign on, sign on etc. Very witty, back to the 80’s hey. By the way which city is Benefits Street filmed in ?
Are you Man Ure trolls in disguise ? I think the man said the allocation was sold out weeks in advance. The song clearly made its point. Keep your hat on Noddy.
I’m a blue but can tell you that Villa sold the lower tier 3 weeks before game yet they chose not to take Upper tier which they would have easily sold (my mate a Villa fan wanted to come up). Everton then had 3 weeks and subsequently sold the upper tier to our fans.
Villa were only given 1800 tickets which sold out wks back but the club refused the rest of the allocation
Gabby, your facts are as good as your team.
http://espnfc.com/stats/attendance/_/league/eng.1/barclays-premier-league?cc=5739
Haha fair play on that-few hundred in it! Likely be reversed by end of the season mind-despite us being so ‘shit’ good luck 4 rest of season.
First up-the club makes strange allocation decisions-the game was sold weeks in advance-I know I couldn’t get a ticket-( didnt fancy sitting in Everton end despite availability) second despite struggling as has been pointed out-villas average is higher than Champions league chasing Everton-know your facts boys.
Oh how we laughed, holding our aching sides at the sheer wit and originality of those lovable Villans. “Sign on sign on”, we’d never heard THAT one before.
In reality the Villa fans couldn’t even sell out half of the away section, that NEVER happens with Everton fans, we always sell our full away allocation. Boring fans and boring team who came tp park the bus with 5 at the back, got lucky with theironly attack and ultimately got what they deserved – nothing!
Villa struggling for years still get higher averages than Everloan. Ill take out fans ta.
Interesting views. First of all – singing. Everton fans tend to sing more away from home. However, they do create a great atmosphere for home games – when the situation warrants it. Everton have 20 odd home games this season, it’s not going to be ‘Argentina ’78 tickertape’ jubilations for every single one. Especially the game after a 0-4 tonking by Liverpool. And with all due respect to Villa, this match was not a big game for Everton. Having already beaten Villa earlier in the season, and with Villa now something of a relegation battling side in recent years, Everton fans were widely expecting to win the game (bare minimum), and the crowd was unlikely to be as ‘up’ for this game as they will be for, say, Liverpool/Arsenal/Man Utd/Man City games. As for the Sign On, Sign On song… we are completely not bothered at all by it. We find it incredibly tedious and outdated. You might as well be singing about the Liverpool blitz during WW2 for all the relevance to today. The Liverpool economy are better off than the Birmingham economy, in many ways, so singing it comes across as just silly and pathetic. As others have mentioned, to talk about ‘how bad fans we are’, yet only bring 1200 fans yourself just makes you come across as myopic. Everton took 2800 fans to Villa earlier in the season, our full allocation. There’s more to having a ‘great support’ than singing a few songs. Like actually being there at the match for a start!
I agree the visit of Villa probably doesn’t warrant a ‘Argentina ’78 tickertape’ parade at the moment. Villa fans also sing a lot more away from home, it takes something special to awake the sleepy Holte due to some of the shocking football we’ve had to witness recently. The game against the Baggies was a step in the right direction though. I think Villa were travelling light in terms of numbers, due to more probably picking the Liverpool game over this one. A month after Christmas and all that. Probably our lowest turnout this season. We normally take more to preseason friendlies against lower division teams.
Did you know away supporters get both the UPPER and lower end of the bullens? Your massive support didn’t even take enough allocation to warrant opening the upper tier for you, so they sell them to home supporters on the day. Tragic, truly tragic.
Shit songs shit article shit fans – sums Villa up really. EFC fans just cant be arsed with them sort of knobheads. Beat you twice out of sight.
The whole sign on, sign on chant is an outdated parody, remember Villa fans singing it at Villa Park to Everton the week that the MG Rover plant closed at Longbridge ! From a city that boasts benefits street – how original.
I’m not gonna to defend the ‘Sign on’ song, as I find it a bit dated now. However, it is funny in the respect it’s STILL sung.
Those Villa fans are the saddest bunch in the country, spend all game singing “Villa, Villa” in high pitched schoolgirl voices, sing the really imaginitive “Sign On” song every time and still think its hilarious and the pathetically childish “can we sing a song for you”. Its like groundhog day! Make out they are such great loyal fans but yet again can only sell half their allocation, can`t remember the last away ground we didn`t sell out, obstructed view or not. The team were just as bad, playing a boring 5 at the back against a team playing without a recognised centre forward! What a tatical genious Lambert is!
You won’t find many Villa fans arguing with you about the tactical genius that is Paul Lambert. God knows why we took the game to Liverpool at Anfield and almost beat them, then two weeks later, parked a five-man defensive bus against an injury-riddled team. To be honest, Villa normally sell out their away allocations. Two trips to Merseyside in short space of time, might have been too much of a downer for fans. 😉
PS – ‘Villllla, Villla, Villa, Villa’
The fact many fans (man Utd etc) and players often preach about the bear pit Goodison can be only explains it, we only get going in the big games, sometimes we like to sit and watch and to be honest since when has your home support been any different? Your away support singing wise was pretty good, no doubt your where all pissed, but as for your poor allocation sending tickets back, I suggest you question that firstly.
Yes, I think most grounds have the library silence problem, when the supposed big teams aren’t in town or it isn’t a derby game. We sold out our allocation weeks ago. Club didn’t request more, although there was a demand judging by the amount of fans contacting our site, asking if we knew about any tickets going.
“Soign on soign on”
Hahaha the state of the lads that were singing that as well. Looked like the cast of Benefits Street were out on a jolly.
And while telling everyone how great your support is don’t forget how you had to send half your allocation back for Evertonians to fill that section up. Compare that to the following we take to Villa even midweek.
These small clubs make me laugh they never seem to sell their away allocation an then claim that Evertonians are shit supporters when actually they sell out every single away game! So many lies an bullshit in this peice by the way I was at the game right by the away end and alls they seem to sing is “villa villa villa” (I thought Chelsea was bad) and “sign on” , hang on a minute are people from Birmingham actually chanting that! the home of benefits street? The Everton fans were laughing at that! Got to admit when shit clubs like villa and stoke come the atmosphere drops a little because there not important and should be an easy 3 points. Come back when use actually sell your away allocation ya daft bastards!
The 1,200 seats are in the upper part and unrestricted. I’m surprised Villa never took the full allocation as I think we both have similar size support and there have been some fantastic games between us in recent years at our place. Good luck for the rest of the season.
ive been villa many times and the empty seats make more support than you lot, away ends are always noisey because your all together and drunk.Wenger,ferguson,scholari etc have all said goodison is like a bear pit when it gets going and a horrible atmosphere for away teams. You just keep playing hoof ball and creating 1 chance a game 1800 out of 3000 wow haha
Haha. Do you football aficionados smoke pipes while you watch the games? Recently, it’s been a decent game beaten the two teams (apart from when you’ve come to Villa Park in the last two seasons!).
We dont sing for the sake of it, were watchin the footy. Football afficianados us. But if we want to tear the roof off we do it better than anyone.
No offence but you couldnt sell out! You said yourself the fans were buzzing because you had beaten the baggies…we had just suffered our worst ever premier league defeat against the other lot! Again no disrepect to sides like Villa and Stoke but we expect to win and its hardly going to be a carnival atmosphere is it? We got the three points in both of those games. Job done.
Villa are a weird team at the moment. No game is three points in the bag, but we always fancy getting something at Goodison (as recent games have proved). A different story when Everton come to Villa Park though. Our home form is nothing less than a disgrace.
Villa could have had 3000, they brought 1800. Shite away support.
Everton always take the full allocation. Everywhere..
We didn’t want those 1200 restricted view seats! Not good enough for our away fans.
They’re not restricted views – they’re perfectly good seats, better in fact than the ones in the lower section. I was surprised Villa didn’t take the full allocation. You defended stoutly in awful conditions, but in the end you were well beaten by a considerably better side.
Went to Goodison for Everton Vs Stoke (mates birthday), couldn’t believe how quiet they were. You could hear a pin drop and they won 4-0. I was deeply shocked. Nice people/fans, but they can’t sing a song to save their lives.