Geraint Thomas

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Originally Posted by Penarth Blues

Odd thing to call him as I've rarely seen a sportsman so obviously passionate about being Welsh. The fact that he supports an English football team doesn't make him any less Welsh in all the things that matter.

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Not having a go at you, but what does it mean to be passionate about being Welsh? I was born in Cardiff, and I've searched my soul and conscious over this 'Passion' over the country of my birth, yet still can't seem to unlock it, I don't think it exists. I was brought up on a council estate by parents who have Spanish-Irish ancestry, I supported CCFC because they were the closest club and want Wales to win at football, I don't care for the national anthem, it's a nice song but the lyrics mean **** all to me. In short, i'm not quite sure what it is that i'm supposed to be passionate about. I was just born here-Not my doing.

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Originally Posted by Tuerto

Not having a go at you, but what does it mean to be passionate about being Welsh? I was born in Cardiff, and I've searched my soul and conscious over this 'Passion' over the country of my birth, yet still can't seem to unlock it, I don't think it exists. I was brought up on a council estate by parents who have Spanish-Irish ancestry, I supported CCFC because they were the closest club and want Wales to win at football, I don't care for the national anthem, it's a nice song but the lyrics mean **** all to me. In short, i'm not quite sure what it is that i'm supposed to be passionate about. I was just born here-Not my doing.

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To me it means a huge pride and connection to the place you associate with being home. Not everyone has this I guess, but Thomas clearly feels proud of the place he calls home and is happy to show this pride.

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Originally Posted by Penarth Blues

To me it means a huge pride and connection to the place you associate with being home. Not everyone has this I guess, but Thomas clearly feels proud of the place he calls home and is happy to show this pride.

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Proud of the place he calls home, except when he’s supporting an English football team :thumbup:

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Originally Posted by Auntie Andy

Proud of the place he calls home, except when he’s supporting an English football team :thumbup:

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Does supporting Arsenal make him any less proud of the place he was born and grew up in?

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Originally Posted by Stavross1927

Does supporting Arsenal make him any less proud of the place he was born and grew up in?

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Yes :thumbup:

**** me hs achieved a phemonal achievement, he’s a likeable lad and great role model and seems immensely proud of where he’s from and because he happens to like Arsenal then he’s the subject of snide comments?

I wish he did support Cardiff but hey ho is a free country and as inspiration for youngsters from Cardiff go he’s up genre with the very best.

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Originally Posted by Auntie Andy

Proud of the place he calls home, except when he’s supporting an English football team :thumbup:

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I get the irritation but it seems slightly churlish to dislike him because of that, considering the incredible achievement and good he's doing for Cardiff in terms of profile in all other ways.

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Originally Posted by CardiffIrish2

**** me hs achieved a phemonal achievement, he’s a likeable lad and great role model and seems immensely proud of where he’s from and because he happens to like Arsenal then he’s the subject of snide comments?

I wish he did support Cardiff but hey ho is a free country and as inspiration for youngsters from Cardiff go he’s up genre with the very best.

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Your spot on, for me it was down to the Sky interview and his only discussion on football was Arsneal ,Wenger , players messaging him ,his love for the club , he did go on a bit ,and yes it niggles me as a life long supporter of my home club.

He could have rounded of the interview with a mention of his home team club being in the same league this year , not forgetting they too have achieved a lot, he could have recognised that just being a footy fan ?

I'm not being churlish , I simply find it very strange that a lad who likes football generally didn't mention Cardiff City, being in the same league as his beloved Arsenal this year , not asking him to be a fan , just a passing reogntion will do ,and I think this might well niggle a few City fans like me .

I do notice though compared to past plastic fan rants, there are not so many negatives on this matter ,I'm guessing it's about about accepting of some , and not others , oh and that nationalist waving flag thing .

I simply refuse to have a go at anyone who chooses to not support their home town team. Quite often their choice was influenced by friends or family and those tend to be more powerful than some link by a quirk of birth .More importantly, for generations, this club was hardly an attraction be it the owners who hardly bothered , the teams who bounced around the lower leagues, the none existent facilities and lack of any significant community engagement. Frankly, that we attracted anyone to see us at some points in the last 4 decades is a minor miracle. Should this cycle fellow choose to get enjoyment from following Arsenal then good luck to him and hopefully he will pop down to see them in his home city and he will have a thorough miserable afternoon where his and his teams yellow shirts ( if they still play in yellow away)will be told ,in no uncertain terms , where they can be inserted.

I was more or less the catalyst of this thread. My stance is still that he is a classic ‘Reversible shirt’, Wales play England at rugby on a Saturday & they’ve got their red shirts on hurling dreadful abuse at anything & everything English, yet the next day in anticipation of Sky Super Sunday they turn these ‘conveniently’ red shirts inside out and hey presto it’s a Liverpool/Man U/Arsenal shirt. Please don’t deny this, anyone on this thread who’ve witnessed a Wales v England rugby game in a Cardiff pub, the anti English abuse is widespread, would they repeat their bias at Anfield/Old Trafford/Emirates? They are hypocrites of the highest order............not saying Thomas is an English abuser at other sports...... or is he? Anyway Bournemouth pub stop now, just pulled up👍👍👍👍

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Originally Posted by Majorblue

I simply refuse to have a go at anyone who chooses to not support their home town team. Quite often their choice was influenced by friends or family and those tend to be more powerful than some link by a quirk of birth .More importantly, for generations, this club was hardly an attraction be it the owners who hardly bothered , the teams who bounced around the lower leagues, the none existent facilities and lack of any significant community engagement. Frankly, that we attracted anyone to see us at some points in the last 4 decades is a minor miracle. Should this cycle fellow choose to get enjoyment from following Arsenal then good luck to him and hopefully he will pop down to see them in his home city and he will have a thorough miserable afternoon where his and his teams yellow shirts ( if they still play in yellow away)will be told ,in no uncertain terms , where they can be inserted.

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Horseshit.

You have one question, and one question only.

1) Do you like football?

If the answer is yes, you will go and watch your local football club

The only exceptions to that rule are your personal circumstances (work, skint, family) and whether or not the football club treats your support with the respect it deserves.

It is not a valid excuse to say "I would support Stanley, but they're shit", "I would support Rochdale, but they've lost 6 on the trot and have only won one promotion since the war", "I would support Torquay, but they're in the Fourth Division", "I would support Gillingham, but the owner never buys players". In fact, those counter arguments are rendered useless when you say "I would support Gillingham, but they never buy players so I support Liverpool instead". Isn't it strange how people don't seem to live in Dorchester and support Tranmere Rovers?

Picking a team based purely on success is pathetic. It's also the easy way out.

Didn't realise people need to give excuses for who they support. Who must they report to? What kind of documentation is required?

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Originally Posted by lardy

Didn't realise people need to give excuses for who they support. Who must they report to? What kind of documentation is required?

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They must report to the City of their birth and seek apologies. They require a passport, a bus pass or a Hull stub.

You could imagine these phoneys in the ‘30s ..... ‘Wow! These Germans are looking good’

Folk are only defending him because of his undoubted heroics .

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Originally Posted by life on mars

Folk are only defending him because of his undoubted heroics .

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:hehe:

Just been interviewed at the Emirates with his Arsenal shirt.

Funny how quickly you can go off people :facepalm:

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Originally Posted by Kris

Horseshit.

You have one question, and one question only.

1) Do you like football?

If the answer is yes, you will go and watch your local football club

The only exceptions to that rule are your personal circumstances (work, skint, family) and whether or not the football club treats your support with the respect it deserves.

It is not a valid excuse to say "I would support Stanley, but they're shit", "I would support Rochdale, but they've lost 6 on the trot and have only won one promotion since the war", "I would support Torquay, but they're in the Fourth Division", "I would support Gillingham, but the owner never buys players". In fact, those counter arguments are rendered useless when you say "I would support Gillingham, but they never buy players so I support Liverpool instead". Isn't it strange how people don't seem to live in Dorchester and support Tranmere Rovers?

Picking a team based purely on success is pathetic. It's also the easy way out.

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Absolute tommyrot.

It may be small minded and old fashioned but I am also in the support your local team camp.

I don’t dislike him because he supports arsenal most of my friends support a top 4 club, but as mentioned I can not see how someone who is a true footy fan can support a team they have no affiliation with, the fact I am proud of my city and we’re I am from is 80% of the reason I support Cardiff.

And I do feel it would have been nice to just name drop us in his interview considering recently getting promoted and being from the City. You see how Bale promotes other welsh success on his Twitter/insta such as Geraint and Warburton and you realise what real pride in your country is

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Originally Posted by Cleve van Leef

It’s not compulsory that being born in Cardiff he has to support City. Such a thing as freedom of choice.

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I have to say that his achievements and patriotism are marvellous to see and yet I was surprised (and instinctively a little disappointed) when I saw him holding an Arsenal shirt at The Emirates yesterday. I can't really explain why, as people can support whoever they want.

He said that when he was young, all his mates supported Man Utd. :frown:

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Originally Posted by chris lee

It may be small minded and old fashioned but I am also in the support your local team camp.

I don’t dislike him because he supports arsenal most of my friends support a top 4 club, but as mentioned I can not see how someone who is a true footy fan can support a team they have no affiliation with, the fact I am proud of my city and we’re I am from is 80% of the reason I support Cardiff.

And I do feel it would have been nice to just name drop us in his interview considering recently getting promoted and being from the City. You see how Bale promotes other welsh success on his Twitter/insta such as Geraint and Warburton and you realise what real pride in your country is

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Utter rubbish. He probably supported them as a child, as did you with Cardiff. I can't say that as an absolute certainty but it's a pretty good assumption to make. Very few people around Geraint's age supported Cardiff, I'm of a similar age and I was the only City fan in my year at school.

Also, Bale hasn't mentioned us either, so why should Warburton or Thomas? By the way... https://twitter.com/GeraintThomas86/...32214987739143

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Originally Posted by Bobby Dandruff

I have to say that his achievements and patriotism are marvellous to see and yet I was surprised (and instinctively a little disappointed) when I saw him holding an Arsenal shirt at The Emirates yesterday. I can't really explain why, as people can support whoever they want.

He said that when he was young, all his mates supported Man Utd. :frown:

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Of course he can support who he likes.

Personally, I fail to see the attraction of being a plastic, glory-seeking fan.

Do you genuinely get the "high" that we get when our local side win? It must be diminished if you have no genuine connection with that team.

You're generally looked down on by genuine, local fans of these "big" clubs e.g. Liverpool fans call them Telepudlians.

Obviously GT is a proud Welshman, supporting his country in every sport through thick and thin. Why not the same with your home City? :shrug:

I was cheering Thomas all the way to his Tour win and loved the way he (and his team and the media) promoted Wales through his success. I was also really disappointed that he is a Cardiff Gooner - and in the same way he is entitled to support any team he likes, I am entitled to identify less with him as a result, and care a little less than I would have done about his success.

There was an interesting article this morning from a Cardiff-based Sunderland fan in the RokerReport that discussed the reasons people do not support their local team - or if exiles the team from the place they came from:

https://rokerreport.sbnation.com/201...u-support-them

Worth a read!

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Originally Posted by jon1959

I was cheering Thomas all the way to his Tour win and loved the way he (and his team and the media) promoted Wales through his success. I was also really disappointed that he is a Cardiff Gooner - and in the same way he is entitled to support any team he likes, I am entitled to identify less with him as a result, and care a little less than I would have done about his success.

There was an interesting article this morning from a Cardiff-based Sunderland fan in the RokerReport that discussed the reasons people do not support their local team - or if exiles the team from the place they came from:

https://rokerreport.sbnation.com/201...u-support-them

Worth a read!

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I know the author of this piece and he's a nice bloke but I think he's wrong. I'd say the vast majority of people supporting non-local teams do so because of the glory and media saturation. The quirky tales are few and far between (and that guy supporting Chelsea because of the X-Files is just daft).

Back to the OP - The event was superbly attended and very well deserved too. Remember when Geraint was about 10 or 11 - 1997 ish Cardiff City were in Division three playing their football. This was the Phil Neal / Kenny Hibbitt / Russell Osman era. What sort of crowds were Cardiff pulling in then? A few thousand?? Probably, almost certainly not 10,000.

The young Geraint Thomas was getting interested in cycling at the time whilst his hometown football club had very little to offer at this time with the top goal scorer being one Andy Saville.

Is it any wonder why the young Geraint chose not to support his hometown club at that time and like many hundreds if not thousands of Cardiff / South Wales boys his age chose to follow the likes of Arsenal, Mann Utd, Liverpool etc.

Remember these were the real dark days of Cardiff City FC - third division football, finishing 21st in that division and managed by the likes of Hibbitt / Neal and Osman.

Geraint Thomas is a superb sportsman at the very highest level in world sport. He is a very proud Welshman and also probably very proud of being from Cardiff and attending Whitchurch High school alongside footballers such as Gareth Bale and Rugby players such as Sam Warburton. The fact he follows Arsenal and not Cardiff City is neither here nor there as far as I am concerned.