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Post by Deleted on Aug 17, 2017 9:10:56 GMT
9 years ago to this very day we began our Premier League adventure in a former mill town in Greater Manchester, the opening day of the 2008-09 Barclays Premier League season. The day we thought that would never come. Underdogs the season before, we achieved promotion after finishing 2nd with 79 points, the joint lowest points tally of any team who has finished runner-up in the Championship in the past 13 seasons, joint with Hull City. The line up for our first Premier League fixture, at the Reebok Stadium was: Sorensen Wilkinson, Cort, Shawcross, Griffin, Delap, Olofinjana, Whelan, Cresswell, Kitson, Sidibe. 45 minutes later we were 3-0 down, 3 goals in an eleven minute period showed that if we didn't realise it already, it was sure going to be one hell of a long, hard struggle in order to achieve safety. The rot stopped in the second half as Ricardo Fuller came on from the bench and grabbed a consolation goal in the 90th minute. 3-1. This result meant that the worlds worst tipster, not a slightly depressed lad who's shoving notes into the fruity whilst waiting for the 2:45 at Great Yarmouth, but a multi million pound book maker, Paddy Power. They decided we were done for and they were paying out punters who had put money on us to be in the bottom 3. After the 90 minutes at the Reebok that was it for our Premier League venture, after all the anticipation we were staring the Championship right in the face.. so they thought. A week later another goal in the 90th minute gave us our first 3 points in a thrilling 3-2 over rivals Aston Villa. A team who went onto achieve a successive 6th place finish and a place in Europe. Hm, but this can't happen! Stoke are already relegated aren't they? I'm not one to ruin the end of stories, but as we know Paddy Power and their premature actions earlier on in the season left them with egg on their face as the doomed Potters finished 11 points above the drop. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. On the 16th of August 2008 after the loss to Bolton I'd have loved to walk in Paddy Power on Campbell Place, stick a few quid on us to still be here 10 seasons on and to see their smug if not bewildered reaction. Priceless. From the 08-09 season 8 teams have never been relegated from the top division, the top 7 and little 6 town Stoke. Have that Paddy boy. It may be our last, we may be here for another 10. who knows? Make the most of our wonderful journey before the train gets derailed and in a bink of an eye we're back to a 2/3 full Bet365 Stadium hosting the Tractor Boys of Ipswich. The first home game in our completed stadium almost 20 years on since construction, who better to face than Arsene Wengers Arsenal? Who gives a fuck about the net spend and the lack of arrivals. We can only support what Sir Peter and co puts in front of us, get behind 'em instead of winging and whining and let's see what we can do. If you have a spare 8 minutes and 22 seconds have a watch of this. Cheers. Kitson and Sidibe up front.... almost as mad as the time he tried Parkin and Sidibe up front. You do wonder where the sense of entitlement comes from with a lot of our supporters. As you say, all bar a handful of clubs are one bad season away from relegation (I've said it before but since promotion only last seasons top 7 and us have had 10 straight seasons in the league). We are living the dream of the majority of England's clubs at the moment and I feel truely sorry for those who don't seem able to enjoy it.
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Post by bossthemidfield on Aug 17, 2017 9:45:33 GMT
Thanks for the link bhp.
We could do with another...
Abdoulaye... my Lord!
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Post by 36dd on Aug 17, 2017 10:20:32 GMT
9 years ago to this very day we began our Premier League adventure in a former mill town in Greater Manchester, the opening day of the 2008-09 Barclays Premier League season. The day we thought that would never come. Underdogs the season before, we achieved promotion after finishing 2nd with 79 points, the joint lowest points tally of any team who has finished runner-up in the Championship in the past 13 seasons, joint with Hull City. The line up for our first Premier League fixture, at the Reebok Stadium was: Sorensen Wilkinson, Cort, Shawcross, Griffin, Delap, Olofinjana, Whelan, Cresswell, Kitson, Sidibe. 45 minutes later we were 3-0 down, 3 goals in an eleven minute period showed that if we didn't realise it already, it was sure going to be one hell of a long, hard struggle in order to achieve safety. The rot stopped in the second half as Ricardo Fuller came on from the bench and grabbed a consolation goal in the 90th minute. 3-1. This result meant that the worlds worst tipster, not a slightly depressed lad who's shoving notes into the fruity whilst waiting for the 2:45 at Great Yarmouth, but a multi million pound book maker, Paddy Power. They decided we were done for and they were paying out punters who had put money on us to be in the bottom 3. After the 90 minutes at the Reebok that was it for our Premier League venture, after all the anticipation we were staring the Championship right in the face.. so they thought. A week later another goal in the 90th minute gave us our first 3 points in a thrilling 3-2 over rivals Aston Villa. A team who went onto achieve a successive 6th place finish and a place in Europe. Hm, but this can't happen! Stoke are already relegated aren't they? I'm not one to ruin the end of stories, but as we know Paddy Power and their premature actions earlier on in the season left them with egg on their face as the doomed Potters finished 11 points above the drop. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. On the 16th of August 2008 after the loss to Bolton I'd have loved to walk in Paddy Power on Campbell Place, stick a few quid on us to still be here 10 seasons on and to see their smug if not bewildered reaction. Priceless. From the 08-09 season 8 teams have never been relegated from the top division, the top 7 and little 6 town Stoke. Have that Paddy boy. It may be our last, we may be here for another 10. who knows? Make the most of our wonderful journey before the train gets derailed and in a bink of an eye we're back to a 2/3 full Bet365 Stadium hosting the Tractor Boys of Ipswich. The first home game in our completed stadium almost 20 years on since construction, who better to face than Arsene Wengers Arsenal? Who gives a fuck about the net spend and the lack of arrivals. We can only support what Sir Peter and co puts in front of us, get behind 'em instead of winging and whining and let's see what we can do. If you have a spare 8 minutes and 22 seconds have a watch of this. Cheers. The same day Paddy Power paid out on us being relegated 😂
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Post by metalhead on Aug 17, 2017 10:52:52 GMT
We got absolutely torn to shreds after that performance, via various media circles.
Then we beat Villa.... the rest is history.
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Post by duckling on Aug 17, 2017 13:40:17 GMT
As an overseas neutral, I've been asked why I've taken an interest in Stoke. Truth be told, if I were only exposed to media and football fan comments from the last few years, I would find the team rather unintruguing, and there's a good chance I would be following another team. Yet thanks to the historical record that is the internet, I became interested in Stoke in 2017 because of their team from nine years earlier.
The 2008-2009 team has taken on an almost mystical quality. Similarly, the fans of that season are legendary.
A few - okay, a lot more than just a few - of the comments I read about the team and the fans were negative. But if you're a surefire bet (literally) to go straight back down without a whimper, yet you have people talking so much about you, you're doing something right.
It's easy to say that the team survived through their passion and hard work, but many relegated teams try just as hard.
What set the Stoke team apart was creativity and street smarts. In football creativity is sometimes used to refer to dribbling past five defenders, and street smarts to refer to fooling the referee into giving you a penalty.
The Stoke team of that season showed real creativity and street smarts. They approached the game from a different perspective.
It led to bizarre scenes like players kicking the ball out for a corner rather than a throw in. It literally made goalkeepers cry. It pissed off teams that felt entitled to win because they played the so-called right way.
The question, "Can they adapt to the Premier League?" is asked of every promoted team.
Stoke flipped the question around: Can the Premier League adapt to us?
As someone on the internet described it, that team was the most genuinely unique team the Premier League had ever seen. They disrupted - in the 'changed everything' rather than the 'nuisance' sense of the word - the football establishment and made people rethink the modern game.
Decades from now, when a lot of the fans and even some of the players from that season are underground, people will still talk about them.
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Post by lawrieleslie on Aug 17, 2017 13:47:03 GMT
I have theseason review video and the two stand out players were Sorro and Riccy. But of course Rory Longthrow added to the excitement.
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Post by nenepotter on Aug 17, 2017 13:57:14 GMT
That team looks so monumentally wank, but Christ they gave their all. I've never felt so proud to be a Potter as watching that squad of misfits and journeymen scrap away, tooth and nail, every second of every match. Vis Unita Fortior, lads. We'll never see a Stoke side that strong or united again. I disagree. I'd take that Delap now. Shawcross is still here. Glenn Whelan owes us nothing. Nor does Wilko. One thing you could say about all of the players that day, except perhaps Kitson and Olofinjana, was that they always played with pride and passion. Shawcross still here. How many premier league players from 9 years ago still playing for the same team?
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Post by Vadiation_Ribe on Aug 17, 2017 15:39:46 GMT
So much to love from that season. I already loved Fuller. Mama & Fuller together. Beattie was clinical right from the off in January. What an amazing double signing with Etherington! If Arnautovic is half as influential for West Ham, he'll have been a success. Faye was incredible, Shawcross superb. Delap. Wilko (when I thought Dicko was the likelier of the two to make it as a Premier League player). When Delap scored against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, I thought we were going to win. Even when we lost, it felt invincible.
And I still don't get why no one seems to have tried to emulate Delap's throws. With the panic they caused, they could be worth 15 goals a season. As he started to drop out of the team, I actually worried how we'd replace the goals due to the pressure they put teams under, as well as the goals that came from them.
Thanks for the write-up, and YouTube link.
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Post by Rednwhitenblue on Aug 17, 2017 15:43:12 GMT
That's got to be the quickest 8 minutes ever, it just flies by.
What kept that team up was the belief Tony Pulis gave them. I know it's not fashionable to like TP these days and lots of water under the bridge and all that, but you can't under-estimate the achievement of that first season. We didn't just stay up, we finished 12th, better than we did last year with CL winners and a squad full of internationals!
Ok, what followed after is a different story but that first year is a massive credit to Pulis, his signings of Etherington and Beattie, and what he got out of the rest of those players.
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Post by Kenilworth_Stokies on Aug 17, 2017 16:40:42 GMT
I'd forgotten how much of an impact Beattie had. And never underestimate how important the goals of Mama, Faye and Lawrence were to this club's survival.
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Post by drjeffsdiscobarge on Aug 17, 2017 17:45:29 GMT
I have theseason review video and the two stand out players were Sorro and Riccy. But of course Rory Longthrow added to the excitement. Ive always thought Sorro was a bit of a forgotten man, well maybe not forgotten, but doesnt get the credit he should have. He was ice cool under pressure!
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Post by heworksardtho on Aug 17, 2017 18:15:11 GMT
Ahah apparently not, only on matchdays😉 Seriously tho great post 👌
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Post by duckling on Aug 17, 2017 18:37:58 GMT
Could someone explain what the 'Mama role' means?
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Post by bhp on Aug 17, 2017 19:27:26 GMT
Ahah apparently not, only on matchdays😉 Seriously tho great post 👌 Thanks mate, like to get things off my chest ahah
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Post by bhp on Aug 17, 2017 19:30:25 GMT
So much to love from that season. I already loved Fuller. Mama & Fuller together. Beattie was clinical right from the off in January. What an amazing double signing with Etherington! If Arnautovic is half as influential for West Ham, he'll have been a success. Faye was incredible, Shawcross superb. Delap. Wilko (when I thought Dicko was the likelier of the two to make it as a Premier League player). When Delap scored against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, I thought we were going to win. Even when we lost, it felt invincible. And I still don't get why no one seems to have tried to emulate Delap's throws. With the panic they caused, they could be worth 15 goals a season. As he started to drop out of the team, I actually worried how we'd replace the goals due to the pressure they put teams under, as well as the goals that came from them. Thanks for the write-up, and YouTube link. Shawcross and Faye were contenders for our top goalscorer weren't they? Ahah I love Shawcross' header against Middlesbrough I think it was at home, gorgeous header glanced in at the far post.
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Post by viewfromthecrowsnest on Aug 17, 2017 19:52:46 GMT
Thanks for the link to the goals that's kept us up. Absolutely wonderful memories. Ricardo, what a player.
We seemed to score from every corner and throw and the spirit in that squad was magnificent.
Ryan scored all the time it seemed. He is still here and a genuine LEGEND
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Post by bhp on Aug 17, 2017 20:31:33 GMT
Thanks for the link to the goals that's kept us up. Absolutely wonderful memories. Ricardo, what a player. We seemed to score from every corner and throw and the spirit in that squad was magnificent. Ryan scored all the time it seemed. He is still here and a genuine LEGEND Apart from the set pieces I think the goals from open play were good too. Converting crosses from open play, playing forwards in with direct passes. Beattie at Spurs, Delap vs Spurs Beattie vs City. Quality delivery with decent finishing not a bad combination
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bobk
Academy Starlet
Posts: 100
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Post by bobk on Aug 18, 2017 11:24:01 GMT
It was a monumental season , nobody gave us a chance including ourselves at times , it was incredible the fortitude of everyone to beat the odds and finish quite comfortably at the end .
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Post by johnbutlershair on Aug 18, 2017 11:28:30 GMT
Nearly every single game I left with a headache or sore throat from all the noise. An incredible season and what a time to be a fan. My only regret is my son wasn't around to witness it
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Post by philm87 on Aug 18, 2017 11:53:52 GMT
Great perspective, we need more of that for the season ahead
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Post by mark71 on Aug 18, 2017 12:33:26 GMT
Not many people mention Amdy Faye, he played a vital role in holding the midfield together.
Also the stand out game for me was Man city at home. I doubt that will ever be surpassed.
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Post by Vadiation_Ribe on Aug 19, 2017 12:40:07 GMT
Could someone explain what the 'Mama role' means? Plenty of people could explain it better than me, but he used to be everywhere - breaking up play, winning pretty much everything in the air (from plenty of long punts upfield), battering defenders, basically just working really hard for the benefit of the team. His presence allowed Fuller some slack. Watch our first Premier League win against Villa if you can, and if I'm thinking of the right game, our 3-1 FA Cup win against Arsenal. I'd say Walters is the closest recent player we had to Sidibe, but he didn't get much chance to play the 'Mama role'. Not many people mention Amdy Faye, he played a vital role in holding the midfield together. Also the stand out game for me was Man city at home. I doubt that will ever be surpassed. A good point about Amdy Faye. We had so many heroes that season, that it's easier to forget the unsung heroes. I watched that match on my own in a pub in Leeds, and the roar that came out of nowhere was incredible. I would've loved to have been there. Massive fist-pump when Beattie scored, and the only other guy in there watching it, sat opposite a few tables away, nodded and smiled at my fist pump. So obviously wasn't a Man City fan.
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Post by ashley luiz on Aug 19, 2017 12:44:25 GMT
Yep 9 years on and we are still hoping 3 other teams are more wank then us and every other club who's come up exception of last season have over took us and left us behind
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Post by GoBoks on Aug 19, 2017 12:47:19 GMT
That team looks so monumentally wank, but Christ they gave their all. I've never felt so proud to be a Potter as watching that squad of misfits and journeymen scrap away, tooth and nail, every second of every match. Vis Unita Fortior, lads. We'll never see a Stoke side that strong or united again. Never is a long long time!
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Post by cheeesfreeex on Aug 19, 2017 12:48:07 GMT
Yep 9 years on and we are still hoping 3 other teams are more wank then us and every other club who's come up exception of last season have over took us and left us behind Shame your owner hasn't brought a bg to pick up the shit you leave on every post.
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Post by ashley luiz on Aug 19, 2017 12:49:51 GMT
Yep 9 years on and we are still hoping 3 other teams are more wank then us and every other club who's come up exception of last season have over took us and left us behind Shame your owner hasn't brought a bg to pick up the shit you leave on every post. open your mouth and my owner won't have to 🙈
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Post by Deleted on Aug 19, 2017 12:54:40 GMT
Yep 9 years on and we are still hoping 3 other teams are more wank then us and every other club who's come up exception of last season have over took us and left us behind What absolute horseshit.
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Post by cheeesfreeex on Aug 19, 2017 12:55:35 GMT
Shame your owner hasn't brought a bg to pick up the shit you leave on every post. open your mouth and my owner won't have to 🙈 Ha ha no flies on you?? I was intrigued by 'except for last season every promoted team has overtaken us.' It's just not remotely, anywhere near anything like the truth.
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Post by ashley luiz on Aug 19, 2017 13:01:47 GMT
open your mouth and my owner won't have to 🙈 Ha ha no flies on you?? I was intrigued by 'except for last season every promoted team has overtaken us.' It's just not remotely, anywhere near anything like the truth. and why is it not
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Post by cheeesfreeex on Aug 19, 2017 13:07:08 GMT
Ha ha no flies on you?? I was intrigued by 'except for last season every promoted team has overtaken us.' It's just not remotely, anywhere near anything like the truth. and why is it not It's not true because it obviously hasn't happened. Google can be your friend. Though I'd hazard a guess you'd try and have an argument with that. There's a match to be played.
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