Leaving the match early makes no sense

Strictly speaking Pontiggia is marginally offside for Albinoleffe's 3rd goal because he's ahead of Belotti and there's only the defender, with no goalkeeper, between him and the goal (two opposition players are needed to play you onside).

Very difficult for the referee and I'm not sure. But eyes or memory need testing on the position of Pontiggia in relation to Belotti. In my mind's eye I still see him to Belotti's left. And I don't see all the players who had managed to get back and made Pontiggia's task not exactly difficult but not a formality either.

It makes you wonder about all the things you 'remember' from days when matches were not covered by TV, and also from minor matches that one sees today. It all happens so quickly that it's obviously very easy for the eye to be deceived.

Totally agree with the point the article makes. Two other things I'll never understand : being prepared to miss an early goal in order to
get an extra pint in, and getting up after about 35 mins of the first-half (disturbing those around you in the process) so as to be first in the HT pie queue. You're there for the football for Christ's sake, not at the pub or the take-away.

I think the game that really established the 'never leave early' principle for me was a Stafford v Telford FA Trophy QF reply in 87/88. It was a brilliant non-league occasion. Marston Road, one of the great traditional back-street grounds, was pretty much full, and it was a chilly but atmospheric night under the lights. Stafford were 2-0 ahead and cruising with 4 mins left to play and half the Telford fans had already left. Cue two late goals for the away side and then an extra-time winner. I heard later that some of the departing away fans had put on local radio coverage of the match in their cars. Why bother when you weren't interested enough to stay to the end in the first place? Anyway, some turned round and went back to the ground when they heard news of the first Telford goal, others thought, 'nah, sod it, it's only a consolation' and carried on towards home.

Anyway, Telford went on to play Enfield in the final. It was a 0-0 bore at Wembley but the replay, at the Hawthorns, was another 3-2 extra-time thriller, this time with the Es coming out on top.

My resolve has only been seriously tested once since then, at Portsmouth v WBA at Fratton Park in 96/97. It was November, there was sleet and an ice-cold wind. Alan Buckley's Albion gave possibly the most spinelessly inept performance in the club's history and were 4-0 down at HT. I stuck the second-half out in Fratton Park's then open away end. Needless to say Albion didn't fight back heroically for a 4-4 draw - in fact it was amusing that the Pompey fans I met at the station later had expected us to do just that.

A handful of Ireland fans were seen streaming out of the South Terrace at Lansdowne Road after 30 minutes when Spain went 3-0 up, in the World Cup qualifier in October 1993. The camera zoomed in on them and George Hamilton made some suitably derisive noises.

I'll never understand why people do it. There were thousands of Liverpool fans streaming out of Anfield today with five minutes left, even though United were very shaky throughout and could easily have let in another goal before the end. It makes no sense.

It is madness to leave early.
A good friend always stayed to thte bitter end...that was until Wimbledon entertained Wrexham a couple of seasons ago. With Wrexham winning 1-0, Wimbledon creating zero chances and only 3 minutes remaining he surprised us all by saying his goodbyes and walking off.
One minute later Wimbledon equalised through an own goal from Frank Sinclair.
Two minutes later, and Andy Mangan had put Wrexham ahead with a goalon the break.
Then in the 94th minute a ball into the box resulted in Frank Sinclair adding to his own goal by giving away a penalty after he swung his arm in Danny Kedwell's face.

Up stepped Glenn Poole for his solitary Wimbledon contribution as he squeezed his penalty into the bottom corner.

3 goals, one penalty, an own goal and a sending off...doesn't pay to leave 3 minutes early.

On this subject, I was in my regular football-watching spot in Milan yesterday, where there are always a few expats or holiday-makers or buisiness-trippers in to watch a game or two. There was a (spectacularly irritating) Londoner in watching Man City - Arsenal, squealing in disturbing fashion every time the Gunners attacked. But as soon as they scored their equaliser with well under 10 minutes to go, he picked up his Macbook, said thanks to the barman and left! Very odd indeed.

I never understand why people care so much when other people leave. It's not like the Opera or theatre where it puts off the performers, and I am not going to get tetchy because someone stood up to leave so I missed a complete view Ryan Nelsons hoof into row Z. If someone wants to go early then fine, their choice, what does it matter? I positively encourage it because it means they will hopefully have drifted away from Wembley when I go to the tube to wait 40 minutes to get into the Wembley Park Station. Although I admit was baffled by a couple of Everton fans at Goodison who came to the ground steaming and had smuggled in a couple of cans. One fell asleep, the other vommited onto my mate's shoes and into both of the beer cans on the floor. They then both got up just before half time with their cans and carried on drinking and made their way to the exit. Meant I had more leg room in the second half once the steward had washed away the chunks of rice and chicken. As long as the footy is entertaining I don't much care when people leave, there are more pressing matters to be concerned with.

I will finish with an invitation to anybody who is interested in this topic to find out what happened in stoppage time in an FA Cup tie between Dartford and Plymouth Argyle in November 1974.

I know Argyle won 3-2 and thanks to the excellent Harley Lawer's Argyle Classics I quote "Sensation piled on sensation as Argyle hauled themselves off their backs to cut the potential giantkillers of Dartford down to size in the nick of time."

It records that Dartford took a 2-1 lead in the 86th minute only for Argyle to then score twice for the victory and hang on through a torrid 4 minutes of additional time.

Anything else?

I was at the Milan v Udinese game a couple of season ago where Udinese were leading 3-1 with less than 10 minutes to go and the game finished 4-4. There were plenty who missed those 4 late goals.

Highlights here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhNnWD2nA1A

I recall watching my team Tranmere play a League Cup replay at home to Birmingham in 1995. 1-0 down in the last seconds of the match, plenty of Rovers fans were already out of the ground when John Aldridge scored a last-gasp equaliser to send the game into extra-time. As some of those fans changed their mind and walked back in, they were roundly abused by a large percentage of those who had stayed put. Some of them probably wished they had kept on walking, as Tranmere went down 3-1 in extra time.

@ coral

It's not that we care. I'm sure most of us don't. It's that we don't understand.

@ greenlander

I was at the game, and my memory is slightly different. In it, the game was already into stoppage time when Dartford took the lead, but Plymouth still had time to score twice and win the game. But I admit that my memory may be faulty. I think that Paul Mariner was among Plymouth's scorers that day.

Serie A this weekend. Parma 1 Fiorentina 1. Fiorentina miss an 88th minute penalty and Parma equalise, also from the spot, in the 93rd. Atalanta 1 Palermo 0. The goal after 88 minutes, when, as I can personally confirm, hundreds had already left, convinced that it was a certain 0-0 (as I was, to be honest). Inter 0 Siena 2. Siena's second after 92 minutes. That's three games out of 9 played that had very late and decisive incidents or goals.

Incidentally, Atalanta's goal was scored by Cristian Raimondi. As he wears the 77 shirt he's known as CR77. But the similarities end there. CR7 is a narcissistic genius, CR77 is an honest journeyman who give his all for the cause and never complains when he finds himself on the bench, which is usually.

Glancing through Saturday's English results down to Conference National, I see that 16 out of 50 saw goals from the 85th minute onwards. More, frankly, than I expected, but I think it validates the point of the article. If you leave in the last 5 minutes, there is not a small chance but a very real one that you will miss a goal, and maybe more than one.

I was at Crawley v Tranmere on Saturday and Rovers scored after 1:05 of the first half, after 38 seconds of the second half, and also in the 90th minute. If you were late getting there or early leaving, you could have missed 3 goals.

@Geobra. Not sure about that, the general tone seems to be a measure of fanship. The Tranmere post alludes to this, that people were booed on coming back. It is a test of how much a fan someone is of the club that they are prepared to sit through the tough times such as going 1-0 down with not long left. I left a Fulham v Hull game 5 minutes early once at 0-0 in order to make my train home because sadly the game kicked off at 8pm rather than 19:45. If I went when the whistle went I would be stuck behind the crowds and would miss my train home. I made it home in time and missed Hull score, which as a Fulham fan is a bonus. I left an England game 5 minutes early and got home an hour earlier than would be expected, and missed nothing. If I want to take the gamble, surely that is up to me without having scorn poured on my actions? Not that I am serial early leaver, which I feel compelled to confess.

@ Coral

Of course there are exceptions. I leave early myself occasionally, as the article pointed out, but never willingly. Sometimes you have to, especially if, like me, you don't have a car and the last bus or train beckons. But, for example, I think that few if any 'needed' to leave yesterday's 3 p.m. kick off game early. They just did it because they'd made up their mind that it would finish 0-0. And so they missed virtually the only moment that made a boring afternoon worthwhile. That is, unless you were supporting Palermo!

Coral, to acknowledge what you're saying another oint would be that silly KO times often necessitate leaving early, as with your Fulham example.

I agree with Geobra that while I don't care that much about early leavers, unless they're pushing past and blocking my view that is, I don't understand the ones who are doing it by choice.

And if anything, I understand those needing to neck down a last pint 2 mins before KO, or the early arrivals in the pie queue, even less.

another point, of course..

My brother has never let me forget I dragged him away from a dull England qualifier at the old Wembley with a minute to go. Peter Beardsley apparently scored one of his finest England goals in injury time. Never done it again. Ever.

My experience is, the last five minutes of any football game is all about goalkeepers taking as long as they can to take a goal kick, players taking as long as they can over a simple throw in, players taking a chuffing ETERNITY to limp off the pitch when subbed with 30 seconds to go, players demonstrating their skills at shielding the ball by the corner flag, players writhing around in apparent agony, players receiving extensive treatment for their non-existent injuries - I could go on. Sorry chaps, but I'm not hanging around for that. I've got better things to do with my time. I ALWAYS leave early - ALWAYS.

I suspect that the main reason why people who always stay to the end get so arsey with those of us who always leave early is because, deep down, they know we're right. More often that not, nothing happens in the last five minutes of any game. These stalwarts wish they had the courage to join us plastics and just walk out, rather than sit through the whole ghastly spectacle right to the bitter end.

Basically, they're jealous of us. ;-)