I think here is the problem though. They are pros in terms of they are full time hockey players and certainly act the role here. However they are the equivalent of playing for Barry Town. They are normal blokes who almost made the top level. They mix with normal people, they certainly aren’t celebrities, they don’t have personal staff running their social media so they probably see every criticism and insult as a bit personal.
Outside of the 3k fans in Cardiff no one has a clue who they are in the City - and it is like that everywhere they go. I would imagine they see themselves as normal blokes doing a job - we have a very passionate fan base who live and die by their every move. Some kiss their ass on social media, some get excited about seeing them in the supermarket and some hang onto every mistake but the reality is that they probably find all of it a bit weird and are just here to do a job, earn some money and go home.
Outside of the 3k fans in Cardiff no one has a clue who they are in the City - and it is like that everywhere they go. I would imagine they see themselves as normal blokes doing a job - we have a very passionate fan base who live and die by their every move. Some kiss their ass on social media, some get excited about seeing them in the supermarket and some hang onto every mistake but the reality is that they probably find all of it a bit weird and are just here to do a job, earn some money and go home.
I do find it difficult though to bite my tongue when people get criticised for expressing their opinion on here. There’s obviously a limit but to be honest it’s been a long time since I’ve seen a post on this forum that’s below the belt. In my opinion below the belt is when somebody gets very personal about a players personality or character whilst using very colourful language. Just saying you don’t rate a player or you don’t want a player back isn’t below the belt. Some fans just don’t like to see criticism of anything that’s Devils related and I find that difficult. It just makes it very tough to have a debate if criticism isn’t allowed. Now before somebody says “constructive criticism is fine” I genuinely don’t even think that’s accepted at times.
You’re right, in hockey terms we probably are the equivalent of a Barry Town, and our players aren’t on fantastic salaries. But at the end of the day people pay good money to see these boys play. The season before last I spent at least £1,000 following the Devils home and away and I’m sure many other fans spent more than that. In no way does that give fans the right to abuse players on twitter or copy players into criticism on twitter but I do think it’s fair game to express opinions on here. It’s very easy for players to avoid the forum and I don’t even know why they’d want to come on here if I’m honest.