McClean Stance Divides Opinion

I would like to talk this week about a player who has been the subject of a lot of criticism in the past, James McClean.

Whether that criticism was fair or not you can judge for yourself, as can you judge my opinion on what I wish to talk about. I mean, that is the whole point right? It is a free country and we can decide as human beings whether or not we agree with someone’s viewpoint or not.

Of course, there are topics where it is right to condemn and not take a positive view, in life, horrendous crimes, mindless violence, the list goes on. But some things, you owe it yourself and the person you are judging to at least be objective and find out all the facts before making judgement.

In the past, Albion’s twenty-six year old Irish international has courted controversy for not wearing a poppy on his shirt in games for Sunderland and Wigan Athletic, and soon he will refuse to wear one for the Baggies.

In response to this he has received death threats and all number of impolite things have been said about him and his family. That is wrong. It is not wrong however to disagree with the notion that he should wear one, that is your choice. In the same way it is McClean’s choice whether he wishes to wear the red flower synonymous with the British armed forces in remembering those that have lost their lives fighting for our great nation.

I would very much prefer every member of Albion’s squad to be wearing a poppy on the selected match day in November, but that will not be the case. I personally will be wearing a poppy. I have served in HM Forces and have had family that served too, but I will not boo James McClean for not wanting to wear one. There is no doubt that McClean will get abused in the coming weeks and throughout his career for his choices, but the question I ask those people is this. Can they not see the irony in condemning someone for exercising their right to free speech and free will? Think about it.

An interesting read is a piece on the West Brom official website where the Ireland international explains the reasoning behind his choice. He explains:

I want to take the chance to make it clear to Albion supporters what I am about. We are coming up to Remembrance Day and I will not wear a poppy on my shirt when those games come around. People say that by not wearing a poppy, I am being disrespectful but they do not ask why it is that I choose not to wear it.

If the poppy was simply about World War One and Two victims alone, I would wear it without a problem. I would wear it every day of the year if that was the thing, but it does not, it stands for all the conflicts that Britain has been involved in. Because of the history of where I come from in Derry, I cannot wear something that represents that. I have no issue with people that do wear the poppy, I absolutely respect their right to do that but I would hope that people respect my right to have a different opinion on it too.

His viewpoint makes sense, it is valid, and fair. He shows no disrespect, and does not wish to offend anyone. Okay, there are times where he has not done himself favours in the past, but genuinely, I believe this guy now, does not want a big thing to be made of it. The problem is everyone else, and they will make this a big thing. I would just hope though that before they decide they hate McClean’s stance, they do their research first. Only this weekend was McClean subject to abuse, from supporters of his former club Sunderland. He responded at the end of the game by celebrating in front of them with a ‘fist pump’.

All hell then broke loose as some Sunderland players and most of their supporters took offence to his celebrations. Well, all I will say on that is that is if you cannot take it, then do not dish it out. There is often banter between fans, and it makes the game what it is, do not go and get all precious because the footballer you have abused (including some not so nice things said about his family) for ninety minutes gives it back for a couple of seconds. We as fans like to see passion from our players, and I would much rather have eleven players with the attitude of James McClean than eleven players like our forward Saido Berahino who stated just a few weeks ago that he did not wish to play for our club again. Bravo James!

No onto the action from the weekend, of which there was plenty. This week and going forward I am going to instead of giving you a rundown of the games (of which you probably all know the ins and outs of already) give you a key statistic to think about along with the results and league table.

Tottenham 0 Liverpool 0 – Jurgen Klopp’s debut as Liverpool gaffer ended in a goalless draw. No mean feat considering the Reds had conceded in their last five top flight fixtures.

Chelsea 2 Aston Villa 0 – Villa’s Tim Sherwood is now under immense pressure and could well lose his job if they fail to pick up any points in their next game at home to Swansea. Villa actually managed (10) more shots at goal than the hosts (9) in this game.

Crystal Palace 1 West Ham 3 – Palace along with Manchester City are the only sides in the top flight yet to play out a draw. They were edged out of this one after Gayle’s red card allowed the Hammers opportunity to take all three points.

Everton 0 Manchester United 3 – A solid display by the Red Devils whose last three games have all finished 3-0. They beat Sunderland by that score-line a week before Arsenal managed three against them before the international break.

Manchester City 5 Bournemouth 1 – League leaders City put five past the newly promoted Cherries. Young England man Raheem Sterling became the eleventh Premier League player aged under 21 years to score a hat-trick.

Southampton 2 Leicester 2 – The Foxes have suffered just one defeat so far this season, that came against Arsenal. They are currently fifth, a brilliant start.

West Bromwich Albion 1 Sunderland 0 – As many predicted, this was hardly one for the football purists. This first Hawthorns win of the season for the Baggies leaves struggling Sunderland without a single league victory this term.

Watford 0 Arsenal 3 – Another solid Arsenal win. They stay in second place. Only West Ham have managed more points away from home (13) than Arsenal this season (12).

Newcastle United 6 Norwich City 2 – The Magpies ended their winless start to the season in style. After conceding six last time out versus Manchester City, this time they hit six. It was a tad harsh on Norwich who really did not play like a side deserving of seeing that many fly past them! They have a Wear-Tyne derby to look forward to next week.

Swansea City 0 Stoke City 1 – Only fourteen players have started for Swansea in the Premier League this season. The lowest amount in the top flight.

Premier League Table