Today we bring you the latest club in our published group of “Find Dan Seco an EPL Side” contest entries– the entries in support of the Cottagers of Fulham FC. The Northwest London side has earned a great deal of love stateside over the years as the home of many past American players, and of course is currently home to perhaps the United States’ finest field player, Clint Dempsey. Dan is well-acquainted with the Cottagers and it is certainly possible this is the side he will pick. Our two entries today (one eligible to win) come from The Yanks Are Coming’s own staff writer and longtime Fulham supporter Sean McElroy, who does good work on our site from time to time and is currently a student at prestigious Bowdoin College in Maine, and TYAC reader and frequent commenter Brian Ganey, an MBA student at the University of Alabama. We won’t discredit Ganey’s fine effort simply because he’s a part of Tide Nation. After all, TYAC Sr. Writer and our main tactical analyst Raf Crowley’s Dad is a professor on the Capstone, and, as reigning national champions, we Gators are still taking our medicine. See ya’ll this October. On to the Entries!!!
SEAN McELROY:
Dan,
Let this be an open letter as to why you must support Fulham FC, not just for the 2010-11 season as we crack the top ten of the Premiership for the third time in our history.
First, a question. What do Brian McBride, Eddie Lewis, Clint Dempsey, Kasey Keller, Carlos Bocanegra, Eddie Johnson and Marcus Hahnemann have in common? They all played football for Fulham FC.
Fulham is the only legitimate club to support if you are an American, simply because Fulham has been, and always will be, a destination for top American players. They gave American players a chance at the highest level, when nobody else was willing to.
So let go. Screw the big four, or the bigger clubs. When Fulham wins something, I promise you, it will mean something to you. If you support a big four, it’s expected. Become a fan of a team on the up, and I promise you, the boys in white will play like the boys in the red, white, and blue. They will fight on to the end.
Also, you don’t look like a total douchebag when you are wearing our jerseys. White is classy.
COME ON FULHAM!
Sincerely,
Sean
And now, the entry from MR. GANEY.
After reading that Mr. Seco is a U. of Maryland alum, one team came to my mind: Fulham. Having experienced both teams in person, I can say without a doubt the similarities are uncanny.
Location
In the DC area, Maryland is an often forgot about football program (an underdog if you will). Hell, Fulham isn’t even the most popular team in its London Borough (see a little club called Chelsea), let alone in the City of London (West Ham, Arsenal, Tottenham) . Additionally, both teams are located in hotbeds of talent for their sports, but never seem to be able to capitalize on it.
Money
Even with a wealth of financial resources (this is Under Armour U. after all) and facilities, Maryland routinely fails to impress. Fulham, meanwhile, is bankrolled by a wealthy Arab businessman, yet managed only a 12th place finish in the EPL last year.
Lovable Characters
Ralph Friedgen. How could you not be motivated to run extra at practice when this is the guy blowing the whistle?
Clint Motherfuckin’ Dempsey. While much of the USMNT roster is struggling to ply their trade in 2nd tier leagues, Deuce is burning a General Sherman size swath of land through the EPL. Hell, if Clint Dempsey punched me in the face, I’d have to fight off the urge to thank him.
Facilities
Craven Cottage, just like Byrd Stadium, is an old facility a front office decided to slap a few coats of paint on instead of spending extraordinary amounts of cash to build a new one. Not coincidentally, both are better for it.
Admit it Mr. Seco, mediocrity is in your blood. That piece of paper the University of Maryland at College Park gave you at graduation says so. You were born to be a Fulham fan.
Thank you.
That’s a pretty damn compelling entry, Mr. Ganey, if we do say so ourselves.
Sean McElroy is a staff writer for The Yanks Are Coming. He can be reached at sean@yanksarecoming.com or you can follow him on Twitter @fulhamerican.