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Have you ever been hassled by a fan of your team for wearing a particular jersey?


Adam

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So as I was leaving the Pens/Isles game Saturday night, I hear this guy grumbling about something pretty constantly. I expected to see one of the handful of Islanders fans in attendance, but as I listened in he claimed to remember a "kid" and some previous encounter. As he continued his bitchfest, he was referring to someone not being old enough for the jersey they were wearing. I was wearing my robo alternate Lemieux, if anyone is wondering. He keeps going on about "I remember Michael Jordan too", keeping in mind that I'm nearly 29. Everyone around me was wearing current style jerseys, so he had to be talking about me. Apparently being 10 when they first wore a jersey isn't old enough to remember, and certainly not old enough to wear 20 years later.

Has this happened to anyone else? I feel it is beyond ridiculous. I didn't say anything to him, but it got me pretty wound up. I'm aware that people in general are pricks now, but this is a little over the top especially considering that he was a fellow Penguins fan.

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I remember going to a Leaf game with my then gf and I was wearing a Gary Roberts blue Leafs and she was wearing a Nieuwendyk white Leafs. The game we went to was against the Panthers and it was Roberts and Nieuwendyk's first season with Florida and we got hassled (jokingly and we also deserved it) that we were Panthers fans.

Your case is very odd.

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I get crap from my own fanbase for just being a jersey or GW jersey collector. Got it this past weekend from another person on fan message board where I post a bit about jerseys and the conversation wasn't even about jerseys.

Apparently being against Chinese knockoffs and buying GW or authentic jerseys automatically makes you not only a jersey snob, but a snob in everything else. The best part is the excuses those people make when trying to justify buying a $30 knockoff saying "it looks just as good, if not better than the real stuff! and "those official jerseys are way too much!" This is coming from people who are spending serious $ on tickets, get 3-5 $10 beers at the arena and spend $10-30 on food there per game but then cry poverty when it comes to jerseys.

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The funny part was, once I zeroed in on what he was saying and that he was talking about me I looked over my shoulder 2 or 3 times, then he didn't say another word about it or anything else.

As far as the Slim ID goes...can't be unseen. My eyes, they burn. On a random not, there was a guy in a Trent Hunter Isles jersey. I hope it was free...

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Huh....good thing this guy didn't see me there Saturday night.

I'm also 29, and I was wearing my 90-91 Coffey jersey, which would have made me 5 at that time. How dare we.

I think I sat near you, I was in 217 and remember seeing such a jersey.

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I get crap from my own fanbase for just being a jersey or GW jersey collector. Got it this past weekend from another person on fan message board where I post a bit about jerseys and the conversation wasn't even about jerseys.

Apparently being against Chinese knockoffs and buying GW or authentic jerseys automatically makes you not only a jersey snob, but a snob in everything else. The best part is the excuses those people make when trying to justify buying a $30 knockoff saying "it looks just as good, if not better than the real stuff! and "those official jerseys are way too much!" This is coming from people who are spending serious $ on tickets, get 3-5 $10 beers at the arena and spend $10-30 on food there per game but then cry poverty when it comes to jerseys.

I've gotten into this debate with people several times, and its actually hilarious.

Basically the best point to make is "you're buying the jersey to show your support of the team, but by buying a counterfeit jersey, you're doing the exact opposite [giving money to someone who is stealing the team's logos]"

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But yea, this guy is ridiculous for being such a snob about people wearing jerseys from a previous era. Frankly, given that there are a lot of "new" Pens fans out there who can't even name a player not on the current roster (who isn't named Lemieux), you would think he would like seeing people honor tradition and the past. He's an idiot.

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But yea, this guy is ridiculous for being such a snob about people wearing jerseys from a previous era. Frankly, given that there are a lot of "new" Pens fans out there who can't even name a player not on the current roster (who isn't named Lemieux), you would think he would like seeing people honor tradition and the past. He's an idiot.

Just imagine if it had been that jersey with an obscure player on it, like Dziedzic or Roche. He'd probably stroke out. I had a chance to buy a Corey Foster game worn one for pretty cheap. Obscure and game worn may have caused him to detonate....the possibilities.

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Being only 23, most of the styles I collect were worn before I was even born. But i don't think its about being there/old enough/alive to appreciate certain jerseys and styles.

It's about an appreciation for said style. Wether your old enough etc you can still have an appreciation and fascination with any jersey or player. Especially with the Internet/YouTube now it's make it easier to look back and watch footage of the good 'ol days. I probably watch just as much old footage as I do current stuff. And that's what this hobby is all about. Collecting what you like and interests you.

There's nothing wrong with a little nostalgia.

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Most teams can't really celebrate their current teams, so nostalgia is the better way to go. The Penguins (as well as Kings, Blackhawks, Bruins, etc...) have had recent success so fans are more comfortable celebrating and cheering for current players. If you're a fan of the Oilers, Flames or Islanders however, it's a different story.

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I respect fans more when they show love for the past, and would respect a young fan more for paying homage and learning about the history of the team.

Not that this even applies in OP's case; most Penguin fans in their late 20's/early 30's have watched Lemieux play. The guy was probably just jealous of your robo.

Edited by likeaboss2
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The guy was probably just jealous of your robo.

I'll say. Not a whole lot of people own an authentic CCM 3rd. Although I'll bet that fan probably had no idea about that!

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I always try to make friends with fellow Rangers fans in retro jerseys.

I also usually carry a chunk of cash in case I can bribe the owner if I want his jersey.

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I always try to make friends with fellow Rangers fans in retro jerseys.

I also usually carry a chunk of cash in case I can bribe the owner if I want his jersey.

There was a guy in a blank 91-92 walking around the arena that I told my wife I wanted to offer money for. It only had the 75th patch but still. Wanted badly. Edited by Adam
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I was a little surprised no one said anything about my Salvador jersey I wore on Saturday. I think it's safe to say I'm the only devils fan that owns a Salvador jersey

I'm sure some members of his family have them also, but they are too embarrassed so they wear their Elias jerseys when they go to the game,

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Not quite in the same vein but reminds me of a story my dad tells: He taught at a college in the early-mid 1990s when hockey jerseys became popular with the rapper set. He saw one kid wearing a Pens jersey and asked "How's Lemieux doing this year?" Reply: "Who?"

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I wore a Denis Seidenberg Germany jersey to a Flyers/Ottawa playoff game...One of the "educated" Flyer fans just started to verbally tear me apart for being a Sens fan... I guess the team colors were close...There I was, a long time Flyers season ticket holder, listening to some slightly intoxicated moron telling me how the Flyers were going to trounce my club...

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I wouldn't say hassled, but on occasion, people who notice I wear many different jerseys ask (usually jokingly) why I don't like the team that I wore the previous time, it may not easily occur to them (without me telling them) that my favorite team is the Penguins.

The same thing may happen if I wear a jersey supporting the road team to a game, or decide to wear a jersey for a team that is not even competing at a game (in which case, it may go into hassling territory).

One big example of the former is when I went to a Caps/Jets game in early 2013. I was wearing the new Jets jersey (with my name and #24 on it, but that's irrelevant) I got recently, and I was hanging out outside of the seating area for a bit before the game. Someone came up to me, obviously a Caps fan, saying "This is America, we don't support Canadian teams here," or something of that sort. It was kind of awkward at first, but I love those kinds of interactions at games, it just makes me feel alive for whatever reason. Anyway, he then walked into the restrooms, but I myself just stood there. I don't believe I got any more negative reactions, not even when the Caps fans were cheering and running out of the arena when they won that game, which made them clinch a playoff spot. I myself love the Caps, as they are a local team, so I did not mind much that they won. Though, I loved Winnipeg much more back then, when they were fresh out of Atlanta.

Edited by Nas
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