Why would supporters of a football club want to adopt the anthem of another club as the supporters of Tottenham Hotspur seem to want to do.

The commentator on Spurs game at Inter Milan on Thursday night certainly seemed to have a Spurs bias, perhaps some would say there was nothing wrong with that as it was an English club playing in Europe, if he mentioned Spurs travelling 1,600 fans once, he mentioned them a couple of dozen times and never more than when he exclaimed with pride of how they were letting rip with a resounding version of "When the purs go marching in" with such gusto.

All well and good, but you wouldnt expect Manchester United fans to give their rendition of "You'll never walk alone" in times of triumph or Villa fans to sing "Keep right on to the end of the road" or Millwall "Im forever blowing bubbles" so what makes Spurs fans want to sing a song of a fellow Premier league team or more puzzling try to pass it off as their own.

The song itself has always been associated with Saints, yes over the years many teams have sung it and changed the words, usually to the colour of their kit, but none have really tried to adopt it as their own as Spurs now seem to want to do.

As mentioned the song has been associated with Southampton Football Club for as long as most supporters can remember, research done by myself for the book "Saints preserved" revealed that the song was written in the 1920's in New Orleans and was originally a Dixieland Jazz tune, but was unknown outside of that area until Louis Armstrong recorded a version in the 1930's, but it still remained relatively unknown and with football crowds not really chanting as such back then it would be the 1950's and the Jazz revival in England in that decade that bought the song to the fore in this country.

Of course it was obvious which football club it fitted and from then on it was known as the theme tune of Southampton Football Club, of course other clubs would use it in the 60's & 70's but then again all clubs would use all songs, but only a select few were really associated with one club in particular and English football fans were in no doubt that they were only borrowing the song from the true Saints.

Spurs fans though now seem to think it is fine to try and steal the tune and make it their own, its not as if they dont have their own anthem though, Glory Glory Tottenham Hotspur is again a song much used by other clubs in some form, but the true version belongs to Spurs, perhaps their fans dont like the song very much, certainly in the 1980's they had to employ Chas & Dave, they themselves  technically associated more with the East End of London rather than the North of the Capital to write songs for them, in truth Spurs and Arsenal fans have never been known for originality, it must be the air in North London.

Possibly the reason it has been adopted is that with the traditional singing areas of White Hart Lane being decimated when the ground was turned into an all seater stadium, they have taken many years to get back a singing atmosphere into the ground, for them it has usually not been about many different chants mainly from a dedicated area of the ground, its all been about trying to get the crowd going using an easy song to sing and a plagiarised version of Oh when the Saints fits that bill.

So how would Spurs fans feel if the Northam End started making Glory Glory Southampton our new theme song, lyrically we are perhaps one of the few teams whose name would fit perfectly.

Glory Glory Southampton

Glory Glory Southampton

Glory Glory Southampton

And the Saints go marching on !

I bet if that resounded out during a telvised game on a few occasions then Spurs message boards would be full of indignation etc, but how many would see the irony of their theft from our repetoire.

So for any Spurs fans reading, dont you think its about time you started using your own songs instead of ours ! 

Photo: Action Images

BITTERNEBOY added 08:59 - Mar 15 What an appalling blog Spurs supporters have been singing that song in Europe since the sixties I remember well
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SaintNick added 09:03 - Mar 15 If you read it you will see I mentioned that most clubs have sung this song over the years, that isnt in doubt, I can remember that the Milton Road end used to sing youll never walk alone back in the 70's as well as did most clubs. The point is about how Spurs are trying to make the song their own and it isnt
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Scummer added 09:44 - Mar 15 Drove me up the wall when their away support sang it at St Marys. Btw, Tottenham Hotspur has four syllables (unless you sound really posh and say it with five), whereas Southampton has three. I don't think Glory Glory Southampton works at all well!!
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ItchenNorth added 10:55 - Mar 15 Down the years I’ve always quite liked Tottenham as a club but their fans are now doing my head in due to this one issue. I'd be embarrassed if our fans tried to take ownership of a song soooo clearly linked to another club in such a way. Yes fans jump on current in vogue tunes doing the rounds up and down the country, but some songs and their accompanying lyrics are linked to certain clubs. ‘Oh When The Saints’ being one of those songs ! Cut it out you Spuds ! Closet Saints fans the lot of them !

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birminghamsaint added 15:18 - Mar 15 Why don't they sing: Tottenham play up Play up Tottenham I think the song is going to be available soon.
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Guido added 16:26 - Mar 15 My suggestion is your fans at Southampton should sing it like we do at Tottenham, then you will have commentators talking about your fans too! Don't take my word for it, I suggest you go onto youtube and just compare the two renditions. You will see that at Spurs the whole ground sings it, and I mean the whole ground including the prawn sandwiches. So, for you to claim this song back try you lot need to look at your own supporters efforts. I know this might be a little confrontational, but think it is true. I apply the same logic about Glory, Glory which is origionaly ours, but unfortnatly this rarely sung at the Lane these days and I wish it was, and just like you it is "our song". But we have lost Glory, Glory because we allowed others to take it and sing it louder than us e.g. Man U they think that this is their song.

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ItchenNorth added 17:55 - Mar 15 Guido, your logic is something I’d expect to hear in the school yard; ‘we sing it loader than you so it’s ours’ nar nar nar nar nar nar lol ! It is not a case of allowing anything either, such as you've ‘allowed’ Man Utd to take Glory Glory because you don’t sing it anymore !!!!! Well whos fault is that ? One of the most ironic things we hear at St Marys from away fans is the chant ‘ you've only got one song’. Hmmm that tells you something, a) we sing it a lot and b) almost all other clubs recognize that it is our anthem. I would say its moreover about respecting other clubs identity and creating YOUR OWN. Perhaps because Saints have been out of the Premier for a number of years TV fans and commentators have forgotten we exist somewhat !! I say again; closet Saints fans the lot of them lol lol !

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Guido added 18:43 - Mar 15 Oh in that case we will stop singing then................get real mate, do you see that happening? Sorry if that sounds harsh, I am not trying to antagonise (I understand how my comments will though). But to say to another team to stop signing a song they have sung for 60 years (that wasn't origionally theirs), but wether you like it or not HAS become a Spurs club anthem (there is even a spurs blog and podcast called Oh when the Spurs), then you are barking up the wrong tree. It will nver happen. You may be right about being out of Prem, TV and public eye etc, I for one have not been down to you yet unfortunatley. So the only thing I am bassing my comments on are how I see you lot sing it is on YouTube. But I am sorry to tell you the song HAS become "our song" weather you like it or not, that is the situation. You can moan, bitch and ask us not to sing it but knowing how tribal football mentality is, do you really see us stop singing it? I am sure you know the answer to that. So, my point is the same as my origional post, you need to get the whole ground to sing it (again appologise if I have that wrong but can't see/hear evidence you lot have the whole ground singing it), it's down to you lot. If other teams are saying you've only got one song, then sing someothers and get this one sung less and by the whole ground. Anyway, good luck for Saturday PLEASE spank 'poool. I genuinely hope you remain in prem, as I love the way you play.

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ItchenNorth added 19:28 - Mar 15 I don't expect Spurs fans to stop singing it at all but I find it strange that a big club like yours, with passionate fans are all willing just take on a song, change the key word and adopt the whole thing ! I just don't get it. Why wouldn't you want to sing Glory Glory or embrace a unique anthem etc? Id never sing a song ripped from another club in such a way. It just doesn't sit right. I forgot to say in my post the that most ironic thing about saying to us 'you've only got one song is' that we actually have loads, many right out of the box too ! Anyway still hope Spurs get top 4; just quit singing OUR song will ya !!

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