The Poznań

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Manchester City fans doing The Poznań.
Lech Poznań fans.

The Poznań or Grecque is a form of sporting celebration that involves supporters standing with their backs to the pitch, linking shoulders side-by-side and jumping on the spot in unison. It is mostly associated with supporters of football clubs Lech Poznań in Poland, Manchester City in England, Celtic in Scotland, Deportivo Alavés in Spain, and the Western Sydney Wanderers in Australia, although it has been performed by fans of many football clubs throughout the world. Its first use is thought to have been as a protest against club management while still supporting the team.

Usage[]

The Poznań Celebration involves the fans turning their backs to the pitch, joining arms and jumping up and down in unison.[1] In Poland, and among many fans across Europe, it is not called "the Poznań" but is known as a "Grecque", and it is performed by fans of many teams.[2]

Despite initially failing to impress Manchester City fans when it was done during the teams' meeting in the UEFA Europa League group stage on 21 October 2010, it was subsequently adopted by City supporters during a game early the following month.[3] The activity was coined 'The Poznań' by Manchester City fans, in homage to the club that inspired them to celebrate in this way. Apart from odd occasions, it died out as a regular celebration within a couple of seasons.[citation needed] The Poznań was briefly adopted by other English football supporters, notably those of Leicester City after their clash with Manchester City in the third round of the FA Cup in January 2011,[4] and is referred to by English football fans as "doing the Poznań".[5]

It has also been used to mock Manchester City fans, such as when newly promoted side Cardiff City beat them 3-2 in August 2013.[6] More examples include when Arsenal supporters did the Poznań celebration after Mikel Arteta scored the winning goal for Arsenal in April 2012 and when Arsenal beat Manchester City in the Premier League.[7] Manchester City supporters did it during a Manchester derby game in the 2010–11 FA Cup semi-final[8][9] as well as Bayern Munich fans during a Champions League group match against them in October 2013.[10] Arsenal supporters also did the Poznań during the 3-0 win in the 2014 FA Community Shield against Man City,[11] and again in January 2015, when Arsenal beat them 0-2,[12] as did Crystal Palace fans at the 2016 FA Cup Final against Manchester United.[13]

Initially, the supporters group of Australian club Western Sydney Wanderers, The Red and Black Bloc, performed it in the 80th minute of matches to represent the first football match played in Western Sydney in 1880. Subsequently, this has grown into an all stadium celebration.[14] In return, their local rival, Sydney FC and their hard-core supporters "The Cove" have performed it in retribution when they are in a winning position as the 90th minute nears during their local derby.

Alternatives[]

Fans of the Scottish club Celtic have a similar celebration known as "The Huddle", whilst also facing away from the pitch; the words sung by the fans are "Let's All Do The Huddle". The "Huddle" performed by Celtic fans is closely linked to the on-field huddle conducted by the Celtic team prior to kick-off which was introduced by Tony Mowbray during his playing career at the club in the mid 1990s.[15] Over the years, Celtic fans have carried out various versions of the huddle,[16] although the first example of it being performed by large numbers of the club's supporters at a game was during a 3-0 win over Rangers at Celtic Park in February 2011.[17]

Supporters of Deportivo Alavés, a La Liga team, have been known to celebrate most of their team's goals with a variation of "The Poznań" since at least 2014, in which they stand with their backs to the pitch, linking shoulders side-by-side and jumping on the spot while they sing the tune to the Pippi Longstocking TV series.[18][19][20]

FC Copenhagen Ultras have the past several years celebrated wins using a variant of the Poznań where the fans turn their backs to the pitch and jump from side to side while the players on the pitch do the same.[21]

See also[]

  • The Bouncy
  • Mexican wave
  • "Jump Around", a 1992 song by American hip hop group House of Pain used as the backdrop for similar fan actions

References[]

  1. ^ "Video: Poznań, Selebrasi Sindiran Gooners Untuk Manchester Biru". Bola.net. 9 April 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  2. ^ "The "Poznań" and the Death of the Goal Celebration?". Modern-football.co.uk. 20 May 2011. Archived from the original on 15 January 2012. Retrieved 20 April 2012.
  3. ^ Pitt-Brooke, Jack (20 April 2011). "Poles apart: how fans of Poznań inspired City's unlikely dance craze". The Independent. London. Retrieved 29 April 2012.
  4. ^ "Leicester fans doing the Poznań". YouTube. 24 August 2013. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  5. ^ "History Of The 'Poznań'". Vital Manchester City. 11 February 2016. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  6. ^ Whittingham, Clive (25 August 2013). "Cardiff City v Manchester City: live". The Telegraph. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  7. ^ Jacob Steinberg (8 April 2012). "Arsenal v Manchester City - as it happened". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 20 April 2012.
  8. ^ "Poles apart: how fans of Poznań inspired City's unlikely dance craze". The Independent. 20 April 2011. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  9. ^ "Man City fans celebrate after Yaya Toure goal". Getty Images. 16 April 2011. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  10. ^ Browne (3 October 2013). "GIF: Bayern Munich fans do the Poznań". Balls.ie. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  11. ^ "Arsenal fans do the Poznań dance in celebration during the FA Community shield match". Getty Images. 10 August 2014. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  12. ^ "Arsenal fans mock Manchester City by doing the Poznań during 2-0 win at Etihad Stadium". Metro. 19 January 2015. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  13. ^ "Crystal Palace support at the FA Cup Final 21st May 2016". YouTube. 22 May 2016.
  14. ^ "RBB Poznań at the A-League grand final". YouTube. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  15. ^ Murray, Ewan (16 June 2009). "Tony Mowbray confirmed as new manager of Celtic". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 October 2013.
  16. ^ "Celtic fans Huddle". YouTube. Retrieved 3 October 2013.
  17. ^ "Celtic 3 - 0 Rangers (20 February 2011)". YouTube. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
  18. ^ Juan carlos gonzalez (26 October 2014). "Afición del Alavés celebrando gol en el Sardinero" – via YouTube.
  19. ^ Tribuna General (30 August 2015). "Grada de animación del Deportivo Alavés. Temporada 2015-16" – via YouTube.
  20. ^ "Alaves fans Doing 'the Poznań'!". Twitter. La Liga. 14 May 2017. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  21. ^ "FC København fans performing their variant of the Poznań after derby win against rivals Brøndby".
Retrieved from ""