" FROM BLUE JOY TO RED FACES "

" Cardiff City go from blue joy to red faces as Russell Slade's Bluebirds crash out of FA Cup in near-deserted stadium "

10/01/2016

BY PAUL ABBANDONATO

Exactly one year on from rip-roaring atmosphere for return to blue win over Fulham, fans stay away in their thousands as Cardiff are humiliated in cup.

What a difference a year makes.

Exactly 12 months to the day since joyfully celebrating their club’s return to blue, Cardiff City fans were voting with their feet again ... this time by snubbing Russell Slade’s team during their humiliating FA Cup defeat to Shrewsbury.

It was on January 10, 2015 that Bluebirds supporters created a rip-roaring atmosphere inside their state-of-the-art home by turning up in their thousands to roar their idols to victory over Fulham.

The Bluebirds' exit as it happened
The feelgood factor brought about by Vincent Tan’s dramatic rebrand u-turn – out with the red, in with the blue – saw fans with big beaming smiles on their faces as Cardiff triumphed 1-0.

Many would argue there has been little to get enthused about since and events in this FA Cup embarrassment on January 10, 2016 pretty much summed up what some have come to fear under the Slade regime.

There is an apathy surrounding the club which is as bad as many have known in modern times, perfectly demonstrated by the vast rows of empty seats wherever you looked for this game.

It was, in fact, the second lowest gate recorded for any game at Cardiff City Stadium. The only worse crowd than the 4,782 declared for this one was, funnily enough, for an FA Cup win over Colchester.

And the only reason this was marginally better was probably because of the large number of visiting fans who turned up to cheer their side to victory.

It was a sight which should alarm the Cardiff hierarchy. The Ninian Stand was empty, in the Canton those present were squashed towards the middle. Behind the other goal were only those visiting supporters, who made most of the noise.

Okay, it wasn’t the most glamorous of fixtures, staged on a cold Sunday evening at the end of a rain-lashed weekend in the Welsh capital.

Why go, when you could watch the 90 minutes of drudgery from the comfort of your armchair, or choose instead to see if the paint was drying on the walls?

But this is the FA Cup, remember, a tournament in which Cardiff City FC have a very proud heritage, including a Wembley final appearance as recently as 2008.

Attendance 4,782

Just why the fans are staying away has become the subject of great debate on social media. Depending upon your point of view, they are still stung by the rebrand, they don’t like the current cost-cutting at the club, many say they won’t return until a new manager comes in and introduces a more vibrant brand of football.

Or maybe it’s a mixture of those three, plus a few other things thrown in for good measure, too.

It’s unfair to blame everything at the manager’s door, but the boring, route one football his team played last season when those fans began to turn away certainly didn’t help.

In the League, the Bluebirds have been able to declare crowds of between 13,000 and 15,000 because they can take into account their season ticket-holders, plus the visiting fans.

Many have questioned, rightly or wrongly, just how many were actually in attendance, but the figures were officially correct nonetheless.

For this one, it was about who actually came through the turnstiles.

And there weren’t many. Those who stayed away probably thought they were the real winners, too.

Interesting last 2 sentences.

Last season the decision was to return to blue.

What will the decision be this time around.