By Adrian Mole
March 3 2003

It was Alphonse Karr, (or was it Alphonse the Dog), who said "Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose". Whilst many things may have stayed the same at Welford Road, for example the demand for silver polish, some things have left us with little more than a faded, pensive memory. Others however can be despatched to the sin bin of fate with little more than a backwards glance.

In an idle moment I reflected on some of the changes that have affected me in my support of the Tigers; things that I consider to be positive changes (hits), and some that I wish had not happened and wistfully long for their return (misses). It would be too easy to list players whose skills and abilities no longer grace our turf; they have gone the way of all flesh. Instead I restricted my considerations to changes that have some impact on the overall enjoyment of the rugby experience.

My Top 10 hits are :-

1. The new shirts – don't get me wrong, I thought the old garish hoops of scarlet, white and green were extremely distinctive but I feel the colours and style of the new shirts makes us the envy of the ZP. (but then I would wouldn't I).

2. The Alliance and Leicester Stand - now the second home of Pandora and myself, plus our extended family.

3. The ABC bar - excellently positioned to cater for de-hydration problems en-route from the Tigers bar to the A & L.

4. Tiger Bitter - IMO so much better than the "official beer of English Rugby".

5. Curry - eating curry, drinking beer and watching rugby; the 3 best things that you can do with your clothes on.

6. Smoke On The Water - sorry but I'm of that generation. Not to everyone's liking but it has enough menace to sound intimidating without being silly (except for the atrocious cut into Let Me Entertain You).

7. This website - great for news, information and opinion. Stops me boring all my colleagues at lunchtime.

8. Matt Poole on the pitch - his style is so much more rooted in the Rugby ethos that I still cherish. Sam, you're too commercial and too loud.

9. The tiger head logo - particularly the green and red one. The coat of arms is fine, and I wouldn't want to see it go but for visual impact and instant recognition the logo takes some beating.

10. Tigers Way - a wonderful way of showing recognition for the good press that the Tigers bring to Leicester.

On to the misses then. I miss...

1. Tudor - a symbol of everything that was right about the game.

2. Letters on shirts - is there no room for individuality any more? Touch judges continually claim not to have got the number - its no more difficult for them not to get the letter - sacrificed on the alter of professionalism.

3. Barbaa's games - over 70 years of tradition gone forever - sacrificed on the alter of professionalism. I really miss those Christmas games.

4. Volunteer bar staff - speedier, friendly more efficient service - sacrificed on the alter of professionalism (call me slow but I'm beginning to detect a pattern.)

5. Lester - he couldn't possibly make a come back, could he? A whole generation of Tiger Tots is growing up force fed on Welford and JT. We can only grieve.

6. Space outside the clubhouse - I know I should be glad that more people can get to watch the Tigers but it just feels so uncomfortable now. There's too much squeezed into too small a space.

7. Getting onto the pitch after the game - it was fun watching all the kids pretending to be their heroes and reliving the game they'd just seen and accidentally knocking themselves senseless..

8. The stamping in the Crumbie as the Tigers come out - I know I said that I liked Smoke on the Water but its my article so I'll have my cake and eat it too. I'm just sad that it drowns out the stamping

9. The giant inflatable shirt - just a piece of nonsense really , but I liked the way that its fan was the loudest thing in the ground during kicks.

10. there is no number 10 - if you believe things are getting better then its only right that there should be more hits than misses.

I'm sure that everyone reading this would have a different list. It's this variety of opinions and experiences that helps make Rugby the great sporting entertainment that it is.

So, I've told you what changes I think have been for the better and for the worse. What is it that you think has improved your enjoyment of the game or left you with an empty hollow feeling of irreplaceable loss. I'd love to know.