From the Daily Prophet of 9 September, 2000
United fans split over starting Seeker
By K.C. Allen
LONDON -- To any Quidditch-loving patron walking into the Bumblebee pub on Diagon Alley, the proverbial writing is on the wall: "Harry Potter, Pride of Puddlemere."
That message, in the form a blinking, 20-foot sign, stretches across the back wall of the year-old establishment, positioned neatly above a display with sets of Gryffindor and Puddlemere United robes and a Firebolt broom. More than anything, it's a proclamation of loyalty.
"Not everyone who comes here is a Puddlemere fan," said the pub's owner, 22-year-old Lee Jordan. "Supporters of all clubs -- even witches and wizards who don't care about Quidditch -- are welcome here. But we are all Harry Potter fans. I'm fairly sure we'd all like to see him playing for the Puddlemere first team."
To know Jordan's assessment of his clientele is accurate, one only needed to listen to the conversation inside the Bumblebee on Friday evening. Of the nearly 50 patrons who arrived during the dinner rush, many readily joined the lively discussions of today's Puddlemere-vs.-Caerphilly match. And while the merits of United's flanking attack strategy and the wisdom of manager Glenn Watson were hotly debated, no dissenting voice could be found when it was asked if Puddlemere would be better off with the Boy Who Lived starting ahead of rival Seeker Samuel Diop.
Meanwhile, just down the street at the Leaky Cauldron, a considerable portion of those who gathered for a meal or a butterbeer were also talking Quidditch on Friday. The 11 middle-aged friends in one such group identified themselves as long-time Puddlemere supporters.
"We come here after work when we want to talk about the team," said Yurick Masters, a 54-year-old father of three. "Even if we wanted to, we couldn't go to the Bumblebee. We wouldn't fit in."
In fact, Masters -- who's taken his family to every United home match for 21 straight years -- is starting to wonder if he'll even fit in at Nimbus Arena anymore.
"It's great that the stadium is going to full for every game, but all these new fans, I'm afraid they just care about Harry Potter," he said. "I'm afraid they're going to raise a fuss if he doesn't play, even if the team wins."
Such is the risk of success, it seems.
Without question, Potter's arrival has meant unprecedented excitement and fan response for Puddlemere. Seats for every match at Nimbus Arena have long since sold out, with many of the tickets going to newcomers hoping for a chance to see the legendary hero excel on the pitch the way he excelled in the wars against Darkness.
But when the season opened at Portree last week, Diop, a proven star of league and World Cup competition, played Seeker and the Boy Who Lived stayed on the bench. If Diop takes the pitch again today for United's 1 p.m. home debut against the Catapults, it could be before a divided house.
"There are Puddlemere United fans and there are Harry Potter fans, and they don't necessarily overlap," said 38-year-old Donald Forsythe, one of Masters' companions and a self-proclaimed member of the former group. "We have somewhat different interests."
The division has already shown itself twice at Nimbus Arena when some fans reacted to Watson holding Potter out of the line-up for a pair of exhibition matches by chanting the celebrated new boy's name and by booing the manager and Diop.
"I paid a lot of gold for my seats so I could see Harry," said Robbie McVey, a 29-year-old who bought his United season passes over the summer. "I've certainly got a right to be bloody upset if he doesn't even play."
That's a response the Boy Who Lived finds distressing.
"My commitment is to my team," he said. "I've got a great manager and great team-mates, and I'm happy to be able to support them in any way I can. I hope all our fans feel the same way."
But even the opinion of their own hero isn't enough to deter the staunchest Potter supporters. The consensus in the Bumblebee was that the 20-year-old Seeker -- who played at Nimbus Arena for the first time Tuesday with the Puddlemere reserves -- hasn't received a greater role with Puddlemere only because he hasn't been given a fair opportunity to show his talents.
"How could he not be the best if they would just give him a chance?" said patron Gary Grey when asked about the Boy Who Lived's Quidditch skills. "I mean, he's Harry Potter. If he could beat You-Know-Who, catching a little yellow ball will be easy for him."
That's a view Forsythe called "ridiculous" and "the main reason" for the split between Puddlemere's new and old fans.
"It's not that we have anything against Harry," Masters said. "We all know he's a hero, and I think most of us can agree he appears to be a very talented Seeker. But we want the team to have the best possible chance for the championship and Diop's record speaks for itself. He gets the Snitch match after match after match. Unless another player proves himself to be significantly better -- and Harry certainly hasn't done that -- you can't replace that kind of consistent success."
Grey countered by saying Diop (who has 37 captures in 49 games for Puddlemere) was "much too slow" in finding the Snitch last week against the Prides.
"When United was struggling and needed him to come through, (Diop) was nowhere to be found," he said. "He only got the Snitch after the game was already in hand."
Watson seems undeterred by the split in opinion and has steadfastly stuck to his summer-long policy of refusing to name a first seven.
"We have three strong Seekers," the United manager said. "All of them are more than capable of giving us the result we want."
Watson's choice will take to the air today against a Caerphilly team that should be full of confidence following a comprehensive 310-50 thrashing of Chudley on opening day. The Catapults were sixth in the league last winter and have aspirations of an even higher standing after a series of off-season transfers that brought in four new first-team players.
Despite the changes, Seeker Carlos Costa is likely to remain Puddlemere's greatest concern. The Portuguese international was one of just four opponents to catch the Snitch against Diop last season, lifting the Catapults to a shock 230-140 victory in their last visit to Nimbus Arena. Diop's capture helped United to a 410-210 win in last year's meeting in Wales.
But even if United turns in another 400-point performance, when today's match is over the Puddlemere fans at one Diagon Alley pub are almost sure to be disappointed. Potter and Diop can't both be No. 1.
"It's sad," Masters said, "but here we are, one match into the season, and we're worried about the Puddlemere community breaking apart. For the good of the fandom, I hope there's a resolution soon. Infighting won't do anyone any good."
K.C. Allen is the Daily Prophet's national sports columnist. Owl him at thedpreporting(at)yahoo(dot)com.
This article is dedicated to my official beta, Promethean Alchemist, who recommended the old fans-vs.-new fans angle back about 20 chapters ago. It finally fit in here. Not surprisingly, you can find out which side 'wins' in Chapter 30.
My deepest thanks also go to my prebetas, LadyChi and Nancy, and to the many of you who reviewed Chapter 29. All the support has really helped put to rest many of the concerns I had coming out of my hiatus, so I'm especially appreciative this time around.