Cant believe this site still aint bigger than ArsenalMania. That site feels like its stuck in 2005 with ads after ads blocking everything. On top of that there are some absolute muppets in there creating an horrible atmosphere. OA4lyfe
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I think the fact that we have such a small but active user base means that we tend to have tighter knit relationships that can be off putting for new members who feel like they can’t get involved in the same way as they could at another forum.
I feel like we’re definitely the best Arsenal forum around but if we got more members we wouldn’t be the best forum around. Hence why Arsenal Mania etc. are not the best forums.
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I’m August 2004 but I’m sure bl1nk and a few others arrived before me
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Sounds like this place was full of 12 year olds back in the day 
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The forum has matured with its users, just like @BigWeng_4LYFE lelelelele get sm0k3d ou7 d00d lel
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Woah. Haha Well, ill try and keep it really short kids… 
Arsenal.com used to have sort of a forum board with threads. Thats where I first joined (around 2000-2001?). Then about a year, or two, later they decided to shut it down! That was madness! There were lots of us who spoke on there every day. We were crushed.
So first I set up a minor group (there was some msn group functions back then) but that was just crap. I had a friend who used to run fotballforums.net. He used vbulletin. So I bought this domain and then, with a lot of help from my friend Joe, we set up the Vbulletin messaging board in the beginning of 2003 (we launched it in June 2003). I think Arsenalmania had gone live about that time as well but it was a crappy lay out and it was nazi mods and no sense of humour was allowed. So, we wanted our FREE SPEACH kind of place. I mean, Slag was our pet even back then. No place would allow him in anyway.
Not many ladies back then. I remember Miss Holland, Wendy, me and Sara. Thats about it?!
In 2008* I decided to hand over the site to Shill (and Fabs) as I didnt have enough time to take care of it. I was very proud of OA and I didnt want to sell it to someone who didnt know OA or us members. I wanted it to continue being as free as possible and without the friggin ads!!! 
So, Im very grateful Shill and Co took over and cared for it, kept it alive! 
My memory is awful so theres a lot of handles I dont remember from the arsenal.com era but I met up with several of them at different occasions over the years (at Highbury).
*2008 I just got a brain freeze. Either it was 2008 or it was 2011 (after 8 years as the owner? At least Im sure there is a 8 in there somewhere. lol)
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I can only imagine how it feels to create and manage something that has interconnected people across the oceans for close to two decades.
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You die a hero, or live long enough to you see yourself become the villain.
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Well, to be fair, each and every member is to thank for that! Of course Im proud to be a part of OA’s history but every member has contributed to keeping it alive! Some with entertaining posts (or match reports etc), some with donating to the annual Vbulletin fee etc. So, cudos to all of us!
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Oops, did I step on someones toe here? No offence dude.
Nah, he’s all right
Big Weng rarely takes offence
Phew!
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Yeah maybe not. Theres a few others we could have managed without as well. lol
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@Sosh Jesus fuck what a throwback, I joined in 09 and remember you being an OG back then.
Crazy that some of the originals have been active for 15+ years now. What a community, love you cunts
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Too many similar sounding names in this thread now.
All I need is to change my username to Socks and my brain will turn to mush
That’s crazy, talk about timing. You set up the board right as we were about to go Invincible. Right place right time, probably helped the board become so popular!
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Indeed. Looots of memories. I was so young and innocent back then. I remember I hadnt really gotten into the English slang words or sayings back then. Which Slag happily took advantage of. LOL
I remember first time I entered Highbury and got to see the legends play (Bergkamp, Pires, Henry, Campbell, Ljungberg, Vieira, Seaman etc etc). It was so colorful, so amazing! And the people all over the street! Everyone so incredibly sweet and nice. Wonderful memories. And getting to meet so many of the posters too, lots of fun!
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Yeah, it was golden!
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