This weekend my football team, Man U, suffered their worst defeat at home in 70 years, losing 6-1 to their noisy neighbours, Man City. It was utterly humiliating to experience such a thrashing unfold in real time – and it made our gloating rout against Arsenal earlier in the season, with an even greater scoreline, seem like a distant past.

Such unexpected beatings are extraordinary rare for any team. For long-time supporters of Man U – who have gotten used to being champions, the greatest and simply the best – it was even more galling to be knocked off our perch in such an undignified fashion.

Normally, I look forward to watching Man U’s games live at the local pub or on terrestrial TV. But more often than not these days, I end up listening to them on Radio 5 live or scanning the live updates on the BBC website and then watching highlights on MOTD. This time I switched the live feed off after our rivals hit 3 in the net; I could not bear to listen or scan the digital ticker tape any more. I had a premonition it was going to get much worse. And I could not even watch the highlights on TV – no disrespect for Man City – but it is too upsetting.

I wonder how much worse it would have been if I had had to watch it on 3D TV. There has been a lot of hype about the enhanced experience this new technology bring to one’s living room, especially for sports viewing. I have to admit the opportunity of watching Rooney score a scissor-kick overhead goal in glorious 3D does thrill me to bits. But by the same token the prospect of watching an opponent score in spectacular fashion seems more painful.

I wonder if this is the reason I am reluctant to embrace 3D at home. A fear of hyper reality invading the living room. However, one of my colleagues reassured me that this kind of suffering only serves to enhance the experience when your team scores next – like a roller coaster experience.