There’s a principle at stake here

Wouldn’t about 5,000 fans have to go back in - just to walk out again? Because by my reckoning most have already left by the 80th minute!

 

I won’t tell you where I drink, but believe me, they can. Not legally, but most certainly doable..

 

just need someone with a big beer shed…

 

The first rule of 3 o’clock kick offs is, you DO NOT talk about 3 o’clock kick offs…

 

I had similar thoughts about broadcasting the 3pm kick off were are to move away from Oakwell - i.e. trying to set up big screens AT Oakwell.

What regulation did the club use for a beam back broadcasts such as the Liverpool match?

 

I vowed not to go again while Schopp is there, but I would go if there was a mass walkout organised for, say, the 15th minute.

 

Nah Fück him

 

It’s a long, long time since I posted on here. I stopped posting because of all the negativity against the club (and all the numpties that hijacking every thread), so the irony will be noted that I’ve come back to agree with the OP and the call for taking action against the owners!

The lying that has been coming out of the club in recent months is absolutely appalling. But having followed the Brexit campaign, the last GE and the US election and its fall out, bare faced lying and bullying seems to be the way of the world at the moment. I read the piece in the Chronicle earlier about the meeting with the CEO and was incensed. Did they really think they could pull the wool over our eyes by pretending the closure of the West Stand is to do with anything other than money, both immediately, in terms of away ticket sales, and by way of leverage over the purchase of the ground? One particular line really made me angry, when the CEO stated that any increase in revenue from away ticket sales will be outweighed by the season ticket refunds. Do they not think Barnsley folk can add up?? The increased revenue from the away end will probably have surpassed the amount paid in refunds after Wednesday’s game, if it hasn’t surpassed it already.

Any Reds fan that isn’t outraged by what the owners have done to the West Stand season ticket holders should have a look at themselves. Surely the ‘I’m alright Jack’ attitude displayed by Johnson, Farage, Rees-Mogg et al hasn’t seeped into the East Stand and Ponty End? Plenty of those supporters have been going to Oakwell for longer than most of us have been alive, even Fiona, Jimmy and me! And two months into the season they are expected to go and sit in the front rows of the Ponty or East Stand, just as the weather gets colder and wetter. And we are supposed to be okay with this whilst the CEO takes a fortnight fumbling around for an excuse he thinks we’ll swallow? Fans that still shout scab at some away supporters because folk from their town didn’t stand beside us during the strike?

And all this whilst the club tells us that our 4th or 5th most successful season in our history was a failure, because we didn’t sell any of our best players? I guess that selling one of our best players might have had a couple of positives. Firstly, the Crynes might have seen some of the money the 80%ers promised to give them when they ‘bought’ the club. And they might have been prepared to get shut of this woefully out of his depth manager, because it’s pretty clear they are not prepared to put their hands in their own pockets to pull the plug. Is there some benefit to the 80%ers if we go down, or if the attendances dwindle, because it beggars belief that they are prepared to sit idly by and watch this happen. Is there something going on here that we have not yet realised? I’ve only just got past the ‘wondering why they would want to buy us in the first place’ stage, as the answer to that appears to be that they haven’t bought us, they are using the club to buy itself, generating a tasty little profit when they flog us. Correct me if I’m wrong.

But the idea of a walk out, or some other sort of protest, is a very tempting one and something I mentioned to friends before the Sheffield United game. As we have seen so often over the past few years, both here and in America, if this sort of behaviour by the powers that be isn’t challenged, it will just get worse and worse. As Johnson and Trump have proved, this new breed of leadership have brass necks. They don’t care knowing that people know they are lying, so long as there are enough people to believe their claptrap to allow them to carry on getting what they want. They count on the rest of us shutting up or giving in. I would, however, make three suggestions.

Firstly, if it is just going to be a couple of hundred of us they won’t bat an eyelid. It needs to be at least several thousand for a point to be made. That would take some organising to be successful, if it is even possible. The second suggestion is, as others have said, 80 minutes is way too hopeful. Loko and Hicksy had long since left me by that point last Saturday. In fact Hicksy will have been halfway down his second pint. 20 minutes would be a better option, as we can show our support to the 20%ers in their legal battle in the process. And finally, it needs to be made clear that the players still have our support and that it’s their employers we have the beef with. As poor as the displays have been, and some individual performances, I haven’t really seen much evidence of players not trying. Players struggling with the tactics, with being played out of position, with playing in several different positions in the same game, becoming frustrated with the tactics/management or just not being good enough, yes.

So if we can get a walkout or other demonstration of our dissatisfaction organised then count me in. I shudder to think where it is all going to end with this lot. I just don’t trust them or their motives and this CEO has made things worse every time he’s opened his mouth. He must have been so proud of himself when he explained his plan to immediately increase revenue to his new employers as well! Right now a relegation, more player sales and dwindling crowds seems nailed on, and I don’t foresee a quick return to the Championship next time either. Is another period of administration coming? A change of ownership one way or another can’t be too far away, and whilst most of us would welcome this, we have absolutely no say in who the new owners would be, so who knows what the future has in store for us. The era of having a local owner, manager and captain seem to be a lifetime ago, and we just seem to have had one false dawn after another since then.

 

Excellent post.

 

You are actually more p1ssed off than I am. I've only been watching the club 46 years, since the Iley days. I'm right behind the lads on the pitch, no question. There isn't any management going on as far as I see it, from the board to the dressing room. The worst thing is the owners don't really care, if they did the half arsed statements by the CEO would be corrected.

 

You really got that off your chest didn’t you! Great post and agree with every word.

 

I agree fully with Gordons post. I had planned to go to the Notts Forrest game and finally decided not to. I couldn't believe the owners would sit back and let the problems we have get worse. Its a cycle we go through. Frustration and dissatisfaction. Disappointment and even anger. Then it dies down the emotion is replaced by apathy.

For me the West Stand coupled with CEOs first interview highlighted whats wrong with our club. I haven't been since and I have no plans of going again so 2 STs will sit idle. After apathy eases people find other things to do.

The interest in our club becomes secondary. The checking of scores or listening to the radio gets less and less. BFC slips from a priority to hardly being on the agenda. Seems like many are reaching that stage. The lack of action to fix numerous issues starting with head coach, staffing, fitness running through lack of investment in the infrastructure or developing interest for fans.

Had a few beers with Bossman last night and we hardly even mentioned Football. This wasnt the norm. Already decided no ST next season and by then I'm not even sure I will even attend at all. When its gone its gone.

 

Get the insulate Britain lot to sit on our goal line.

 

Insulate would do a better job at right back than Callum.

 

I reckon a constant "we want Conway out, we want chien lee out" chant all game might help too.

 

Well I'm up for it.
On 80 minutes I will get out of my chair and go and stand out in the garden as a protest.

 

Bravo. Outstanding post. I'd love to see the ground empty on a specific minute - count me in - but at the end of the day, whilst we think this forum's a busy place, we're a tiny minority of the matchday crowd. How do you get this message across to the masses??

But again, a brilliant post.