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Altrincham FC First Team / MESSAGE FOR GRAHAM ROWLEY AND FAMILY
« on: May 01, 2016, 09:49:51 AM »
It is the morning after the night before, and like all Alty fans, I am feeling the low of the club facing relegation.
Yesterday, I travelled on the supporters coach to the game in hope and anticipation, but sadly things did not go our way and once again, my beloved club has to deal with relegation, and the flight to get back to where we belong.
However, this post has nothing to do with the whys and what happened to the team this season, I am going to leave that to others on this occasion. This email is about the behaviour of a couple of our fans towards Graham Rowley, Danny and members of our team. We were behind the goal later during the second half and Graham Danny and I think Karen was also in the area. They were spotted by the fans and given verbal abuse like I have never seen before, and have no wish to see again. I found the situation deeply embarrassing and potentially very harmful to the clubs infrastructure at a very vulnerable time. There was much shouting and yelling at Graham and Danny, which I found deeply offensive and must have been very, very upsetting for them. This was one moment when I was not proud to be an Alty fan and I among others greatly resent being put in this situation, which does not in any way reflect our club ethos. I have always found the club very friendly and family orientated, and love the company of my fellow Robins fans, both at the ground and particularly going tribal at away games. The whole afternoon, aside from the final score, was spoilt for me by those fans who made the relegation even harder to take than it already was. Results did not go our way anyway, so even if we had beaten Braintree it would not have mattered a pair of fetid Dingo's kidneys.
After the game the players also came over to thank the away fans for their support both today and throughout the season but this was hijacked once again by those fans behaviour as they laid into the players once again with vile abuse, some our better players included mentioning no names. At both stages several of our fans, myself included, turned against them and had a stand-up argument with them, stating they were causing embarrassment and also potentially damaging ructions within our club; which could now be rudderless as well. I have no wish to go into details of what was said, I refuse to give their remarks the time of day.
On the way home I was pleased to see Graham and the board at one of our pit-stops at a motorway service station. Steve Murray and myself made a point of speaking to both Graham and Danny to sympathise with them, and I sincerely hope Graham continues in his role as chairman, and gets the club back to where it belongs. The other two supporters seem to have conveniently forgotten that Graham oversaw our last promotion as chairman, two years ago. We all discussed this and many other aspects of what happened in the coach on the way home. All the other fans felt exactly the same as I did, so the individuals spoilt the day for other fans also. So thank you to the two fans for what you did, you were not help whatsoever and as said before, and embarrassment to the club. Unlike yourselves though, I am not naming names. There are ways of dealing with what happened last night, yours was the worst way possible.
As a football club, we suffer the relegation, lick our wounds - ie mend our injured backbone of the team. keep up our spirits of this great little club, pick ourselves up and then go again, starting Monday with the management update. That is doing what the chairman's role is, by acting quickly to put matters right, despite the major hinderance yesterday. We go onwards and upwards from there.
Graham, I hope you and your family stay in their roles and keep the club on the up, you have always done your very best for the club and I thank you profusely for all the thankless work you put in - every one of you. I am so sorry for what happened yesterday, you did not deserve the abuse you received and I hope the fans involved are named and shamed by somebody. I do also appreciate that all your tireless work for the club is all voluntary, and I am one of many who appreciate all you do.
I also think the fans involved should be big enough to apologise personally to you all, and hope they feel ashamed of themselves in the cold light of the next day, but somehow I do not think this will happen any time soon. I also wish to add that you were no help whatsoever, and you were an embarrassment to me, other fans and the football club as a whole - you know who you are.
So now we go again, starting on Monday, and beyond. The ship that is Alty will be righted and will live to fight again; and back where we belong, given a little time. I look forward to those days once again, accept what has happened for this season. My club will bounce back, it always has done, but I never want to witness a situation like that again.
Yesterday, I travelled on the supporters coach to the game in hope and anticipation, but sadly things did not go our way and once again, my beloved club has to deal with relegation, and the flight to get back to where we belong.
However, this post has nothing to do with the whys and what happened to the team this season, I am going to leave that to others on this occasion. This email is about the behaviour of a couple of our fans towards Graham Rowley, Danny and members of our team. We were behind the goal later during the second half and Graham Danny and I think Karen was also in the area. They were spotted by the fans and given verbal abuse like I have never seen before, and have no wish to see again. I found the situation deeply embarrassing and potentially very harmful to the clubs infrastructure at a very vulnerable time. There was much shouting and yelling at Graham and Danny, which I found deeply offensive and must have been very, very upsetting for them. This was one moment when I was not proud to be an Alty fan and I among others greatly resent being put in this situation, which does not in any way reflect our club ethos. I have always found the club very friendly and family orientated, and love the company of my fellow Robins fans, both at the ground and particularly going tribal at away games. The whole afternoon, aside from the final score, was spoilt for me by those fans who made the relegation even harder to take than it already was. Results did not go our way anyway, so even if we had beaten Braintree it would not have mattered a pair of fetid Dingo's kidneys.
After the game the players also came over to thank the away fans for their support both today and throughout the season but this was hijacked once again by those fans behaviour as they laid into the players once again with vile abuse, some our better players included mentioning no names. At both stages several of our fans, myself included, turned against them and had a stand-up argument with them, stating they were causing embarrassment and also potentially damaging ructions within our club; which could now be rudderless as well. I have no wish to go into details of what was said, I refuse to give their remarks the time of day.
On the way home I was pleased to see Graham and the board at one of our pit-stops at a motorway service station. Steve Murray and myself made a point of speaking to both Graham and Danny to sympathise with them, and I sincerely hope Graham continues in his role as chairman, and gets the club back to where it belongs. The other two supporters seem to have conveniently forgotten that Graham oversaw our last promotion as chairman, two years ago. We all discussed this and many other aspects of what happened in the coach on the way home. All the other fans felt exactly the same as I did, so the individuals spoilt the day for other fans also. So thank you to the two fans for what you did, you were not help whatsoever and as said before, and embarrassment to the club. Unlike yourselves though, I am not naming names. There are ways of dealing with what happened last night, yours was the worst way possible.
As a football club, we suffer the relegation, lick our wounds - ie mend our injured backbone of the team. keep up our spirits of this great little club, pick ourselves up and then go again, starting Monday with the management update. That is doing what the chairman's role is, by acting quickly to put matters right, despite the major hinderance yesterday. We go onwards and upwards from there.
Graham, I hope you and your family stay in their roles and keep the club on the up, you have always done your very best for the club and I thank you profusely for all the thankless work you put in - every one of you. I am so sorry for what happened yesterday, you did not deserve the abuse you received and I hope the fans involved are named and shamed by somebody. I do also appreciate that all your tireless work for the club is all voluntary, and I am one of many who appreciate all you do.
I also think the fans involved should be big enough to apologise personally to you all, and hope they feel ashamed of themselves in the cold light of the next day, but somehow I do not think this will happen any time soon. I also wish to add that you were no help whatsoever, and you were an embarrassment to me, other fans and the football club as a whole - you know who you are.
So now we go again, starting on Monday, and beyond. The ship that is Alty will be righted and will live to fight again; and back where we belong, given a little time. I look forward to those days once again, accept what has happened for this season. My club will bounce back, it always has done, but I never want to witness a situation like that again.
We won a lot of potential new fans yesterday, and the club was so well supported. the potential is there for 1500 plus crowds on a regular basis, especially if we keep on playing sexy football.