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S.A.F.C. - the future

Discussion in 'Sunderland' started by alan reed, Jul 24, 2020.

  1. Late goal Scorer

    Late goal Scorer Well-Known Member

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    One ill chosen word, if demands had been replaced by hope, dreams or ambitions then that would read exactly as I suspect it’s intended to, as a welcome and an introduction to how passionate a support we all are. We moan about club ownership and often see people proposing a more German model of fan involvement and then when a bunch of presumably committed Sunderland fans try to do something positive around having our voice heard they’re berated because we have a new “crush” at the top.
    I love what I’ve heard so far about Dreyfus and am excited at our potential but not to the point I’m going to slag off fellow supporters that are doing something in their own time with our interest at heart just because the new chairman isn’t Donald.
     
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  2. Monkey69

    Monkey69 Well-Known Member

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    Totally agree that the statement was not worded well ( at this point not really sure they need to make a statement ) but I think that they want to ensure that the new owners recognise them as a fans group. Seems to me more of a political move than a fans move. However to have worded that statement with a forcefull style of wording without knowing anything about the plans seems a little bit naive of RAWA and I don't think much thought has been put in to this statement, if their has then they need to take a bit more advice on wording and style of statements before releasing to the press because as we know the press will twist and turn anything to suit and/or create an agenda.
     
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  3. Prehab26

    Prehab26 Well-Known Member

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    RAWA statement. Poorly timed and badly worded.

    They need a rethink.
     
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  4. Monkey69

    Monkey69 Well-Known Member

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    My feeling is it should have been more along the lines of,( welcome to Sunderland and we hope that your vision for the club is something the supporters can appreciate. As supporters we obviously would like the best for our club so let's stride forward together and bring Sunderland the success it so richly deserves.) Something simple and straight forward. That's not to say I think a statement is needed at this time
     
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  5. Ozzymac

    Ozzymac Well-Known Member

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    The league already mandates that clubs must meet with supporters once or twice a season so "our voices" are heard anyway.

    I think the point that your missing is that KLD hasn't even officially walked through the door and he's presented with "demands" from a so called body of supporters who from what i can gather didn't even have a meeting with their members before presenting their firmly worded welcome message to the Echo.

    If i recall correctly, this isn't the first time that this elected body of people have made a public statement without having a meeting and a vote with their members. The last one was extremely poorly timed as it presented SD with an excuse not to spend in the january transfer window and this one is not only poorly timed but poorly worded.

    Perhaps CM was partially right when he made his comment about northerners and business, after all his background is PR and possibly he was referring to the PR business when he made those comments, Seems to me that no one at RAWA has any idea of PR work and the effects that poorly worded/badly timed statements can have.
     
    #34725
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  6. rooch 3

    rooch 3 Well-Known Member

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    Got to admit reading the statement the second time it didn’t sound half as bad as it did the first time might of read it with a less aggressive voice in my head, still don’t agree with it though.
     
    #34726
  7. Saf

    Saf Not606 Godfather+NOT606 Poster of the year 2023

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    I couldn't agree more, Prehab ;)

    Cheers for the info.
     
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  8. John 11:35

    John 11:35 Well-Known Member

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    It’s hard to imagine how it feels to be a billionaire buying a knackered club in another country but I’ll give it a go.

    If I’m going to a dog shelter to buy a poor mistreated french poodle and one of the assistants starts “going in hard” about how much he loves her and I’d better treat her right, I’d want my donation back followed by a swift phone call to the RSPCA’s dog botherer hotline.

    KLD hasn’t even bought the club yet and they’re holding him to account for the conduct of previous owners. There’s being a fan and there’s being a liability.
     
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  9. Peterleeyacker

    Peterleeyacker Well-Known Member

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    Its very crass amd demanding. Very mag like. I cringed the first time i read it.
     
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  10. Gromit

    Gromit Well-Known Member

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    RAWA don’t represent me and I hated their ‘welcome’ statement.

    Sadly any fans group will always have an agenda regardless of how well intended they were at inception. It’s just natural that views and bias will come to the fore.
     
    #34730
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  11. Smug in Boots

    Smug in Boots Well-Known Member

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    There was absolutely no need to issue a statement.

    It smacks of someone pushing themselves to the front shouting 'pick me pick me' ...

    ... it's more a statement to the rest of us in my opinion tbh.
     
    #34731
  12. Ozzymac

    Ozzymac Well-Known Member

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    Almost as if now that SD is on his way they need to justify their existence by trying to appear relevant
     
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  13. Southern A

    Southern A Well-Known Member

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    That’s because for me the biggest problem was the timing. It was likely they were telling supporters “don’t get too excited lads, this one might be a crook as well”.

    Which of course is true but also just wasn’t needed on Christmas Eve within hours of the pre-announcement, especially before KLD has even had a chance to address the fans himself.

    And as mentioned by me last night, I don’t think there was anything wrong with the content of the letter. Just their choice of language and tone. They could have said the exact same stuff in a more positive and enthusiastic way but their choice of language made it come across sceptical and cautious.
     
    #34733
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  14. Lewberry Pie

    Lewberry Pie Well-Known Member

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    I'm a member of rawa and I don't think I got an email asking for input, ask I'd have says was we welcome KLD to the club and look forward to meeting him at an upcoming event.

    Problem with that is the people who see the club as the enemy now and can't let go of their position.
     
    #34734
  15. Smug in Boots

    Smug in Boots Well-Known Member

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    That's how I see it mate.

    It's a marker in the sand to make it clear, to everyone, who's at the forefront.

    What they have to realise is that the passion and hopes of the Sunderland supporters will be quite evident without any need for them. It's actually cringe worthy trying to imagine what they'd say in a one to one with Louis-Dreyfus. "Errr yeah, we're really passionate here you know, we're sure you didn't know that despite you saying exactly that in your statement to the supporters."

    "And despite you stating your plans for the club we want to see more detailed plans so we can examine them and give our approval." <doh>
     
    #34735
  16. Sunderpitt

    Sunderpitt Well-Known Member

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    My dear old Mum used to say whenever something daft happened, say some celebrities making an asre of themselves, "stupid is as stupid does"... the RAWA statement helps to explain what she meant.
     
    #34736
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  17. Southern A

    Southern A Well-Known Member

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    For a bit of fun and because I’m bored I’ve rewritten the RAWA statement to flip the language very subtly to get the same point across but be more accommodating. I've made very minor changes.

    original words are in normal font, my new paragraphs in bold.


    The Red and White Army would like to welcome Kyril Louis-Dreyfus as the new majority shareholder of SAFC.
    The Red and White Army would like to welcome Kyril Louis-Dreyfus as the new majority shareholder of SAFC.

    As with any newcomer to Wearside he will be given the warmest of welcomes and great faith will be put on him to rebuild our Club. However, we all bear the scars of the past few years and therefore supporters will hope to see evidence of an assured plan of long-term progression.
    As with any newcomer to Wearside he will be given the warmest of welcomes and great faith will be put on him to rebuild our Club. As we all bear the scars of the past few years we look forward immensely to seeing his plans for long-term progression.

    We're sure our new owner will have done his homework on Sunderland supporters already. Nevertheless, we hope to meet with him soon, where we will do our bit to help him understand the passion and demands of our fans. We will let him know that he will immediately have the full, vociferous support of a huge fan base that are beyond ready to have something they can all get behind. We will let him know that support will continue and grow if he attempts to meet the standards and ambitions befitting of a club of our stature and history.
    We're sure our new owner will have done his homework on Sunderland supporters already. Nevertheless, we hope to meet with him soon, where we will do our bit to help him understand the passion of our fans. We will let him know that he will immediately have the full, vociferous support of a huge fan base that are beyond ready to have something they can all get behind.

    In 2021 as RAWA flicks the switch to become a Supporters' Trust we hope it coincides with exciting times for Sunderland fans. And let's hope we all get together at the SoL as soon as possible to enjoy the ride, when we come out the other side of this terrible pandemic.
    In 2021 as RAWA flicks the switch to become a Supporters' Trust we hope it coincides with exciting times for Sunderland fans. And let's hope we all get together at the SoL as soon as possible to enjoy the ride, when we come out the other side of this terrible pandemic.

    Sunderland fans know all too well that it's dangerous to become too excited when a new owner takes the reigns. However, trying to temper that excitement is futile. So we will enjoy the feeling of renewed hope and possibilities for our beloved club. Let's hope that this really is the dawn that follows the darkest hour.
    Just remove this entire paragraph - it serves no purpose other than to seed doubt into fans

    Merry Christmas to all Sunderland fans and all the best!
    Merry Christmas and all the best!
     
    #34737
    Last edited: Dec 28, 2020
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  18. Daz

    Daz Well-Known Member

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    I stopped taking any notice of the fans groups when they released the joint statement on Donald last year
     
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  19. ned_werby

    ned_werby Well-Known Member

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    Try not to get involved in the internecine wrangles of so-called supporters groups/trusts/committees but I can say categorically they don't speak for me and never will. The RAWA 'satement' is ample evidence why. Them, ALS and RR can **** off and stick to match reports and injury/Covid updates.
     
    #34739
  20. TonyG

    TonyG Well-Known Member

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    Get yourself signed up as RAWA PR
     
    #34740

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