We are the 12th man - and until very recently we assumed that role with immense pride. The shirt number was reserved for Gasheads many years ago as a thank you for our support and loyalty. Quite right, too. While fans of other clubs in our predicament have found more productive things to do with their spare time â like strolling down the boozer to watch Premier League action or visiting B&Q with the wife â weâve travelled to football outposts far and wide to fulfil our coveted role. In fact, over the last few years Bristol Rovers have needed our services more and more. As supersubs go we have been the fansâ equivalent of Liverpool legend David Fairclough (the man for whom the original phrase was invented) and Manchester Unitedâs revered benchwarmer Ollie Gunnar Solskjaer. Just last season, as we were battling to preserve our league status, the call was going out. âCome and roar us to safety,â implored Nick Higgs as he gleefully counted the anticipated gate receipts in his head. âIf it was based on fans alone we would be top of the league,â gushed manager Darrell Clarke in awe as thousands of us turned up at Portsmouth and Wycombe. We answered the call, of course. We all felt it was our personal responsibility to be there to roar our support while the whole crumbling edifice of our club collapsed around our ears. Unfortunately, on this occasion the 12th man wasnât enough. We fell short and are now staring at a future in obscurity. Who knows? If FA chairman Greg Dykeâs attempt to make a name for himself as the Ogre Who Ruined Football comes about, the height of our ambition now could be to finish above Burnley Under 12s in the âOnly there to make up the numbersâ League. The point is that while others were negligent and let the club down, we played our part. Perhaps itâs naive of me to think that this might be acknowledged by something other than a plea to invest our hard-earned in a season ticket. What I really wasnât expecting though was to see that among the savage âcutsâ that come with being a non-league side, the powers-that-be have decided they no longer need the 12th man. Signs that we wouldnât make the retained list first raised their ugly head when the club threatened to ban for life any supporters identified for taking part in the good natured pitch invasion after the win at Wycombe. Not only that, but immediately after our fate was known and supporters began to demand answers, the announcement was made that the popular fansâ forum on the clubâs official website was being closed down. Allegedly this decision was brought about because of a few spurious rumours posted about things happening off the field. Moderators could no longer cope with all the libellous accusations made on the site. Forgive me, but I have my doubts about this. Surely if there were blatant untruths being touted on this public forum a quick statement from the club could quickly rectify the matter. Moderators could be ordered to take down any offending posts at the first sign of libellous suggestions, with a warning that similar claims would result in banning orders. No, this whole thing smacks of Rovers' latest attempt to stifle free speech and kill off the voice of fans who have for too long meekly put up with all the manure the club have been able to shovel on top of them. More to the point, they have actually shot themselves in the foot. Not only has the club âaxedâ the 12th man and used him as a convenient punching bag, but they have seriously damaged their own PR machine. Many people used the official website to monitor or take part in the fansâ debate. From there they might glimpse through the other morsels of information being offered on the site. Now there is little reason to visit. Does anyone really want to read spurious links between Rovers and the teams competing in the World Cup? I doubt it. Despite our plight, now more than ever we want to know whatâs really happening at the club: Who we are sacking, who we are signing, what is happening with the stadium. We can get all that information from Twitter, the Bristol Post website and Radio Bristol. As for the clubâs claim the Forum is outdated and all meaningful debate can be carried out on Twitter? I donât need 140 characters to give my reaction to that load of twaddle. In today the Post.
It's very worrying when Higgs stands up and states that there's a root and branch reform being conducted at the club, and all the while the PR operation lurches from disaster to disaster. Such incompetence is alarming.
the root and branch is also going to conducted internally ! I don't have much faith - about 0.1 % give or take a tenth !
We now have the results of the review; * we made some mistakes * we won't make any more * we will have one of the largest budgets * relegation will not be an option * we're still in charge * er, that's it.............................................
What a good read....the likes of Princey and the older stalwarts of Rovers must be seething right now.
