Dons Fans Voice Collective....

[spamspamspam]

Who is this new group that have no presence that I can find bar this open letter trying to get Mezz a job on the board?

 

http://aberdeenvoice.com/2016/12/dons-fans-open-letter-club/

 

Dear Duncan George & Stewart

We are writing this to you regarding matters this season and seasons past involving, failure on part of AFC to adequately engage with Aberdeen supporters, treatment of Aberdeen Supporters and in more detail treatment of those in the Merkland Singing Section.

Issues such as, but are not limited to the following areas:

– A reply to questions put to AFC as to why AFC were contacting other clubs in Scotland attempting to discourage match day supporter displays.

– Why the club lied at recent AGM telling the floor they had been in contact with those responsible for the stunning League Cup Final display at Hampden and thanking them when this simply isn’t the case .

– Appointinment of Community Trust chief executive as SLO just to appease UEFA competition guidelines.

– Appointment of a Supporters Liaison Officer (SLO) into the Club without consultation with Supporters groups / Supporters Trust or wider fan base etc

– Failure of said SLO to engage with supporters groups on a day-to-day basis in order to facilitate a more enjoyable and effective match day experience

– Failure of said SLO to engage with supporters groups for major games and to facilitate smooth access to Pittodrie and other stadia to be visited

– Failure of SLO to engage positively with Supporters groups and other clubs in order to facilitate a coordinated and organized approach to maximizing noise generation and fan displays at away games

– Actively and physically segregating, pressurizing and marginalizing of fans in the Merkland Singing section from other fans through use of hostile stewarding, “dead zone” seating strips and general poor attitude shown towards supporters wishing to support their team in a positive manner.

– Misleading information regarding occupancy of Merkland block seating in order to undermine the success of the initiative and prevention of other fans joining the section throughout the game.

– Failure to plan effectively for League Cup Final to ensure effective noise generation in order to back the team effectively by refusing to allocate area for vocal fans .

– Failure of AFC across internal departments (General management, Stadium Access, Ticketing, security etc in order to facilitate an organized and structured and most importantly a respectful approach to AFC supporting individuals working on an unpaid volunteer basis in order to encourage the team positively and to enhance the matchday experience for many people.

The recent League Cup Final showed that AFC has little regard to its fans wider match day experience and even less for creating a spectacle and that the Cup final atmosphere would “look after itself” as one AFC official was quoted as saying.

Anyone who witnessed the Cup final was that those that made the effort and expense of travelling to Glasgow to set up the pre match display done a fantastic effort given that there was no input nor even the respect of reply from AFC from requests from fans made to make the day a spectacle and an positive atmosphere for the duration of the match.

The lack of Aberdeen supporter positive atmosphere generation, particularly after going a goal down (and then more) was very evident.Had there been an area for vocal fans this could have helped create a louder backing for the team.

No doubt AFC will be using footage and photography from the matches with flags, card displays etc for future marketing material, all the while actively discouraging it and disregarding the fact that positive fan interaction does make a difference to the team on the park is wholly unacceptable.

We request the following:

– AFC immediately engage with their staff & AFC fans representatives in order to stop these negative aspects reoccurring
– Appoint a fan elected SLO – one that has a wide understanding or proven background in match day supporter participation, supporter liaison, match day display management.
– Empower the SLO to form a positive working relationship with the Aberdeen support and other clubs respective SLO’s to ensure that the team, the supporters (the customers) are all given the correct priority support to ensure forward progress is made on all levels.
– Ensure that the SLO is meeting the reasonable expectations of the Club, AFC support and wider regulatory bodies such as the Police and other Football Clubs etc.
– The SLO is active in meeting with AFC fans to gather detailed information on future stadia requirements from the “in game” perspective.

We have a supporter in mind, someone who has engaged with the support and more importantly is respected by the support .The same fan has put on many a spectacle at Aberdeen FC games at home and away for the best part of 20 years .He has organised some of the best displays in the UK, helped add colour to AFC centenary events.Always paid tribute to fans who have sadly passed. He is great with the kids and young fans and always gets them involved .

The fans trust him and he’s known throughout the support as he’s always present .

We have a petition that hundreds of fans have signed asking that the club appoint Stephen McCormick as our Supporters Liaison Officer. With the amount of work he has done over the years, dealing with clubs up and down the country, having to deal with the SFA and SPFL he has already proven he has a vast knowledge of modern day football and its supporters.

We look forward to hearing from you in due course.

Signed

 

Dons fans voice collective.

[Dusk( 2 Stars )Don]

Who knows but anything to noise up the club is a good thing IMHO(in my harsh opinion)

[zander]

Let's get him on the board to suit him and his cronies weird agenda.

 

He will do nothing more for the average punter than the guy in the job at present. Everything will be about the ultras.

[spamspamspam]

Let's get him on the board to suit him and his cronies weird agenda.

 

He will do nothing more for the average punter than the guy in the job at present. Everything will be about the ultras.

 

 

Thats how I read it.

That and we are superfans so we deserve special treatment and should get whatever we ask for.

[1903Fitba]

To;dr

[V for Vendetta]

 

 

Thats how I read it.

That and we are superfans so we deserve special treatment and should get whatever we ask for.

Exactly the sort of people you don't want anywhere near the running of the club.

 

Self righteous fans with blazers - no thanks.

[Dusk( 2 Stars )Don]

Fit is the answer going round fucking circles here like

[Chewie37]

Who's Stephen Mcormick?? I demand Razor for SLO

[The Village Seagull]

Who's Stephen Mcormick?? I demand Razor for SLO

He got his dick and balls out for the lads.

[Dusk( 2 Stars )Don]

Who's Stephen Mcormick?? I demand Razor for SLO

Mezz Sorts the Displays out

[Dusk( 2 Stars )Don]

He got his dick and balls out for the lads.

With the current football scam ..you would be well advised to pass on this information

[Chewie37]

Mezz Sorts the Displays out

Does he actually want this role? Or is it the 'singing section' just feeling unloved?

[Panda]

I take it everyone here is delighted with the current SLO, the communication between the club and the fans, and the atmosphere at Pittodrie?

 

If not, what is your solution other than slagging off someone else's attempts to do something?

[Chewie37]

To be honest Panda, I had no idea we had a SLO.

 

SLO is the nickname of the place I'm moving to in California in January though

[Dal Riata Don]

I take it everyone here is delighted with the current SLO, the communication between the club and the fans, and the atmosphere at Pittodrie?

 

If not, what is your solution other than slagging off someone else's attempts to do something?

The fact is that they are not going to get anywhere with that type of language: to accuse the club of 'lying' in the second bullet point is not going to bring people to the negotiating table is it?

 

Their third point states that the position of SLO is a stuffed shirt - they then go on to complain about the role (in eight further points)- so who is it exactly that they they want to deal with? Who can they negotiate with? This is not made clear.

 

I would read all the above as nothing more than trying to send a spiteful message and nothing more.

[Panda]

The fact is that they are not going to get anywhere with that type of language: to accuse the club of 'lying' in the second bullet point is not going to bring people to the negotiating table is it?

 

Their third point states that the position of SLO is a stuffed shirt - they then go on to complain about the role (in eight further points)- so who is it exactly that they they want to deal with? Who can they negotiate with? This is not made clear.

 

I would read all the above as nothing more than trying to send a spiteful message and nothing more.

The tone of the letter was deliberate (I'd suggest). They want people to sit up and take notice and therefore it has to be a bit confrontational. Otherwise they would have been better just using the DST.

 

As for what type of SLO they want, well I know Stephen McCormick is impressed with Celtic's one so something along that lines (again, I'm guessing). Celtic have a separate official Twitter simply for the SLO who spends day after day answering queries from Celtic fans on a whole host of issues. Off the top of my head I wouldn't even know how to contact our own one without trawling the Aberdeen site to try and find an email address.

[shut up meg]

The Celtic family is very large, no doubt every day someone will be getting lifted, wrongly convicted, dying for a cause etc.

Their SLO will be very busy, he'll need to organise the clearing of the car park for their vigils, minutes silence, random middle east country to support and also the handing out of their black arm bands. (Although I'm not sure if this is now part of their SPFL kit)

[Dynamo]

I take it everyone here is delighted with the current SLO, the communication between the club and the fans, and the atmosphere at Pittodrie?

 

If not, what is your solution other than slagging off someone else's attempts to do something?

It's only very few people who care about it I'd say.

[RUL]

Whilst I appreciate panda point I do somewhat believe that the slo role in Scotland is basically a fancy way of saying someone deals with club community package.

 

The culture in Scotland and Germany is different. This is why every variation of ultra/singing whatever you call it has completely failed. It doesn't work at Aberdeen.

 

I don't quite understand why he thinks the club would employ him after his rant. It was a fan funded display, there was no need for the club to be expected to donate or thank for it.

[Guest milne_afc]

The club thanked everyone involved with the display the evening before the final. They were kinda busy the next day.

[spamspamspam]

I take it everyone here is delighted with the current SLO, the communication between the club and the fans, and the atmosphere at Pittodrie?

 

If not, what is your solution other than slagging off someone else's attempts to do something?

 

Scottish football is taking the SLO role so seriously it doesnt have any literature held with Supporters Direct (unlike a lot of the other FA's), the only guidelines for an SLO in Scotland are those UEFA wrote back in 2011.

 

Full details on how UEFA see this role are in the Supporters Direct google drive

 

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B9cIif25qirid01hSW9uV1VtQmM

 

 

Supporter liaison officers (SLOs) are a bridge between the fans and the club and help to improve the dialogue between the two sides.

 

A person that has spent as long as I can remember complaining about the board not appreciating him in the way he thinks he should be appreciated and slating them at any opportunity is not nor will they every be the right person to then act as a middleman between the all of the fans and the board at the club. Mezz has a long history of dividing the fans and sticking two fingers up to the club while feeling that he is the most important fan in the stadium and making sure you know he is. He's also pissed off a lot of the club staff. Those 2 points disqualify him from ever being considered for the role, he's far too confrontational. The role of SLO is about engaging the community with the club and vice versa, not arranging yet another failed singing section and then blaming the club for it not working, again, because its segregated or in a corner or... or... or...

 

If you want a solution you get a known fan thats in marketing and/or media (an Ally Begg type) and that has the time to devote to the role. Someone that hasnt pissed off 50%+ of the fan base at some point or another, someone that will be approachable and that will also communicate properly to the board and management within the club.

[vanderark14]

Scottish football is taking the SLO role so seriously it doesnt have any literature held with Supporters Direct (unlike a lot of the other FA's), the only guidelines for an SLO in Scotland are those UEFA wrote back in 2011.

 

Full details on how UEFA see this role are in the Supporters Direct google drive

 

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B9cIif25qirid01hSW9uV1VtQmM

 

 

 

A person that has spent as long as I can remember complaining about the board not appreciating him in the way he thinks he should be appreciated and slating them at any opportunity is not nor will they every be the right person to then act as a middleman between the all of the fans and the board at the club. Mezz has a long history of dividing the fans and sticking two fingers up to the club while feeling that he is the most important fan in the stadium and making sure you know he is. He's also pissed off a lot of the club its staff and the board. Those 2 points disqualify him from ever being considered for the role, he's far too confrontational. The role of SLO is about engaging the community with the club and vice versa, not arranging yet another failed singing section and then blaming the club for it not working, again, because its segregated or in a corner or... or... or...

 

If you want a solution you get a known fan thats in marketing and/or media (an Ally Begg type) and that has the time to devote to the role. Someone that hasnt pissed off 50%+ of the fan base at some point or another, someone that will be approachable and that will also communicate properly to the board and management within the club.

 

I nominate RAZOR as the SLO.

[zander]

I take it everyone here is delighted with the current SLO, the communication between the club and the fans, and the atmosphere at Pittodrie?

If not, what is your solution other than slagging off someone else's attempts to do something?

We slag his attempts because we don't want him on board simple as, the current option is better than the gobshite trying to talk himself into the role. Do we actually need one of these jobs any way? No

[minijc]

Who would like to see me as the new SLO, I'll be more than happy to be the go between for the club and fans.

[Tommy]

I don't quite understand why he thinks the club would employ him after his rant. It was a fan funded display, there was no need for the club to be expected to donate or thank for it.

The club thanked everyone involved with the display the evening before the final. They were kinda busy the next day.

 

Sums it up perfectly.

 

Mezz is a decent lad but needs to adapt to just being a normal fan.

[BWG]

I've sat in their singing section numerous times and the only "aggressive stewarding" that I've seen as been when one of their pissed up 12 year olds has ventured over to the non-singing bit and demanded that the people sitting there stand up and join in, which has led to them being repeatedly asked to stop it and eventually being taken outside and told off before being allowed back in.

 

This whole "the club are asking other clubs to stop us having displays" sounds like total bullshit. AFC can't even ensure the pies are warm never mind orchestrate a nation wide anti-fan display operation.

 

They want to be "engaged" by AFC but never actually state what they want out of these meetings.

 

I get that the club needs to improve the way it treats its fans, but this "letter" is a poorly written, reptitive and meaningless load of shite which seems to only exist to validate that red ultra attention seeker.

[SheepieBaaBaa]

I couldn't bring myelf to read past the first few lines.

 

Poorly written, poorly constructed and pointless.

 

I didn;t read it properly, but have a mental summary which goes something like.

 

Dear Duncan George and Stewart,

 

-Wank

-Wank

-Wank

-Wank

-Wank

 

I look forwarf to hearing from you in due course in much the same way as I eagerly await a blowjob from Kylie MInogue having submitted a written request for one some weeks ago.

 

Yours sincerely,

Wanks

[Batting71]

The club thanked everyone involved with the display the evening before the final. They were kinda busy the next day.

 

Shhh. That doesn't fit the pro-Mezz narrative

[RAZOR]

To be honest Panda, I had no idea we had a SLO.

SLO is the nickname of the place I'm moving to in California in January though

To the capital?

[Dunty]

The club thanked everyone involved with the display the evening before the final. They were kinda busy the next day.

With a tweet.

 

Milne said at the Agm they had "been in contact with the organisers to thank them".

 

I wouldn't say posting a tweet saying "cheers" was the same thing.