NickJ Posted January 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 Nick J in the words of fellow supporter who shall remain nameless.......Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Nameless and anonymous like you.zzzzzzzzzzzzzzBristol Sport. Slogan "Making Bristol Proud". Really? 90% non Bristolians making already proud Bristolians proud?At least make it meaningful.Its creeping up on us and you cant see it because you like it. Your choice but don't mock unless you got the balls to reveal yourself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phileas Fogg Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 The bubble situation was concerning.. For me what was perhaps even more concerning was the lack of honesty about it. From various snippets and tweets - which today was confirmed by Stockhousen - it seems the club and DaveL were used some artistic license with the truth about it all. That's worrying - they should have just admitted they got it wrong. the silver lining in that situation was how the fanbase rallied round and had an influence in stopping it. Good to see and this bodes well for inevitable future cockups from Bristol Sport! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rudolf Hucker Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 I think the idea of Bristol Sport is excellent as it pretty much leaves out a certain club that ruin the great name of Bristol. Bristol Sport v Bristol Short Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickJ Posted January 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 There is at least one point that I agree with NickJ and that is that "some" of the senior staff within Bristol Sport do have a lack of appreciation for us fans particularly us football fans. They are more sensitive to Rugby fans views than those of ours.The nonesense around todays bubbles idea simply highlights just how out of touch some of these blokes really are.Nail. Head. On. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cider Queen Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 I've got a name thanks... It just a shame when the team and club came together and looked good infront of the world you still find something to moan about... Are you ever happy? We're having a brilliant season.. still in with a chance of winning the lower league double and you have to moan about the FREE scarf they gave out. I just find it very sad that you're so negative. And that you can't see the bigger picture. The bigger Bristol Sport becomes the more chance of success we've got. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stortz Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 Yes my view on UKIP is relevant to this topic you turnips. Stortz - you may be one of them, don't know about you. Cidre - my problem with Bristol Sport is if they had their way our team would have ran out to West Ham bubbles today, and that is just the start of the corporate road to removing our identity. Red Army Faction - good point well made. Chipdawg - read third sentence. Rivered - the Barcelona fan ownership model is very different. One of who you nutjob? Bristol Sport looking out for dissent on the message boards? Christ almighty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RiverRed Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 Yes my view on UKIP is relevant to this topic you turnips. Stortz - you may be one of them, don't know about you. Cidre - my problem with Bristol Sport is if they had their way our team would have ran out to West Ham bubbles today, and that is just the start of the corporate road to removing our identity. Red Army Faction - good point well made. Chipdawg - read third sentence.Rivered - the Barcelona fan ownership model is very different. Agreed. But it could be a lot worse, we could be owned by an Asian entrepreneur whose only intention is to make money at all costs, with no regard for fans, club history etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esmond Million's Bung Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 it seems to me that some people want to be the gas mark 2, playing in a decaying mausoleum, with obstructed views, toilets ankle deep in piss, begging buckets at all home games and not knowing if next weeks game will be our last. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUTOR Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 On the pitch - Best season in years, brilliant skill on show, 2nd in the league, fantastic unbeaten run early on, forward thinking manager, good signings, great players showing passion and determination for the shirt. Off the pitch - Worst season in years, Bristol Sport logo EVERYWHERE, a lack of creativity, little to no atmosphere, 'singing section' = Imposed not spontaneous, not original, NOT Bristol City, not enjoyable... Can't wait to get out. Looking around the stadium today, at all the BS logos, them flashing ******s on the sideline, with Bristol Rugby or Bristol Flyers popping up every 5 minutes, Bristol Sport banners parading the lower Dolman, scarves being twirled around with BS logo's on the end of them, it just didn't feel like the club I once knew. I'm not talking about how much I want to return to the 70s, want terracing back etc, I'm talking about our identity and what is within BCFC which just isn't prominent anymore and it's driving me away from AG. They may as well change it to the 'The Bristol Sport Stadium' now because it doesn't feel unique anymore. I've seen on many occasions this season fans from other teams this season have said in regards to the poor atmosphere, 'I didn't expect that from Bristol City'. To me, that's sad. Will it change? I don't think so. Fans seem content with it now, a few people seem to be saying everything they 'love about football is being slowly taken away' but its not slowly at all. Its fast, its going at breakneck speed and Ashton Gate and Bristol Sport is nothing but a mere example of that. I am dis-satisfied, but not enough of us are for a real change to happen. Its sad, and the clubs inability and little enthusiasm to work with willing fans also has to take a large proportion of the blame, they broke their energy, passion and at times brilliance down bit by bit and I'm not surprised if they aren't willing to contribute anymore To those who have stopped attending because of this, I can now understand why. If you're not happy, show it, or nothing will change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickJ Posted January 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 I saw 11,000 people waving red and white scarves above their heads to a Wurzels Classic about Cider, enjoying themselves. How much more Bristol City could it have been. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northern Red Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 The bubble situation was concerning.. For me what was perhaps even more concerning was the lack of honesty about it. From various snippets and tweets - which today was confirmed by Stockhousen - it seems the club and DaveL were used some artistic license with the truth about it all. That's worrying - they should have just admitted they got it wrong. the silver lining in that situation was how the fanbase rallied round and had an influence in stopping it. Good to see and this bodes well for inevitable future cockups from Bristol Sport! Totally agree. I think BCFC/Bristol Sport need to be very, very careful about how they play this. Whilst the bubble situation ended well, too many more of these types of issues will lead to a lot of discontent from the fans, a growing number of whom are already dubious about the motives of this 'project'. You only had to see the reaction on here yesterday to see how strongly people felt. Some of it was OTT (as has always been the case on here) but the message was pretty much unanimous, that the fanbase won't be taken for mugs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedYoshi Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 In regards to the "flashing ******s on the sideline", I agree that it's an annoying trait of sport to bombard everything with advertising. However, this is not a new thing. I also watched the highlights from our 4th round win v. Chelsea today, and guess what? There was advertising around the ground too. Sure, now they flash, and move. The balls are different too, and the kits are made from different material. The core concept of them is no different to how it's ever been, though. Campaign to get rid of it - absolutely. I'd back that. Endless advertising does my head in. However it's massively entrenched within the entirety of sport, and - like it or not - it does bring in a shed load of money. If it was all taken away across the board - all leagues, all countries - then that loss of money wouldn't matter. What about sponsorship, though, does that count? I dunno, but it's more nuanced than "flashing ******s on the sideline". As far as what they were displaying goes, I for one am happier for Bristol Rugby, or Bristol Flyers, or in fact any sports team at all to pop up instead of something like Adidas. Especially if (because they're now "flashing" ) it doesn't stay there for the entirety of the game. In fact, because we have Bristol Sport stuff pop up instead of Adidas and such like, we also got to see Bristol City and our crest pop up just as much as the other teams. Now, if these "flashing ******s on the sideline" end up becoming a more permanent feature (I've seen suggestions that they might next season), then maybe there's a suggestion to be made to Bristol Sport: Use them for adverts as per the club are obliged (the usual William Hill and Bet365 ads were popping up today too - far worse than Bristol Rugby), but maybe create different Bristol Sport ads dependent on the team playing at the time. That way, akin to how the lighting on the stadium might change (is that still going ahead?), the stadium has a slightly different identity for each team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark43 Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 Love my scarf, fantastic game today! Happy happy times! :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
italian dave Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 As a rule, freebies like that come with "The Sun" emblazoned all over them. Give me Bristol Sport any day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bernie from barrow gurney Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 Sense of entitlement 1 Sense of perspective 0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickJ Posted January 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 I saw 11,000 people waving red and white scarves above their heads to a Wurzels Classic about Cider, enjoying themselves.How much more Bristol City could it have been.Missing the point. If you saw the bubbles threads yesterday you will see where I am coming from.Of course its great if people have a good time. But is it because of the new corporate way of doing things, or in spite of it?This isn't where my point started, but with reference to your last sentence, and to develop my line of argument, Bristol Sport could have manufactured today anywhere in the country, which is exactly why it was no more Bristol City than it was any other club.I have been inside Ashton Gate with 30,000+ waving scarves flags and banners - I will hazard a guess you haven't seen that. Same thing but better because it was spontaneous and by the fans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drew Peacock Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 I saw 11,000 people waving red and white scarves above their heads to a Wurzels Classic about Cider, enjoying themselves. How much more Bristol City could it have been. Then they put Hi Ho Silver Lining on the tannoy and killed the atmosphere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LondonBristolian Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 We're having a brilliant season, the mood around the club is better than it has been for years, the club seems well-run for the first time since about 2009 and today we held our own against a Premier League team at full-strength chasing a Europe league place. Why the hell do we still have a certain number of fans utterly determined to find something petty and trivial to moan about? Being upset because one side of a free scarf says Bristol Sport is laughable and pathetic. The idea it means we're being forced to support rugby or any other sport is factually wrong and plain silly. Seriously - if something as mild as this upsets you then how on Earth do you have the resilience to cope with any genuine problems you face in your adult life? For years sport (and culture as a whole) has been repeatedly ignored, dismissed and disadvantaged by our local council and the voices against that have been limited because there's a load of small voices saying different things rather than one united voice. In the light of that, a united approach to support in Bristol seems bloody sensible if you ask me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben_86UK Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 As I said in another post, the red and white scarfs across AG looked amazing on tv. It's winter no one wants to stand there in a t shirt. So much red and white today so well done Bristol sport and well done to the fans for a good showing on BBC. Give the local plastics something to think about. Although I live in Essex I still wore the shirt I'm no plastic or Bristol sport pimp! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedYoshi Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 Bristol Sport could have manufactured today anywhere in the country, which is exactly why it was no more Bristol City than it was any other club. I have been inside Ashton Gate with 30,000+ waving scarves flags and banners - I will hazard a guess you haven't seen that. Same thing but better because it was spontaneous and by the fans. Agree with this. The accompanying songs aside (because the club/Bristol Sport didn't suggest which ones to sing), the scarf waving didn't come about in the traditional fan-led manner - they could've given any club appropriately coloured scarves and it would've worked the same way. It is definitely better when it's more spontaneous - however, I haven't seen any large fan initiatives to do something similar for other matches. Surely it's the fans you've got a problem with on that front more than Bristol Sport, who are (badly or not) attempting to ignite the very thing you want to see? The fans so far haven't been waving scarves, flags, and banners. The club think "ok, we better show them - here's a scarf, wave it like this". It's a bit wanky, but they're not going to do it every game. Are the fans going to do it every game? Because they could. Flags, banners - ok, there have been ongoing grievances about such things. More work is needed to resolve these, from all sides by the sounds of it. It was nice to at least see a few flags draped over the lower Dolman wall, as it happens. Red 'n' White nights happened years ago... I didn't give any input to the idea (I possibly once read they were a fan initiative..? Definitely promoted by the club one way or another), but I joined in wholeheartedly. Were the same grievances aired about that? If they were, then fair enough. If they weren't, can I ask what the difference is? And if they were a fan initiative, and that is the difference, then should I not have joined in, due to not knowing it was a fan initiative and believing it to come from the club? At least Bristol Sport created the "same thing" rather than trying to do something horrendously different to what's happened before. And they did it because - as you say - the fans aren't doing it at the moment, for whatever reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cowshed Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 We're having a brilliant season, the mood around the club is better than it has been for years, the club seems well-run for the first time since about 2009 and today we held our own against a Premier League team at full-strength chasing a Europe league place. Why the hell do we still have a certain number of fans utterly determined to find something petty and trivial to moan about? Being upset because one side of a free scarf says Bristol Sport is laughable and pathetic. The idea it means we're being forced to support rugby or any other sport is factually wrong and plain silly. Seriously - if something as mild as this upsets you then how on Earth do you have the resilience to cope with any genuine problems you face in your adult life? For years sport (and culture as a whole) has been repeatedly ignored, dismissed and disadvantaged by our local council and the voices against hat have been limited because there's a load of small voices saying different things rather than one united voice. In the light of that, a united approach to support in Bristol seems bloody sensible if you ask me. You should read more thoroughly what is being said. One criticism being directed at BS is because they are ignoring a culture amongst fans that exists here. Today was a big leap towards rebranding the fans and identity of Bristol City. Their identity [yours?] was everywhere, not ours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cityexile Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 It is really difficult when fans are sitting in unfamiliar places, and all the well publicised issues with singing sections etc. If we start from the basis that Bristol Sports heart is in the right place, and generally they turn up in the morning to try and do a good job, then it is clear they are on somewhat of a learning curve. Whatever the issue of the bubble machine, it was clear they kind of listened at the end of it all. Got to work with them, not against them. I am oddly positive about the next few years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickJ Posted January 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 LondonBristolian - you are not getting my point or deliberately ignoring it to get your own across. Some of your points are good ones but divorce the playing side from the rest.A structure is being created that means genuine City fans have less and less say in issues which are important to fans, and the club seems increasingly remote from the fans.Bristol Sport have shown themselves to be totally out of touch with Bristol City fans.Is that not a concern? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickJ Posted January 25, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 Agree with this. The accompanying songs aside (because the club/Bristol Sport didn't suggest which ones to sing), the scarf waving didn't come about in the traditional fan-led manner - they could've given any club appropriately coloured scarves and it would've worked the same way. It is definitely better when it's more spontaneous - however, I haven't seen any large fan initiatives to do something similar for other matches. Surely it's the fans you've got a problem with on that front more than Bristol Sport, who are (badly or not) attempting to ignite the very thing you want to see? The fans so far haven't been waving scarves, flags, and banners. The club think "ok, we better show them - here's a scarf, wave it like this".OK, thanks for understanding the point I am trying to make, but get your tin hat on and await the barrage about the rest of the above! It is so far from reality!You have drawn a thread neatly between the type of atmosphere which the club want us to have and that which it has refused. Restrictions on for example flag sizes and numbers and times they can be waved predominate Bristol City thinking. Did you see the policy of limited numbers of flags of a certain size only to be waved inside yellow gridlines at designated times? Just for example?! And before anyone says that is because of the law or regulations, that would be wrong - it is because of policy which Bristol City has chosen to impose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben_86UK Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 Liverpool had flares. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LondonBristolian Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 You should read more thoroughly what is being said. One criticism being directed at BS is because the are ignoring a culture amongst fans that exists here. Today was a big leap towards rebranding the fans and identity of Bristol City. Their identity [yours?] was everywhere, not ours. This is all getting depressing McCarthyist. I could easily (and honestly) say that I've no link whatsoever to Bristol Sport but, to be honest, I think the assumption that anyone agrees with the OP is somehow affiliated with 'the enemy' who , according to this thread, are apparently spying on the message boards is sufficiently paranoid to not deserve a serious response. LondonBristolian - you are not getting my point or deliberately ignoring it to get your own across. Some of your points are good ones but divorce the playing side from the rest. A structure is being created that means genuine City fans have less and less say in issues which are important to fans, and the club seems increasingly remote from the fans. Bristol Sport have shown themselves to be totally out of touch with Bristol City fans. Is that not a concern? it's not that I don't get your point. I just don't agree with it. I'm not going to naively pretend everything's perfect but I honestly think the club is less remote from fans than it was during the worst parts of the Coppell, Millen and McInnes eras when SL all but disappeared and the club was run by a board of faceless goons who nobody ever saw hide nor hair of and nor did they ever do anything. And yes, the club have made some bad decisions (e.g the bubbles issue) but I'm not sure that's directly due to the fact there's now an umbrella company running stuff. It's easy to link every bad decisions to BristolSport but the board were perfectly capable of decisions that ignored or misjudged the fans' interests before all that happened and they'll be perfectly capable of doing it again in the future. All the farrago around the giant banner (there's a technical word for the giant banner I've forgotten the name of so I hope you recall what I mean!) came before BS for example. I'm not going to defend the board, although I am going to question whether the board placing scarves on seats is really the worst thing they've done - yes, it's a corporate attempt to create an atmosphere but at least it's an attempt to create one (which the board have failed to encourage at times in the past) and, credit where it's due, it actually looked bloody good. But beyond that, I just think this season has been one of the best times to be a Bristol City fan in a long time. And yes, there's a few things going on that are a bit corporate but I think a lot of our downfall post-2010 came from the fact that SL was busy being a fan and forgot he was running a business. To return to my previous point I honestly think that, had sport had a stronger voice in Bristol a few years back, I don't think we'd have had the same issues with Ashton Vale and we might be about to move into a new stadium. And, much as I'm not a fan of corporate practices, I do accept the club has to do what it needs to do to continue to grow and attract new fans and I'm pleased to see the board trying to be savvy for once.. I'm a big fan of the way sport works in places like Barcelona or Salzburg where different sports are owned by the same body and I think it's a good model that'll help the club to grow. Which doesn't mean that I think the board are wonderful people who get everything right but I happen to think this at least is a decent decision and that, convenient though it is as a scapegoat, it's not in itself the reason for bad decisions the board have made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedYoshi Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 OK, thanks for understanding the point I am trying to make, but get your tin hat on and await the barrage about the rest of the above! It is so far from reality! You have drawn a thread neatly between the type of atmosphere which the club want us to have and that which it has refused. Restrictions on for example flag sizes and numbers and times they can be waved predominate Bristol City thinking. Did you see the policy of limited numbers of flags of a certain size only to be waved inside yellow gridlines at designated times? Just for example?! And before anyone says that is because of the law or regulations, that would be wrong - it is because of policy which Bristol City has chosen to impose. Yeah, absolutely fair enough - I am aware of it (not in huge detail, admittedly), as demonstrated in another part of my post: Flags, banners - ok, there have been ongoing grievances about such things. More work is needed to resolve these, from all sides by the sounds of it. It was nice to at least see a few flags draped over the lower Dolman wall, as it happens. I'm aware a sizeable chunk of fans have urged the club to change stance on things, have campaigned to get initiatives going, and have gotten tired with their efforts being in vain more often than not. I'm certainly not saying you should have a problem with anyone within that group. However, it seems that Bristol Sport are at least attempting to change that now - you could say too little too late, or you could say better late than never, that's up to each individual and no response is better or worse than the other. Either way, newer fans who haven't been involved in the previous disappointments don't have the "too little too late" mantra to which they can point. Why aren't they initiating things? Why aren't they getting involved? Or at least, why aren't a bigger number of them doing so? To those who know nothing of previous restrictions, the club are appealing for bigger and better things. Does the fact that those fans aren't doing bigger and better things annoy you as much as Bristol Sport do? Bristol Sport aren't the ones who knocked back previous efforts - it's hard, and understandable if everyone can't do so, but the slate needs to be wiped clean (on both sides) and, as Cityexile says, the fans need to work with them, not against them. As do Bristol Sport - don't get me wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sixtyseconds Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 It is definitely better when it's more spontaneous - however, I haven't seen any large fan initiatives to do something similar for other matches. Surely it's the fans you've got a problem with on that front more than Bristol Sport, who are (badly or not) attempting to ignite the very thing you want to see? If you pull back the right bed sheets you would note there have been fan initiatives every season till recently. Then BS arrived. BS are making their territory with huge BLUE banners. Taking away unreserved seating. The BS bottom bum print and more blue is behind the goal not fan colour ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lack of Action Man Posted January 25, 2015 Report Share Posted January 25, 2015 The scarves were a fantastic gesture and looked amazing. Can't agree with your complaints regarding Bristol Sport though. It wasn't even that noticeable on the scarf. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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