Now Is The Winter Of Our Discontent

Now is the winter of our discontent.

Well, lets be honest, things aren`t going very well are they!? Shocking the way this club started to rise from the David O`Leary / Doug Ellis time when it was totally on it`s knees only to stall and then drop. This season, it is hard to see a way out. I`ve tried with the positives here: Come On Villa – FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT as there are some crucial games coming up now and it isn`t impossible IF only the players could show some fight. However, as I say in that article, no club on this few points at this stage of the season have survived. Records, as I was told in the forum yesterday, are there to be broken. However, to break records you need players up for the fight. Over to Remi to try to get some fire in their bellies then.

The other side of this is how fans are reacting. There seems a three way split to me.

Those spitting venom, which is understandable.

Those at the point of ambivalence and just fatigued by it all, which is understandable!

Those laughing at the situation, in a dark humour what else can we do kind of way. That is also understandable, if you don`t laugh you`d cry!? Fans singing how sh** must you be, it`s only 2-0 etc… although with the confidence on the floor with the team, it doesn`t really help but then, to be fair to us fans, they`ve not helped give us much to support either.

So… what do you do?

There have been whispers of protests and we are discussing that in the forum in this thread… (usual caveat, more adult language in here) Time To Re-build

avfc_1982 posted:

I would like to start off that I f you are reading this thread still believing that we can stay up then this thread isn’t for you. I don’t want to start arguments – it is mine and a lot of other people’s thoughts, mathematics or not, that we are relegated and I want to debate how we get back up.

After today I think we have a slight advantage on the others for next year in that we have 7 months to prep to get back into the Prem at the first hurdle.

Now my main problem is the problems start from the top. I can’t see them replacing Garde and there isn’t a cat in hells chance that they are going to put their hands in their pocket.

So can the fans do something? If we still have the heart I think we can.

We have a lot of games name that we can use as a catalyst to hound Lerner and his cronies out. Forget ‘supporting’ these jokers, our support means nothing to them and hasn’t gotten us anywhere. This shouldn’t be acceptable for our famous badge.

Our badge (the REAL Aston villa) needs us to fight for it and before we can rebuild we need to do our part and hound those that are destroying it out now to start the rebuilding process.

Protests and marches, emptying the stadium at home, not going to away games, stop spending money on tours and in the club shop, get press exposure and hit them hard in the only thing they care about – there pockets.

We have time on our side to plan and force them out. I firmly believe that this is our ONLY opportunity to come back up at the first attempt.

Other things that need to happen is to blood the young players for next year also. Least they will have fight and will have something to prove.

Now the thing is to get someone on board who has that power, there are numerous blogs and websites, Howard hodgson, Bbc wm, the mail, Stan collymore. If we can get the one with power to be the face then get the numbers that would be a start.

Do you guys think this is an option? If not what would you do to rebuild to come back? Or is it as simple as we are doomed for a long long time in the championship?

Discuss….

So we have discussed! Click Here

For me, having done a lot of protesting (and been asked several times to start again…!) I just don`t see you can when you are in the middle of a relegation fight. We cancelled stuff when we were 17th or so under David O`Leary. Also, as I say in the thread, what are we protesting and if you are faced with the press (which you need to be if protests are to work) what are the aims when the owner (despite conspiracy theories to the contrary) wants out as well. Also, how will he hear the protests from the other side of ‘the pond’?

My initial response:

a) we are in a relegation battle. You don’t protest during those. We cancelled some protests back in the DOL 17th time

b) we are up for sale. How the hell do you think you can hound someone out when he is trying to get out and there is no good telling anyone to force the price down, you don’t know the price and there aren’t any willing buyers for any of the clubs available as we’ve said in the club for sale and the Lerner thread…

Deal with the facts. No club has sold since Fulham in the prem.

It’s a simple mind *** that he wants out, we want him to get his wish, no one is buying.

Anyone thinking protesting right now is the right way to try to dig us out of this … I just can’t picture how you would do the interviews for a protest.

What do you want?

Lerner out.

How?

We want him to sell

Isn’t the club up for sale?

Err… well… yes but we want him to sell for less

How much is the club up for sale then?

Errr.. not sure.

So how do you know it needs to be sold for less?

Because we haven’t sold yet

Nor have Everton or Newcastle or other clubs who would probably like to move on?

err…

But we want Lerner out….

******

I’m not taking the pee. Anyone who stands up for their club has to be saluted for caring, but no matter the conspiracy theories, this club is up for sale and definitely available. No one is buying.

I would be all over protests like a rash if it was the same as the last lot of protests when the owner (or at that time majority shareholder/chairman) wasn’t willing to sell but also wasn’t willing to invest.

At the moment we have a willing seller, not a willing buyer and an owner who isn’t keen on investing more.

As said, horrible situation but protests can’t force a sale when the club is up for sale.

AVFC_1982 responded:

To be fair JF there is a lot more you can protest for away from Lerner selling.

We know he is a willing seller and yes you are probably right we can’t force a willing buyer but how about protesting for:

1) him to talk to us more and stop leaving us in the dark and speculating about what his intentions are?
2) resign as chairman as he promised he would
3) if he wasn’t to resign and someone has a change of heart, to call for the immediate removal of Tom fox, Almstad and reily?
4) protest in general to show that we will not tolerate the inept and lacklustre performances we are being served

I can’t for the life of me get on board that the likes of Bournemouth, Norwich, Watford and co have better squad of players then us. What they do have though is stability, a good sense of direction from the top, tactical and motivational management and a never say die and fantastic team spirit. Money can’t buy you that and it’s something that can be changed during the season and at any time of a season.

The point I’m trying to make is supporting hasn’t worked. My opinion is we are gone and to rebuild we have to do it at the very least without the trio that are currently running the club. Things won’t change whilst 33k sit watching in silence but things might if we actually stood up and did something.

And my reply:

Please don’t misunderstand (don’t think any of you will) my responses to be sticking up for ‘them’ or that I’m not just as peed off with what is happening, especially as I thought we’d cracked it when this lot came and it was SO nice that protests all stopped and things seemed to be going in the right direction. It hurts, for sure.

Even at the height of the rubbish under Doug (and no rose tinted specs will negate how much that man took out of the club and how much he held us back… old argument but we need to remember it was right then and wanting Lerner gone now is right… difference is Lerner HONESTLY does want out, I know this for fact, brokers have said, staff at the top have said, he’s said)

Trying to get people not to go to games is pretty impossible. We talked about it way back when, the response even on the forums was an angry mix but some will not stay away and those who want to already are (33 something thousand today says a hell of a lot for a top match) … Away fans are SO incredibly loyal and are the most tribal. You’d never get them not to.

Then to try a ten minute don’t go in. That was tried not long back and was a total flop. It is hard to get the message out and many will just say they have paid and will not miss the game.

A lot have the attitude (and I don’t argue against it) that supporters are there to support.

The message you could send out by having an empty stadium would be an awesome message in so many ways. It would also bring about a hell of a lot of backlash and criticism though and the one reason would be as above, Randy is wanting out and we are in a relegation battle and the team are bereft of confidence (we could also argue skill!) so as fans, you are there to try to make the difference.

You then get down to the ‘other reasons or aims’

The problem then?

Who decides who is to blame, what is the aim, what is the protest for?

I was SO happy when the VFC was disbanded, some think you are in it for ego etc but it’s hard work and soulless. You also then put up with people spitting at you, hitting you, calling you a **** etc… Erod Naz etc will attest to that.

Is Tom Fox to blame? It’s the man at the top who has destabilised us. Fox is doing what he’s being asked to. He brought in Sherwood (I maintain the previous ceo’s didn’t hire managers, Randy did this time I am pretty sure, quite rightly, the CEO did it) recognised what a disaster he was and acted far quicker than Randy ever did with previous managers. That was a good decisive move. But on the flipside, yes, mistakes have been made as well.

Was Remi the right one?

You start to get into a whole **** storm of different opinions as to what exactly are we protesting.

Howard Hodgson tried with an interested group or two, I don’t think that is breaking any confidences as he hinted at stuff on twiter.

Some will attest via pm’s I was pretty convinced another group were close, I was helping like I did last time (worked out well didn’t it ? FFS) and had been asked to do similar consultation if they had been successful.

Through no fault of Randy’s, they couldn’t raise the funds, it was a consortium and they do worry me because how do they make a return, how much money is available etc.

This is a nightmare that I’ve thought about so often as to what could be done and I just have no answers.

One thing I would say is that protests I would imagine will organically start if and when it is clear we are down. Before that, I think you’d be surprised at the fights that would break out, especially away from home, when supporters are trying to lift the team and others are trying to do other things. It gets ugly. We have to hope, then if we survive, you hope again this close call will re-galvanise Randy in his attempts to sell AND ALSO perhaps it would attract bidders and I think if the right people come along, the price wouldn’t be the major factor to Randy.

Most have no reason to trust this but I do trust (as much as you can, as you never really know anyone even family really!) that he does want to hand us to someone decent.

In conclusion?

ARRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH

For the rest of the debate: Click Here

Look forward to your thoughts and responses…