Tweet
No one responded to my earlier post. Does no one out there think we need to act rather than just moan and speculate about the next manager? This isn't Eastenders, you know. We can't just be passive consumers, bitching about the characters. We have to act, to engage.
So, I'll start the action with an open letter to Mr Briatore. I'll post this off later today...
Dear Mr Briatore,
I am writing to you as a life-long supporter of Queens Park Rangers Football Club. I have been a regular attender of matches since my first game as a 6 year-old lad in 1982. Over that time, I have, of course, seen some ups and perhaps a few more downs, particularly in recent years. But, until recently, there has always been a deep sense of pride within me and other Rangers supporters I know about being a QPR fan and being a bit different. We have always been proud to support our smaller London club, to be fans of a Club with a good reputation for a warm atmosphere and a style of attacking, flair football. In the 1970s and 1980s and early 1990s, we regularly punched above our weight and, win, lose, or draw, Rangers fans were able to look fans of their bigger London rivals, the likes of Arsenal, Spurs, and Chelsea, straight in the eye.
These days I cannot look anyone in the eye with a straight and sincere face and tell them with any sense of pride that ‘I am a Queens Park Rangers fan’. Our Club has become a laughing stock of the footballing world and its once rich reputation lies in tatters. It cannot be denied that this fall from grace has coincided with the arrival of yourself and the Club’s other new owners.
Clearly, the counter-argument you would offer to such an accusation is a strong one: ‘we saved this Club. Without us there would be no QPR’. There is not a single Rangers fan that is not grateful to you for your initial investment. However, I would make two contentions. First, as successful businessmen, this was not an altruistic act, but a business decision motivated by a belief that your investment could be recouped and a profit could be made. Second, I would argue that, in one way or another, the Club would have survived even if it needed to close down and be revived by the fans, starting again in the non-leagues such as AFC Wimbledon has done. Again, I repeat, however, that this is not to diminuish my gratitude for your initial investment.
I, of course, am not party to the inner workings of the Club. Allow me, therefore, to offer you my perception and the perception of many fellow fans out there of how you seem to be running our beloved Club. Bear in mind here that perception can be more important than the truth itself. You, I am sure, are aware of that as the Club, under your stewardship, has attempted to shape a particular new brand for QPR.
Here, for what it is worth, is my perception of the Club today. In my view, if QPR were a political system, it would be an autocracy run for the benefit of the dictator and his cronies at the cost of the suffering masses – the fans. We see the ostentatious luxury of the ‘C-Club’ and the corporatisation of many aspects of the Club, whilst we, the fans, are charged more to sit in cramped conditions. We see how formerly thriving institutions for communication and interaction between Club and fans are less active and less relevant. We see how news of major events (invariably, the departure of yet another manager) is communicated to fans as an afterthough, the flow of information managed carefully. Finally, of course, we see the embarassingly frequent coming and going of managers.What can we conclude? My conclusion can only be that QPR is a dictatorship and is being run by an ever-increasingly erratic dictator.
Stability is the foundation for success in any walk of life, from politics to business to one’s personal life. I cannot avoid concluding that you have created at QPR the most volatile, unstable environment imagineable. Who, whether manager, player, or even secretary, would want to work at QPR now with a complete absence of any stability and certainty and the sense of insecurity that engenders?
Again, I suspect that one counter-argument of yours would be that only one or two of the managers have been sacked. The rest have either left on their own accord or have broken their contracts through their actions. This is largely spin, I feel. I do not want to get into specific cases, mainly because I am not qualified to, but I can assure you that the widespread perception is that it is you who is doing the pushing and that the managers are not willfully jumping and that, if they are, it is because they feel unable to do the job with the freedom they require.
You are a busy man so I will take no more of your time. I will end this letter with a plea. Please, Mr Briatore, listen to the fans. Do not interfere with the team. Stick to what you are supposedly good at, attracting investment and managing the Club’s financial, business, and marketing affairs. Appoint a manager and give him at least 18 months in the post. Give him free reign over transfers and all aspects of the football side of the Club. Come and speak with representatives of supporters and be open and transparent about the affairs of the Club and listen to the concerns of fans. If you do these things, you will be able to succeed with your ‘project’ and you will slowly be able to rebuild the tattered reputation of our Club and regain our respect. If you do not, you will ultimately not survive even if you and the other owners are legal owners. The fans will ultimately rebel and oust you out. No one wants to see this so I implore you to take the right decisions.
I wish you luck and success,
Yours Sincerely,
Bobbins
So, I'll start the action with an open letter to Mr Briatore. I'll post this off later today...
Dear Mr Briatore,
I am writing to you as a life-long supporter of Queens Park Rangers Football Club. I have been a regular attender of matches since my first game as a 6 year-old lad in 1982. Over that time, I have, of course, seen some ups and perhaps a few more downs, particularly in recent years. But, until recently, there has always been a deep sense of pride within me and other Rangers supporters I know about being a QPR fan and being a bit different. We have always been proud to support our smaller London club, to be fans of a Club with a good reputation for a warm atmosphere and a style of attacking, flair football. In the 1970s and 1980s and early 1990s, we regularly punched above our weight and, win, lose, or draw, Rangers fans were able to look fans of their bigger London rivals, the likes of Arsenal, Spurs, and Chelsea, straight in the eye.
These days I cannot look anyone in the eye with a straight and sincere face and tell them with any sense of pride that ‘I am a Queens Park Rangers fan’. Our Club has become a laughing stock of the footballing world and its once rich reputation lies in tatters. It cannot be denied that this fall from grace has coincided with the arrival of yourself and the Club’s other new owners.
Clearly, the counter-argument you would offer to such an accusation is a strong one: ‘we saved this Club. Without us there would be no QPR’. There is not a single Rangers fan that is not grateful to you for your initial investment. However, I would make two contentions. First, as successful businessmen, this was not an altruistic act, but a business decision motivated by a belief that your investment could be recouped and a profit could be made. Second, I would argue that, in one way or another, the Club would have survived even if it needed to close down and be revived by the fans, starting again in the non-leagues such as AFC Wimbledon has done. Again, I repeat, however, that this is not to diminuish my gratitude for your initial investment.
I, of course, am not party to the inner workings of the Club. Allow me, therefore, to offer you my perception and the perception of many fellow fans out there of how you seem to be running our beloved Club. Bear in mind here that perception can be more important than the truth itself. You, I am sure, are aware of that as the Club, under your stewardship, has attempted to shape a particular new brand for QPR.
Here, for what it is worth, is my perception of the Club today. In my view, if QPR were a political system, it would be an autocracy run for the benefit of the dictator and his cronies at the cost of the suffering masses – the fans. We see the ostentatious luxury of the ‘C-Club’ and the corporatisation of many aspects of the Club, whilst we, the fans, are charged more to sit in cramped conditions. We see how formerly thriving institutions for communication and interaction between Club and fans are less active and less relevant. We see how news of major events (invariably, the departure of yet another manager) is communicated to fans as an afterthough, the flow of information managed carefully. Finally, of course, we see the embarassingly frequent coming and going of managers.What can we conclude? My conclusion can only be that QPR is a dictatorship and is being run by an ever-increasingly erratic dictator.
Stability is the foundation for success in any walk of life, from politics to business to one’s personal life. I cannot avoid concluding that you have created at QPR the most volatile, unstable environment imagineable. Who, whether manager, player, or even secretary, would want to work at QPR now with a complete absence of any stability and certainty and the sense of insecurity that engenders?
Again, I suspect that one counter-argument of yours would be that only one or two of the managers have been sacked. The rest have either left on their own accord or have broken their contracts through their actions. This is largely spin, I feel. I do not want to get into specific cases, mainly because I am not qualified to, but I can assure you that the widespread perception is that it is you who is doing the pushing and that the managers are not willfully jumping and that, if they are, it is because they feel unable to do the job with the freedom they require.
You are a busy man so I will take no more of your time. I will end this letter with a plea. Please, Mr Briatore, listen to the fans. Do not interfere with the team. Stick to what you are supposedly good at, attracting investment and managing the Club’s financial, business, and marketing affairs. Appoint a manager and give him at least 18 months in the post. Give him free reign over transfers and all aspects of the football side of the Club. Come and speak with representatives of supporters and be open and transparent about the affairs of the Club and listen to the concerns of fans. If you do these things, you will be able to succeed with your ‘project’ and you will slowly be able to rebuild the tattered reputation of our Club and regain our respect. If you do not, you will ultimately not survive even if you and the other owners are legal owners. The fans will ultimately rebel and oust you out. No one wants to see this so I implore you to take the right decisions.
I wish you luck and success,
Yours Sincerely,
Bobbins
Comment