On 12th May, Dons Supporters Together were delighted to present Norman Goldie with the latest D.O.N.S. award – “Distinction of Notable Service to Aberdeen Football Club.
Norman is now the 4th recipient of this award from AFC Supporters, following the awards to Willie Miller, Joe Harper and Teddy Scott, demonstrating that the DST members are able to nominate anyone, in any capacity, who has provided notable service to the club over the years.
Norman was recognised for his great many years of supporting Aberdeen. That, however, is not the whole story as he is not the oldest supporter and may not have been a supporter for the longest period, but he is undoubtedly the most charismatic supporter, in that every AFC, and many opposition fans, who has attended games over the years, knows Norman.
His official match gear, that he was insistent he be photographed in when receiving his award (so that “people knew who he was!”) is legendary – who doesn’t recall with fondness the red and white socks with the sandals (and now the red and white trainers), the multiple scarves, the hat and the official club jacket?
That, alongside travelling to games, the length and breadth of the country, and walking to and from Pittodrie, in all weathers, regardless of how the team were performing at the time, help give Norman his legendary status with AFC fans and explain why he is regarded so fondly by all.
Thanks Norman, for your support and for adding so much colour and character to our games and here’s to seeing you around the country for many years to come.
If you want to join DST and submit your nomination for future awards, then please sign up, for free, at http://www.donssupporterstogether.com/membership/
DST views with increasing concern the possibility that SPL clubs will vote to allow direct entry of a newco to the SPL with minimal penalties. The overwhelming opinion of supporters in Scotland is that a newco should enter senior football by applying for admission to the SFL 3rd division and working their way up again in a sustainable and honest way. Rangers like all other member clubs must be seen to comply with the rules and honour their debts, otherwise why should fans ever bother to turn up again, knowing for sure that the league is permanently rigged in their favour.
The mantra being repeated by most pundits and the officials of the SPL is that it is in the member clubs’ financial interest that a Rangers newco is immediately admitted to the SPL. The purported grounds are that Rangers along with Celtic bring about £700,000 a year to the other clubs by their fans attendance at matches and the TV deal. The message now being put about is that integrity and fair play is trumped by the financial imperative to survive since Scottish football will supposedly cease to be viable if Rangers are not in the top league. How can this stance be squared with Rangers and Celtic’s insistence in recent years that their departure to England/an Atlantic League would not be detrimental to Scottish football?
These assertions must be strongly challenged by the SPL club chairmen. Firstly, who are making the assertions? Many of the proponents of the “status quo” being essential have a vested interest. Media pundits and the press pack know that there will be far less appetite for their blanket coverage of the Old Firm if there is a transfer embargo and Rangers are facing East Stirlingingshire twice a season rather than Celtic. Their jobs hang in the balance. Clearly Rangers officials and supporters want their club at the top table winning trophies every season with guaranteed European football. They also have a vested interest for either financial or emotional reasons.
Now for the financial reality. In the case of our own club, in a season when AFC is in the top six, Rangers will normally add about 8000 over 2 games to the overall attendances for the season. Including programmes, food and other ancillary sales, the annual revenue is therefore about £200,000. Ranger’s fans represent about 4% of Aberdeen’s gate revenue in an average season, and if we have a good run in Europe, such as 4 seasons ago their effect is reduced to 2% of gate revenue.
Should Dundee (probably the best supported club in the SFL 1st division) be promoted into Rangers place, they have historically brought at least 2000 fans to Aberdeen matches, so the Rangers effect is reduced to £150000. If only 300 AFC fans fail to renew their season tickets and walk away from the club next season as a result of a misguided vote to allow a Rangers newco direct entry to the SPL, the effect of any Rangers support attending Pittodrie will be cancelled out. This is an entirely plausible scenario, which may well be repeated across all the SPL clubs given the strength of feeling being demonstrated across Scotland on this issue. SPL club chairmen will only finally count the cost of their decision when season ticket sales fail to materialise, by which time it will be too late to persuade the fans that the SPL is not permanently rigged in favour of the “too big to fail” clubs. The SPL chairmen should indeed “be careful what they wish for” if they vote for finance over integrity.
The TV deal melt-down scenario must also be challenged. If imaginative thought is applied, an alternative TV deal could be put together which would replace the current tired format. Rugby Super League in England has a £90m 5 year deal with Sky despite having lower attendances than the SPL. That is a better deal than the SPL had, so why can a minority sport with lower support do it and the SPL can’t? Probably because we are competing with the EPL and UEFA games, and therefore get less money and the lunch-time, Friday and Monday evening kick-offs to fill in the TV schedule gaps. If we go for summer football, we would be the only show in town for several weeks of the year and our product would be much more valuable. We could increase the league size as the customers want, have bigger play offs to keep the end of the season alive, and if OF games are actually essential to the deal, re-introduce the old League Cup qualifying groups at the start of the season with Rangers and Celtic in the same 4 team group to start the season with 2 OF games before the league starts. Overall, a revised programme for the season could easily generate the same cash as before from a TV deal, whether Rangers are in the SPL or not.
Finally let us address the potential absence of £500,000 a year income from TV. This could be replaced by increasing the average home gate by attracting only 1000 extra fans to every home game. The latent support for a successful Aberdeen FC is there to be had. 18,000 made the long trip to Glasgow for a 1215 kick-off only last month. If the AFC product on the pitch was more attractive and marketed as enthusiastically as a certain well known North-East house building company’s product, a target of 1000 extra season ticket fans to replace the TV income could easily be reached.
In summary, AFC like all the other SPL clubs does not need Rangers in the SPL to survive and thrive, and must vote for integrity in our national game.
The Board of Dons Supporters Together have sent this open letter to Aberdeen FC Chairman Stewart Milne in regards to the upcoming SPL Meeting later this month.
Dear Mr Milne,
As you prepare for the meeting of the SPL clubs on 30 April 2012 to discuss the proposed changes to the rules of the SPL, we wish to make you aware of the views of the supporters we represent.
It is our opinion that the proposed changes to the SPL rules do not go far enough, and have as their main purpose the facilitation of the direct entry of a Newco Rangers into the SPL following liquidation of the previous commercial entity. You will be aware of the strength of feeling that such a potential outcome arouses amongst followers of football across Scotland, and the potential damage to the game as a whole if financial self-interest is allowed to over-ride the principles of fair play, integrity and honouring ones obligations.
The astonishing number of responses to the recent splsurvey and consistency of views expressed (even from Rangers supporters) cannot be ignored. Ultimately, the finance in the game comes from the pockets of the paying supporters, either through their direct contact with the clubs through ticket sales and merchandise or indirectly via their subscriptions to TV companies and sponsors.
In survey after survey, these same customers whose money funds the game are telling every club and footballing authority in Scotland that they want more variety in larger leagues, more positive open, attacking and attractive football played, a fairer distribution of money within the game across all the leagues, and an even-handed application of the rules by officials and regulating bodies. Until the customers views are listened to and their views acted on, the game in Scotland will continue its slow and steady decline
With regard to the SPL proposals our view is
Resolution 1 – In favour.
Resolution 2A – Against. Instead, we feel that an alternative Resolution 2 should be proposed which specifically prohibits an Insolvency Transfer Event.
Resolution 2B – Not applicable due to the prohibition of Insolvency Transfer Event.
Resolution 3 – In favour.
Resolution 4 – The principles of our views on Resolutions 1,2A, 2B and 3 above should be applied to whatever specific updates are proposed.
Resolution 5 – Not applicable due to the prohibition of Insolvency Transfer Event. An alternative rule should be proposed under which a member club’s share in the SPL is not transferable, and in the event of liquidation that share lapses. The remainder of the current season will be played out by the remaining clubs with games already played against the defunct club declared null and void. The vacant place will be filled by a double promotion from the top of the SFL first division at the end of that season.
Resolution 6 – In favour.
Resolution 7 – In favour.
With regard to the potential of “life without Rangers”, it seems to us that the official statement you made in the Annual Accounts of 2002 is as relevant to the current situation as it was during the events of 2002 :-
“It is difficult to envisage exactly what is going to happen in terms of the infrastructure of the game in Scotland
but, as things stand, Aberdeen, along with all the other SPL clubs other than the Old Firm, will be leaving the SPL at the conclusion of season 2003/4. If that does happen, Aberdeen, along with the other clubs outwith the Old Firm, will be looking to form a new league with a new voting structure which Rangers and Celtic will be invited to join. If they choose to decline this invitation there is little doubt that, in the short term, there will be a reduction in revenues from broadcasting and sponsorship due to their absence. However, it is my firm belief that within a short period, a Scottish league, in which a number of clubs will be capable of winning the championship, will become extremely attractive to television companies and business organisations alike.”
If the current 10 non Old-Firm clubs were to pursue today, the course of action proposed 10 years ago, it would be with the full support of DST. The notion of individual clubs owning their own TV rights in a league is preposterous, as is that of 2 clubs acting as a concert party and having the power of veto over the majority. The situation is entirely analogous to the rugby 5 Nations situation of the past when England’s demands for an unfair share of TV money were successfully faced down by the other countries.
In the event that Rangers go into liquidation, as an alternative to the 10 resigning from the SPL, we suggest that an immediate egm of the SPL is called and the 10 push through changes to the voting structure while Celtic are in a minority of 1, and before any resumption of Old Firm hegemony can be re-established.
DST considers that the time has now come to arrest the rapid decline of Scottish Football by restoring democracy, and re-distributing finances fairly in the game. The supporting public will no longer tolerate irregularities by the game’s fat cats, nor the subsidy of “too big to fail” enterprises whether they are banks or bankrupt football clubs.
Best Regards
The Board of Dons Supporters Together
Prints of the magnificent display seen at the Scottish Cup Semi final can now be bought.
Limited edition (1903 prints are available) 19×12″ prints suitable for framing are now on sale from here for £19.03
Money raised from sales will be used to fund future displays and a donation will be made to Aberdeen FC’s Youth Development.
Remember you can still buy the Pittodrie Years print featured on our DST Award scroll for just £30. Or buy a Legends or Gothenburg Greats print and receive the Pittodrie Years print free, with a £10 donation to DST.
Based on the results of 2 surveys , Supporters Direct Scotland (SDS) have issued “The Fans Plan” for the future of Scottish football.
An executive summary can be read here with full details of the plan – the PROBLEM, the PROPOSALS and the DETAIL
Dons Supporters Together endorse the plan as the biggest piece of fans feedback to date.
The content is rational and well argued and contains many strong arguments that we do agree with if not all, and we assume our members will be likewise.
SDS Council have a meeting with Stuart Regan, Neil Doncaster and David Longmuir in a couple of weeks’ time to discuss the contents of the Fans’ Plan.
We would be interested in any comments that you have on this – email us at info@donssupporterstogether.com
The following has been brought to the attention of Dons Supporters Together which we wish to share with the fans.
As previously mentioned there is a display planned by supporters for next weeks Scottish Cup Semi Final at Hampden.
Supporters have been kindly donating to a fund for the display. Recently Aberdeen Football Club donated £500 to the fans fund.
I’m sure all supporters wish to join DST in thanking the club for their donation. It is hoped this will help in making the display as large and memorable as possible.
Supporters have also kindly been given access by the SFA to Hampden at 12.30pm on the Friday before the semi final to set up a card display.
If any fans are in Glasgow at this time, any help with setting up the display will be greatly appreciated.
If fans want to be part of setting up and helping with the display then contact ssmccorms@hotmail.co.uk
Supporters are still taking donations for the display. paypal payments can be sent to: redarmy12merch@hotmail.co.uk
Dons Supporters Together are delighted that Neil Simpson has been rewarded with a benefit match at Pittodrie.
Neil was a member of the European Cup Winners Cup team and is currently head of the AFC Youth Academy. We, along with several other supporters groups, have been in discussions with AFC management on this subject and are glad to have reached such a positive outcome. We know that this recognition of the fans wishes will be rewarded with their full support.
Dons Supporters Together are delighted to announce that the recipient of our third D.O.N.S Award for Distinction of Notable Service to Aberdeen is Teddy Scott.
Teddy served Aberdeen as player, trainer and in many other capacities for nearly 50 years since joining the club in 1954.
Willie Miller in his autobiography referred to Teddy as “a cornerstone of the Pittodrie establishment. His depth of experience, together with his unquestioned loyalty to the club and his conscientious attention to detail were assets successive managers recognised and treasured”
Alex McLeish said of Teddy in his book “He is probably the most important member of the Pittodrie staff. If he ever left AFC they would have to appoint three or four people to take his place such is the volume and variety of the work he undertakes. But his greatest importance lies in the role he plays in developing the talents of young players”
Teddy was held in such high regard by the club that he was awarded a testimonial match in 1998 when Alex Ferguson sent his treble winning Manchester United side.
DST board member Ian Hay visited Teddy in Ellon to present him with his award.
Local artist Dod Dow has brought to our attention the following offer on Aberdeen FC artwork.
Anyone purchasing a “Gothenburg Greats” or “Dons Legends” print from here http://doddow.com/dons-prints-23-c.asp will receive a free copy of the “Pittodrie Years” worth £30 and as featured on our D.O.N.S award scrolls.
Dod has kindly agreed to donate £10 from every purchase to Dons Supporters Together
DST were asked to pass this message on to our fellow Aberdeen supporters.
A collection of Dons fans are organising a display for the semi final,we did a great job at Fir park in the last round and want to go even better than that at Hampden
With a big display planned for the Scottish Cup Semi Final vs Hibs, any donations to cover the costs are most welcome.
Paypal Payments can be sent to; redarmy12merch@hotmail.co.uk
If you wish to donate in another form then please post up on this thread and something can be arranged.
Any contribution is appreciated.
The display will certainly be a spectacle that will inspire the players and the red army.
Thank you
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