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NUFC Fans Forum seek crisis meeting with Mike Ashley

9 years ago
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Two weeks ago the NUFC Fans Forum issued an open letter (see below) appealing to Mike Ashley to urgently address a number of issues in a public statement.

Namely the issues that had caused thousands of fans to boycott the Spurs match and position of Newcastle Head Coach moving forward, as to whether it was true John Carver had been guaranteed the job. The Forum members also asked for the situation surrounding Jonas Gutierrez to be cleared up after he was left out of that match.

Whilst it was later put into the public domain that there had been a disagreement between Jonas and Johnn Carver which had been sorted. the other two issues raised, still haven’t been addressed by the club.

However, Lee Charnley replied (see below) to the NUFC Fans Forum, stating that instead of the planned Fans Forum meeting after the end of the season, that would be brought forward to address the issues raised.

It is only 19 days until the end of the season and as yet no date has been agreed for that meeting.

Now the NUFC Fans Forum have collectively replied to Lee Charnley’s offer and say they are keen for it to happen as soon as possible WITH Mike Ashley present.

NUFC Fans Forum open letter to Mike Ashley 5 May

“It is the overall view of the Fans Forum that we wish to take you up on your offer to meet.

However, we do not want this meeting to be our remaining meeting simply brought forward.

We feel that there is more than plenty to discuss at our final meeting of the season.

We agree, as a group, that the club have been open and transparent during our meetings. However, we feel quite strongly that we would like Mike Ashley, the owner of NUFC to be present at this ‘interim’ meeting.

We feel that it isn’t too much to ask. We also feel that it may help NUFC in the long run.

It is something that we are sure that you recognise that many of our fans want.

Whilst it is quite obvious that yourself and Mike have been consistently against this, we must ask you to please reconsider this policy for the good of NUFC.

We must ask the club to act now and put its house ‘in order’ as a matter of urgency.

We have three remaining games. Three games give us three opportunities to protect our Premier League status.

We must have someone at the head of our team that will ensure that the eleven players in black and white shirts are indeed fighting for our survival.

The owners of NUFC must take responsibility in a gamble that has obviously not paid off.

Whilst John Carver is clearly NUFC through and through, the lack of key management qualities needed for the Premier League have put our club in this horrendous position.

Whilst the club have indicated that there will be no managerial change, we would urge you to provide the current coaching team with expert guidance towards man-management, whether that be from an existent member or from an external source on an interim basis.

Our fantastic away support was demonstrated yet again at Leicester – yet another sell-out. Some of those fans displayed a banner which read: ‘We don’t demand a team that wins, we demand a club that tries!’

While our fan base may have many differing views, we are quite convinced that we all share the sentiment of that banner.

Fans of NUFC are no longer prepared to accept this nonsense. Enough is enough. We want Actions NOT Words.”

Lee Charnley letter to NUFC Fans Forum members

“In order to discuss the issues you raise, I intend to bring forward the date of our next Fans Forum meeting which was originally scheduled for the end of the season.

“I am sure Forum members past and present will agree that the Club has been open and transparent during all interactions, including meetings and correspondence, and this next meeting will be no different.

“In my opinion, the introduction of the Forum has been productive for all the parties involved and, as we move forward, the Forum will continue to be one of our preferred forms of fan communication and engagement.

“With five games now remaining of the season – including three at St. James’ Park, I would ask you, indeed all supporters, to get fully behind John Carver and the players as they look to finish the season as strongly as possible.

“When St. James’ Park is loud and supportive of the team on the pitch, it does make a huge difference.”

“We accept mistakes have been made and understand you raise these issues because you want the best for your football club.

“Please be assured we want the same – we want to give you a football club you can be proud of and a team you feel passionate to support.”

NUFC Fans Forum open letter to the club 21 April

“Whilst we fully appreciate the club’s view on fan communication, we feel that the time has come to show our fans respect and make some kind of ‘statement of intent’ outlining your proposals to overturn the negativity surrounding NUFC.

“We would very much prefer this statement to come from Mike Ashley himself, owner of NUFC.

“This statement should include:

A) The club’s view on the boycott of thousands of fans at the weekend. What plans do the owners and operators of NUFC have to correct the current plight that we find ourselves in?

B) The reason why Jonas Gutierrez was left out of the squad. Despite Jonas stating that he was not injured, it was clear that Jonas was one of very few players that could be described as giving his all at the recent derby loss. Was the omission connected, in any way, to a comment he made on social media?

C) As the players appear to be playing without any leadership and discipline (Sissoko/Collocini/Cisse bans) what is the plan going forward in relation to the head coach role? At our recent meeting, Lee Charnley stated that: ‘We asked John to look after the team for the remainder of the season and told him to make sure that we had a decision to make’. There appears to be several sources stating that they believe that John Carver will be head coach next season. Can you confirm that those ‘rumours’ are 100% inaccurate?

“We are in total agreement that we feel that it is appropriate to ask for an urgent response. Any suggestion that we should wait until our final meeting of the year would be met with our overwhelming disapproval.”

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