I attended the Magpie Group meeting tonight

[Kingstonbob1]

i havent said they will be
but a bunh of placard waving shouting thugs outside your place of work when you have no affiliation to football or the club would be threatening

that is cowardly

that wont stop ash
people say he should treat his workers better

they dont deserve a buch of so calles upporters outside their place of work

what if every club who had an issue with say puma adidas nike,lonsdale etc all piled up outside

give it a reat

if you cant get him out through the club
dont do your dirty work on others just trying to earn a living
cowardly scum

I’m sure there’ll be a couple of cops there just to make sure the people daring to say anything about Ashley don’t shout anything that could alarm the adults cowering behind the desk and walking round in body armour in case of assault in the shop 40ft away and behind 12in thick walls.

Eeeehh I don’t usually go to bed laughing but I am tonight.

[ronandtet]

i havent said they will be
but a bunh of placard waving shouting thugs outside your place of work when you have no affiliation to football or the club would be threatening

that is cowardly

that wont stop ash
people say he should treat his workers better

they dont deserve a buch of so calles upporters outside their place of work

what if every club who had an issue with say puma adidas nike,lonsdale etc all piled up outside

give it a reat

if you cant get him out through the club
dont do your dirty work on others just trying to earn a living
cowardly scum

some how i don't think the staff would be bothered they are good at it themselves


"Protesters outside the Sports Direct flagship store on Oxford Street in London as the troubled retailer has been accused of
reneging on a promise to offer guaranteed hours to staff on zero hour contracts in a fresh blow to the company
ahead of its annual meeting

Campaigners are protesting on Sauchiehall Street from 10am today (Wednesday, September 6) against "broken promises" to staff.


3 Aug 2013
Sports Direct protests planned over zero hours contracts

Several protests are planned outside Sports Direct shops as anger grows at zero hours contracts. It is claimed the retailer employs
20,000 staff under the policy."

(the latest protests were in 2017)

[Geordie1974]

some how i don't think the staff would be bothered they are good at it themselves


"Protesters outside the Sports Direct flagship store on Oxford Street in London as the troubled retailer has been accused of
reneging on a promise to offer guaranteed hours to staff on zero hour contracts in a fresh blow to the company
ahead of its annual meeting

Campaigners are protesting on Sauchiehall Street from 10am today (Wednesday, September 6) against "broken promises" to staff.


3 Aug 2013
Sports Direct protests planned over zero hours contracts

Several protests are planned outside Sports Direct shops as anger grows at zero hours contracts. It is claimed the retailer employs
20,000 staff under the policy."

(the latest protests were in 2017)

Well,Well,Well.Who would have thought.

[pboromag]

some how i don't think the staff would be bothered they are good at it themselves


"protesters outside the sports direct flagship store on oxford street in london as the troubled retailer has been accused of
reneging on a promise to offer guaranteed hours to staff on zero hour contracts in a fresh blow to the company
ahead of its annual meeting

campaigners are protesting on sauchiehall street from 10am today (wednesday, september 6) against "broken promises" to staff.


3 aug 2013
sports direct protests planned over zero hours contracts

several protests are planned outside sports direct shops as anger grows at zero hours contracts. It is claimed the retailer employs
20,000 staff under the policy."

(the latest protests were in 2017)

thats them protesting about their boss
that effects them directly

i didnt see them outside st james ,s protesting

[ronandtet]

thats them protesting about their boss
that effects them directly

i didnt see them outside st james ,s protesting

once again missed the point that was they are used to protests against ashley

[TheOtherTerryMac]

once again missed the point that was they are used to protests against ashley

I would say the fans have every right to protest against SD and Ashley

SD are getting free advertising and a free shop at the ground. SD are not owned outright by Ashley so a third part is gaining monetary value off Toon Supporter especially with him putting the season ticket prices up

Ashley is not the fans boss but he is the owner who 50’000 fans pay a huge amount of their hard earned money to. He is not providing a quality service for what the fans are paying so they have every right to protest at the ground and at his shops.

[ghostrider]

Here's the way I see it.

The fans have been protesting against Ashley for quite a few years. Basically since Keegan went.
The protesting gained traction and then started skidding to a halt for a while.....why?

Was it because people believed Ashley was starting to do things right until he started to do things wrong again?

Because the next protest came about and yet appeared to gain real traction and suddenly starts to die a death once again.
In bit parts this has been happening, whether it's been in the ground or out of it.

It seems that the protests calm down when Ashley is seen to spend a little bit of money or things start to look ok.

It happened first time around in the championship. It was a case of, " ahhh maybe Mike Ashley is going to make a go of it again." Then it all went quiet but for a few distant voices of discontent.

This leads up to now where it does appear that every Tom Dirk and Harry throughout the country is talking about it and there's a mixed bag among them all who are not Newcastle fans or from Newcastle who have differing opinions on it all.

Newcastle United is one scary prospect for a takeover. Absolute and utter scary for any owner(s).
People who have the money appear to not want to touch it, because I think they know they are in for serious problems if they don't do a good job, which (admit it or not) consists of playing high up in the premier league stakes with records broken for signings.

Basically bring back the glory days of yesteryear. I know it sounds silly but there's a dream that has became some kind of fixation of expectation that Newcastle United absolutely should be arm in arm with the elite pack.

I've always been one to think that. I just expected Newcastle United to always be among the elites. I did this because I believed we had a club run by Geordies (Hall's and Shepherd) who had the club in the grip of the big time and could keep it there because the sleeping giant was awakening.
I seriously thought we wouldn't fail overall until it all came crashing down after Sir Bobby Robson's enforced exit.

The decline was well in motion before Ashley and all Ashley's tenure has produced is similar ups and downs with the odd twist of excitement, albeit on a 5th place finish and two championship titles which produced a near euphoria in a sense.

Granted it doesn't make up for premier league titles or champions league qualifications or an FA cup final win...but they're basic bragging rights after the deed is done and a viewing platform for the tour crew.

The problem is only a few clubs get to sample it because, regardless of whether it's Ashley or whatever, we're always playing the sleeping giant who threatens to awaken before going into a coma and someone has to take the blame for it.

Ashley's tenure is the biggest of the lot in this day and age, because this is a breed of billionaires from anywhere and everywhere...not your local businessmen with Newcastle United football club and colours etched into their entire body and running through their veins.
This is the real dream. But, like I said, it became a billionaires playground and until that playground becomes a playground where all can play in a fair manner, we are going nowhere...with Ashley or without Ashley.

But I'll say this and I firmly believe this as well.
If the fans took a grip of their minds and seriously went about grabbing the club back, collectively...and also the people of the city and outskirts of it that feel some allegiance to the club got together a genuine offer and struck some kind of deal with Ashley in whatever guise suited all parties, then the fans get their own club....or part own it where everything becomes utterly transparent, even if that means Ashley owns 50%.

It's fine trying to fight a man who actually owns the club but you have to get a grasp of what it is you're trying to do as an end product, because just ousting him is not a viable act if there's nobody to take his place with the readies to oversee a new era, sort of thing.

It's no good sitting there and shouting out that Ashley will only move the goalposts or ask for more money if money is offered. If no-one can, or are willing to buy him out or thrash out a deal then anyone knows that the protests will die down to a mere pitter patter and eventually be pacified by some better football with the odd focal player that promises something, just like we have done with Ba and Cisse and the likes.
It seems to be a cycle.

At the minute all is skewed because we are in the process of being under the spell of a near messiah...(or is he a messiah?) in Rafa...and as it stands it stokes up the fire of discontent against those at the helm and heightens Rafa's stance to a point where his errors are cast off as mere genius because he somehow knows why and what he's doing for the now and longer term.

I can't help how people see that but I can definitely sit back and shake my own head at how he manages to get away with producing football that is dire to watch and certainly does not enhance the quality of what this squad possesses, offensively.

However we've argued this and we all know our stance on it.
All I'll finish with...is.... money where the mouth is has to be the order of the day if Ashley is to walk away...and I'm more than willing to see it happen if it's for the long term good of the club, regardless of who takes over...but it would be fantastic if the fans could have it...some-how...some-way...some-time soon.

[AP69]

To dissect your response it's the fans fault nobody wants to buy the club?
Not Ashley changing the goalposts?
And Rafa causing all the friction?not Ashley lying about transfer funds?....again

[ghostrider]

To dissect your response it's the fans fault nobody wants to buy the club?
Not Ashley changing the goalposts?
And Rafa causing all the friction?not Ashley lying about transfer funds?....again

There's a mucky mixture that goes way beyond all of that.
The blame lies everywhere.

[AP69]

One man could stop it all

Be it sell the club or build a team worthy of the club

Not buy low sell high keep the profit

You can't keep on buying and selling like we have

You don't even stand still doing that

If he speculates the club could take off as we all know it doesn't take much to get the fervour back

He can afford to lose high on SD but not on NUFC

Wealthiest league in the world yet we are still bargain basement

Let the club grow with investment it'll soon look after itself