Ian Varley Horsham FC Captain.

[VPCTFC]

We all know RPVs ground isn't the best but most of us also know it's not their fault. As stated above, they have people working their balls off to keep the club running. I've got a lot ot respect for them. I was speaking to one of their fellas a couple of years ago about the ground and they said of course they'd love to do it up but can't get a long enough lease to enable them to apply for a grant.

The Horsham captain isn't the first person to slate our level. In 2010 when they finished in a relegation place Walton Casuals' captain said in one of the local rags that their players were too good for step 5 and they'd all join other clubs rather than stay at Casuals in the CCL. In the end Casuals got a reprieve but I was thinking that if their players were that good they wouldn't have finished 21st.

Fleet Town announced something similar last season when they finished in a relegation place. They got a reprieve as well but the news item is still on their website:-

 

"It’s a strange feeling knowing that you will be playing in a lower division next season, against teams that we have subconsciously looked down on and visiting grounds that are not a lot better than some public parks"

 

http://www.fleettown...-newsletter.php

 

I don't know if they're talking about the Wessex League or CCL but it shows what some of these clubs think.

Dare I mention Whyteleafe who joined the Kent League because they thought it would be easier to get promoted from? They haven't had a dig at step 5 but they're currently 12th with one win out of four. Early days yet but I think they've underestimated the league.

Edited August 29, 2012 by VPCTFC

[LardyDamo]

bloke sounds an utter cnut. I will happily pay for the booking the next time he faces a CCL side and someone clatters him

 

I have read these comments and cannot believe the reaction it has received. It was purely banter and has been taken very very badly. Having no ground ourselves it's even more ironic. We had a great laugh about the bus shelter style stand at one end of the pitch and how many people we could squeeze into it and a bit of a joke about the sloping pitch but many of our fans go on their travels and have seen the very best and very worst and tbh RPV were very welcoming and we enjoyed ourselves and our banter so thank you to them. If any of the PRV fans had gone to Gorings Mead for the original cup game they would have got a taste of our sense of humour and the fact that most of the time we take the mickey out of ourselves so to accuse Mr Varley of being a CNUT is a little bit OTT don't you think.

 

Lighten up people, enjoy a bit of banter and stop being sad and all getting your knickers in a twist over nothing.

[Iv9]

I have just had this brought to my attention so I thought I'd do the decent thing and reply personally.

 

First of all if my comments have offended anyone then please accept my sincere apologies. Regarding the ground, I never once slagged off the ground. My comment of 'This is what happens when you don't win your home games' merely means that it was a tough place to go for a replay. That was all! We don't exactly play our home games at the theatre of dreams so there was honestly nothing meant by that comment. I have played non league football for 10 years and been to numerous non league grounds north and south and have the utmost respect for all the staff and volunteers that maintain all the grounds with very little finance.

 

Regarding the pub team comment, this was just in general conversation to a friend and was just born out of frustration because of my teams performance on Saturday. Raynes Park certainly deserved to win the first game and there management will tell you that after the game I went and shook hands with every one of them saying they deserved to go through.

 

Again my apologies if my comments caused any offence but they weren't meant too at all.

Ian Varley

Horsham FC

[Redrup No2]

Fair play geezer

[Non League Nigel]

Fair do's .

[Mark-Tommo]

Good Lad Varley

[Jeff Hamnett TSF]

bollocks, hang him. smudge says he's a wrong un and thats good enough for me...

 

they arent taking my garden to rebuild a ground..........I used to park there in the sixties, I fed those clay pigeons since they were muddy eggs.

 

 

 

 

no sorry , mr Varley, keep off twitter , its for bily big time wannabees or joe scroate, not captains of town clubs that have fecked up by selling up, buying sucess and then failing.

[YHWhitby]

Can't believe the fuss made about this! Was clearly having a laugh and a joke and been blown up way out of proportion

[VPCTFC]

Can't believe the fuss made about this! Was clearly having a laugh and a joke and been blown up way out of proportion

 

Just like Adam Bygrave at Farnborough. His excuse was "I believed I was just repeating banter and jokes from numerous sources".

 

I like the piece in the Staines Lammas v Guernsey programme last season that they'd taken from the Guardian website -

 

"Sport must take a stand against the menace of banter.

Cruel, witless and mean, 'banter' has become the overly lifestyled soundtrack to modern sport. It's time to take a banter-stand"

 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2011/oct/21/sport-banter-barney-ronay

[newby marvel]

freedom of speech is taken out of proportion all the time which is what it seems in this case but hat off to ya skipper

 

a banter stand lol do me a favour thats what makes football so enjoyable the cammeraderie an togertherness

[Mark-Tommo]

Agreev Whitby, massively blown out of proportion

[GSE]

"Regarding the ground, I never once slagged off the ground. My comment of 'This is what happens when you don't win your home games' merely means that it was a tough place to go for a replay."

 

Always make me laugh how people try and convince you what they said meant something else when they're suddenly dropped in it. If you had tweeted one picture of the pitch with the comment then fine, believeable. But when you tweet several pictures of the changing room and facilities then it is obvious what you meant and you fully know it. Just another big time charlie footballer going no where... with a shit hair cut!

[NCEL fan]

Taken too seriously this particular one though I could see how hard working officials could take offence.

 

Twitter is a problem for all clubs at any level - my advice is players beware! There's always someone out there hanging off every word you say and I'd also advise caution when sharing "banter" your gaffer can see. I don't look take too kindly to players "sharing" their views if they're not man enough to discuss them direct with managers/coaching staff. It doesn't look good on anyone, the player himself being the one most likely to lose out.

 

But, to your credit Mr Varley, that's a well written and seemingly honest response - I'd say you've not been singled out for leadership without good reason though I haven't seen you on the pitch.

 

The more players like you who appreciate the responsibility you carry and are not so shallow that you need to do things just to impress your mates the better. There are plenty of good lads playing football at all levels that get overshadowed by their big time, disrespectful, shallow, soft, cowardly, too much tv watching or downright deviant team mates.

[Bald Bloke Horsham]

I am glad to see an apology but I would like to set a couple of things straight as a Horsham fan.

 

The reason why our former home at Queen Street was sold was not to pay off huge debts from punching above our weight, it was because the ground was no longer fit for purpose, unsafe and on the verge of being closed by the authorites because you couldn't get a fire engine into the place. It would have cost millions to put right and still be in an antiquated ground. We do currently own a huge sports complex in Horsham but could not get planning consent to relocate a ryman ground there. We still own the facility and will continue to own it when (if) our new ground is built on the outskirts of town. The sports facility we own has a club bar, gym, squash and tennis courts and football and cricket pitches. A huge asset.

 

I really don't know what to make of the comments made by our captain and I think only he really knows what intent he made. As mentioned, i am glad he has apologised for any offence that may have been caused. Fans of Horsham really do appreciate what goes into a non-league club. It is not always the facilities that is important, it is the people who make the club.

 

Regards to you all

 

Bald Bloke

[TurnerBSFC]

fair play skipper. balls to apologise, lot of time for that.

 

And we cant get rid of banter, as Newby said, its what makes football that little bit more enjoyable

[YHWhitby]

The whole thing about twitter is simple, if your offended by that person stop following them. For example you know that if you follow Frankie Boyle on twitter you'll see loads of what people would say are non PC jokes and if you dont want to see it you dont follow him. If the Horsham skipper is having a bit of fun and it offends someone then don't follow him. Its one thing being a pro footballer like Rio Ferdinand and taking the piss out of other clubs and making innappropriate comments as he is a role models but when its a combined counties league player of just above does it really matter? Not really.

[HKP]

I still fail to see what all this fuss has been about..totally blown out of all proportion, but fair play to the player for trying to put any wrong doing right.

[Bald Bloke Horsham]

Having really read some of the comments in this thread who have had a pop at Varley, please read my post above about our current position and for christ sake make an effort to learn about a club before you post comments about it as quite honestly, you are no better than our captain by casting un-educated assumptions about us.

 

We are all non-league, not Chelsea, arsenal or whoever, we aren't much different

[AnyFootball]

Whatever happened to freedom of speech? Is this lad not allowed some banter? There's a hell of Alot more insulting things Said on twitter.

[newby marvel]

The whole thing about twitter is simple, if your offended by that person stop following them. For example you know that if you follow Frankie Boyle on twitter you'll see loads of what people would say are non PC jokes and if you dont want to see it you dont follow him. If the Horsham skipper is having a bit of fun and it offends someone then don't follow him. Its one thing being a pro footballer like Rio Ferdinand and taking the piss out of other clubs and making innappropriate comments as he is a role models but when its a combined counties league player of just above does it really matter? Not really.

ill second this im on twitter my words are my own if you dont want to listen or are offended by anything said you really need to get out more an i really couldnt care less whether people follow me or not . freedom of speech is sometimes taken way to seriously alot of the time i poke fun at myself at the end of the day if you cant laugh at yourself i believe you lead a very shallow life !!

 

ryan2skipper