NOTHING SHORT OF A DISGRACE

[porterzoid]

IN DEFENCE OF GNFC

 

This name change is about finances. The board are small time chancers who are willing to sacrifice the heritage of a local team in order to realise their own finacial ambition. The board, the players and the manager are all transient. Supporters and the club itself are constants and we can not allow our club to be corrupted in this horrendous manner.

There are more important things in life than money. Gravesend and Northfleet is a proud club supported by local people and a change of name will destroy that rich heritage in an instance.

I for one will not support a club re-branded like a brand of fizzy pop. The directors and any supporters who back this move should be ashamed of themselves.

This will be the end of a football club that my family has supported from Brian Woolfe through to Steve Portway.

We need to fight these corporate whores in any way possible.

Long live Gravesend and Northfleet

Tom P

 

Edited just to tidy up the title!

[fleetboy123]

Gravesend till i die!!!

[Hirsty]

Originally Posted By: porterzoid

IN DEFENCE OF GNFC

This name change is about finances. The board are small time chancers who are willing to sacrifice the heritage of a local team in order to realise their own finacial ambition. The board, the players and the manager are all transient. Supporters and the club itself are constants and we can not allow our club to be corrupted in this horrendous manner.
There are more important things in life than money. Gravesend and Northfleet is a proud club supported by local people and a change of name will destroy that rich heritage in an instance.
I for one will not support a club re-branded like a brand of fizzy pop. The directors and any supporters who back this move should be ashamed of themselves.
This will be the end of a football club that my family has supported from Brian Woolfe through to Steve Portway.
We need to fight these corporate whores in any way possible.
Long live Gravesend and Northfleet
Tom P

What did you do after Steve Portway left ?

Cheers,



B*gger....I am not supposed to be here ! I haven't even got a 'kin opinion ( oh...but I have !!)

[Hempstead Gaz]

I think thats an bit of an overreaction, Tom. Let the storm clouds settle for a few days - then take a bigger pitcture view.

I am still sceptical - but I am prepared to listen objectively to the debate.

Either way, I will still support the Fleet.

[eufckev]

Originally Posted By: porterzoid

The directors and any supporters who back this move should be ashamed of themselves.

Well, I do feel sad to see the Gravesend & Northfleet name to be non-existant, but times move on, and us as fans should move along with the club, and support their actions. I'm not ashamed of this! I feel it's a major step forward for the club.

You may like to know, if you don't know already, that 90%+ of the people who came to the consultation evening, were actually in favour of the name change. This was after Jason and Brian etc. explained the reasoning behind this venture. I was shocked to hear it myself when Jason announced the renaming of the club, and even felt angry inside, but after the reasoning, I'm backing the chairman and the directors of the newly formed Ebbsfleet United.

You can call me stupid or a f**king dumba**e, but I'm backing Ebbsfleet United Football Club!

[Hirsty]

Originally Posted By: Chatham Gary

I think thats an bit of an overreaction, Tom. Let the storm clouds settle for a few days - then take a bigger pitcture view.
I am still sceptical - but I am prepared to listen objectively to the debate.
Either way, I will still support the Fleet.

I am not well.....I tend to agree with you CG ( about continual support for the Fleet anyway !). I am sure I saw you put your hand up last night agreeing to the proposals/actions ? ( If I am wrong, then I apologise )

Cheers,

[Gordon T]

Ebbsfleet wont be Gravesend & Northfleet. Its a new name for when we get a new stadium which is going to be in ebbsfleet? Hoping we get businesses in Ebbsfleet to sponsor...

 

see where its heading?

[Slartibartfast]

Originally Posted By: Gordon T

Ebbsfleet wont be Gravesend & Northfleet. Its a new name for when we get a new stadium which is going to be in ebbsfleet? Hoping we get businesses in Ebbsfleet to sponsor...

see where its heading?

Football league?

[Hempstead Gaz]

I did vote yes last night, but with resevations.

I suspect 95% of those voting yes will echo that.

One thing is for sure, voting no would have been pointless, as the decision had already been made.

I have always backed the board to act in the best interests of the club, and whilst I have reservations, I think this is another of those occaisions, like gng full time, and going for a new ground.

[Bill Kent]

If the wheel falls off we can always revert to GNFC. Nothing is final. Re Margate. Give it a go and see what happens.

 

FOLLOW THE FLEET

[Hempstead Gaz]

That's the spirit, Bill!!

[porterzoid]

Its all wrong. Motivated by money and greed.

Getting into to league two bears no real significance. We are a local non league side. Eurostar or the like dangle money and the board bend over to accept. Disgrace.

[Stu M]

Originally Posted By: porterzoid

The board are small time chancers who are willing to sacrifice the heritage of a local team in order to realise their own finacial ambition.

They must be pretty stupid, then, considering they've stuck around for eight years or whatever without increasing their personal financial wealth in any noticeable way, shape or form.

[Gordon T]

what I was meaning was a brand new club, one with only the distant memory of current fans as to how it came about.

What defines the club and the identity? The name, and fans! Especially if we look at it now: Managers come and go, players come and go (especially at this level!), sponosrs come and go, kits change at least once every 2 seasons. So what keeps Ebbsfleet being the same as GNFC? The badge, and fans memories. years from now, whats going to be the link to GNFC?

 

PS: We may get these sponsors, ground etc, I'm not arguing against that. But for me at the moment all I can think about is: its not Gravesend & Northfleet getting it, its a club called Ebbsfleet

[Aaronl]

having felt physicaly sick for 24 hours some questions need answers!!

 

1. Why did the board not hand out leaflets at the last home game vs St albans?

 

2. If all the results had gone our way and we were winning at dagenham with 10 minutes to go, would the leaflets have been handed out inviting us to a consultation evening?

 

3. What sort of consultation meeting has the answer decided in advance?

 

4. If the board were so confident that this was the right thing to do why did they not put a proper poll in place for fans to decide on the clubs future?

 

I still feel we have been kicked in the teeth. In 10 years time what will gravesend and northfleet fc mean to anybody??

[Jeff]

I thought exactly the same as you about the leaflet thing at the Daggers game Aaron.

 

The consultation thing makes me think about being made redundant.

They give you a consultation period in which you have time to discuss it all but usually, the decisions have already been made so you have no chance.

 

A similar thing has happened here.

 

Was a letter sent out to season ticket holders or supporters trust members asking for their opinions?

 

Was there a poll on the official site for registered members?

 

Anyway, the decision has been made and ratified so I think that we have got to get on with it and hope it goes well.

 

That said, I'm still finding it hard to even say the new name in its entirety.

 

[Aaronl]

Originally Posted By: Jeff

Anyway, the decision has been made and ratified so I think that we have got to get on with it and hope it goes well.

I hope it goes well too and wish everybody at Ebbsfleet United fc all the best for the future. I just feel sad that the future will not involve me!

I was born and bred a gravesend and northfleet supporter, ebbsfleet united means nothing to me!!

[FleetFanatic]

So you keep saying, almost to the point of boring people now.

 

Ebbsfleet United is still The 'Fleet.

 

It's your choice whether to go and watch them or not.

 

Do you refuse to eat a snickers bar now because it is no longer called 'Marathon'?

[JimGNFC]

Points 3 and 4 are Questions I would hope the Supporters Trust will raise with the Club when considering the "Fleet Trusts" Official response.

 

As you say there seems little point in having a consultation meeting if the decision has already been made. Its the primary reason I did not attend the meeting as I knew the decision had already been taken, so my attendance was irrelevant.

 

Secondly, I'd be interested to know if the Supporters Trust had been consulted by the Club about the Name Change prior to Tuesday evenings meeting? After all the Trust does have 200 odd members - many who are "Season Ticket holders" - who's opinion should count for something.

 

I'm still undecided about the name change. However, I feel the Club may have alienated many existing fans - NOT because of the Name Change - BUT because of the fact the fans were not given the opportunity to vote on the subject. Its another PR disaster in my view.

 

Lets hope Ebbsfleet United FC can support Full time football on crowds of 750 next season - because it might have too!

[Harry J Allstars]

Originally Posted By: Aaronl

having felt physicaly sick for 24 hours some questions need answers!!

1. Why did the board not hand out leaflets at the last home game vs St albans?

The Conference and Kent FA along with the FA hadn't yet agreed the name change, we hadn't yet registered anything officially under the new name.

Originally Posted By: Aaronl

2. If all the results had gone our way and we were winning at dagenham with 10 minutes to go, would the leaflets have been handed out inviting us to a consultation evening?

Yes. The decision was made because the board feel the name Gravesend & Northfleet won't sell. It is a mouthful, it doesn't sound brilliant* and the decision wasn't taken because of league positions.

Originally Posted By: Aaronl

3. What sort of consultation meeting has the answer decided in advance?

Good point.

Originally Posted By: Aaronl

4. If the board were so confident that this was the right thing to do why did they not put a proper poll in place for fans to decide on the clubs future?

I do see where you are coming from but I really do feel the board have looked at this long and hard and feel it is the right decision to make. I'm not overly happy about it and may never will be but I will not let it sway my support for this wonderful club.

I wasn't happy at being thrasehd by Grays two years ago, I didn't leave early, I'm not blaming those who did, I stayed and supported. It was like watching someone I love being beaten up.

Originally Posted By: Aaronl

I still feel we have been kicked in the teeth. In 10 years time what will gravesend and northfleet fc mean to anybody??

Hopefully it will be the former name of a club that has propspered since it changed it's name. I say hopefully as I don't know. Someone said that this decision will weither revolution us or destroy us, I wouldn't go that far, although it might, but I will say that in our current board we have some of the most shrewd, forward thinking, inventive, creative businessmen possibly in the football world.

*I personally don't really like the name Gravesend, it's associated with death for christ sake but in a funny kind of way I think it is quite cute. This feeling is mixed with reallity yet the fondness of the area I was born and have grown up in. Try selling that to a bloke from Bracknall with £10 million to spend on a football club sponsorship deal.