Gravesindian Posted January 2, 2004 Author Share Posted January 2, 2004 Quote: FleetFanatic said: Perhaps the club needs a 'Straight, White, Non-disabled, English Liaison Officer' just to balance out the request for an Ethnic Liaison Officer? I think my previous messages have been misinterpreted somewhat. Perhaps the club does as you say need an officer who would deal specifically with the section of society that you mentioned, however as an Asian I feel that it is not my job to represent it. If someone out their feels that their experience and enthusiasm would equip them well for this position then I would not voice any disapproval if such an appointment were made. Likewise if someone thought it may be a good idea to promote the club to British children in largely white areas than that is up to them, but please do not stand in the way of an Asian who is only asking for some assistance in promoting the club to his community, just because you can’t be bothered to do a similar thing in your community. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mightymole Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 the club tries to promote itself in all areas as far as possible. even some of the supporters try to do so the people who do actually care about the fleet and it seems to me from your last message all you want in life are freebies and what a discussion about it starts or some one objects you don't like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
behindthegoal Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 ...I think that the idea is worth trying as a one off. Perhaps though combine it with what we have done before and target the schools locally who have a high ethnic proportion on thier roll with some free tickets? Seems we might satisy both view points then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gravesindian Posted January 2, 2004 Author Share Posted January 2, 2004 Quite simply the issue is not about being an ethnic minority or as someone put it 'cheeky' it's about wanting to do your bit. Unfortunately my resources do not stretch to being able to subsidise large numbers of Indian lads attending, but my energy, commitment and enthusiasm are willing to be exploited. I am not after a freebee or a discounted ticket for myself - I am converted and need no further persuasion, but as I have so far unsuccessfully explained, I am encountering a number of problems when trying to convert my fellow countrymen. Football is an integral part of the Asian youth community, you only need to take a look at the various playing fields in Gravesham and you will see many brown faces chasing a ball around on a Saturday or Sunday morning to realise this. It’s simply not that simple though to attract them to Stonebridge Road. If you think it is as simple as one Asian mentioning to other Asians about GNFC and the following week three hundred turning up and handing over their money to enter what is unknown to them then I would question your grasp on reality. The simple fact is that I have confidence that many Asians would willingly turn out regularly to cheer on their local side if only they knew what they were letting themselves in for before parting with their cash. It’s seems to me that people are very willing to make comments on here about attracting new supporters and supporters from the ethnic minority communities, but when one it actually down to somebody coming forward and asks for some assistance from the club and supporters he is greeted with hostilities. Maybe I am wrong in thinking I can educate Asians to the wonders of Stonbridge Road, when it is clear many feel they should stay as Khalsa Avenue? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FleetFanatic Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 I think that you have misunderstood most of our comments. There should be more ethnic groups attending our games, especially when you look at the size of the asian community. I just don't think dishing out a load of free tickets will be enough to encourage them here every week. When something is free, people are interested. When something has to be paid for, a lot of people are no longer interested. That's human nature and applies to all races. Anyway - forgive me in advance for my next questions but I'm curious - how is Guru Nanak these days and when will it be open to all sections of the community again as it was before it was sold on the cheap all those years ago? Any truth that non-asians are not welcome there? People I know all seem to think that that is the case, so perhaps you could correct this comment? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu M Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 As behindthegoal said, I'd have no problem with some complimentary/half-price tickets as a one-off inticement, perhaps handed out to clubs like Guru Nanak to administer who gets the tickets. You could repeat it across the Gravesend League and get a whole host of clubs involved - say, Guru Nanak for one game, then another team the next home game, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu B Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 Why don't we just give it a go?If these people aren't coming to the games already we're not going to lose any money,and if only 10% of them turn up again thats still more fans through the turnstiles.Not forgetting programmes, money spent in the bar etc. Since we did the free enterance for kids our gates seem to have improved(though over factors have certainly influenced the gates). At the end of the day what have we got to lose?Nothing. What have we got to gain? A full time status. Simple as. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BERGMAN Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 Fair play to the fellow for making his suggestion, because that is what the forum is here for. However G & N IS an English or at a push British club. I get really hacked off with this politically correct hogwash. When in Rome etc. England happens to be multi-cultural and in my opinion it is pretty good at being so. I reckon that like the Old Fellow in 'Bend it like Beckham', some of these folk were left out of the Cricket team so do not wish to participate or watch our beloved sport anyway. This maybe why there is a distinct lack of Asian lads coming through to the semi pro and Pro game. It certainly isn't racism, given the number of excellent black players in the game. Gravesindian, keep coming, keep posting and do your damnest to persuade your community to get down to Stonebridge Road, either watching or hopefully one day playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gravesindian Posted January 2, 2004 Author Share Posted January 2, 2004 I presume that when you mention 'Guru Nanak' you are referring to the magnificent temple that is being built as we speak – one of the biggest constructed outside of the Indian sub-continent? If that is the case then the temple is being built from the proceeds of some very charitable donations from members of the Indian community. The aim of the temple is to act as a focal point of the of the Indian community and somewhere for Sikhs to practice their religious beliefs. As you can see by the following link Sikhism is very heavily followed in Gravesham, so I’m sure you are not questioning our right to practice it? Sikhism in Gravesham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gravesindian Posted January 2, 2004 Author Share Posted January 2, 2004 ...anyway what's that got to do with things anyway Fleet Fanatic? If someone from the Asian community comes forward and asks for help from the club, then surely that can only be a good thing? - Likewise if someone from Gravesham's large eastern European or ever growing Chinese community did the same. Surely in the long run it would be for the good of the club if certain figures of Asian / eastern European / Chinese or West Indian background were represented and assisted in recruiting amongst their individual communities? Maybe the club would do well in trying to attract a liaison team with a member of each community represented? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chilled out entertainer Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 Well, if this temple is going to be as big as you say, why not put upsome posters of the fleet on a noticeboard. With a large community attending this temple, I'm sure it would be seen and many may become curious enough to attend at stonebridge, seeing as the poster was seen in such a high profile focal point such as a temple etc?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el.cartero Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 gravesindian said that he was "having trouble converting some of his counrty men", forgive me for appearing naive ,but are we not all your country men, regardless of the origins of our fore farthers. fleetfanatic said how is Guru Nanak these day, well i have a son who plays regularly for a team and Guru Nanak, are a multi cultural team. lets get paying people into the ground, after all is our aim not to see the fleet go full time, what about offering a couple of free tickets if someone, who ever they are pays for 10 enterances, just an idea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nols1974 Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 From my expierience Guru Nanak is completley open to anybody , the idea they re not is a problem to them recruiting more players as people seem to think they re not . Maybe it s the same in reverse we as a club will welcome anybody but maybe the impression comes across that it isnt the case? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gazza701 Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 Perhaps we could give out loads of free tickets to the refugee's aswell then we can have multicultural freeloading spongers. I agree that there should be more indians etc coming through our gates, but not for free. I am not racist, in fact i dont like anyone whatever their skin colour or religion getting special treatment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gravesindian Posted January 2, 2004 Author Share Posted January 2, 2004 Quote: el.cartero said: gravesindian said that he was "having trouble converting some of his country men", forgive me for appearing naive ,but are we not all your country men, regardless of the origins of our fore fathers. I’m slightly confused by this. Are you trying to say that you too are an Indian regardless of where your parents are born? - an interesting philosophy, unfortunately I’m not sure if it’s that easy though. Quote: el.cartero said: fleetfanatic said how is Guru Nanak these day, well i have a son who plays regularly for a team and Guru Nanak, are a multi cultural team. I would agree with this to an extent. The Guru’s are a club who do have a few English amongst their teams and non-Asians are welcomed, however surely culturally at least they are first and foremost a Indian Sikh club and were established as a team to represent Gravesham’s Sikh community, so strictly speaking are not really a multi-cultural club. That said though that is not indented in a racist way, it’s just the way things are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wobbly Wayne rides again Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 I have been following this thread with interest. Gravesindian is right.. I personally feel the club should be handing out incentives for new fans to get interested in the Fleet. You can only get so many down to the ground by fans word of mouth. If incentives takes the form of handing out some freebies, so be it. It doesn't seem to have done Charlton any harm , in fact they are the role models we should be following. But I would not stop at just the Sikh community, I would personally target all clubs and associations. There was a similar thread to this one a while back, when it was suggested that maybe the club ( in conjunction with the Reporter ) pick a North Kent Sunday side of the week, with the prize of 15 free tickets for the following home game. What have we got to lose ? Gravesindian - Keep flying the Fleet flag to all your circle of friends, your enthusiasm for the Fleet shines thru' in your posts , keep the faith and keep on turning up. One of the smallest minority groups in the Borough are Fleet fans and we need it to grow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yunggravesendian Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 I'd like to second all of the above, we're always moaning about poor turnout to games and then when someone comes along with an idea of getting more people down the ground we seem to throw it back in there face. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gravesindian Posted January 2, 2004 Author Share Posted January 2, 2004 Thanks lads for the kind words, I was beginning to wish I hadn’t posted at all after some of the negative feedback. I hope people realise that I’m not here for free tickets to save myself a few quid but only too try an promote the club in a way it hasn’t been as yet. I can understand loyal supporters moaning about free tickets for others when they have been paying for years, but as someone who has the clubs best interests at heart I really couldn’t care less who else gets free tickets when I’m paying as long as some of them come back afterwards and join me for a beer in the bar or a song or two on the terraces. It’s not a race or a cultural issue, I for one certainly wouldn’t begrudge someone from another minority group coming forward to promote the club with an offer of a few free tickets to their community in fact I would commend them for it. Like I said if a black bloke or an Italian had come forward and tried to get a few tickets I wouldn’t start accusing people of racial favouritism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I.C.@G&NFC Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 A suggestion. Although it's several months to the end of the season and even longer to the commencement of next season. But, how about a pre-season friendly, at Stonebridge Road, against Guru Nanak? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FleetFanatic Posted January 2, 2004 Share Posted January 2, 2004 I was actually asking about the old leisure centre rather than the temple. Gravesindian - the only thing that REALLY got my back up was the phrases you used such as 'the club should be trying to accomodate us' which does indicate an expectation of preferential treatment. I wish we could get just 1% of the asian community to our games - we'd be a full-time club on those sort of gates! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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