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There’s a lot of chat about Spurs, Enic and @THST, and tbh too much of it is noise and bluster. So FWIW a few thoughts. Long thread, you’ve been warned.
First of all full disclosure. I am not active in the Trust. I am friends with key members. On that basis, the following could inevitably be described as partial, but I hope I’ve been rattling on here long enough for people to think I call it as I see it, without favour.
Responsibility for the issue at hand – the disastrous, short-lived move to join the ESL – lies with the owners. No-one else. In a crowded field, it represents one of the most crass and objectionable actions ever taken by any owner(s) of any club.
[If you can’t see that or take the opposite view I politely suggest we are very unlikely to agree, so probably best to give what follows a swerve.]
As such, the Trust are entirely within their rights to voice opposition and take action as the membership sees fit. This was decided by democratic vote, not arbitrary ‘tantrum-throwing’ by individuals as it’s being painted by some.
This is one of the misleading claims some people are making, consciously or otherwise, to misrepresent what the Trust is doing. I hope this is genuine error rather than deliberate distortion.
For example, the Trust are NOT refusing to speak to the club. Far from it. Read the statement: https://www.thstofficial.com/thst-news/the-way-forward-for-tottenham-hotspur-fc
The Trust response and the six-point plan IMHO is, given the extraordinary circumstances, appropriate and reasoned. It calls for significant change because that is what is needed in the face of a plan that would have caused untold damage to the sport. The club upped the ante.
Worth noting, IMHO, that the statement and actions are well received by others who have no support or affiliation with Spurs, nor the Trust, beyond their involvement at other fan organisations, and others with specialist interest and expertise.
Also that the plan aligns in part or wholly with what other groups are campaigning for. What players, managers and others with a high profile agree with. It also chimes with the consensus of public opinion, and, astonishingly, mirrors what a Tory government says it wants.
Hardly rabble-rousing pinko extremists, are they? The Trust is raising reasonable, justifiable concerns and calls for action, not the peevish rants of a few individuals. The membership voted for this.
We can argue the pros and cons of what the Trust are doing, which is fine. Opinions, opinions and all that. But it would be nice if it could be debated rather than resorting to slinging insults and peddling spurious claims.
It would appear too many axes are being ground, because whatever the Trust does, it will always be opposed. This is the impossible position supporter organisations are put in.
I’ve had very limited experience of being in a similar situation and it’s thankless – you literally can’t win. Either you’re ‘in the pocket’ of the owners, or indulging in ‘student politics, and who the fuk do you think you are?’
You’re either too pragmatic or not pragmatic enough. You’re either weak and spineless or recklessly outraged. You try to explain, but the din drowns out reason. It’s exhausting. Please, pause before you fire off another rant at people trying to do their honest best as fan reps.
The Trust steers a maddeningly tricky course in trying to represent and articulate what a very diverse and very large fanbase thinks and wants. It will never please everyone but as a properly formulated body, it’s better than just about anything else on offer.
If you disagree, fine. If you don’t like it and want things to change, again, fine. But don’t just sit there smashing the keyboard to whine and insult. Do something about it. Join the Trust. Campaign to change policy if that’s what you want. Form your own one if that suits better
Don’t just monster people and an organisation that deserves a bit more respect. All IMHO. Not a fan of policing what fans should do and say but some things need calling out. End of thread, you’ll be relieved to see.
