Inside Everton fans' fight for "change and justice" including plane protest
Everton fans have vowed to “take the fight” on the Premier League, as they launch a campaign this weekend aimed at forcing real change in the way the organisation is run.
At a meeting on Wednesday evening, groups from across the spectrum of the club’s fanbase came together to draw up a blueprint, which they say will involve clubs across the country - and MPs - in the decision-making structure of the league. There is real fury on Merseyside at the “unprecedented” 10 point penalty imposed on Everton for a breach of profit and sustainability regulations.
Fundraising to challenge that decision has already passed through the £50,000 mark, and legal representation has already been taken at the highest level, with the campaign beginning this weekend with a massive protest at Goodison aimed at the Premier League. That will follow a plane carrying a message to the league which will be flown over the Etihad stadium on Saturday during Manchester City ’s game with Liverpool …but they are the first measures in what is hoped will be sweeping changes to the structure of the organisation.
Dave Kelly, who is chair of the Everton Fan Advisory Board - a representative group set up by the club itself - and who hosted the meeting last night of many different Blues’ fan groups, explained: “That’s the message of the meeting - this isn’t an Everton Football Club issue - this is a football issue, because this concerns clubs across the Premier League, and all football clubs across the country,” he said.
“We will show a worldwide audience on Sunday the Premier League has picked on the wrong club in Everton, and the wrong place in Goodison Park. But this is just the first page and first chapter of what will be an extremely long book, we won’t be going anywhere, any time soon - we want to get football back on the straight and narrow, and that means real change at the Premier League.
Chelsea complete record-breaking Enzo Fernandez transfer after deadline day rush
“We will keep this going all the way through to the end of the appeal against the sanction. And we will go through right to next year on a war footing - with fans from across the country coming together - to fight for change and justice.”
HAVE YOUR SAY! Should Everton have the 10-point deduction reduced? Comment below.
Everton fans will protest against the Premier League this season (Tony McArdle/Everton FC via Getty Images)At the meeting on Tuesday, Kelly, who founded the Fans Supporting Foodbanks campaign, which brought together supporters from across the country to help the fight against poverty and hunger, hosted a disparate group of Everton followers. That included the Everton Shareholders Association, the All Together Now Everton fan collective - who have campaigned against mismanagement at Goodison - and the 1878s, a group behind the protests this weekend.
And the meeting heard not only of an early day motion placed by several MPs in parliament, including Liverpool MP Ian Byrne, which condemned the Premier League’s punishment, but of a move to join forces with fans across the country. That will come with collaboration through the Football Supporters Association, the national body for fans in England and Wales, and Kelly said: “We learnt with Fans Supporting Foodbanks, hunger doesn’t wear club colours.
"This is a similar issue. The Premier League has to understand we are putting aside tribal issues, because the way the league is run damages all clubs. If Everton can be penalised for one breach of the rules this harshly, it can happen to all clubs.
“When we campaigned (with the FSA) on a price cap on ticketing, they laughed in our faces at first. Peter Scudamore (former PL exec chairman) told us we weren’t getting a price cap because we were getting our tickets too cheaply. Ultimately we did.
“That’s one thing we said at the meeting - it is not down to one group or one set of supporters. We don’t want to see Manchester City or Chelsea punished, for instance, because we have, we want to see the rules interpreted properly and fairly, and the game run in a way that helps all clubs.
“That is not happening. That is why we have put down an early day motion in parliament - which is backed by MPs across all parties - that calls for the acceleration of the implementation of an Independent Regulator to govern top flight football. The motions states it is clear the Premier League can no longer fairly govern football, and there needs to be genuine scrutiny and legislation. We will not stop until we have that.”
Everton are set to appeal the decision and will submit their argument by the end of this week. Everton fan groups are not disputing that they broke rules, but insist the Premier League are not fit to run the game, given their “wholly unjust” punishment. Kelly added: “In layman’s terms, in the law of the land, if you pleaded guilty and fully cooperated with the charge, any sentence would be reduced.
“That is an example of simple basic straightforward examples of natural justice. That is what happened with Everton, who have taken steps to ensure the breach can’t be made again, and worked every step of the way with the Premier League to ensure they stayed within the regulations.
Everton chiefs face transfer backlash from fans after deadline day disaster
“In effect every transfer in the past two years was taken to the league first and ratified that it was within the rules. But we were still given an unprecedented punishment. But we were already punished, because every other club who bought Everton players, like Spurs and Newcastle, knew we had to raise funds to satisfy the Premier League, and so got cut price deals. It’s a double jeopardy.”
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
