Unless we get some direct input from the footbal club staff who make the decissions, we as members have to rely on Hearsay, Innuendo, Deliberations about past and . future performances. .
The quality of Players and Board
Good and Bad commentary on other members sentiments.
In my opinion, this results in a lot of misinformation.
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It should and it shouldn't.
It would be very weak leadership that listens to a fan-base when it comes to things like the players and coaches. If you consider the fan-base to be more qualified than you on assessing such issues, then you probably shouldn't be in the role.
If would be arrogant leadership on the other hand not to listen to all fan supporter sites when it comes to fan-related issues like memberships, satisfaction, etc. All online supporter forums are essentially free focus groups.
For wisdom on the issue, Gutho had it absolutely spot on when he talked about it on the podcast on the Eels site last week. He didn't dismiss fan criticism - he said along the lines of we're in the business of providing entertainment to fans and they have every right to express their frustrations and dislikes, and he laughed about the baking he got when he stuggled on the wing when he started. However, he want on to say that in terms of who you listen to, related to your performance and what you need to do better, then that just comes down to the coaching staff and your team mates.
What I will add to this is: In the past, the board of the Eels had to get elected every two years. There chances of being elected had a lot to do with how happy the fan base was with the club at that particular time. Since the first stage of the consitutional reform, the football board now doesn't get elected or ejected by the fan base. Therefore they are removed from needing to be "popular" and they can make decisions purely in the best interests in the club.
Did the Parramatta of old, have coaches sacked because it was important to look like a board was being proactive in getting rid of an unpopular coach to better their chances at an election. Absolutely. You don't go through coaches like we did, without people feeling some kind of undue pressure along those lines. That was one of the key outcomes I wanted to see in campaigning for the reforms, and I think it's an absolutely fundamental difference between the Parramatta of today and Parramatta of old.
So don't take what gets said on any supporter forum too seriously. It's just part of the circus and it's an important part of the overall fan experience. A club with successful online supporter forums is one of the first indicators of an active fanbase - that means the team means a lot to the supporter and they are willing to extend their interest beyond a casual interest. Which means they are also likely to buy more merchandise, go to more games, etc.
Thank you for your well considered report, but I would also like to think that members including yourself, when they have something worthwhile to say, would hope to be taken seriously.. But it would be nice to be better informed. as the Eels are a big part of our lives and what is wrong in management lettig us know in advance of some of the important decissions are being made , instead us having to .speculate. We should not have to wait for the annual report for our information. We should be getting progressive reports throughout the year, including the pre season. I am very disappointed with our official site, where very little information is available. After all this time the new players photos and profiles have not been shown. I asked for players names to be shown of training session photos as not every supporter is familiar with them. They obliged, but only for one training session. I must assume that it is too much trouble for them. I have had my whinge and it is now over to you..
Actually agree with you here Keith, the lack of information that comes from the club is sparce.
Having said that there are lots of fans with good networks in and around the club, dont presume everybody has no contacts in and around the club.
All 20,000 of them?
I broke the news on here about the Edwards / Pritchard pierce take...
True.
It is not like you to be supportive
Keithy funny you mention pidgeons, heres Bernie as a young boy, god love him, 100% legit, this is Bern.
When told by Mrs Gurr he'd been selected by Chlorine to be on the cover of his favourite subscription he was tickled pink, stayed in his avary for the night dressing his racing pidgeons.
He still turns to this book for inspiration for his current haircuts, he combines it with LEGO mini figure catalogues to find his desired look, very effective imo.
He did go through a radical stage where he used to just copy what ever haircut Dick Thornett had until Dick lost all his hair, then he went back to his childhood pidgeon wigs book.
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