Over the summer the VSC have been in talks with the Barratt Homes development team about the Belle Vue development. Our aim is to ensure Belle Vue is remembered on the housing estate, and we have had several productive discussions surrounding street names, imagery use in the apartment block designs and potentially a monument/sculpture being commissioned. We have also been in contact with DMBC and the club who have been forward in offering their help if/when required.
We would like to reassure all Rovers supporters we are taking positive steps to ensure the former home of DRFC is never forgotten. If you have any ideas on how you think Belle Vue should be remembered, specifically in terms of a monument or sculpture, please share your ideas on the Viking Chat forum or email secretary@drfc-vsc.co.uk
We're proud to announce the VSC will be sponsoring Aaron Taylor-Sinclair for the 2015/16 season. On behalf of our members we'd like to wish Aaron all the best for the coming season, and look forward to him maybe even bagging a goal or two.
 The VSC Online Shop is now open! At present we've got 4 unique mugs for sale at £8 each (+ p&p) and over the coming weeks we'll be adding more unique Rovers products. All profits from the shop contribute directly to the Supporters Trust and help us work towards our Aims and Objectives. Visit http://www.drfc-vsc.co.uk/shop today!
 We'd like to thank Rovers fan Ian Otley for presenting James Coppinger with the Viking Chat Player of the Year 2014/15 award. The trophy is awarded to the player who received the most man of the match votes over the duration of the season, and can be voted for by all users of the forum. Copps narrowly beat Harry Forrester in the last game of the season to win the VSC supported award.
 With Belle Vue now all but gone the VSC approached the club with the idea of filling a couple of walls in the Belle Vue Bar with a huge print of Belle Vue; something to look at and make us all smile before a match whilst having a pint. We also wanted to offer the chance to all Rovers fans (and local companies) to have their names permanently printed on to the wallpaper as a donor to the project, with your name merged into the print for all to see. For just £20 (£50 for businesses) you can become a donor to this exciting project, and have your name printed on this unique wallpaper! We are working with Steve Uttley Photography to source the best two photographs for this project; if you have a photograph you think would look great in large print on the wall, feel free to email it to website@drfc-vsc.co.uk  To donate just click the link above and remember to leave the name you would like printing on the wall. You don't need a PayPal account to donate; just click the continue link under "Don't have a PayPal account?" to enter your card details. To see which walls in the Belle Vue Bar we are talking about, and to keep up with the latest news on this project, visit this thread on the forum.
 On Friday 24th July DRFC launch the 2015/16 season with an open day at the Keepmoat Stadium between 11am and 1pm. The day gives youngsters and adults alike the chance to get up close and personal with their heroes and the opportunity to meet our new signings Thorsten Stuckmann, Andy Williams and Gary MacKenzie! The players and coaching staff will conduct an open training session on the Keepmoat pitch, followed by a joint session with sixty lucky young season ticket holders who will have the chance to train with their favourite players. But don’t worry if you are not one of the lucky sixty, after the session the players will meet, greet and sign autographs for all of those in attendance. There will also be plenty of fun activities on offer too including: face painting, an inflatable bungee run, a human table football, football speed shot and crazy golf. It will also be your first chance to get hold of the brand new home kit which goes on sale the same day. Best of all this event is FREE to all fans. Read more at http://www.doncasterroversfc.co.uk/news/article/rovers-open-day-2519109.aspx
After two pre-seasons of takeover instability it finally felt good that this summer we could all concentrate on watching the club build a squad that would be capable of performing well in the League 1 promotion race. You could say we were optimistic that we at last could see how we as a club had managed to benefit from stable ownership, a fresh direction and a positive strategy that had long term implications.
So it is with some dismay that the VSC, its members and DRFC supporters in general, have sight of a Doncaster Free Press survey today that, on the surface, attempts to gauge the fans opinion on the current performance of the club in a negative light. This poorly constructed survey doesn't try very hard to disguise its intentions, which can be nothing short of a destabilising influence. What possible purpose can some of the questions attempt to meet? And further to that how can anyone then suggest that assessing the performance of the 2014/15 season will benefit the club in their plans for the season ahead?
Meaningful surveys are carefully thought out, with questions that offer a varied selection of reasonable responses, and in the VSC's opinion this survey lacks that approach. For instance, what possible response can you give to a question that asks what your view of Paul Dickov's future is and how long the club should give him? There are at least another two questions all with a negative bias towards Paul. How is that fair on a man tasked with building the squad for the 2015/16 season?
Question 9 asks if you think the club have backed him financially. How would any DRFC supporter be able to answer that with any certainty given that the the club have never revealed publicly what the budget was? The next 3 questions then ask for your opinion of the current ownership of DRFC, specifically with questions asking about ambition and the actions of Terry Bramall and Dick Watson. How can those questions serve any purpose other than to destabilise what is held up in footballing circles as a very well run club?
Other similarly meaningless questions ask supporters to rate the current owners, the chairman and CEO, with marks out of 10, and a further question asking if you miss John Ryan. Again what possible purpose do these questions serve? None the less, the questions are asked as are more questions on the Club Doncaster model and the takeover of DRLC.
Why the Doncaster Free Press would publish such a survey with such a negative agenda is unclear, but what is perfectly clear is that this is not what the club or it's supporters need or want at this time. Most supporters want the past two seasons put behind them, let the damage done to the fan base heal and go forward to next season as one. After all we're all Doncaster Rovers aren't we? With the possible exception of one particular newspaper we would say that we are.
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