B team boycott / supporters match

[Mustapha-Dump]

Morning ladies and gents,
I organise the games for the doncasters rovers supporters football team, the 'Donny R'sonists' and we've been contacted by Grimsby regarding a B team boycott supporters match for charity.

Essentially they are wanting to raise the profile for the B team boycott regarding the decision to let 'b teams' play in the checkatrade trophy group stage.

Their plan is to organise a supporters match between themselves and us on August 29th the same evening our 2 sides would meet in the competition and attempt to get a higher attendance at a supporters game than at the actual game, and raise some money for charity in the process.

The charity we will be raising for on our part is bluebell wood.

Grimsby have sorted us a ground out to play at and will be trying to raise money through a small donation to watch, bucket collections etc. They inform me that the FSF will have representation present as well as a rep from #againstleague3.

Would be great if some of you could pop down and help us out with this one, we may also require a few extra players so if anyone is interested in playing, pop me a message.

Thanks, Louis

[Mustapha-Dump]

https://internet-mariners.yapsody.com/event/index/129806/checkatrade-boycott-imfc-v-d-rsonists

Info available here, thanks

[Mustapha-Dump]

Bump

[VivaRovers]

Giving this a nudge as it's a great idea and is taking place tomorrow night.

If you are able to get along and support, please do so.

Bit more background, and updated match details here

[bpoolrover]

While I good idea if you don't agree with the cup, I think we gained valuable experience last season and in the end the clubs voted for it

[VivaRovers]

Aye, but it's not a protest at the existence of the Cup, which has been there for as long as I've been alive, but at the introduction of development sides to it.

[Muttley]

While I good idea if you don't agree with the cup, I think we gained valuable experience last season and in the end the clubs voted for it

But we could have got that "experience" irrespective of whether the development sides had taken part.

The clubs were effectively blackmailed into voting for it and it may come as a surprise to you that Shaun Harvey is not exactly the most principled character.

[the vicar]

I am in favour of the cup not the format but I am a ROVERS FAN and will be there even if I'm the only one in the ground our club needs this for it's development to move forward

[bpoolrover]

While I good idea if you don't agree with the cup, I think we gained valuable experience last season and in the end the clubs voted for it

But we could have got that "experience" irrespective of whether the development sides had taken part.

The clubs were effectively blackmailed into voting for it and it may come as a surprise to you that Shaun Harvey is not exactly the most principled character.

again does it really matter as long as the team benefits from it? And as most clubs had the opportunity to stop it this year and didn't there must be some advantage to it

[dickos1]

The cup will still be here. We will still benefit from playing in the competition. We don't benefit from sides entering their under 23 sides.

[bpoolrover]

Why not? What harm has it done?just about everyone moaned that until the finals it was a crap competition anyway

[steve@dcfd]

It will benefit the players who need games mixture of young an experience. The only disadvantage we do not have another central defender of any age to give Butler or Wright some time out. We only have Alcock and Garrett as spare defenders.

[VivaRovers]

It's about the bigger picture though isn't it. The bigger clubs have been mumbling about introducing their B teams to the Football League for years, and we all know it doesn't take much for the FA to be swayed by their influence. Putting them in this competition is a stepping stone and a testing ground to that end result. It's increasingly about making football work for those at the top end of the Premier League and let the rest of us deal with the consequence.

Personally I find that attitude, belittling and patronising - the idea that somehow football at our level isn't proper football - it's bad enough getting that from fans who consume their football purely through the television, let alone getting it from the governing bodies too.

Rovers can still test their wider squad in this competition - I've no problem with them or any side from the bottom two divisions doing that; and i'm sure every person taking part in this boycott feels the same. But we shouldn't become a testing ground for other clubs who can't fit all the players they've stockpiled into their first team.

[selby]

  Viva if bigger clubs want to do what you say they could put in a notional owner, and buy a club like ours if they really want to.
  I am surprised it has not happened already,after all Arsenal owned Margate as a nursery team in the 1930s.

[VivaRovers]

Leaving aside the fact there's rules in place to prevent multi-club ownership, which lower league club's fans do you think would be happy for that to happen?

[bpoolrover]

It's all speculation thou viva, you don't actually know that they are testing the ground with this completion your guessing, you might be right but your as likely not to be

[VivaRovers]

You're right, I am guessing towards the long-term aims, but I still don't feel the FA should belittle it's member clubs by pitching them up against the reserve sides in some vague idea that it helps the national team's interests. If the FA really wanted young English players to gain more first team football, there are much better ways for it to do it than pitching them up against us and Port Vale, twice a season. But the other ways would involve having the balls to stand up to the Premier League clubs, so they don't consider them.

The protest is about a lot of things, and huge credit should go to the Grimsby lads that have set this boycott match up to make that point.

[Chris Black come back]

We play far too much football anyway.

I would scrap both League and Johnstone's trophy. More focus on u-21 and reserve leagues.

Make FA Cup a champions league place.

Each week 75pc of games minimum made 3pm Saturday kick off.

Abolish Leeds United.

[RedJ]

It's all speculation thou viva, you don't actually know that they are testing the ground with this completion your guessing, you might be right but your as likely not to be

Not exactly wild speculation though. There were proposals to actually introduce B teams and create another tier of the Football League about a year or two ago weren't there?

[dickos1]

It will benefit the players who need games mixture of young an experience. The only disadvantage we do not have another central defender of any age to give Butler or Wright some time out. We only have Alcock and Garrett as spare defenders.

They will still benefit without the under 23 sides in the competition

[DaveDRFC]

It they feel the need to change the competition they should put conference teams in it again. At least they up their game when playing league 1 and 2 sides, unlike the under 23 teams who clearly don't even want to be there. Wasn't there only one 'big' team (Swansea I think) actually got out of the group stages last year? Shows how seriously they take it.

[bpoolrover]

It's all speculation thou viva, you don't actually know that they are testing the ground with this completion your guessing, you might be right but your as likely not to be

Not exactly wild speculation though. There were proposals to actually introduce B teams and create another tier of the Football League about a year or two ago weren't there?

yes but they were rejected, the problem is most people didn't care about this competition tillthe area finals anyway so does it make any difference

[Mustapha-Dump]

Grimsby are expecting a couple of hundred down to watch and support them so could really do with some rovers there to cheer us on.
For me, my biggest issue with this tournament is that as lower league club this is OUR competition, OUR chance to get to Wembley, OUR chance to lift a trophy. The premiership 'b' teams have no right to be in it, and it's patronising to have us line up against a youth team who have go no interest in the completion in the name of 'development'.
We could still enjoy all the plus points of this tournament without having to play against a team of Sunderland under 23's which will inevitably have players over 23 in it.

[bpoolrover]

Most people blame the da but the clubs were give. The opportunity to revert to the old format and rejected it

[RedJ]

It's all speculation thou viva, you don't actually know that they are testing the ground with this completion your guessing, you might be right but your as likely not to be

Not exactly wild speculation though. There were proposals to actually introduce B teams and create another tier of the Football League about a year or two ago weren't there?

yes but they were rejected, the problem is most people didn't care about this competition tillthe area finals anyway so does it make any difference

Well that's just it. It'll seep in that no one's arsed that they've done this cos "most people didn't care", and they'll use that to justify incremental changes and we'll sleep walk into B teams joining the League. Of course it makes a difference. It's bas**rdising the competition.

[swintonrover]

Most people blame the da but the clubs were give. The opportunity to revert to the old format and rejected it

Under threat that the clubs would no longer receive money from the Premier League. They were forced into it.

[selby]

  Morcombe were in a very bad place just last season,and were taken over by a foreign owner who very nearly took the club under.
  I would rather a club become a feeder club of say Manchester City than go to the wall.

[bpoolrover]

https://amp.theguardian.com/football/2016/dec/08/checkatrade-trophy-english-football-league

[bpoolrover]

Couple of other people's views

[keith79]

I wonder how many would be boycotting it if we want all the way to the final at Wembley?