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posted in VSC News May 10, 2013, 09:31:00 PM Print

posted in VSC News May 10, 2013, 09:31:00 PM Print

posted in VSC News May 01, 2013, 11:29:00 AM 403 Views Rating: 0 (0 Rates) Print

What a way to end the season!  Doncaster Rovers are promoted back to The Championship as Champions of League One!

The victory came in dramatic style with a last gasp 1-0 victory at Brentford, which undoubtedly will be discussed for years to come in the same excited tones as the victories at The Brittania Stadium, the Millennium Stadium and Wembley.

So, now that the season has ended and we can all look forward to a summer break (and for our heart rates to return to normal), why not consider joining the VSC?

This past year has seen a phenomenal amount of change at Doncaster Rovers FC, both on and off the pitch, and the VSC has been at the forefront of this with the fan engagement project "In Rovers We Trust".  This has lead to many successes that put the supporters back at the heart of the club, including....

• Cash Turnstile Trialed in 2012/13 and introduced for 2013/14 season
  
• Renaming of Lakeside Bar to Belle Vue Bar
  
• Rovers fans invited to donate memorabilia (alongside VSC) to decorate the Belle Vue Bar
  
• Improvements to the after-match bus service
  
• At your seat food service trialed at home games in the family stand
  
• Smoking bubble introduced at home games
  
• Singing section trialed at home games
  
• Rob Jones day
  
• Ran a poll for fans to vote on fans designs for next seasons shirts which were submitted to the club
  
• Help raising funds for charities The Lewis Jeynes Fund and Oliver's Tree (former Rover Ian Duerden's son's charity)
  

The Club and the supporters now have a fantastic platform to move forward together.  Please become part of this exciting project by joining the VSC.  It only costs £1 a month to join, and the more members who join gives the supporters a stronger say in how our club operates and the priorities it follows.

 

Join the VSC. Click here to join now.

posted in VSC News May 01, 2013, 11:29:00 AM 403 Views Rating: 0 (0 Rates) Print

 Written by NathanDRFC posted in VSC News April 21, 2013, 10:13:00 AM 529 Views Rating: 0 (0 Rates) Print

Towards the backend of last season the Viking Supporters Co-operative started on a new approach and I feel that new direction is resulting in  huge improvements. The decision was for the Trust to move away from just purchasing as many shares as possible as a means to influence, instead we embarked on perhaps the best fan engagement programme in football. Rovers took on board the idea and concept, and In Rovers We Trust was created. Rovers and the VSC found what unites all stakeholders of the club and communicate with each other for the good of the club. We are doing just that, and some of the rewards of that can be seen below. 

The front cover of the May issue FC Business, the Football Trade magazine, has pictures of Rovers fans with the heading "What would Rovers Do? Rovers get to the Heart of fan engagement". Also in the same edition it was great to see the Rovers Supporter Liaison Officer job spec quoted as best practice by UEFA spokesman.

If we go back to the AGM it was so pleasing to see that the VSC board increased 2 fold and this has certainly helped the Trust grow stronger. During the season the Trusts, work can be split into 3 categories, In Rovers We Trust, Tomorrow's Rovers and general VSC work. Here are just some of the success we have had:

In Rovers We Trust

• Cash Turnstile Trialed and introduced for 2013/14 season?
• Renaming of Lakeside Bar to Belle Vue Bar
• Local craft beer named by the fans - 1879
• Serving of beer in glass pint pots 
• Rovers fans invited to donate memorabilia (alongside VSC) to decorate the BV bar.
• Better bus service made available after the match
• Surprise random acts of kindness where children are picked out from the crowd to take part in "once in a lifetime experiences"
• At your seat food service trialed at home games in the family stand
• Smoking bubble introduced at home games
• Singing section trialed at home games
• Players calling up fans during the week to thank them for their support
• Rob Jones day
• Ran a poll for fans to vote on fans designs for next seasons shirt which were submitted to the club
• Additional season ticket bonuses

Tomorrow's Rovers

• Sponsored 2 of the DRFC youth academy teams
• Sponsored Jordan Ball for half of the 2012/13 season
• Bucket collection at DRFC youth team games
• Fundraising initiative launched allowing fans to donate to Tomorrow's Rovers
• James Husband as the clubs ambassador of the Tomorrow's Rovers

General VSC

• Improved our relationship with the club and have had meetings throughout the season with not only the Chief Executive but the Community, Commercial and Marketing departments of DRFC.
• Slashed the joining price from £27 to £12
• Allowed members to pay £1 per month
• Purchased DRFC Multi tickets and donated them to charitable causes including Bluebell Wood and Lewis Jeynes fund
• Supported former player Ian Duerden in raising much needed funds for his son Oliver who is suffering for a rare illness.
• Paid for 200 school children to attend the England U19 game at the KMS free of charge
• All the remaining John Ryan t-shirts to be donated to Africa
• Sponsors Neil Sullivan and James Harper
• Heavily involved in the creation of a new U19 League for the area, to help tackle the drop-out of under 17 players to open age football in the Town.
• Supported Walk the 92
• Had a collection of Spare Voucher M tickets enabling the following to attend the Notts County game (19 from Bluebell Wood, 22 from Barnby Dunn Rangers, 30 from Thorne Colliery Juniors, 12 From Sprotbrough Crusaders under 8's, 10 from Sprotbrough Crusaders Girls under 11s and 12 from Stainforth4All, a community organisation in Stainforth that provides tuition for underprivileged children and also runs the community library.)

Without our members - none of this would be possible. So please pat yourself on the back and be proud of what we have achieved and thank you very much for your support.

 Written by NathanDRFC posted in VSC News April 21, 2013, 10:13:00 AM 529 Views Rating: 0 (0 Rates) Print

posted in VSC News March 28, 2013, 03:42:00 PM Print

For those of you aware of Ian Duerden and his son Oliver's remarkable story, the VSC are hoping to raise funds for Ian and his family and will present him with a cheque at the Doncaster Rovers VS Swindon Town game on Monday 1st April. To raise funds we are planning to raffle and auction off Rovers memorabilia next week to help Ian and his wife Caroline raise enough to get Oliver the adapted wheelchair he needs.

For those of you who won't be able to make a donation on the day, or if you would like to donate something now you can do do via Paypal by clicking the donate button below. All the funds raised will be given directly to Ian and his family.

We understand times are hard for some of you, but this really is an inspirational story. Ian helped our club in our time of need and the VSC feels it is time we rally round and repay him the favor so please donate as much or as little as you can. It will gratefully received.

Thank you

posted in VSC News March 28, 2013, 03:42:00 PM Print

posted in VSC News March 22, 2013, 03:54:00 PM Print

 

The VSC are very pleased to announce that a Rovers legend, Ian Duerden, will be attending the Swindon game on Easter Monday with his wife Caroline and children Oliver and Nancy. Ian was an important part of the Rovers squad in our first few seasons in the Conference after relegation from the Football League. Amongst other things, he will be fondly remembered for a memorable hat-trick against rivals Rushden and Diamonds at Nene Park, and a fine winning goal against Farnborough in the Conference Cup Final at a packed Belle Vue, as well as the now infamous 'Get Duerden On!' chant which could often (and sometimes still is!) be heard in the stands. Ian will be attending a Supporter Q&A session in the Belle Vue Bar before the match, so make sure you're there!

We are also using the match to raise funds and awareness for Ian's son, Oliver, who is in need of an adapted wheelchair. We are hoping to have a raffle and collection in the Belle Vue Bar during the Q&A session and prizes will be announced before the game. To hear more of Ian Story, please view the thread here: http://www.drfc-vsc.co.uk/index.php?topic=238275.new#new

posted in VSC News March 22, 2013, 03:54:00 PM Print