The Protest Thread - 17th February and 25th March

Huawei? Wellington Phoenix!

'Who are we? Wellington Phoenix!'

Could be a banner idea...

Ryan, the protest is being done not to hurt the club.

It is to serve as a wake up call to the owners and management whom in recent times have made decisions which are actually hurting the club.

It is not a go at the sponsor.

If you can't see why talking the last game of the season to Auckland is hurting the club then i don't quite know what to say

There is a time when to bring meaningful change people need to get angry and upset 

Being a little despondent will just mean decisions like this keep on reoccurring. 

If they reoccur and fans continue to be pissed off,  then you may not have a club to support.

Then you may look at your inaction and actually get angry

Banner

"Last game in Auckland?

Yeah right"

something levelled at the GM, Huawei and the Fever Elite would be ideal

Are you joining the protest feverish?

I'm not saying don't protest, I'm just questioning where the energy is being focused. IMO the buck stops with Dome I fail to see how any entity independent from the team really is relevant, there might as well be a protest against the stadium trust for being too expensive and forcing the club in the road.

Going with the theme of pop references: "STOP DRAGGING OUR NIX AROUND".

On recent form, if we wait until 15 minutes, we can sing Bohemian Rhapsody...

Are we making the traditional conga, taking the route from the Fever Zone to Aisle 10, via the Perth fans?

What have Huawei done? Demanded the last game of the season be moved at short notice?

As I have mentioned previously the information you are basing your assumptions on is flawed. 

Do you think that Dome has the final word?

It’s Welnix, or more than likely, Rob Morrison, who has rubber stamped this move to Auckland for the last game. 

Maybe you should try & have a conversation with David Dome, before you start laying the blame on one employee!

Big metal statue thing outside WELLINGTON station the other day, with WELLINGTON Phoenix written on it, trying to encourage people to go watch the game in WELLINGTON. The Phoenix, you know, the club from WELLINGTON. Do I make myself clear?

The protest might not have any effect on things at all if the perceived message is " its the sponsors fault", I know I'm simplifying it, but when protesting you dont want to provide your target an easy way out where they can trivialise your stance.

I think others will feel like me, want to demonstrate to the club we are not happy with a lot of ways they are running the joint, I hope thats the message that comes across.

correct Napier definitely not the sponsors fault.

It's a protest against dumb decisions by management (if that's Dome or Rob Morrison then they can figure it out and sort out the issue later). They need to know however that enough BS is enough.

COYN

If you don't fire up about this you won't fire up about anything!!

I thought the protest was because fans didn't know until late in the season about the change of venue and some had already got flights or whatever organised for a Wellington game, and because fans only learned of it thru the media, not from the club.

The team obviously didn't want to move the last game at short notice, it was organised because they were out of options - they could have done this earlier or been more clear that this was an option. They did say that they were moving 2 or 3 games out of Wellington at the start of the season, they were clear about that, but they could have given options and said "these are the games that may move, don't make plans for them." The problem isn't moving games, those are the commercial realities that the Phoenix operate in, and you're not going to change that because changing that will mean the club will fold, the problem is the lack of notice and communication.

So fine, the buck stops with the chairman of the board or the GM it doesn't really matter. Or are you still going on about this mysterious CEO that doesn't exist?

The point is the buck stops with management. And the GM is the one who engages with the fans but didn't. You have a habit of going of on hypothetical tangents and inventing things to be mad about. We don't hear from Morrison and while it's likely he has his hands in a lot of decisions he's not running the club day to day and he's not the one fronting the media about these decisions.

Anyway, you've completely missed the point, the point is if you're mad with the club bag the club the GM was just an example.

Feverish, you gonna join us? Fever Elite? Patrick has already made his feelings known. Not very subtle, but known, and fair play to him. He, like everyone else, is allowed to have their own opinion and choose the appropriate course of action.

Some of the more important issues here. I am passionate about the Nix, I want them to win every game. I want the games in Wellington. I hope you have all noticed but I have not bagged the coach, I have moaned about the players not giving as much as they could and some not being up to the standards required. But lately,  I have been banging on about the game going to Auckland which has been pretty much last minute. Over the years I have watched some good football and some dross. But I have followed this team all around New Zealand. At first it was a novelty but over the years the crowds have diminished.

The club has been lucky, there are some great fans around the country and we should all be proud of them. And should they come to Wellington, we should look after them like we do any Australian fans whom make the effort. But the figures that were quoted via the media that we got over 20k are figures very old from those first few seasons. Last year we got gates way less 5-6,000 and on the form of this season, it will be a hard sell to improve. I also believe if the media are quoting that these trips make an even deal out of it and that the club lose money at Westpac. Time for the WCC and the Westpac trust came to the party. I also hinkinning games will bring crowds in. Not one here and there but consistently. We have a very hard core, 5000 and they have seen a lot and I would like to thank them and you all for supporting the club.

Now is a time for us to tell the owners and sponsors not to take fans for granted. Stop treating us like accounting numbers. Football is about passion, emotions, rivalry, skill, talent and entertainment. ...and winning. Being first should be the focus, not 6th. First for fans is attending games here. First for the team is winning games, First for the owners is to assembled team that will compete for that first place. First for sponsors is to see happy fans investing in their product.

2nd rant over.

Will be seated elsewhere. I will however change seats  on the train in from Waikanae ten minutes in.

Given a shed load of money and supported the team through tough times...

for me it is the last game of the season being moved that i am not happy about, it is a chance to say goodbye to departing players. i know most years the club do not let us know players are leaving like vince lia last season but it is nice to be able to do it for the departing players. i feel there are 2 games a year that should never be moved out of wellington the first and last games of the season these are important games for the fans or as it seems most of the fans.

not sure i am joining the protest i will make my mind up on that at the time. also i am not sure the 10th or 11th minute is the best time to get the exposure that is wanted i thought just before the game starts when the cameras are aimed at the zone would be the best time as a walkout would be noticed more.

the other thing i have noticed that people are starting to think it is an angry protest while i have read it as a peaceful protest which i think it will be i cannot see LG and the others are ultra hard core angry protesters but that is just how i look at it and i guess others see it differently.

we will be leaving for the stadium just after 2.30pm so i will not see any updates in this thread after that so will just see what is happening at the game.

Sure, but the club agreed to it. Huawei don't run the club.

I think that's the problem, it's not clear what's being protested. While it started at being pissed off about a game being re-scheduled at short notice some people are now protesting a lack of any games in Wellington, others are protesting the coach, others are protesting the ownership group and board. It's hard to get a clear message when there isn't a clear goal, and someone protesting one thing might not want to protest others.

Ryan, I think you are clouding the issue. Deliberate or not, I am unsure. You appear intelligent so for the meantime I assume it is deliberate.

l don't believe there has ever been any talk about protesting about the coach!! So please don't deliberately throw it into the pot.

The protest is against the last game of the season being taken to Auckland. 

That decision has been made by the management (call it Dome or those above him, but someone made the call). 

The sharkty lack of communication of this decision to fans further demonstrated a lack of management and is illustrative of a poorly managed football club.

LG Is organising the protest, and if I am wrong in any of the above he will correct me.

COYN

IMO until the Phoenix can make enough money in Wellington there will always be the traveling circus. The best we can hope for is to have a regularly scheduled fixture that can be planned for. I know this is probably chicken and egg but I doubt it will change.

Appearances can be deceiving but I've said my piece over and over do will now let it be, wouldn't it be ironic if there was a big turn out of disillusioned fans who only returned to the Nix to walk out.

the only way the club will make money is of the team starts to win - kiwi fans will follow winning teams - Id wager that the AB's following would wane if we lost consistently for a season.

The Breakers have a solid fanbase - cos they win, but when they went through a lull even their fans stopped coming. Kiwis (we) associate entertainment with winning not seeing a good battle. We need to see our team smash their opposition to feel satisfied.I personally think this has come from watching the AB's smash everyone for years, so our psyche has confused entertainment with one-sided victories.

Win more consistently  and the people will take notice

Let’s try keep this about the protest 

We are not walking out, we are moving from our various spots to reassemble elsewhere in the stadium. We will be supporting / cheering the coach and the players. This is not about them. This is a peaceful protest. Auckland Phoenix,  you are spot on with your impressions.

This is silly; but good luck I guess. Seems to me a lot of you are ignoring the commercial realities. The only real issue was the late change; but that's only because we used to, AFAIK, have a game already scheduled away in Canberra.

AFAIK ?

Veleo this is not silly

What would you think of the last game of next season was held in Auckland?

If you roll over now and let the owners tickle your tummy and say good pup, then these dumb decisions will keep on happening

It was a joke.

URGENT. Aisles 1-17 roped off. How amazing. Right meet up outside aisle 18 for reassessment

I see people sitting at aisle 10 though?

It appears that the protest has fizzled out and Gunman and Hatter have accepted free access to the Garage Project tent with free beer.