MadStad steward watch 09/10

[floyd__streete]

I think our very own happiness patrol deserve a thread of their own this season so we can all share in the wonder of the RFC stewards.

This evening - for the second successive home game - in the South-East corner as I left the ground I saw stewards scribbling down seat numbers and giving some 15 year-old chavs a telling off, presumably threatening them with no football and bed without any tea. Unless there is a (welcome) new policy banning studded ear rings in the ground this season then it is hard to wonder what - apart from posturing - these young lads might have possibly done to merit this sanction. They looked about as menacing as characters from the Sooty Show in all honesty, guilty of sitting in the part of the stadium the club rather laughably seems to have designated as the bad lands; it is an absolute nonsense to suggest that at our tepid stadium there is ever really the potential for it to kick off between fans.

Our stewards are best summed up by what I overhead on Saturday's installment of chav-chastisement; "you're gonna get nicked in a minute". Ermm, not a police officer in the ground . The young chav in question impressively managed to string a sentence together querying what power a steward had to nick anyone before stropping off with his bottom lip quivering .

Meanwhile, in the Burton end this evening some fat prat in a replica shirt runs half the length of the away end past rows of empty seats to gesticulate towards and berate the Reading fans at length and the stewards deal with the situation akin to how a toddler deals with a wasp, flapping their arms at him and hoping that he goes away. Home fans - presumably giving a bit of gob back, however unecessarily - are then pulled to one side and threatened with having their ticket taken away. I think this just goes to prove that the club's real agenda is in 'sanitising' the stadium; remember, for every thug we lose we gain a family of four. Do me a favour

[Maguire]

What's the point in scribbling down seat numbers when it was unreserved seating?

[boy1985]

What's the point in scribbling down seat numbers when it was unreserved seating?

they have their own forensics kit, which they use to lift fingerprints and or seman from the seats.

[Royalshow]

.

Meanwhile, in the Burton end this evening some fat prat in a replica shirt runs half the length of the away end past rows of empty seats to gesticulate towards and berate the Reading fans at length and the stewards deal with the situation akin to how a toddler deals with a wasp, flapping their arms at him and hoping that he goes away. Home fans - presumably giving a bit of gob back, however unecessarily - are then pulled to one side and threatened with having their ticket taken away. I think this just goes to prove that the club's real agenda is in 'sanitising' the stadium; remember, for every thug we lose we gain a family of four. Do me a favour

Friend got kicked out for pointing at away fans while walking up the steps from the concourse.Told he wont get ST back until September.I got told personally that im a 'trouble maker' and 'i know your face' dispite the fact ive only sat in y25 twice in the past 3/4 years.Complete twats.

[TFF]

Some chap with an eye patch got ejected from the Upper West at half time.

No idea what he'd done but looked an unsavoury sort - not what we're used to up there you know.

[North Somerset Royal]

The hook he had instead of a hand was deemed an offensive weapon and his parrot kept crapping on the seats.

[Gloria Gooner]

Some chap with an eye patch got ejected from the Upper West at half time.

No idea what he'd done but looked an unsavoury sort - not what we're used to up there you know.

It was Gabrielle, trying to get them singing.

[Winchester Royal]

Some chap with an eye patch got ejected from the Upper West at half time.

No idea what he'd done but looked an unsavoury sort - not what we're used to up there you know.

Lit up in the stadium.

I was talking to him in the bus queue on Basingstoke Road.

[Ian Royal]

How do I miss this sort of stuff? I always sit in Y25/26. Only stewards I saw on saturday where the ones hauling out Forest fans and getting a load of shoving for it and one guy who walked up and down half a dozen times throughout the game half-heartedly asking people to sit down.

[Woodcote Royal]

Some chap with an eye patch got ejected from the Upper West at half time.

No idea what he'd done but looked an unsavoury sort - not what we're used to up there you know.

We are but only for cup matches when it's the same price as everywhere else and some of the riff raff decide to give it a try

[FiNeRaIn]

Yawn- its to be expected.

Reading are a crappy family club who allow themselves to be bullied by both opposition fans and home stewards game after game after game. Its embarrassing really.
I expect the usual bunch of " you are just a moron finerain, bla bla bla" but im honestly sick of it. Your talking and STARS attempts at understanding the stewarding in our ground is past talking point, the stewards don't give a shit and will continue to isolate and bully fans at will. What i can't understand is their motivation for doing it. Is it direct orders from Madejski?
Stoke, west ham, cardiff ( on saturday),etc all stand up during games in all seater grounds and there is NO accidents ffs, they remain safe in doing so-- so do most of the away fans we face at the madejski. Why are we even talking about this and why is it an issue, why are RFC stewards so intent on disrupting the game for our fans and ejecting people?
The sooner people start standing up for themselves the better- tell the stewards to get lost if you think you are being treated unfairly- we should organise a protest prior to a future game to make out feelings heard. You can;t throw people out of grounds for standing up at a football match and for gesticulating towards away fans, this is ridiculous

[Mike Hunt]

The sooner people start standing up for themselves the better- tell the stewards to get lost if you think you are being treated unfairly- we should organise a protest prior to a future game to make out feelings heard. You can;t throw people out of grounds for standing up at a football match and for gesticulating towards away fans, this is ridiculous

I agree.

We never get anything like this in Australia.

fkn headbutt one of them in the temple.

A Protest is needed.

No wonder the atmosphere is crap @ the madstad.

[Rev Algenon Stickleback H]

The sooner people start standing up for themselves the better- tell the stewards to get lost if you think you are being treated unfairly- we should organise a protest prior to a future game to make out feelings heard. You can;t throw people out of grounds for standing up at a football match and for gesticulating towards away fans, this is ridiculous

I agree.

We never get anything like this in Australia.

fkn headbutt one of them in the temple.

A Protest is needed.

No wonder the atmosphere is crap @ the madstad.

Then again, in Australia, even for heated rivalries you can have 80,000 in the ground, completely unsegregated, with no hint of trouble. When fans there indulge in "banter" it really is just banter. They aren't standing up inviting the opposition fans to come and have a go.


As for just standing, I know why the stewards go up there and tell people to sit down, but they could just not bother. Yes, they are required under the terms of the stadium licencing to make people sit down, but it's not as if anyone from the FLA is checking.

[ZacNaloen]

What i can't understand is their motivation for doing it. Is it direct orders from Madejski?

No it's direct orders from Reading Borough Council who provide the club with the license to hold events at the club and sell alcohol.

[Royalshow]

What i can't understand is their motivation for doing it. Is it direct orders from Madejski?

No it's direct orders from Reading Borough Council who provide the club with the license to hold events at the club and sell alcohol.

What's the worst that could happen? Sorry you can't hold the match we have taken you license away.THAT WOULD NEVER HAPPEN.

[Terminal Boardom]

What i can't understand is their motivation for doing it. Is it direct orders from Madejski?

No it's direct orders from Reading Borough Council who provide the club with the license to hold events at the club and sell alcohol.

What's the worst that could happen? Sorry you can't hold the match we have taken you license away.THAT WOULD NEVER HAPPEN.

The point here is that Reading fans are apathetic and will do nothing to improve their lot. Why are the club so intent on alienating supporters is beyond me. They let away fans stand and do nothing about it.

[STAR Liaison]

As for just standing, I know why the stewards go up there and tell people to sit down, but they could just not bother. Yes, they are required under the terms of the stadium licencing to make people sit down, but it's not as if anyone from the FLA is checking.

Says who? I have certainly been aware of times the FLA have visited the Mad Stad and the RBC do as well.

[Royal Lady]

I've seen an FLA rep, can't remember if we were home or away - but they stood out like a sore thumb, in a suit and with a clip board! They also sat passively during the whole game - didn't stand out so much then tbf!

[STAR Liaison]

I can't remember which thread it was on but someone sometime said that the tangos run from trouble. On Saturday a tango mentioned this to me and was happy to tell me some of what they have to contend with. There is an offer open to anyone who would like to spend a game shadowing a tango to find out what they do and what their instructions are and how football supporters treat them. If you would like to do this please feel free to pm me or email to info@star-reading.org and I will see what I can arrange.

I did some seasons ago (not one of our games but at another ground) and it is an eye-opener, as appearances can be deceptive and judging on what you see may mean you miss out on some vital factors in the equation.

[rabidbee]

Dirk, what penalties can the FLA/RBC impose upon the club, besides the ultimate of revoking the licence?