Shooting star Yakubu scoops Blackburn Rovers award (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Player of the year = Junior
Young player of the year = Lowe
IMO

What about the assistant manager of the year award?..
.

WE WANT OUR ROVERS BACK ! SORRY IT’S TOO LATE
The protest demonstration by BRFC ACTION GROUP prior to the Norwich game carried banners and placards reading WE WANT OUR ROVERS BACK.
SORRY IT’S TOO LATE. Blackburn Rovers as we have all known it over the years is gone for good unfortunately and not for the better.
Blackburn Rovers fans have to shoulder some of the blame.
DON’T SAY YOU WERE NOT WARNED.
I posted an article on my website and on the Lancashire Telegraph website warning every one of the implications and consequences of the Venky’s take over, the appointment of Steve Kean, the departure of Sam Allardyce, the demise of Chairman John Williams and Chief executive Tom Finn and most of all the appointment of agent Jerome Anderson as advisor.
To say that my opinions and observations were derided is putting it mildly.
I was slaughtered by all and sundry including being banned from the Lancashire Telegraph by Editor Kevin Young as being “inflammatory”.
My opinions were condemned by former players including Chris Sutton and mocked an abused by almost all Blackburn supporters but my opinions never wavered from the article BLACKBURN ROVERS A DISASTER WAITING TO HAPPEN posted on my website 14 03 1, click this link to follow (http://www.regofthe
rovers.co.uk/a-f/bla
ckburn-rovers.html?s
tart=165 and subsequent articles since.
I received no support apart from a small minority that like me saw the bigger picture these included correspondents under the name of County Antrim Rover, Monkey Nuts, just two who saw the dangers that I saw and how right we were.
The apathy from supporters on the takeover by Mrs Anuradha Desai and her family and the subsequent sacking of Sam Allardyce was staggering, hardly a voice was raised in protest as £££ signs flashed in front of supporters eyes. As everyone listened to the drivel from the Rao family about marquee signings and even Maradonna was mentioned as a possible manager. What utter nonsense, but they all fell for it, ‘hook line and sinker’.
Greed took over and common sense went out of the window. Promises of Champions League were lost in translation, what they really meant was Championship League!
We are all now reaping the rewards of greed and naivety. But what is done
Is done and what has gone on is in the past. We must all pull together to rid us of this disastrous regime. Getting rid of Kean is key. We might all see the Venky’s in a different light if they were to give us a decent manager.
Needless to say I have now over 23,000 faithful followers and we are all mainly ‘singing from the same song sheet’.
Opinions continue to differ slightly but that is the magic of football.
Reg
www.regoftherovers.c
o.uk/

WHY NOT A VISUAL PROTEST?
Just a thought. It is widely known that Steve (the man who cannot win football matches) Kean despises Sam Allardyce, the man who took him from the dole que and gave him a Premiership coaching job (big mistake Sam).
It is widely known that Mrs Anuradha (I like to be entertained) Desai and her brothers will not admit to the error they made in sacking a proven manager on the advice of disgraced football agent Jerome (the man who ruined Blackburn Rovers) Anderson.
It is widely known that Allardyce and Anderson do not like each other.
So why not forget any verbal protest at the Wigan game, why don’t BRFC ACTION GROUP have made and distribute 10,000 face masks of Sam Allardyce for us all to wear whilst we watch the game and cheer the team on. I will certainly wear one, no security problems, they will fit in the pocket perfectly, no banners needed. Just a silent protest wearing a Sam Allardyce mask will say it all and realy get under Kean’s skin. It might even inspire the players!
IT IS PAY BACK TIME FOR BIG SAM AND US ALL.
Reg

Footnote:
To cover the costs of the masks a charge can be made and have them on sale in participating shops, pubs etc and outside the ground.
Worth £1.00 of anyone’s money.

www.regoftherovers.c
o.uk/

p*ss off Reg.

I will not wear a mask of Sam Allardyce

You claim to be a rovers fan through and through but you dont even have a season ticket.

Noone reads your posts, or your website, its irrelevant.

And that comes from Steve Kean's biggest hater.

Hi Reg,

Sam Allardyce seems to be pretty reluctant to say much about his departure from Ewood and we all know he has the chance to do that Via the paper he writes for and the many appearnces he makes on Sky. Could someone, yourslef or one of your contacts not arrange a warts and all interview with him? If Kean hates him so much, I would have thought the feeling was mutual, so what has he to lose.

I also think someone needs to go on recors to state exactly what J A has taken from this club in terms of fees, sackings and also what amount of money his son is paid and for what.

Come on get us some big stories.
P S I like your site and read it regularly, so not trying to be controversial, I am a genuine BRFC fan.

I wonder how many more times the shock win at Old Trafford will be rolled before the end of the season, as if to make us all believe all will be ok.

If I was a "professional" footballer I wouldn't shame myself by accepting an award this season.

Reg Rover wrote:
WHY NOT A VISUAL PROTEST?
Just a thought. It is widely known that Steve (the man who cannot win football matches) Kean despises Sam Allardyce, the man who took him from the dole que and gave him a Premiership coaching job (big mistake Sam).
It is widely known that Mrs Anuradha (I like to be entertained) Desai and her brothers will not admit to the error they made in sacking a proven manager on the advice of disgraced football agent Jerome (the man who ruined Blackburn Rovers) Anderson.
It is widely known that Allardyce and Anderson do not like each other.
So why not forget any verbal protest at the Wigan game, why don’t BRFC ACTION GROUP have made and distribute 10,000 face masks of Sam Allardyce for us all to wear whilst we watch the game and cheer the team on. I will certainly wear one, no security problems, they will fit in the pocket perfectly, no banners needed. Just a silent protest wearing a Sam Allardyce mask will say it all and realy get under Kean’s skin. It might even inspire the players!
IT IS PAY BACK TIME FOR BIG SAM AND US ALL.
Reg

Footnote:
To cover the costs of the masks a charge can be made and have them on sale in participating shops, pubs etc and outside the ground.
Worth £1.00 of anyone’s money.

www.regoftherovers.c

o.uk/

You don't need to spend a £1.
*
Stand on your seat, turn your back to the pitch, pull your kex down and bend over.
*
Gratis and very BFS-like.

You're naive if you think Sam would do a "warts and all" interview.
I'd bet a large amount that Sam signed a confidentiality agreement with Venkys sweetened with a few extra £k. It's standard practice in all severence payments.

Reg give you gob a rest you numpty you dont even go to the games so you cannot even comment.

Reg Rover wrote:
WE WANT OUR ROVERS BACK ! SORRY IT’S TOO LATE
The protest demonstration by BRFC ACTION GROUP prior to the Norwich game carried banners and placards reading WE WANT OUR ROVERS BACK.
SORRY IT’S TOO LATE. Blackburn Rovers as we have all known it over the years is gone for good unfortunately and not for the better.
Blackburn Rovers fans have to shoulder some of the blame.
DON’T SAY YOU WERE NOT WARNED.
I posted an article on my website and on the Lancashire Telegraph website warning every one of the implications and consequences of the Venky’s take over, the appointment of Steve Kean, the departure of Sam Allardyce, the demise of Chairman John Williams and Chief executive Tom Finn and most of all the appointment of agent Jerome Anderson as advisor.
To say that my opinions and observations were derided is putting it mildly.
I was slaughtered by all and sundry including being banned from the Lancashire Telegraph by Editor Kevin Young as being “inflammatory”.
My opinions were condemned by former players including Chris Sutton and mocked an abused by almost all Blackburn supporters but my opinions never wavered from the article BLACKBURN ROVERS A DISASTER WAITING TO HAPPEN posted on my website 14 03 1, click this link to follow (http://www.regofthe

rovers.co.uk/a-f/bla

ckburn-rovers.html?s

tart=165 and subsequent articles since.
I received no support apart from a small minority that like me saw the bigger picture these included correspondents under the name of County Antrim Rover, Monkey Nuts, just two who saw the dangers that I saw and how right we were.
The apathy from supporters on the takeover by Mrs Anuradha Desai and her family and the subsequent sacking of Sam Allardyce was staggering, hardly a voice was raised in protest as £££ signs flashed in front of supporters eyes. As everyone listened to the drivel from the Rao family about marquee signings and even Maradonna was mentioned as a possible manager. What utter nonsense, but they all fell for it, ‘hook line and sinker’.
Greed took over and common sense went out of the window. Promises of Champions League were lost in translation, what they really meant was Championship League!
We are all now reaping the rewards of greed and naivety. But what is done
Is done and what has gone on is in the past. We must all pull together to rid us of this disastrous regime. Getting rid of Kean is key. We might all see the Venky’s in a different light if they were to give us a decent manager.
Needless to say I have now over 23,000 faithful followers and we are all mainly ‘singing from the same song sheet’.
Opinions continue to differ slightly but that is the magic of football.
Reg
www.regoftherovers.c

o.uk/

yes and 22999 of the faithful followers paid one visit and said nay no never no more....

Come on Reg we dont want to hear you or anyone saying "na na na na I told you so..." we all have opinions and yours is just one of many so stop preaching now we were all converted to the anti venky and get kean out fan club a long long time ago..

Speaking as someone registered as disabled, am I not right in thinking that Kean, the venkys and anderson have effectively disabled all fans thanks to there obscene antics destroying Rovers since the take over

Jerome and her son wrote:
What about the assistant manager of the year award?..
.

Brilliant !!!!!

carlmc wrote:
Hi Reg,

Sam Allardyce seems to be pretty reluctant to say much about his departure from Ewood and we all know he has the chance to do that Via the paper he writes for and the many appearnces he makes on Sky. Could someone, yourslef or one of your contacts not arrange a warts and all interview with him? If Kean hates him so much, I would have thought the feeling was mutual, so what has he to lose.

I also think someone needs to go on recors to state exactly what J A has taken from this club in terms of fees, sackings and also what amount of money his son is paid and for what.

Come on get us some big stories.
P S I like your site and read it regularly, so not trying to be controversial, I am a genuine BRFC fan.

I think you will probably find that there is something written into the severance terms of Sam's contract that prohibits him from discussing the situation at Rovers. I suspect the same applies to several of the high profile players who have left.

Melanie :-) wrote:
http://ewoodpark.jim

do.com/

For more info.

-------------------

Protests at Ewood Park

This is a new page to the web site and like the rest of the web site, it is an ongoing project.

I can be contacted through the contact page by people who wish to provide information about the Protest Movement/Ewood Spring.

Why bother with this page? I have decided to construct this page as the protests at Ewood Park constitute an important part in the history of the stadium.

Also, there has been too much disrespect shown, particularly in the corporate media towards the protestors and their aims and objectives. Therefore, it is left to alternative media sources such as this to provide some balance.

However, in some cases I have relied upon corporate media sources for some information as there have been honourable individual exceptions - but that does not alter the fact that the corporate media have in most cases treated the protesters with disdain.

Why did the protest movement begin?

This is an important question, to understand the protest movement we must first understand the context within which it arose.

Blackburn Rovers were once regarded as one of the most efficiently and well administered football clubs in English football. A model football club, a model to emulate and immitate - and many did try to "do a Blackburn" - but failed.

Above all, Blackburn Rovers represented something of an anomaly, regarded as a huge football club - in a small town; perhaps the only football club in world football to be thought of as such - a beacon of hope to 'under dogs' everywhere, yet resented at the same time: A well respected club within the game but despised by neutral fans jelous of the clubs stature and historical significance and disliked in the corporate media based largely in London, resentful of a small northern town football club's plucky resilience.

This is to be expected. England resents success. BRFC and it's supporters have long been despised for winning The Premier League in 1995.

Four months before he died in 2001, Jack Walker gave a interview to reassure Blackburn Rovers supporters that he had made provision for the club. "A number of years ago I put in place a family trust structure to own my various business interests, including Blackburn Rovers," he explained. "This structure ensures continuity of management and provides the necessary financial support for all my businesses for the foreseeable future. I have made known my wishes to my colleagues, whom I am confident will carry forward the policies necessary to promote and enlarge all my business interests."

The trust, which was registered in Jersey, was run by a board of trustees. They rarely spoke publicly, but when Jack Walker died the trust chairman, the Jersey solicitor Paul Egerton-Vernon, did make a statement: "The club is provided for for the foreseeable future."

The terms of the instructions Jack Walker left the trustees were never disclosed, but Egerton-Vernon explained that Rovers would be subsidised by other assets in the Walker portfolio, which included property and the Jersey-based airline, Flybe. "There seems to be a misunderstanding that there is an ever-shrinking pot of money available," he said. "That is not the case. There are other businesses apart from the club which generate profits which are available."

From 2002 the Walker Family Trust donated £3million a year to the club, helping to give tit a competetive edge over similar sized clubs.

In 2005 £3m was loaned interest-free to the club taking the Walker investment in Blackburn Rovers to £97m.

Then, finally, the trustees decided they had spent enough.

Jack Walker had charged them with growing his businesses financially and, although they did not explain their decision, it is assumed they viewed the club as a drain. The family, although the beneficiaries of their father's estate, were not understood to have had any formal involvement in its administration.

And so in the summer of 2005 the trustees of the Jack Walker Settlement decided to sell the club, and appointed the bank Rothschild, which previously handled the disasterous sale of Liverpool to Tom Hicks and George Gillett, to find the right buyer for Rovers. Chris Ronnie, the chief executive of retailer JJB Sports, had publicly declared his interest and was said by informed sources to be ahead of any other parties that were looking at the club.

In 2006, Blackburn Rovers announced that Walker's trustees had converted £14m of loans into shares, then in January 2007 they converted a further £80m into shares.

In 2007 the Walker Family Trust stop funding the club.

It was a little-noticed paragraph in the club's accounts, published in January 2008, which announced that the trustees had stopped funding the club back in 2007.

The news was phrased somewhat obliquely by John Williams, the chairman, generally admired as a shrewd guiding force. He insisted the decision was not irreversible. "Given the new TV deal, the trustees see no immediate requirement to invest further (having donated £3m a year since 2002)," he wrote. "In a climate of emerging markets overseas, buoyant domestic TV revenues and rarity value leading to capital growth, they are in no hurry to sell. Focus is on finding a suitable investor to take the club forward beyond the Jack Walker dynasty."

John Williams hoped the search for a new owner would bring in a football enthusiast, prepared to take a bet on a club with potential, rather than a merchant bringing debt or eyeing a quick profit.

Enter the Venky's, SEM, Kentaro, Jerome Anderson and Steve Kean.

When the Venky's bought Blackburn Rovers in 2011, it was not a football club in free-fall, it was not a football club that was in decline; it was a progressive and steady football club skillfully guided by John Williams and his team.

After the Venky's takeover:

2010-2011 Season: Sam Allardyce sacked 13 Dec 2010

2010-2011 Season: Steve Kean appointed manager till the end of the season 22 Dec 2010

2010-2011 Season: Letter written by senior figures at Blackburn Rovers to the club’s co-owner expressing concerns at the way the club was being run. 4 Jan 2011

2010-2011 Season: With poor results and the threat of relegation, Kean handed 3 year contract. 20 Jan 2011

2010-2011 Season: Chairman John Williams resigns from Blackburn Rovers after 14 years. Feb 2011

2010-2011 Season: Managing Director Tom Finn resigns from Blackburn Rovers after 15 years. May 2011

2010-2011 Season: Blackburn Survive in the Premier League on the final day of the season. 22 May 2011

During pre season: Manchester United confirmed that they had reached an agreement to sign promissing Rovers starlet Phil Jones on a five-year deal for an undisclosed transfer fee, which was believed to be at least £16.5m. This was a huge blow the the team and the fans; Phil Jones was a local Lancashire lad, Rovers fan and an integral part of the team and a product of Jack Walkers legacy - The Blackburn Rovers Youth Academy. 13 Jun 2011

During pre season: Myles Anderson the son of Jerome Anderson, signes for Blackburn Rovers, no appearenced to date. Interestingly, Jake Kean, the son of Steve Kean, posesses the number 34 Goalkeeper jersey at Blackburn Rovers. 1 Jul 2011

2011-2012 Season: Steve Kean banned for drink driving blaming Rovers fans for lacing his drink. 15 Aug 2011

2011-2012 Season: Blackburn Rovers suffered their worst start to a league campaign in 60 years after 1-0 loss to Everton; Kean reveals in interview with the Lancashire Telegraph that he is untroubled by Blackburn Rovers' start to the season. 27 Aug 2011

2011-2012 Season: Fans Stage first Protest. 17 Sep 2011

All this in the context of what had hitherto been a well run football club with excellant lines of open communication with its fans and which was a symbol of pride to the community it represented. Something of an oddity in todays multiplatinum sophisticated world of corporate finance and obscene footballers wages and agent fees.

Even at this stage, some Rovers fans felt that the Venky's clearly knew how to run a business and had passed the Premier League's due diligence test, it was felt that the Walkers Family Trust would have also administered their own due diligence on the Venky's too.

It was felt by some that Phil Jones would have left no matter who was in charge and had at least moved to the biggest football club in the world. Others felt that Jones leaving was the true end of the Walker Era, it was the final poke in the eye to Jack Walkers legacy, the feeling being that Rovers should not be a finishing school for Manchester United. Meanwhile, the national media where completely ignorant of who Phil Jones actually was and what his symbolic and footballing importance to the club and its fans represented.

It was becoming increasingly clear that the club were now entering a new era but at least Rovers were playing a better brand of football. The Venky's also kept season ticket prices down, renamed the famous Blackburn End in honour of a club legend - Ronnie Clayton - and donated the historic and famous Rovers shirt to a worthy charity - The Princes Trust.

Even at this stage, some Rovers fans were prepared to give the Venky's a chance to prove themselves, feeling that if anything, the Venky's were mainly guilty of naivety: linking the club with footballing superstars was only going to result in mockery - that was not their fault - that is football snobbery and the culture of the English. The southern London media do not react when small mediocre southern clubs like Portsmouth and Fulham are linked with Maradonna but they do when Blackburn Rovers are, that is because to them Blackburn is a dirty northern slum town; cloth caps, whippets and cobbled streets.

However, the Venky's needed to improve their PR by attended home games and speaking to the fans on BBC Radio Lancashire or through the Lancashire Telegraph about their vision for the club; even an open fans forum at Ewood Park was mooted - but despite repeated plea's from the fans to do so, they did not.

The Venky's completely shunned the Rovers faithful, displaying that peculiarly Indian form of arrogance, hubris. They completely ignored the fans - whom they are there to serve.

It is against this backdrop that the protest movement was born.

For the majority of the fans the protests have become the norm at Ewood Park, as supporters of Blackburn Rovers have voiced their concerns over the direction of the football club that they have supported unconditionally throughout their lives.

Throughout this time the club - now in new hands - have manipulated the media by strategically implementing a smear campaign against its own supporters by painting Steve Kean as the victim - with the help of a willing publishing and broadcasting media.

THE MISINFORMATION, DISINFORMATION AND RIDDICULE SHOWN BY LARGE SECTIONS OF THE MEDIA TOWARDS THE FANS UPRISING AND THEIR HEROIC PROTESTS AT EWOOD PARK - MUCH OF WHICH WAS ACHIEVED IN THE TEETH OF POLICE BRUTALITY AND STEWARD THUGGERY AND SCAB BEHAVIOUR BY "HAPPY-CLAPPING" SYNTHETIC SUPPORTERS WHO SHOWED NOTHING BUT RISIBLE POLYESTER PASSION - HAVE BEEN THE HALLMARKS OF THIS SMEAR CAMPAIN.

The dignified protestors have been smeared by the Venky's, Kean, the national media and fellow supporters opposed to the protests; such slanderous attacks have lacked integrity, dignity and honour.

For their efforts, the Protestors have been blamed for the teams poor performaces and bad results and labelled "disgusting", a "mob", "the worst fans in the country", and as Kevin Gallacher to his eternal shame wrote in The Telegraph, "an embarrassment".

There has been no shortage of pundits, journalists, footballers, football managers and football fans quing up to robustly defend Steve Kean and smeer the Blackburn Rovers supporters. One can to some extent understand the football fans, after all, they have been subject to intense media brainwashing as the corporate clique's and their cronies have banded togther against the protesting Rovers fans.

These protesting fans represent the 'little man', working-class people desperatly trying to cling onto and protect the heritage of a footballing institution that was born in their town during footballs formative years.

This is David and Goliath stuff; the mega money men of SEM; Kentao; The Venky's; SKY SPORTS; mediocre multi millionair footballers; parasitic pundits on triple figure salaries who do not pay to watch Premier League football; the most expensive football matches in world football and footballers who can earn more in one week than many do in 15 years and who can earn more in one month than many of the people do in a life time.

It would appear that only fans of city slicker clubs like Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Liverpool, Everton and Tottenham Hotspurs can protest without such abuse both from within and without.

To blame the fans of Blackburn Rovers for the plight of the football club is despicable - yet that is what many have done.

The protestors have had to endure much riddicule from their loyal opposites in the national media and from fans around the country - writing and phoning into national radio stations, quivering and palpitating with sanctimonious indignation, wagging their fingers, cluck-cluck clucking and tut-tuting at the "horrendous" behaviour of the Blackburn Rovers fans.

But what about fellow Rovers ''fans''? Rovers protestors have been sneered at, scoffed at, mimmicked, mocked and treated with dismissive disdain not only from without - but from within - The Enemy Within - those Rovers ''fans'' that are still - to this today - perfectly happy with The Venky's, Kean, Jerome Anderson and their continued stewardship of the club.

These Rovers ''fans'' post regularly on the Lancashire Telegraph message forums and other internet sites, spreading their gospel of hate.

Over the past season they have physically assaulted protestors; threatened to report individuals to the police; attempted to have contributers to message forums banned; questioned the mental health of those that are opposed to the current Blackburn Rovers regime and engaged in slander - some even going as far as accusing protesters of racism against he is Scottish - it would seem that beneath each babbling sewer there lurked another and another - there seems no end to the abuse.

These are genuinely NAZI tactics that Hitlers Brown Shirts would have been proud of.

Is it little wonder that the Venky's engaged in fascistic behaviour when they banned banners criticizing them at Ewood Park?

"The Enemy Within" - otherwise knows as - "The Flat-Earthers"; "The Zealots"; "The Thought Police"; "The Happy-Clappers"; "The Plastics"; "The Drones"; "The Kooks"; "The Cranks"; "The Topsy-Turvey's"; "The Haters"; "The one percenters"; "The Nay Sayers"; "Flakes"; "Colostomy Bags"; "Noisy Neighbours"; "Scabs" and "Kean's Cronies".

This "civil war" amongst Rovers fans has been one of the most unpleasant aspects of the whole affair, sadly, the tactics employed by supporters of the new Ewood Park regime have often been the cause of such rancour.

It is against this backdrop that the protest's continue.

It is time to set the record straight.

You are a rampant nonsense machine. You just generate turd.

'They completely ignored the fans - whom they are there to serve'.

Total fabrication. BRFC are a private company and it's Venky's to do with as they please. While a private company may often want to please it's customers, it is under no obligation to do so.

Your posts are nothing but emotional, illogical turd.

carlmc wrote:
Hi Reg,

Sam Allardyce seems to be pretty reluctant to say much about his departure from Ewood and we all know he has the chance to do that Via the paper he writes for and the many appearnces he makes on Sky. Could someone, yourslef or one of your contacts not arrange a warts and all interview with him? If Kean hates him so much, I would have thought the feeling was mutual, so what has he to lose.

I also think someone needs to go on recors to state exactly what J A has taken from this club in terms of fees, sackings and also what amount of money his son is paid and for what.

Come on get us some big stories.
P S I like your site and read it regularly, so not trying to be controversial, I am a genuine BRFC fan.

Unfortunately Sam is not able to speak his mind as he has a confidentiality clause in his release contract, however I do know him well and he would love to come back to Rovers, but not until Venky's clear off and all he will say about them is that they are NOT up to the job of running a football club. Sad but true.

Jimmy Jambone wrote:

Melanie :-) wrote:
http://ewoodpark.jim


do.com/

For more info.

-------------------

Protests at Ewood Park

This is a new page to the web site and like the rest of the web site, it is an ongoing project.

I can be contacted through the contact page by people who wish to provide information about the Protest Movement/Ewood Spring.

Why bother with this page? I have decided to construct this page as the protests at Ewood Park constitute an important part in the history of the stadium.

Also, there has been too much disrespect shown, particularly in the corporate media towards the protestors and their aims and objectives. Therefore, it is left to alternative media sources such as this to provide some balance.

However, in some cases I have relied upon corporate media sources for some information as there have been honourable individual exceptions - but that does not alter the fact that the corporate media have in most cases treated the protesters with disdain.

Why did the protest movement begin?

This is an important question, to understand the protest movement we must first understand the context within which it arose.

Blackburn Rovers were once regarded as one of the most efficiently and well administered football clubs in English football. A model football club, a model to emulate and immitate - and many did try to "do a Blackburn" - but failed.

Above all, Blackburn Rovers represented something of an anomaly, regarded as a huge football club - in a small town; perhaps the only football club in world football to be thought of as such - a beacon of hope to 'under dogs' everywhere, yet resented at the same time: A well respected club within the game but despised by neutral fans jelous of the clubs stature and historical significance and disliked in the corporate media based largely in London, resentful of a small northern town football club's plucky resilience.

This is to be expected. England resents success. BRFC and it's supporters have long been despised for winning The Premier League in 1995.

Four months before he died in 2001, Jack Walker gave a interview to reassure Blackburn Rovers supporters that he had made provision for the club. "A number of years ago I put in place a family trust structure to own my various business interests, including Blackburn Rovers," he explained. "This structure ensures continuity of management and provides the necessary financial support for all my businesses for the foreseeable future. I have made known my wishes to my colleagues, whom I am confident will carry forward the policies necessary to promote and enlarge all my business interests."

The trust, which was registered in Jersey, was run by a board of trustees. They rarely spoke publicly, but when Jack Walker died the trust chairman, the Jersey solicitor Paul Egerton-Vernon, did make a statement: "The club is provided for for the foreseeable future."

The terms of the instructions Jack Walker left the trustees were never disclosed, but Egerton-Vernon explained that Rovers would be subsidised by other assets in the Walker portfolio, which included property and the Jersey-based airline, Flybe. "There seems to be a misunderstanding that there is an ever-shrinking pot of money available," he said. "That is not the case. There are other businesses apart from the club which generate profits which are available."

From 2002 the Walker Family Trust donated £3million a year to the club, helping to give tit a competetive edge over similar sized clubs.

In 2005 £3m was loaned interest-free to the club taking the Walker investment in Blackburn Rovers to £97m.

Then, finally, the trustees decided they had spent enough.

Jack Walker had charged them with growing his businesses financially and, although they did not explain their decision, it is assumed they viewed the club as a drain. The family, although the beneficiaries of their father's estate, were not understood to have had any formal involvement in its administration.

And so in the summer of 2005 the trustees of the Jack Walker Settlement decided to sell the club, and appointed the bank Rothschild, which previously handled the disasterous sale of Liverpool to Tom Hicks and George Gillett, to find the right buyer for Rovers. Chris Ronnie, the chief executive of retailer JJB Sports, had publicly declared his interest and was said by informed sources to be ahead of any other parties that were looking at the club.

In 2006, Blackburn Rovers announced that Walker's trustees had converted £14m of loans into shares, then in January 2007 they converted a further £80m into shares.

In 2007 the Walker Family Trust stop funding the club.

It was a little-noticed paragraph in the club's accounts, published in January 2008, which announced that the trustees had stopped funding the club back in 2007.

The news was phrased somewhat obliquely by John Williams, the chairman, generally admired as a shrewd guiding force. He insisted the decision was not irreversible. "Given the new TV deal, the trustees see no immediate requirement to invest further (having donated £3m a year since 2002)," he wrote. "In a climate of emerging markets overseas, buoyant domestic TV revenues and rarity value leading to capital growth, they are in no hurry to sell. Focus is on finding a suitable investor to take the club forward beyond the Jack Walker dynasty."

John Williams hoped the search for a new owner would bring in a football enthusiast, prepared to take a bet on a club with potential, rather than a merchant bringing debt or eyeing a quick profit.

Enter the Venky's, SEM, Kentaro, Jerome Anderson and Steve Kean.

When the Venky's bought Blackburn Rovers in 2011, it was not a football club in free-fall, it was not a football club that was in decline; it was a progressive and steady football club skillfully guided by John Williams and his team.

After the Venky's takeover:

2010-2011 Season: Sam Allardyce sacked 13 Dec 2010

2010-2011 Season: Steve Kean appointed manager till the end of the season 22 Dec 2010

2010-2011 Season: Letter written by senior figures at Blackburn Rovers to the club’s co-owner expressing concerns at the way the club was being run. 4 Jan 2011

2010-2011 Season: With poor results and the threat of relegation, Kean handed 3 year contract. 20 Jan 2011

2010-2011 Season: Chairman John Williams resigns from Blackburn Rovers after 14 years. Feb 2011

2010-2011 Season: Managing Director Tom Finn resigns from Blackburn Rovers after 15 years. May 2011

2010-2011 Season: Blackburn Survive in the Premier League on the final day of the season. 22 May 2011

During pre season: Manchester United confirmed that they had reached an agreement to sign promissing Rovers starlet Phil Jones on a five-year deal for an undisclosed transfer fee, which was believed to be at least £16.5m. This was a huge blow the the team and the fans; Phil Jones was a local Lancashire lad, Rovers fan and an integral part of the team and a product of Jack Walkers legacy - The Blackburn Rovers Youth Academy. 13 Jun 2011

During pre season: Myles Anderson the son of Jerome Anderson, signes for Blackburn Rovers, no appearenced to date. Interestingly, Jake Kean, the son of Steve Kean, posesses the number 34 Goalkeeper jersey at Blackburn Rovers. 1 Jul 2011

2011-2012 Season: Steve Kean banned for drink driving blaming Rovers fans for lacing his drink. 15 Aug 2011

2011-2012 Season: Blackburn Rovers suffered their worst start to a league campaign in 60 years after 1-0 loss to Everton; Kean reveals in interview with the Lancashire Telegraph that he is untroubled by Blackburn Rovers' start to the season. 27 Aug 2011

2011-2012 Season: Fans Stage first Protest. 17 Sep 2011

All this in the context of what had hitherto been a well run football club with excellant lines of open communication with its fans and which was a symbol of pride to the community it represented. Something of an oddity in todays multiplatinum sophisticated world of corporate finance and obscene footballers wages and agent fees.

Even at this stage, some Rovers fans felt that the Venky's clearly knew how to run a business and had passed the Premier League's due diligence test, it was felt that the Walkers Family Trust would have also administered their own due diligence on the Venky's too.

It was felt by some that Phil Jones would have left no matter who was in charge and had at least moved to the biggest football club in the world. Others felt that Jones leaving was the true end of the Walker Era, it was the final poke in the eye to Jack Walkers legacy, the feeling being that Rovers should not be a finishing school for Manchester United. Meanwhile, the national media where completely ignorant of who Phil Jones actually was and what his symbolic and footballing importance to the club and its fans represented.

It was becoming increasingly clear that the club were now entering a new era but at least Rovers were playing a better brand of football. The Venky's also kept season ticket prices down, renamed the famous Blackburn End in honour of a club legend - Ronnie Clayton - and donated the historic and famous Rovers shirt to a worthy charity - The Princes Trust.

Even at this stage, some Rovers fans were prepared to give the Venky's a chance to prove themselves, feeling that if anything, the Venky's were mainly guilty of naivety: linking the club with footballing superstars was only going to result in mockery - that was not their fault - that is football snobbery and the culture of the English. The southern London media do not react when small mediocre southern clubs like Portsmouth and Fulham are linked with Maradonna but they do when Blackburn Rovers are, that is because to them Blackburn is a dirty northern slum town; cloth caps, whippets and cobbled streets.

However, the Venky's needed to improve their PR by attended home games and speaking to the fans on BBC Radio Lancashire or through the Lancashire Telegraph about their vision for the club; even an open fans forum at Ewood Park was mooted - but despite repeated plea's from the fans to do so, they did not.

The Venky's completely shunned the Rovers faithful, displaying that peculiarly Indian form of arrogance, hubris. They completely ignored the fans - whom they are there to serve.

It is against this backdrop that the protest movement was born.

For the majority of the fans the protests have become the norm at Ewood Park, as supporters of Blackburn Rovers have voiced their concerns over the direction of the football club that they have supported unconditionally throughout their lives.

Throughout this time the club - now in new hands - have manipulated the media by strategically implementing a smear campaign against its own supporters by painting Steve Kean as the victim - with the help of a willing publishing and broadcasting media.

THE MISINFORMATION, DISINFORMATION AND RIDDICULE SHOWN BY LARGE SECTIONS OF THE MEDIA TOWARDS THE FANS UPRISING AND THEIR HEROIC PROTESTS AT EWOOD PARK - MUCH OF WHICH WAS ACHIEVED IN THE TEETH OF POLICE BRUTALITY AND STEWARD THUGGERY AND SCAB BEHAVIOUR BY "HAPPY-CLAPPING" SYNTHETIC SUPPORTERS WHO SHOWED NOTHING BUT RISIBLE POLYESTER PASSION - HAVE BEEN THE HALLMARKS OF THIS SMEAR CAMPAIN.

The dignified protestors have been smeared by the Venky's, Kean, the national media and fellow supporters opposed to the protests; such slanderous attacks have lacked integrity, dignity and honour.

For their efforts, the Protestors have been blamed for the teams poor performaces and bad results and labelled "disgusting", a "mob", "the worst fans in the country", and as Kevin Gallacher to his eternal shame wrote in The Telegraph, "an embarrassment".

There has been no shortage of pundits, journalists, footballers, football managers and football fans quing up to robustly defend Steve Kean and smeer the Blackburn Rovers supporters. One can to some extent understand the football fans, after all, they have been subject to intense media brainwashing as the corporate clique's and their cronies have banded togther against the protesting Rovers fans.

These protesting fans represent the 'little man', working-class people desperatly trying to cling onto and protect the heritage of a footballing institution that was born in their town during footballs formative years.

This is David and Goliath stuff; the mega money men of SEM; Kentao; The Venky's; SKY SPORTS; mediocre multi millionair footballers; parasitic pundits on triple figure salaries who do not pay to watch Premier League football; the most expensive football matches in world football and footballers who can earn more in one week than many do in 15 years and who can earn more in one month than many of the people do in a life time.

It would appear that only fans of city slicker clubs like Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Liverpool, Everton and Tottenham Hotspurs can protest without such abuse both from within and without.

To blame the fans of Blackburn Rovers for the plight of the football club is despicable - yet that is what many have done.

The protestors have had to endure much riddicule from their loyal opposites in the national media and from fans around the country - writing and phoning into national radio stations, quivering and palpitating with sanctimonious indignation, wagging their fingers, cluck-cluck clucking and tut-tuting at the "horrendous" behaviour of the Blackburn Rovers fans.

But what about fellow Rovers ''fans''? Rovers protestors have been sneered at, scoffed at, mimmicked, mocked and treated with dismissive disdain not only from without - but from within - The Enemy Within - those Rovers ''fans'' that are still - to this today - perfectly happy with The Venky's, Kean, Jerome Anderson and their continued stewardship of the club.

These Rovers ''fans'' post regularly on the Lancashire Telegraph message forums and other internet sites, spreading their gospel of hate.

Over the past season they have physically assaulted protestors; threatened to report individuals to the police; attempted to have contributers to message forums banned; questioned the mental health of those that are opposed to the current Blackburn Rovers regime and engaged in slander - some even going as far as accusing protesters of racism against he is Scottish - it would seem that beneath each babbling sewer there lurked another and another - there seems no end to the abuse.

These are genuinely NAZI tactics that Hitlers Brown Shirts would have been proud of.

Is it little wonder that the Venky's engaged in fascistic behaviour when they banned banners criticizing them at Ewood Park?

"The Enemy Within" - otherwise knows as - "The Flat-Earthers"; "The Zealots"; "The Thought Police"; "The Happy-Clappers"; "The Plastics"; "The Drones"; "The Kooks"; "The Cranks"; "The Topsy-Turvey's"; "The Haters"; "The one percenters"; "The Nay Sayers"; "Flakes"; "Colostomy Bags"; "Noisy Neighbours"; "Scabs" and "Kean's Cronies".

This "civil war" amongst Rovers fans has been one of the most unpleasant aspects of the whole affair, sadly, the tactics employed by supporters of the new Ewood Park regime have often been the cause of such rancour.

It is against this backdrop that the protest's continue.

It is time to set the record straight.

You are a rampant nonsense machine. You just generate turd.

'They completely ignored the fans - whom they are there to serve'.

Total fabrication. BRFC are a private company and it's Venky's to do with as they please. While a private company may often want to please it's customers, it is under no obligation to do so.

Your posts are nothing but emotional, illogical turd.

Selective quotes, foul abusive language and over emotional diatribe from jimmy jambutty.

Jimmy Jambutty is living in Chocolate coloured lollypop lala land and is a deranged, Venky-Kean loving, sermon-spewing misanthropic moron as well.

Just another one of the "hater's", a low blow; one of the suck ups, the brown noses, the glad hander’s, the overly ambitious and the insincere...anything to get to the top of the greasy pole, eh?

You are a festering, oozing pathogenic ulcer, your type of cancerous ideology is what is ruining the game.

The Venky's should be proud to be servants of Blackburn Rovers .

MORE COST CUTTING BY HUNT !!!

The Rovers Player of Year awards / Disabled Player of Year / Clubman are USUALLY presented at a prestigious evening function attended by all the team / manager / staff etc with local invitees and companies .... I was lucky enough to present Junior with his award last year ...

THIS YEAR HUNT HAS CANCELLED THE EVENT ON COST GROUNDS !!! Hence Val & Hunt awarding the awards at the club themselves ...

SHAME ON YOU HUNT ...DISGRACEFUL DECISION !!!!!

OR WAS KEAN WORRIED ABOUT BEING IN A ROOM WITH US ?? HE SHOULD BE !!!

noddymcleod wrote:
You're naive if you think Sam would do a "warts and all" interview. I'd bet a large amount that Sam signed a confidentiality agreement with Venkys sweetened with a few extra £k. It's standard practice in all severence payments.

Exactly

Big Sam masks?

Maybe Uncle Jack masks that I would wear.

After all Big Sam was here for the money and to revive his depleting career he may of suffered because of Venky's but Jack Walkers heart, pride and all he ever worked for was put into this club and Venky's have trampeled all over everything he has done for the club.

A mask with Jack Walkers face and t-shirts "Your destroying my legacy" that would be a very strong message one that the press and Venky's simply couldn't ignore.

Shear_Brilliance wrote:
Big Sam masks?

Maybe Uncle Jack masks that I would wear.

After all Big Sam was here for the money and to revive his depleting career he may of suffered because of Venky's but Jack Walkers heart, pride and all he ever worked for was put into this club and Venky's have trampeled all over everything he has done for the club.

A mask with Jack Walkers face and t-shirts "Your destroying my legacy" that would be a very strong message one that the press and Venky's simply couldn't ignore.

That is a great idea.

Melanie :-) wrote:

Shear_Brilliance wrote: Big Sam masks? Maybe Uncle Jack masks that I would wear. After all Big Sam was here for the money and to revive his depleting career he may of suffered because of Venky's but Jack Walkers heart, pride and all he ever worked for was put into this club and Venky's have trampeled all over everything he has done for the club. A mask with Jack Walkers face and t-shirts "Your destroying my legacy" that would be a very strong message one that the press and Venky's simply couldn't ignore.

That is a great idea.

Let's go for it one and all then.

100%ROVERS wrote:
MORE COST CUTTING BY HUNT !!!

The Rovers Player of Year awards / Disabled Player of Year / Clubman are USUALLY presented at a prestigious evening function attended by all the team / manager / staff etc with local invitees and companies .... I was lucky enough to present Junior with his award last year ...

THIS YEAR HUNT HAS CANCELLED THE EVENT ON COST GROUNDS !!! Hence Val & Hunt awarding the awards at the club themselves ...

SHAME ON YOU HUNT ...DISGRACEFUL DECISION !!!!!

OR WAS KEAN WORRIED ABOUT BEING IN A ROOM WITH US ?? HE SHOULD BE !!!

agreed the interaction of the Rovers with the local community is one of the bedrocks of the club and something all Rovers fans have been extremely proud of. This is a disgrace and should be made known nationally.

Melanie :-) wrote:
http://ewoodpark.jim do.com/ For more info. ------------------- Protests at Ewood Park This is a new page to the web site and like the rest of the web site, it is an ongoing project. I can be contacted through the contact page by people who wish to provide information about the Protest Movement/Ewood Spring. Why bother with this page? I have decided to construct this page as the protests at Ewood Park constitute an important part in the history of the stadium. Also, there has been too much disrespect shown, particularly in the corporate media towards the protestors and their aims and objectives. Therefore, it is left to alternative media sources such as this to provide some balance. However, in some cases I have relied upon corporate media sources for some information as there have been honourable individual exceptions - but that does not alter the fact that the corporate media have in most cases treated the protesters with disdain. Why did the protest movement begin? This is an important question, to understand the protest movement we must first understand the context within which it arose. Blackburn Rovers were once regarded as one of the most efficiently and well administered football clubs in English football. A model football club, a model to emulate and immitate - and many did try to "do a Blackburn" - but failed. Above all, Blackburn Rovers represented something of an anomaly, regarded as a huge football club - in a small town; perhaps the only football club in world football to be thought of as such - a beacon of hope to 'under dogs' everywhere, yet resented at the same time: A well respected club within the game but despised by neutral fans jelous of the clubs stature and historical significance and disliked in the corporate media based largely in London, resentful of a small northern town football club's plucky resilience. This is to be expected. England resents success. BRFC and it's supporters have long been despised for winning The Premier League in 1995. Four months before he died in 2001, Jack Walker gave a interview to reassure Blackburn Rovers supporters that he had made provision for the club. "A number of years ago I put in place a family trust structure to own my various business interests, including Blackburn Rovers," he explained. "This structure ensures continuity of management and provides the necessary financial support for all my businesses for the foreseeable future. I have made known my wishes to my colleagues, whom I am confident will carry forward the policies necessary to promote and enlarge all my business interests." The trust, which was registered in Jersey, was run by a board of trustees. They rarely spoke publicly, but when Jack Walker died the trust chairman, the Jersey solicitor Paul Egerton-Vernon, did make a statement: "The club is provided for for the foreseeable future." The terms of the instructions Jack Walker left the trustees were never disclosed, but Egerton-Vernon explained that Rovers would be subsidised by other assets in the Walker portfolio, which included property and the Jersey-based airline, Flybe. "There seems to be a misunderstanding that there is an ever-shrinking pot of money available," he said. "That is not the case. There are other businesses apart from the club which generate profits which are available." From 2002 the Walker Family Trust donated £3million a year to the club, helping to give tit a competetive edge over similar sized clubs. In 2005 £3m was loaned interest-free to the club taking the Walker investment in Blackburn Rovers to £97m. Then, finally, the trustees decided they had spent enough. Jack Walker had charged them with growing his businesses financially and, although they did not explain their decision, it is assumed they viewed the club as a drain. The family, although the beneficiaries of their father's estate, were not understood to have had any formal involvement in its administration. And so in the summer of 2005 the trustees of the Jack Walker Settlement decided to sell the club, and appointed the bank Rothschild, which previously handled the disasterous sale of Liverpool to Tom Hicks and George Gillett, to find the right buyer for Rovers. Chris Ronnie, the chief executive of retailer JJB Sports, had publicly declared his interest and was said by informed sources to be ahead of any other parties that were looking at the club. In 2006, Blackburn Rovers announced that Walker's trustees had converted £14m of loans into shares, then in January 2007 they converted a further £80m into shares. In 2007 the Walker Family Trust stop funding the club. It was a little-noticed paragraph in the club's accounts, published in January 2008, which announced that the trustees had stopped funding the club back in 2007. The news was phrased somewhat obliquely by John Williams, the chairman, generally admired as a shrewd guiding force. He insisted the decision was not irreversible. "Given the new TV deal, the trustees see no immediate requirement to invest further (having donated £3m a year since 2002)," he wrote. "In a climate of emerging markets overseas, buoyant domestic TV revenues and rarity value leading to capital growth, they are in no hurry to sell. Focus is on finding a suitable investor to take the club forward beyond the Jack Walker dynasty." John Williams hoped the search for a new owner would bring in a football enthusiast, prepared to take a bet on a club with potential, rather than a merchant bringing debt or eyeing a quick profit. Enter the Venky's, SEM, Kentaro, Jerome Anderson and Steve Kean. When the Venky's bought Blackburn Rovers in 2011, it was not a football club in free-fall, it was not a football club that was in decline; it was a progressive and steady football club skillfully guided by John Williams and his team. After the Venky's takeover: 2010-2011 Season: Sam Allardyce sacked 13 Dec 2010 2010-2011 Season: Steve Kean appointed manager till the end of the season 22 Dec 2010 2010-2011 Season: Letter written by senior figures at Blackburn Rovers to the club’s co-owner expressing concerns at the way the club was being run. 4 Jan 2011 2010-2011 Season: With poor results and the threat of relegation, Kean handed 3 year contract. 20 Jan 2011 2010-2011 Season: Chairman John Williams resigns from Blackburn Rovers after 14 years. Feb 2011 2010-2011 Season: Managing Director Tom Finn resigns from Blackburn Rovers after 15 years. May 2011 2010-2011 Season: Blackburn Survive in the Premier League on the final day of the season. 22 May 2011 During pre season: Manchester United confirmed that they had reached an agreement to sign promissing Rovers starlet Phil Jones on a five-year deal for an undisclosed transfer fee, which was believed to be at least £16.5m. This was a huge blow the the team and the fans; Phil Jones was a local Lancashire lad, Rovers fan and an integral part of the team and a product of Jack Walkers legacy - The Blackburn Rovers Youth Academy. 13 Jun 2011 During pre season: Myles Anderson the son of Jerome Anderson, signes for Blackburn Rovers, no appearenced to date. Interestingly, Jake Kean, the son of Steve Kean, posesses the number 34 Goalkeeper jersey at Blackburn Rovers. 1 Jul 2011 2011-2012 Season: Steve Kean banned for drink driving blaming Rovers fans for lacing his drink. 15 Aug 2011 2011-2012 Season: Blackburn Rovers suffered their worst start to a league campaign in 60 years after 1-0 loss to Everton; Kean reveals in interview with the Lancashire Telegraph that he is untroubled by Blackburn Rovers' start to the season. 27 Aug 2011 2011-2012 Season: Fans Stage first Protest. 17 Sep 2011 All this in the context of what had hitherto been a well run football club with excellant lines of open communication with its fans and which was a symbol of pride to the community it represented. Something of an oddity in todays multiplatinum sophisticated world of corporate finance and obscene footballers wages and agent fees. Even at this stage, some Rovers fans felt that the Venky's clearly knew how to run a business and had passed the Premier League's due diligence test, it was felt that the Walkers Family Trust would have also administered their own due diligence on the Venky's too. It was felt by some that Phil Jones would have left no matter who was in charge and had at least moved to the biggest football club in the world. Others felt that Jones leaving was the true end of the Walker Era, it was the final poke in the eye to Jack Walkers legacy, the feeling being that Rovers should not be a finishing school for Manchester United. Meanwhile, the national media where completely ignorant of who Phil Jones actually was and what his symbolic and footballing importance to the club and its fans represented. It was becoming increasingly clear that the club were now entering a new era but at least Rovers were playing a better brand of football. The Venky's also kept season ticket prices down, renamed the famous Blackburn End in honour of a club legend - Ronnie Clayton - and donated the historic and famous Rovers shirt to a worthy charity - The Princes Trust. Even at this stage, some Rovers fans were prepared to give the Venky's a chance to prove themselves, feeling that if anything, the Venky's were mainly guilty of naivety: linking the club with footballing superstars was only going to result in mockery - that was not their fault - that is football snobbery and the culture of the English. The southern London media do not react when small mediocre southern clubs like Portsmouth and Fulham are linked with Maradonna but they do when Blackburn Rovers are, that is because to them Blackburn is a dirty northern slum town; cloth caps, whippets and cobbled streets. However, the Venky's needed to improve their PR by attended home games and speaking to the fans on BBC Radio Lancashire or through the Lancashire Telegraph about their vision for the club; even an open fans forum at Ewood Park was mooted - but despite repeated plea's from the fans to do so, they did not. The Venky's completely shunned the Rovers faithful, displaying that peculiarly Indian form of arrogance, hubris. They completely ignored the fans - whom they are there to serve. It is against this backdrop that the protest movement was born. For the majority of the fans the protests have become the norm at Ewood Park, as supporters of Blackburn Rovers have voiced their concerns over the direction of the football club that they have supported unconditionally throughout their lives. Throughout this time the club - now in new hands - have manipulated the media by strategically implementing a smear campaign against its own supporters by painting Steve Kean as the victim - with the help of a willing publishing and broadcasting media. THE MISINFORMATION, DISINFORMATION AND RIDDICULE SHOWN BY LARGE SECTIONS OF THE MEDIA TOWARDS THE FANS UPRISING AND THEIR HEROIC PROTESTS AT EWOOD PARK - MUCH OF WHICH WAS ACHIEVED IN THE TEETH OF POLICE BRUTALITY AND STEWARD THUGGERY AND SCAB BEHAVIOUR BY "HAPPY-CLAPPING" SYNTHETIC SUPPORTERS WHO SHOWED NOTHING BUT RISIBLE POLYESTER PASSION - HAVE BEEN THE HALLMARKS OF THIS SMEAR CAMPAIN. The dignified protestors have been smeared by the Venky's, Kean, the national media and fellow supporters opposed to the protests; such slanderous attacks have lacked integrity, dignity and honour. For their efforts, the Protestors have been blamed for the teams poor performaces and bad results and labelled "disgusting", a "mob", "the worst fans in the country", and as Kevin Gallacher to his eternal shame wrote in The Telegraph, "an embarrassment". There has been no shortage of pundits, journalists, footballers, football managers and football fans quing up to robustly defend Steve Kean and smeer the Blackburn Rovers supporters. One can to some extent understand the football fans, after all, they have been subject to intense media brainwashing as the corporate clique's and their cronies have banded togther against the protesting Rovers fans. These protesting fans represent the 'little man', working-class people desperatly trying to cling onto and protect the heritage of a footballing institution that was born in their town during footballs formative years. This is David and Goliath stuff; the mega money men of SEM; Kentao; The Venky's; SKY SPORTS; mediocre multi millionair footballers; parasitic pundits on triple figure salaries who do not pay to watch Premier League football; the most expensive football matches in world football and footballers who can earn more in one week than many do in 15 years and who can earn more in one month than many of the people do in a life time. It would appear that only fans of city slicker clubs like Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Liverpool, Everton and Tottenham Hotspurs can protest without such abuse both from within and without. To blame the fans of Blackburn Rovers for the plight of the football club is despicable - yet that is what many have done. The protestors have had to endure much riddicule from their loyal opposites in the national media and from fans around the country - writing and phoning into national radio stations, quivering and palpitating with sanctimonious indignation, wagging their fingers, cluck-cluck clucking and tut-tuting at the "horrendous" behaviour of the Blackburn Rovers fans. But what about fellow Rovers ''fans''? Rovers protestors have been sneered at, scoffed at, mimmicked, mocked and treated with dismissive disdain not only from without - but from within - The Enemy Within - those Rovers ''fans'' that are still - to this today - perfectly happy with The Venky's, Kean, Jerome Anderson and their continued stewardship of the club. These Rovers ''fans'' post regularly on the Lancashire Telegraph message forums and other internet sites, spreading their gospel of hate. Over the past season they have physically assaulted protestors; threatened to report individuals to the police; attempted to have contributers to message forums banned; questioned the mental health of those that are opposed to the current Blackburn Rovers regime and engaged in slander - some even going as far as accusing protesters of racism against he is Scottish - it would seem that beneath each babbling sewer there lurked another and another - there seems no end to the abuse. These are genuinely NAZI tactics that Hitlers Brown Shirts would have been proud of. Is it little wonder that the Venky's engaged in fascistic behaviour when they banned banners criticizing them at Ewood Park? "The Enemy Within" - otherwise knows as - "The Flat-Earthers"; "The Zealots"; "The Thought Police"; "The Happy-Clappers"; "The Plastics"; "The Drones"; "The Kooks"; "The Cranks"; "The Topsy-Turvey's"; "The Haters"; "The one percenters"; "The Nay Sayers"; "Flakes"; "Colostomy Bags"; "Noisy Neighbours"; "Scabs" and "Kean's Cronies". This "civil war" amongst Rovers fans has been one of the most unpleasant aspects of the whole affair, sadly, the tactics employed by supporters of the new Ewood Park regime have often been the cause of such rancour. It is against this backdrop that the protest's continue. It is time to set the record straight.

"Heroic protests", golly gosh, Melanie - you mean we are now up there with our grandads on the Somme and our Dads defying Hitler? I did not realise that. Well I never....

Oh hello colostomy bag, you've been quiet recently.

Melanie :-) wrote:
Oh hello colostomy bag, you've been quiet recently.

Forgot that you are a proper "hero" yourself. Obviously.

I still have my Tugay mask - then again rumour is he has now been banned!
.
Surely someone can develop a cheap Ponocchio nose for the Wigan game? Perhaps free with the season's final 4,000 holes? We can hide em in our pockets, we can hide em in our hoods, we can hide em in our shoes.
.
They have not got time to bring in a nose detecting machine!
.
34th.......

Morst The 88th Min Heartbreaker of Dingles! wrote:
I still have my Tugay mask - then again rumour is he has now been banned! . Surely someone can develop a cheap Ponocchio nose for the Wigan game? Perhaps free with the season's final 4,000 holes? We can hide em in our pockets, we can hide em in our hoods, we can hide em in our shoes. . They have not got time to bring in a nose detecting machine! . 34th.......

There is a false hooter on ebay. £3 with postage. But if we go down that route the press will make us out the bogeymen.

STEVE KEAN FOR BARCELONA

kean has got off to lightly for my liking ,,he knows he,s almost there ,90 more mins of insults to go ,then a game at chelski then he will be off to india for his holidays ,we should have ignored the media and give him all he deserved all season ,but then theres next season and it all starts again
i hate steve kean and venkys

more like steve kean for BAR CELONA theres one called that in majorca thats for sale

Morst The 88th Min Heartbreaker of Dingles! wrote:
I still have my Tugay mask - then again rumour is he has now been banned!
.
Surely someone can develop a cheap Ponocchio nose for the Wigan game? Perhaps free with the season's final 4,000 holes? We can hide em in our pockets, we can hide em in our hoods, we can hide em in our shoes.
.
They have not got time to bring in a nose detecting machine!
.
34th.......

hide it wherever you want Morst but not down your pants please....don't want Kean to think you are excited to see him!

Melanie :-) wrote:
http://ewoodpark.jim

do.com/

For more info.

-------------------

Protests at Ewood Park

This is a new page to the web site and like the rest of the web site, it is an ongoing project.

I can be contacted through the contact page by people who wish to provide information about the Protest Movement/Ewood Spring.

Why bother with this page? I have decided to construct this page as the protests at Ewood Park constitute an important part in the history of the stadium.

Also, there has been too much disrespect shown, particularly in the corporate media towards the protestors and their aims and objectives. Therefore, it is left to alternative media sources such as this to provide some balance.

However, in some cases I have relied upon corporate media sources for some information as there have been honourable individual exceptions - but that does not alter the fact that the corporate media have in most cases treated the protesters with disdain.

Why did the protest movement begin?

This is an important question, to understand the protest movement we must first understand the context within which it arose.

Blackburn Rovers were once regarded as one of the most efficiently and well administered football clubs in English football. A model football club, a model to emulate and immitate - and many did try to "do a Blackburn" - but failed.

Above all, Blackburn Rovers represented something of an anomaly, regarded as a huge football club - in a small town; perhaps the only football club in world football to be thought of as such - a beacon of hope to 'under dogs' everywhere, yet resented at the same time: A well respected club within the game but despised by neutral fans jelous of the clubs stature and historical significance and disliked in the corporate media based largely in London, resentful of a small northern town football club's plucky resilience.

This is to be expected. England resents success. BRFC and it's supporters have long been despised for winning The Premier League in 1995.

Four months before he died in 2001, Jack Walker gave a interview to reassure Blackburn Rovers supporters that he had made provision for the club. "A number of years ago I put in place a family trust structure to own my various business interests, including Blackburn Rovers," he explained. "This structure ensures continuity of management and provides the necessary financial support for all my businesses for the foreseeable future. I have made known my wishes to my colleagues, whom I am confident will carry forward the policies necessary to promote and enlarge all my business interests."

The trust, which was registered in Jersey, was run by a board of trustees. They rarely spoke publicly, but when Jack Walker died the trust chairman, the Jersey solicitor Paul Egerton-Vernon, did make a statement: "The club is provided for for the foreseeable future."

The terms of the instructions Jack Walker left the trustees were never disclosed, but Egerton-Vernon explained that Rovers would be subsidised by other assets in the Walker portfolio, which included property and the Jersey-based airline, Flybe. "There seems to be a misunderstanding that there is an ever-shrinking pot of money available," he said. "That is not the case. There are other businesses apart from the club which generate profits which are available."

From 2002 the Walker Family Trust donated £3million a year to the club, helping to give tit a competetive edge over similar sized clubs.

In 2005 £3m was loaned interest-free to the club taking the Walker investment in Blackburn Rovers to £97m.

Then, finally, the trustees decided they had spent enough.

Jack Walker had charged them with growing his businesses financially and, although they did not explain their decision, it is assumed they viewed the club as a drain. The family, although the beneficiaries of their father's estate, were not understood to have had any formal involvement in its administration.

And so in the summer of 2005 the trustees of the Jack Walker Settlement decided to sell the club, and appointed the bank Rothschild, which previously handled the disasterous sale of Liverpool to Tom Hicks and George Gillett, to find the right buyer for Rovers. Chris Ronnie, the chief executive of retailer JJB Sports, had publicly declared his interest and was said by informed sources to be ahead of any other parties that were looking at the club.

In 2006, Blackburn Rovers announced that Walker's trustees had converted £14m of loans into shares, then in January 2007 they converted a further £80m into shares.

In 2007 the Walker Family Trust stop funding the club.

It was a little-noticed paragraph in the club's accounts, published in January 2008, which announced that the trustees had stopped funding the club back in 2007.

The news was phrased somewhat obliquely by John Williams, the chairman, generally admired as a shrewd guiding force. He insisted the decision was not irreversible. "Given the new TV deal, the trustees see no immediate requirement to invest further (having donated £3m a year since 2002)," he wrote. "In a climate of emerging markets overseas, buoyant domestic TV revenues and rarity value leading to capital growth, they are in no hurry to sell. Focus is on finding a suitable investor to take the club forward beyond the Jack Walker dynasty."

John Williams hoped the search for a new owner would bring in a football enthusiast, prepared to take a bet on a club with potential, rather than a merchant bringing debt or eyeing a quick profit.

Enter the Venky's, SEM, Kentaro, Jerome Anderson and Steve Kean.

When the Venky's bought Blackburn Rovers in 2011, it was not a football club in free-fall, it was not a football club that was in decline; it was a progressive and steady football club skillfully guided by John Williams and his team.

After the Venky's takeover:

2010-2011 Season: Sam Allardyce sacked 13 Dec 2010

2010-2011 Season: Steve Kean appointed manager till the end of the season 22 Dec 2010

2010-2011 Season: Letter written by senior figures at Blackburn Rovers to the club’s co-owner expressing concerns at the way the club was being run. 4 Jan 2011

2010-2011 Season: With poor results and the threat of relegation, Kean handed 3 year contract. 20 Jan 2011

2010-2011 Season: Chairman John Williams resigns from Blackburn Rovers after 14 years. Feb 2011

2010-2011 Season: Managing Director Tom Finn resigns from Blackburn Rovers after 15 years. May 2011

2010-2011 Season: Blackburn Survive in the Premier League on the final day of the season. 22 May 2011

During pre season: Manchester United confirmed that they had reached an agreement to sign promissing Rovers starlet Phil Jones on a five-year deal for an undisclosed transfer fee, which was believed to be at least £16.5m. This was a huge blow the the team and the fans; Phil Jones was a local Lancashire lad, Rovers fan and an integral part of the team and a product of Jack Walkers legacy - The Blackburn Rovers Youth Academy. 13 Jun 2011

During pre season: Myles Anderson the son of Jerome Anderson, signes for Blackburn Rovers, no appearenced to date. Interestingly, Jake Kean, the son of Steve Kean, posesses the number 34 Goalkeeper jersey at Blackburn Rovers. 1 Jul 2011

2011-2012 Season: Steve Kean banned for drink driving blaming Rovers fans for lacing his drink. 15 Aug 2011

2011-2012 Season: Blackburn Rovers suffered their worst start to a league campaign in 60 years after 1-0 loss to Everton; Kean reveals in interview with the Lancashire Telegraph that he is untroubled by Blackburn Rovers' start to the season. 27 Aug 2011

2011-2012 Season: Fans Stage first Protest. 17 Sep 2011

All this in the context of what had hitherto been a well run football club with excellant lines of open communication with its fans and which was a symbol of pride to the community it represented. Something of an oddity in todays multiplatinum sophisticated world of corporate finance and obscene footballers wages and agent fees.

Even at this stage, some Rovers fans felt that the Venky's clearly knew how to run a business and had passed the Premier League's due diligence test, it was felt that the Walkers Family Trust would have also administered their own due diligence on the Venky's too.

It was felt by some that Phil Jones would have left no matter who was in charge and had at least moved to the biggest football club in the world. Others felt that Jones leaving was the true end of the Walker Era, it was the final poke in the eye to Jack Walkers legacy, the feeling being that Rovers should not be a finishing school for Manchester United. Meanwhile, the national media where completely ignorant of who Phil Jones actually was and what his symbolic and footballing importance to the club and its fans represented.

It was becoming increasingly clear that the club were now entering a new era but at least Rovers were playing a better brand of football. The Venky's also kept season ticket prices down, renamed the famous Blackburn End in honour of a club legend - Ronnie Clayton - and donated the historic and famous Rovers shirt to a worthy charity - The Princes Trust.

Even at this stage, some Rovers fans were prepared to give the Venky's a chance to prove themselves, feeling that if anything, the Venky's were mainly guilty of naivety: linking the club with footballing superstars was only going to result in mockery - that was not their fault - that is football snobbery and the culture of the English. The southern London media do not react when small mediocre southern clubs like Portsmouth and Fulham are linked with Maradonna but they do when Blackburn Rovers are, that is because to them Blackburn is a dirty northern slum town; cloth caps, whippets and cobbled streets.

However, the Venky's needed to improve their PR by attended home games and speaking to the fans on BBC Radio Lancashire or through the Lancashire Telegraph about their vision for the club; even an open fans forum at Ewood Park was mooted - but despite repeated plea's from the fans to do so, they did not.

The Venky's completely shunned the Rovers faithful, displaying that peculiarly Indian form of arrogance, hubris. They completely ignored the fans - whom they are there to serve.

It is against this backdrop that the protest movement was born.

For the majority of the fans the protests have become the norm at Ewood Park, as supporters of Blackburn Rovers have voiced their concerns over the direction of the football club that they have supported unconditionally throughout their lives.

Throughout this time the club - now in new hands - have manipulated the media by strategically implementing a smear campaign against its own supporters by painting Steve Kean as the victim - with the help of a willing publishing and broadcasting media.

THE MISINFORMATION, DISINFORMATION AND RIDDICULE SHOWN BY LARGE SECTIONS OF THE MEDIA TOWARDS THE FANS UPRISING AND THEIR HEROIC PROTESTS AT EWOOD PARK - MUCH OF WHICH WAS ACHIEVED IN THE TEETH OF POLICE BRUTALITY AND STEWARD THUGGERY AND SCAB BEHAVIOUR BY "HAPPY-CLAPPING" SYNTHETIC SUPPORTERS WHO SHOWED NOTHING BUT RISIBLE POLYESTER PASSION - HAVE BEEN THE HALLMARKS OF THIS SMEAR CAMPAIN.

The dignified protestors have been smeared by the Venky's, Kean, the national media and fellow supporters opposed to the protests; such slanderous attacks have lacked integrity, dignity and honour.

For their efforts, the Protestors have been blamed for the teams poor performaces and bad results and labelled "disgusting", a "mob", "the worst fans in the country", and as Kevin Gallacher to his eternal shame wrote in The Telegraph, "an embarrassment".

There has been no shortage of pundits, journalists, footballers, football managers and football fans quing up to robustly defend Steve Kean and smeer the Blackburn Rovers supporters. One can to some extent understand the football fans, after all, they have been subject to intense media brainwashing as the corporate clique's and their cronies have banded togther against the protesting Rovers fans.

These protesting fans represent the 'little man', working-class people desperatly trying to cling onto and protect the heritage of a footballing institution that was born in their town during footballs formative years.

This is David and Goliath stuff; the mega money men of SEM; Kentao; The Venky's; SKY SPORTS; mediocre multi millionair footballers; parasitic pundits on triple figure salaries who do not pay to watch Premier League football; the most expensive football matches in world football and footballers who can earn more in one week than many do in 15 years and who can earn more in one month than many of the people do in a life time.

It would appear that only fans of city slicker clubs like Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Liverpool, Everton and Tottenham Hotspurs can protest without such abuse both from within and without.

To blame the fans of Blackburn Rovers for the plight of the football club is despicable - yet that is what many have done.

The protestors have had to endure much riddicule from their loyal opposites in the national media and from fans around the country - writing and phoning into national radio stations, quivering and palpitating with sanctimonious indignation, wagging their fingers, cluck-cluck clucking and tut-tuting at the "horrendous" behaviour of the Blackburn Rovers fans.

But what about fellow Rovers ''fans''? Rovers protestors have been sneered at, scoffed at, mimmicked, mocked and treated with dismissive disdain not only from without - but from within - The Enemy Within - those Rovers ''fans'' that are still - to this today - perfectly happy with The Venky's, Kean, Jerome Anderson and their continued stewardship of the club.

These Rovers ''fans'' post regularly on the Lancashire Telegraph message forums and other internet sites, spreading their gospel of hate.

Over the past season they have physically assaulted protestors; threatened to report individuals to the police; attempted to have contributers to message forums banned; questioned the mental health of those that are opposed to the current Blackburn Rovers regime and engaged in slander - some even going as far as accusing protesters of racism against he is Scottish - it would seem that beneath each babbling sewer there lurked another and another - there seems no end to the abuse.

These are genuinely NAZI tactics that Hitlers Brown Shirts would have been proud of.

Is it little wonder that the Venky's engaged in fascistic behaviour when they banned banners criticizing them at Ewood Park?

"The Enemy Within" - otherwise knows as - "The Flat-Earthers"; "The Zealots"; "The Thought Police"; "The Happy-Clappers"; "The Plastics"; "The Drones"; "The Kooks"; "The Cranks"; "The Topsy-Turvey's"; "The Haters"; "The one percenters"; "The Nay Sayers"; "Flakes"; "Colostomy Bags"; "Noisy Neighbours"; "Scabs" and "Kean's Cronies".

This "civil war" amongst Rovers fans has been one of the most unpleasant aspects of the whole affair, sadly, the tactics employed by supporters of the new Ewood Park regime have often been the cause of such rancour.

It is against this backdrop that the protest's continue.

It is time to set the record straight.

I'm pretty sure that Jake Kean is not Steve Kean's son.