‘WE WON’T GO AWAY’
EFL put on spot by Charlton and Blackpool fans...
DETERMINED Charlton and Blackpool fans have hailed their demonstrations outside Football League headquarters on Friday a success – and vowed to keep up the pressure for change.
Supporters of the two clubs have been locked in bitter long-running disputes with the owners of their clubs, accusing them of mismanagement and neglect.
They have also been infuriated by what they see as a lack of meaningful action by the EFL to deal with club bosses.
On Friday, around 50 Charlton fans gathered outside EFL offices in London and an estimated 100 Blackpool followers joined together at EFL House in Preston.
A sprinkling of southern-based Blackpool fans and northern-based Charlton fans also linked up with the protests.
In the capital, EFL chief executive Shaun Harvey invited two Charlton fans and a Blackpool supporter in for talks.
Invite
One of the Charlton duo, Alan Davis, of the Addicks fans’ umbrella organisation, the Coalition Against Roland Duchatelet (CARD) told The FLP: “What did we make of Shaun Harvey? The jury’s out. We were pleased to meet him and he was quite assertive in some ways, but so were the three of us about our clubs.
“Regarding Charlton, there were two key things. I expressed to him that when the EFL meet with the club as planned, we want that to be with (owner Roland) Duchatelet in person – he is a law unto himself.
“He said that he would be meeting him in the next few weeks. That’s a big plus and we are looking forward to hearing that’s happened.
“The other thing he said was that the takeover that has been talked about for a long time is not being held up by the EFL not having processed paperwork.
“It begs the question: If the EFL aren’t holding up a takeover, what is? Is it the price or another issue?”
Blackpool fans have long since tired of their club’s ownership by the Oyston family.
In November at the High Court, Mr Justice Smith said the Oystons had “abused their majority powers” and they were ordered to buy out minority shareholder Valeri Belokon for £31m. That hasn’t happened.
Blackpool Supporters Trust secretary Steve Rowland, who attended the Preston rally, said: “We have to force the EFL to face up to their responsibilities – they seem to be in denial. We aren’t going to go away and we will keep the pressure up.”
The EFL have defended their position. “The EFL met with representatives from both sets of fans, listened to their concerns, and confirmed that in recent weeks there has been direct contact with the ownership of the respective clubs in regard to the relevant matters raised,” said an EFL spokesperson.