We Need To Talk About Norman

[old sage]

I sat watching small groups inside the ground yesterday before the kick off and most of their body language largely gave the impression that they hadn't got a care in the world about the plight of the Club that they purport to support.

I have come to the conclusion that to them Port Vale is like some bizarre social club and as long as a few others turn up to laugh, joke and share a flask and a sandwich with they will just keep attending and the situation the Club actually finds its self in rather irrelevant. Sad people you may as well stay at home and invite your like minded friends around for your chin wags and refreshments. You would be far warmer as well!

[onestepatatime]

I sat watching small groups inside the ground yesterday before the kick off and most of their body language largely gave the impression that they hadn't got a care in the world about the plight of the Club that they purport to support.

I have come to the conclusion that to them Port Vale is like some bizarre social club and as long as a few others turn up to laugh, joke and share a flask and a sandwich with they will just keep attending and the situation the Club actually finds its self in rather irrelevant. Sad people you may as well stay at home and invite your like minded friends around for your chin wags and refreshments. You would be far warmer as well!

There is a lot of truth in your post. It's fact that apathy is a must for Vale fans after the years of misery we have experienced. I have witnessed what you state for years but I have now made the decision I want no part of that apathy hence I do not use my 2 season tickets anymore. I cannot sit and allow the Club to die in front of me. I cannot stomach the apathy around me in Lorne Street. If I ever vociferously shout any abuse at Smurf, Aspin or anything that rankles me I am told to sit down or made to feel as though I am upsetting the calm and quiet of others weekend social gathering so I know fully what you mean. SMURF and Aspin are clearly taking this Club to oblivion but honestly, even though there are fans that passionately care for Vale, there are many more who will sit and take pathetic defeats and displays and still applaud!!

[the valiant]

Makes me laugh every home game how Smurf turns up at the entrance to Lorne street the entrance the press go in and proceeds to unload his car full of stuff for the kiosks to sell can't imagine many other chairmen doing that

[Valiant!]

Dog and Duck !!!

[Fosse69]

Makes me laugh every home game how Smurf turns up at the entrance to Lorne street the entrance the press go in and proceeds to unload his car full of stuff for the kiosks to sell can't imagine many other chairmen doing that

Maybe in Tier 7 football.

[smithie]

Makes me laugh every home game how Smurf turns up at the entrance to Lorne street the entrance the press go in and proceeds to unload his car full of stuff for the kiosks to sell can't imagine many other chairmen doing that

 

In all fairness if it cuts out the middle man l can see the logic in costcutting in services like catering.

 

Unfortunately the costcutting is applied to every sector of the club including the most important part... the team.

 

Look around the ground next time you're there.... the absolute shambles that is the club shop, the absence of a sponsor for the away stand, the many empty perimeter advertising boards, the sorry sight of empty corporate boxes, the broken scoreboard. Apathy and decay hsng around the place like the prize **** himself.

[valefan16]

I think yesterday if I’m honest after 20 years following the club was the first time I’ve come away scared. Scared for the future in that it seems the end is near, certainly for our EFL status and possibly even the club itself.

 

A few reasons I felt this way:

 

Saturday game, first home game in a fortnight in the league and no one was there! I’ve never seen it that bare on a Saturday and going loo in the Paddock as the teams come out usually you have to maneouver through the people stood drinking or eating or chatting by the kiosks just before kick off but there was the amount of people there you get during the game who nip loo! It shocked me and the low attendance was no surprise.... worryingly it could be even less next game after the on field showing.

 

On the field the game was poor and the loss was poor, the same team that was inconsistent but capable of winning regularly enough to be very comfortable now can’t get a result, since the Stoke tie we have been absolutely dreadful. Is it confidence? Tactics? Issues with the manager? I don’t know what it is but what we did well enough up until December we’ve just completely stopped. We are now in a scrap whilst confidence is gone with our only real goal scorer possibly missing and bar Notts County teams below closing in fast. Smurfs leaked text about Tuesday being a big day best be a good one or we are in trouble.

 

The chants started against Smurf and incidentally lots on social media bringing the Smurf issue up but will he sell based on protests? More inclined to think he will pull out all investments into the club and we will then be losing our EFL status for certain. Not sure what the answer is to this one, V2001 were a consortium and in the main at least fans to a degree so fans had some influence on getting a solution to them over time and Micky Adams steered us through the tough time with his experience. Aspo in a similar situation wouldn’t hold much hope.

 

Feels bleak. Love this football club, it ruins weekends, it stresses me and infuriates me but I love it... it hurts and worries me this situation.

[smithie]

I think yesterday if I’m honest after 20 years following the club was the first time I’ve come away scared. Scared for the future in that it seems the end is near, certainly for our EFL status and possibly even the club itself.

 

A few reasons I felt this way:

 

Saturday game, first home game in a fortnight in the league and no one was there! I’ve never seen it that bare on a Saturday and going loo in the Paddock as the teams come out usually you have to maneouver through the people stood drinking or eating or chatting by the kiosks just before kick off but there was the amount of people there you get during the game who nip loo! It shocked me and the low attendance was no surprise.... worryingly it could be even less next game after the on field showing.

 

On the field the game was poor and the loss was poor, the same team that was inconsistent but capable of winning regularly enough to be very comfortable now can’t get a result, since the Stoke tie we have been absolutely dreadful. Is it confidence? Tactics? Issues with the manager? I don’t know what it is but what we did well enough up until December we’ve just completely stopped. We are now in a scrap whilst confidence is gone with our only real goal scorer possibly missing and bar Notts County teams below closing in fast. Smurfs leaked text about Tuesday being a big day best be a good one or we are in trouble.

 

The chants started against Smurf and incidentally lots on social media bringing the Smurf issue up but will he sell based on protests? More inclined to think he will pull out all investments into the club and we will then be losing our EFL status for certain. Not sure what the answer is to this one, V2001 were a consortium and in the main at least fans to a degree so fans had some influence on getting a solution to them over time and Micky Adams steered us through the tough time with his experience. Aspo in a similar situation wouldn’t hold much hope.

 

Feels bleak. Love this football club, it ruins weekends, it stresses me and infuriates me but I love it... it hurts and worries me this situation.

 

How can it be acceptable legally and morally for one person to have us over a barrel like this? He owns the club and ground, holds the fans in utter contempt and seemingly will run us into the ground.

 

We're done for until he goes.

[TJHValiant]

How can it be acceptable legally and morally for one person to have us over a barrel like this? He owns the club and ground, holds the fans in utter contempt and seemingly will run us into the ground.

 

We're done for until he goes.

 

He can because he is one man who owns the whole club. At most other clubs there is a board who own shares and they can be forced out if someone else on the board feels they are not contributing to the well being of the club.

 

The scary reality is. Smurf owns the club as his business and he can do what he wants without any legal interfearance.

 

Unless he starts murdering fans, he has no question to answer.

[Iron Curtain]

The sad fact is he doesn’t even spout his ******** about “getting the club back to where it should be”... he has washed his hands of us.

 

The sad fact is Norman, and I know you read this page because your ego won’t allow you to stop... is that your family name will become synonymous with ruining a football league club. Your name will be vilified for years, your name will be known throughout the land of football as the egotistical w*nker that traded an institution for your own ego.

 

You are an embarrassment to your family and the hard working people of an area that loves the club you are f*cking.

 

I hope you and your family are proud.

 

And rest assured if we go down or into oblivion, the vale will return some how long after you have waddled off to Portugal where you will hope people don’t recognise you as that bloke that ruined a club. You are a failure.

[Guest TommyMac]

The sad fact is he doesn’t even spout his ******** about “getting the club back to where it should be”... he has washed his hands of us.

 

The sad fact is Norman, and I know you read this page because your ego won’t allow you to stop... is that your family name will become synonymous with ruining a footbawill be vilified for years, your name will be known throughout the land of football as the egotistical w*nker that traded an institution for your own ego.ll league club. Your name

 

You are an embarrassment to your family and the hard working people of an area that loves the club you are f*cking.

 

I hope you and your family are proud.

 

And rest assured if we go down or into oblivion, the vale will return some how long after you have waddled off to Portugal where you will hope people don’t recognise you as that bloke that ruined a club. You are a failure.

 

Do you really think his name "will be vilified for years, your name will be known throughout the land of football as the egotistical w*nker that traded an institution for your own ego."

Do you think anyone other than 3500 die hard vale fans will give a ****?

Without googling the answer, tell me the name of Stockport County's owner when they crashed out of the league, or Darlington's, etc.

We're a small football club who will be forgotten about within weeks of our demise.

[Doha]

As thick as he is, and he really is ******* enormously thick as pig ****, he cannot be so stupid and arrogant as to believe he will get away with it. During his ownership he's had to build a massive fence and the ground has hosted temporary 8ft tall police riot control barriers on several occasions because of the ...enthusiasm of the some of the Vale boys.

 

If he's really so arrogant and naive to believe there will be no backlash should this all continue and the cockroach relegates us to non-league then the forthcoming fireworks will be most entertaining.

[pete vale]

How can it be acceptable legally and morally for one person to have us over a barrel like this? He owns the club and ground, holds the fans in utter contempt and seemingly will run us into the ground.

 

We're done for until he goes.

 

All I'll say folks is that if we (the fan base or those that are prepared to) don't do something soon this club will be out of league football. I'm not sure he will stop there without reading exactly what deal he has in place with regards to the ground with the council for example?

[Doha]

We're a small football club who will be forgotten about within weeks of our demise.

 

We've had nearly 50 seasons in the Championship in a 20k seater ground. I'm going to have to be a bit abrupt here and ask that you please do **** off with this woe is me pathetic attitude. Vale fans love to sell ourselves short. I'm not having it. Have some ******* pride and ambition. That fat Cnut should be on the ropes, not us.

[Doha]

Reminder.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was happy enough to leave Norman to deal with [the Jordan Hugill transfer] until I received a call from Peter Ridsdale who I knew from my days at Leeds United. Peter picked up the phone to moan to me about Norman. He said the deal was off unless someone else dealt with it, so I had to step in and negotiate a sale that looked to be heading for the rocks. A deal, incidentally, that might still benefit Vale if Jordan goes on to bigger and better things.

 

 

My contract was again on the agenda as the campaign came to a close. Norman kept saying he wanted me to ‘go on to bigger and better things’ and I took that to mean he wanted to get rid of my wages and earn himself some compensation at the same time. Perhaps I was just being cynical.

 

Norman had issues. He wasn’t happy with the kit deal we had with Sondico and decided he was going to end it. He didn’t have a shirt sponsor, either. A bit of background for you: all the kit manufacturers talk to each other and Norman couldn’t secure a deal for love nor money. So the club has no kit. And no shirt sponsor. I introduced Norman to Paul Kenny at the GMB. They thrashed out a shirt sponsorship deal and Paul also agreed to put the union’s name on one of the stands at Vale Park. I then introduced him to Fabrizio at Errea, a friend of mine from my Brighton days. We travelled out to Italy to sort out a deal for the kit, too. So, just to reiterate, Norman’s taken my contract away, and I’ve got him a kit deal, a kit sponsor and a sponsor for the stand. He has done all right out of me, has Norman.

 

 

 

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