Heart, Scarf, and Soul - A play starring a Blackburn Rovers fan

[We Are The Rovers]

Rovers Trust has worked tirelessly over the last 8 years to persuade the FA, Premier League and English Football League in order to improve the safeguarding of the organisation and control of our Football Clubs.

The Trust has decided to embrace a new medium and take the fight to the theatre to show the anxiety and devastation of being a true fan in these circumstances. Blackburn Rovers was an original founding member of the football league; therefore, the Rovers' Trust should also lead from the front and stage this production, not just for Rovers' fans, but also for the fans of clubs like Blackpool, Coventry, Wimbledon and Charlton etc. We feel it is time that the football authorities were made to sit up and take notice. We urge you to support this play and plight, providing a platform for the voice's of true fans to be heard in an exciting and revolutionary way.

A sum of £9,000 is required to make this play happen; a national appeal which is supported by Henry Winter, one of the few prominent journalists to lend his support to football fans who feel a lost connection with their club.

https://mobile.twitter.com/henrywinter/status/1092798519243689986

This is not a mere protest play. It’s a story about one fan’s feeling of depression and helplessness when there is a loss of localism, and the connection with his club begins to slip away. I’m sure we all know how that has felt at some point in the last 8 years, and we hope fans of other clubs who have had similar experiences of ownership to ours will support this message. If you wish to support this play, you can view the appeal brochure and donation pages from this link:

https://www.roverstrust.com/2019/01/17/heart-scarf-soul-a-play-starring-a-blackburn-rovers-fan/

Please feel free to share far and wide!

[DeeCee]

Good luck with it.

[Leonard Venkhater]

9 minutes ago, DeeCee said:

Good luck with it.

I have met the playwright, Julian, a few times. A really good bloke, who worked in Blackburn for a while in his younger days. He has been a writer for Emmerdale, Eastenders, Byker Grove etc..He has won awards for a play too.

He really gets what happened to Rovers, but he wants to use the play to highlight the importance of all local clubs and their vulnerability to ownership issues....not to mention the useless FA etc.

Even if Rovers somehow got to the premier league with Tony, we should still support this.

The donation button is on the 2nd link above.

[DE.]

It's caught at least one former employee's attention...

[perthblue02]

Can see this being a non starter once the spiv and his buddies at the FA get wind of it.

[Leonard Venkhater]

Good to see FC United fans supporting this project.

A few were wondering why there has not been more fuss about how Rovers have been reduced.

They had a collection for the play in their pre -match entertainment session before their home defeat to Nuneaton.

I hope some BRFCS posters feel able to support this too.

 

https://www.roverstrust.com/2019/01/17/heart-scarf-soul-a-play-starring-a-blackburn-rovers-fan/

[Billinge End Blue]

I think this play is worth backing regardless of the current ups and downs at Ewood. It is not precious or self indulgent / self pitying to still feel strongly about what's happened to Rovers over the best (worst!?) part of the last decade. The fact that the issues and lack of oversight have impacted several clubs as well as ours only highlights the scale of the problem for football.

This play is a great way of keeping a focus on something that it is all too tempting and easy to just ignore and hope, even believe, has gone away.

I hope the play is successful and achieves its aims.

Professional Football is less a sport and more of a business than ever. Those who have taken and continue to take advantage of the opportunities this presents to the detriment of the clubs, and the complacent authorities who have allowed it, need to always be looking over their shoulder. They must not think for one moment that even though they've swept the mismanagement under the carpet that it has been forgotten or forgiven.

Good luck with it.

BR, BRF, BRFC OK

[Leonard Venkhater]

God only knows how fans of Wimbledon must feel!

Our tale may not be the worst, but it is bad enough. You only have to scroll back through this message board to see the distress and anxiety.

Just to think that 10 years ago none of us had ever heard of Venky's, Pune or Steve Kean. Some of us would be vaguely aware of the Barnet spiv for his "activities" at Man City.

Rovers fans do not have a sense of entitlement. We do understand the swings and roundabouts and the ordinary ups and downs of football, but no group of supporters should have to endure what happened here....but....coming to a club near you etc.

[Miller11]

There seems to be an acceptance, sometimes more grudging than others, that Venky’s aren’t going anywhere soon. I’m asked on an almost weekly basis ‘but what can we do?’...

Well, you can get behind this. 

The more innovative and creative ways there are to keep the message alive the better in my eyes. And aside from that it should be entertaining!