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Ashley and Mort in touch with the fans by Craig Doyle

There has been a huge improvement in the relationship between Newcastle and it's supporters since big bad Freddie left. We look here at the innovative things that have happened for the benefit of the fans

Discuss on our fans forum.

Saturday’s derby fixture was one of those events that will long in the memory. It was one of those days where the bar was raised in terms of atmosphere and every supporter contributed to creating a wall of noise that built a unique backing for the team. While each supporter deserves applauding for upping their support of the team, I think a lot of credit should also be directed towards the club and new board in particular. In fact, Saturday’s events really got me thinking about the relationship between the club and the fans and the ways it has developed since Ashley replaced Shepherd at the helm.

I think the most obvious improvement that Ashley has implemented is that the club now gives back to the supporters. The only time Shepherd gave anything back was when he arranged the free scarf give away before the Portsmouth game last season. While it created fantastic scarf twirling scenes pre-match and further shenanigans upon scoring, the idea never really lifted off and the number of scarf carriers dwindled. Being honest, the idea wasn’t something fresh either. The club has previously given away scarves at the Alan Shearer testimonial and the whole scarf twirling thing started up somewhere in the crowd during the game. Shepherd caught on, considered it a unique atmosphere for an English ground and decided to ‘fork out’ to try and replicate it. While some may feel that Shepherd deserves a little praise for trying, it should be noted that the very same season the £10 discount voucher for the club shop was absent from the season ticket package at the start of the season. Perhaps that £10 went towards producing all those scarves that likely cost £5 in the club shop and significantly less to produce? Can anyone, remember anything else that was given out pre Ashley? I certainly can’t and despite nonsense statements attempting to place the idea into the heads of our supporters that Shepherd loved the club and if he wasn’t chairman he’d be a fan like everyone else sitting in the ground at each home match, there is sufficient evidence to show he had no intention of building a relationship with the supporters. A quick reminder of the prostitutes, Geordie women are dogs and our fans are mugs incident says it all really.

When Ashley arrived, he was an even more disconnected character than Shepherd. Nobody knew much about him, only that he had a lot of money and didn’t like any media attention. Every profile on the man suggested a reclusive character that preferred jeans over a suit and was happy to stay hidden away in his mansion where he couldn’t be photographed. My instant worry was that he didn’t have the social skills required to run a football club, let alone a Premiership side with a massive following that hangs on the every action taking place at SJP.

The biggest shock from my perspective has been Ashley’s role at the football club. While he is the financial backer, he doesn’t actually have a day to day position. Instead his decision to employ his own chairman to look after the club has allowed him to steer clear of having to operate the business on a personal level. While Shepherd claimed he’d be a fan, Ashley is a fan. While not the lifelong supporter that Fred claims himself to be, Ashley does turn up with his replica shirt on and seems passionate about winning. Not being a media face seems to have landed him an advantage when it comes to connecting with general public. His boldest manoeuvre in doing so was to decline Niall Quinn’s invitation to sit in the corporate seats at the Stadium of Light for the first derby of the season. Quinn said he had no issue with Ashley wearing his Newcastle shirt in the executive area which enforces a strict policy of smart dress. Ashley’s choosing to sit with the away fans caused massive uproar in the media, but ultimately showed he is a down to earth regular guy who wants to attend a football match to enjoy the game and the atmosphere. The most surprising thing of all to come from that day was that Ashley really was standing in the away end. He wasn’t segregated off or surrounded by a police line. He did have a couple of ‘heavies’ either side of him but he was standing, enjoying the football amongst the other supporters. At half time he walked down to the concourse and interacted with the fans. Perhaps he was slyly gathering intelligence for future business decisions? However it seems he was just trying to reach out and connect to the fanbase, in the hope of being accepted fully. The away game at Sunderland wasn’t a forced gesture from Ashley either. Suggestions of a reclusive personality have been cast aside after regular appearances in amongst Newcastle’s away support all season.

But what has Ashley given to the fans? Well the first gesture was the free pint or hot/cold drink for supporters turning up at the ground before a certain time. I’m not sure this scheme is still running but it did go on for a good few games early in the season. The idea obviously being that giving away one free drink with plenty of time before the match kicks off could entice supporters up to the ground where they can’t leave after going through the turnstiles. Those that buy a pint may fancy another few before kick off and would have to get them from one of the bars under the stands on the concourse. Everybody’s a winner. The supporter gets a free drink; Ashley sells more drink than normal. I think this offer has expired though as Ashley is currently ‘on tour’ visiting local boozers and mingling with more supporters before home matches.

Another way in which Ashley is connecting with the club is through Chris Mort. Mort has reportedly met with various groups and publications at times this season not just to reassure them off the plans Ashley has for the club but to listen to ideas that the fans have for strengthening the links between club and supporter. Mort will have been able to get a general feeling of the issues that concern supporters from these meetings and take them to Ashley. Whether a product of the meetings or not, the special rate half season tickets that appeared around Christmas offer fantastic value for money. The most impressive feature was the heavily reduced kids’ ticket prices. £5 per match for primary school bairns and £10 for those at secondary school. Also included were student price tickets at a discounted rate that offered value for money. The reasoning behind such deals was the poor attendance figures with the lack of draw coming from Allardyce’s brand of football. Matches weren’t selling out and getting backsides on seats at any price is better than grey seats lying empty, generating no income. Ashley obvious has a good head for business and slashing seat prices with the condition of commitment for the final ten home games of the season is a clever way to ensure at least some income from could easily have been vacant seats against the likes of Blackburn, Fulham, Boro and Reading.

While it is clear that Ashley is no mug and any ‘gift’ to the fans will have benefits for the club, he seems well aware of the need to strike the right balance. Another fantastic example was offering up free cup tickets to all home cup ties during this season and next, in return for supporters starting to pay for next year’s season ticket before Christmas. Ashley required a little extra funding to offset against the club’s debt and collecting in the cash as soon as possible gave him a way to tackle the issue without dipping into his own pockets again. We had two cup clashes at home this season, which represents a saving of around £40 for the supporter. I personally didn’t take advantage of the cup scheme as I’m situated far enough away that it makes midweek travel challenging. However, anyone who did will certainly not be complaining as Keegan returned prior to the free Stoke match where we won 4-1. Another masterstroke in building a relationship with the supporters that balances well with running the club as a business.

Those who attend matches or have been watching on TV with a keen eye will also note that the Newcastle United surfer is unfurled in the SE (Strawberry) Corner before every home game. It passes above my head and along the East Stand as the players arrive on the field. The huge flag may seem like a pointless charade to some but it looks fantastic on TV and does a little bit to boost morale and show unity as the fans pass it between each before kick off.

The derby match itself showed how well connected the current board are with the supporters. The black and white cards that were held up before the match, work in a similar way to the surfer. They look good on TV and send out a message of unity to viewers. Even better was the introduction of the opera singer belting out the Blaydon Races as he walked the length of the park wearing a replica shirt and carrying a NUFC flag. It was almost the equivalent of inviting someone along to sing the national anthem prior the start of an international match. I was hugely impressed by the club demonstrating the knowledge and courage to put on that sort of entertainment as a method of building the noise inside the ground. It should be seen as a stark contrast to Shepherd’s attempt with the Geordie Dancer who did his best to leave us all red faced in front of the nation once again.

While many of Ashley’s attempts are aimed at the paying customer which is the adult audience, he hasn’t been shy in putting on displays for the kids either. Club mascots, Monty and Maggy Magpie, have reappeared this season. Despite being a cringe worthy sight to most watching adults, they do their job in entertaining the kids during the break. Adding to the list of things that make grown supporters wince are the half time activities. While the half time Geordie Jackpot draw continues, there is the addition of the ‘crossbar challenge’, which takes a leaf straight out of the Soccer AM book, but has offered decent cash prizes and even a car for anyone who succeeds. The most important element is that so far it has primarily been bairns who have been involved and it offers them a fragment of a dream, letting them have a kick of the ball in front of a massive crowd at St James’ Park.

The board have also maximised the potential of Shearer’s Bar and the Bamburgh Suite. Mort has held several Q&A nights with the general public being invited along to question the chairman or members of the squad. Other evenings have offered more fun filled nights with ex players or current squad members taking part in all sorts of proceedings alongside the regular joes off the street. It seems the new board are more aware of the facilities available to them and how to use them as a platform to connect with the public.

Reports from the club and other sources also suggest a complete revamp of the ‘football in the community’ programme, hinting at improved relations between the club and the local area. I’m curious to see these plans put into action and the links with the local area strengthened further.

I really feel that since Ashley has arrived the club has started to take notice of it’s massive following. Being a businessman Ashley must surely have realised the potential of tapping into such a big support and quickly have come to the realisation that by using his own social skills and integrating himself with the public that he could not just make a profit but also enjoy himself, while giving a little back to the loyal support of the club.

Discuss in our fans forum.