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da casino： Newcastle United may have secured a 2-0 victory against Chelsea to alleviate their worries on the pitch, on Saturday, if so temporarily, but owner Mike Ashley has been walking a tightrope with the supporters for quite some time on Tyneside.
There have been several PR blunders, such as the renaming of St James’s Park to the Sports Direct Arena, the employment and re-employment of Joe Kinnear to name a few. These issues though are all swept under carpet when the fans decide to focus on matters on the pitch. A morale boosting victory such as the one against Chelsea has ensured fan unrest has taken gone onto the back burner when the team delivers. How much longer is this set to last?
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There has always been an undercurrent of discontent with the man in charge and some supporters have remained quietly confident they can force a change in ownership ever since the club was relegated in 2009. It is clear that so far though that no campaign to oust the Sports Direct owner has ever had enough clout to oust 53 year old from the club. Is this all set to change? Has Ashley created the catalyst to his very own downfall by banning certain media organisations access to Newcastle United?
It is a very dangerous step, for sure. There have been journalists from the Evening Chronicle, Journal and Sunday Sun banned, and now the NUST (Newcastle United Supporters Trust) also have been refused access to the club on an official basis.
On the face of it some people would argue that banning the press is a regular occurrence at football clubs. It is true that there are several incidents of this nature. Port Vale banning The Sentinel journalists access to the press box for the game against Gillingham is just another recent example. Ashley isn’t the only chairman to wage this war. Although under estimating the strength of feeling for the local press in the area has lit the blue touch paper, causing a blaze Ashley may not be able to put out.
The issue he has on his hands is that the active discontent at the current regime was limited to 500 people marching before the Liverpool home game. Ultimately people are still purchasing tickets to matches. There would be a section of the Newcastle United fans that may argue that those who chose to wave a Chronicle towards the directors box on Saturday made no impact. It is obvious though that no owner would like a threat to their control. Ashley’s reaction to the march still rumbles on. He has given those who participated exactly what they wanted. In trying to maintain control and gag those from speaking who threatened his power he has in turn weakened his own position.
The anti-ashley chants in the east corner of the Gallowgate are louder than ever before and the and hostility against the club’s owner may now continue to gather momentum.
The local press is always seen as a mouthpiece for the football club and in taking a stand against the media Ashley has risked alienating himself to a point of no return. The media are a channel for the supporters to feel like they are in touch with their club at all times.
This feeling is particularly strong in the North East. It may seem cliche to say Newcastle United supporters are extremely passionate, but it is true. In making such a rash call to ban the press Ashley has given the supporters reason to believe that he has finally lost touch with reality.
He reached that point before where in 2009 where he was on the verge of sale before deciding the ride out the storm of abuse.
In business you can afford to be ruthless and make clear cut calls, but diplomacy and empathy are essential in running a successful football club. Whilst he may have managed to turn things around then temporarily he can’t expect the supporters to keep forgiving each mistake he makes with very little explanation.
Even Alan Pardew admitted that his owner sometimes lashes out and doesn’t make the right decision, in his interview in the international break on Goals on Sunday, when he feels frustrated. It seems to be the case now that unless Ashley makes a u-turn in his battle against the press, which could turn ugly, he may just have set a chain of events in motion that could spiral out of his control, creating a realistic chance of his departure.
The Chronicle and the other banned press outlets won’t simply give up and let Ashley win, this will continue to turn bitter and ugly. In trying to censor opinion he is just encouraging the frustration at his ownership to grow. There has been a strength of feeling against the current ownership that has remained dormant for a few seasons but as the club continue to not invest enough resources on the pitch to help the club achieve it’s true potential, getting people on the anti Ashley bandwagon won’t prove difficult.
This open and heated battle will continue over the next few weeks and months and whilst Mike Ashley may seem to hold all the cards and have all the power at Newcastle United, he may just have opened a pandora’s box he can’t close.