What are we ?

Are we not football fans like any other hoping we can do to them what they want to us?..

The younger generation my not have seen what we have, but they will have learnt how a team should be supported, that's if they've not stumbled onto a team that has them funny named supporters because they have a bit off luck and someone with money to pump a bit of life into them!..

Whats their name?....."glory hunters?" or something stupid like that!.

We'll have people that will have learnt that the lower leagues have fans that are exactly that!.

But if we get back with the glory hunters then I'd say a few years and most will have forgotten that eh?.

Once Bates goes and someone comes in that know's how to treat customers things will change. Everything this club has done since Bates took over is cheap and nasty the man has no style whatsoever, he is a barrow boy whose business ways will never change. He makes shight loads of money by treating people like shight.

I think you;re perspective on being a Leeds fan depends on how old you are.

Some are lucky enough to have seen the Revie side in all their pomp and some even older fans know the lean times that came before that.

Then you have a generation who just missed out on seeing Revie side in the flesh and had the 2nd div years before redemption via Wilko.

Then a generation only knew Leeds from Wilko onwards etc etc and now we'll have fans who have only ever really known from 2003 and downwards.

Each set will see it quite differently.

I feel privileged to have the heritage we do, the stories we do and a team that even today fans of other clubs can reel off the names of that great Revie side.

However, that is starting to be forgotten, I spoke to someone the other day and asked him to name great Leeds players and he came up with Alan Smith and Eirik Bakke....

Doc/Stevie/lufcGermany/ KevT:
I didn't realise 606 was for our combined ages.

A lost generation of Leeds fans because of high ticket prices. These kids only see a match on telly and buy premiership club shirts. Some are lucky enough to have parents who have struggled to take them to ER, but as gates fall which Bates will say is down to the economy, its another lie. If it was the economy why do we still have 8,000 fans who travel, and most of them refuse to go to ER because they won't give Bates more cash. So they spend their time still following the club they love, and have a great time with the best travelling fans in the league. Leeds Utd always had a high profile in schools and were forever visiting, even if it was just coaches, development staff, medical staff etc. School team players were given concesions to get to matches, kids prices etc. The only thing schools see now are the youth development staff from Man City who were all working for Leeds before they were sacked. Man City knew how good they were and now our good kids go over the pennines. Shambles from start to finish.

Bakke was a great player!

Doc/Jonty: Spot on. We need to start getting into schools again involving kids and families to come back to ER. We need bums on seat. When I used to take my kids I'd spend a bomb in the club shop and in the ground. Not any more I buy sweats, drinks outside
the ground and bye pass the club shop. All because I feel robbed for paying such high ticket prices in the first place.
When we go in the ground supporters are like zombies all walking to their seats no smiling no singing, not even complaining. When you talk to supporters they say its what we do, we don't drink, we don't smoke we've always had season tickets. Can you imagine what the atmosphere would be like with a change of customer practice. For a start off give stewards and counter staff charm lessons teach them how to smile at the customers, a pleasant comment when entering and leaving the ground wouldn't go amiss having a joke with fans. It just standard low grade customer care. Players interacting with supporters. Tom Kerwin looks like he's presenting Stalin TV even though the damned programmes are
pre-recorded. No personality no pizazz. Come on Leeds United lets start looking a bit more professionally. The hole place is demoralised.
Make supporting our team fun again. It's up to the club to raise the spirits of the fans not the other way around.

Cozer,Both my sons and my daughter are Leeds fans.Then I have grandchildren,that are Leeds fans.I'm sure all of you have family and mates that are Leeds fans.All that is required is someone to take hold of this great club of ours,and get the Passion,Desire,and Energy that Leeds fans have.And the fans will flood back.Bates does not have any emotion for our club, except for his own ego and pocket. But I do believe it will change.MOT.

KevT: Spoke like a true fan
I'm sure we have much better times ahead.

Cozer - great post. That's what I meant when I wished we had a chairman like Wigan's. Or like Delia at Norwich. Not that I want us to become a tinpot club who play goal music etc but how nice it would be to feel valued again by owners who really care both about the team and the supporters.

And that's the whole thing Gary wanted to get across about fans United - no matter how much certain loons on this fooking forum have agendas against him.