Our safety 'mogul' has responded to my polite request for the rationale behind another kettling operation for Town fans...
here is his reponse -
Thank you for your email requesting information regarding the exit strategy to be put in place for the coming game against Leeds Utd. to be held at the John Smith’s Stadium on the 26th October.
Contrary to the common misconception, there is no 'Hold Back' against either sets of fans at this Stadium. Both are allowed to leave at any time. The purpose of the strategy, agreed jointly by KSDL, the West Yorkshire Police and Huddersfield Town Football Club, is to take reasonable steps to prevent disorder in the area of the Stadium coach park. The decision is made after taking several factors into consideration, however, I am not at liberty to discuss them in open forum. The discussion about this matter was not minuted but HTFC are shortly to publish the reasons for this decision in the local media.
We appreciate the need to provide information to the fans and as far as we are able to do so we will, however discussions surrounding intelligence and matters of policing and stewarding levels will not be revealed.
For as short a period as possible after the game ends, steps will be put in place to minimise the mixing of opposing sets of fans to reduce the potential for disorder and to facilitate as quick and safe an exit from the Stadium as possible by all fans. As some Huddersfield fans will be temporarily restricted from leaving via Stadium Way towards the Coach Park, likewise some Leeds Utd fans will be restricted from leaving along Stadium Way to the North end of the Stadium.
This has proved to be a successful tactic in the previous matches involving Leeds Utd. It is a tactic only used at this local derby.
The John Smiths Stadium is not designed to facilitate s 'hold back' of spectators inside the Stadium. I am unable to comment on why this does not happen at other stadia across the country.
Finally, can I reassure you that no one is trying to avoid accountability for this decision which has been taken jointly by the Police, the Club and KSDL with the best interests of the fans in mind.
Yours sincerely
John K Robinson
Safety Officer
Kirklees Stadium Development Ltd
The John Smith’s Stadium
Stadium Way
HUDDERSFIELD
HD1 6PG
Tel: 01484 484166
Safety.officers@ksdl.org.uk
Letter from John Robinson
posted on 13/10/13
Comment Deleted by Site Moderator
posted on 13/10/13
3 times acutely
posted on 13/10/13
Acutely too
posted on 13/10/13
Champers,
As long as they don't spend most of the game waving their hands and jumping up and down like their old man does, then they should be perfectly safe.
And oh LV69, stop f-cking moaning.
posted on 13/10/13
You got your wires crossed Mirf...I was quoting something Loui had said
I still suspect that Loui is Dean Hoyle on the wind up....
posted on 13/10/13
Mirf...I think you've missed the point (again)..
It's not so much about the kettling operation we have..despite the Police trying to say it isn't kettling...it's the blase' way in which it is announced not by KSDL, HTSA or WYPolice, but slipped into an article on ticket prices for the Leeds game.
There was no consultation, HTSA have made no comment and Town have made no comment..so the point is...This communicative club Dean Hoyle keeps telling us about...the one that listens to it's fans...that cares...you know...in actual fact they don't give a ferkin sheet about us.
Why don't they just admit it, and stop taking the peas...?
Hypocrites comes to mind...or worse, deluded.
It's the message this gives out..Now if you don't care one way or the other, fine...but personally I feel insulted to hear all this 'I am the BIG communicator' sheet...when in fact it's just so much kaka..
posted on 13/10/13
I find it amazing they can't answer a simple question about the safety certificate.
posted on 13/10/13
The only thing that i don't like about Dean , is his lack of ambition. He's happy to stick around the mid table of the championship for ever. No ambitious to reach the premier league at wall. He seems to talk the club down . Like saying we can't compete with the big boys in this league . Balaks to that i say. Look at Blackpool and Bradford Burnley Hull . There know bigger than us and all have been in the premier league recently.
posted on 13/10/13
I think Deano is still suffering from the t-shirts at Old Trafford fiasco...
To be honest I don't mind him talking it down a bit..it's not bound to be the truth anyway...but you wouldn't broadcast your intentions would you...
I also think as fans we have to realise that Deano's target of above mid table would be a sound achievement after last year. Having said that, we still have a long way to go..and by the time November comes round we could be in familiar territory ...
Thankfully Norwood and Paterson can now concentrate on getting stuck in for Town instead of saving themselves for that N Ireland World Cup rubbish..
Too many players are still hit and miss for me and without putting the mockers on for the Leicester game, we seem to have tightened up our leaky defence..
posted on 13/10/13
I think Dean is being totally realistic and honest when he says town are a selling club, and that the Championship is our level at this current time in our development.
Lets be honest, if we persist in selling our best players to balance the books then it will take an huge slice of luck, which Blackpool and other clubs had to reach the Premiership.
Town will never attract much more than 16,000/18000 fans now or in the future, no matter which league we are in and this is no where adequate to run a Premiership club, unless you are prepared to gamble and run up massive debts.
Being a successful businessman Deano fully understands the old adage that you cannot spend more than you earn, and their are plenty of examples of clubs who did, when you look at the current fortunes of such as Blackburn, Leeds, Wolves, Pompey, Sheffield United and others.
There will always be the odd club like Blackpool who spent little but still managed to reach the promised land and who is to say that Town couldn't follow them, although being realistic I reckon the Championship is our limit, unless of course we stop selling our best players and are prepared to gamble on our future and borrow more than we can afford. The only other option is to find a rich Sheik with more brass than sense, who can afford to bankroll us and write off any losses.
Too many clubs have already sacrificed their futures by chasing the Premiership dream, and I am fully behind Deano's current vision of building a club which is fully sustainable.