Chris King on the refund that came in the form of vouchers, and the Premiership fixture list with a sting in the tail.
Queens Park Rangers supporters have, quite rightly, been stuck in a state of suspended optimism recently, barely flinching as opportunities were missed against Newcastle United and Aston Villa, and turning a blind eye to the horrendous defeat away to Fulham.
Tony Fernandes’ arrival and the return of Amit Bhatia have seen the reputation of the board soar to new, unparalleled heights which is entirely understandable given the egregious reputations and shocking mismanagement of previous regimes.
Fans are rightly excited as well, that players such as Joey Barton, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Luke Young and Armand Traore are wearing the blue and white hoops, drastically increasing the club’s hopes of staying in the Premier League.
However, in a sudden twist on the manner in which supporters were so willing to speak out against the Briatore and Ecclestone reign of terror, Rangers fans seem to have renounced their right to protest, and are ignoring one or two facts in the face of blind optimism which is yet to be properly justified by performances on the pitch.
The recent ‘refund’ issued to QPR season ticket holders, who were unarguably ripped off by the previous owners, is a case in point. This ought to have provoked outrage, but instead it has been greeted by silence, or at the most stifled mutterings.
Amidst all the grand promises, and Fernandes’ attempts to atone for the errors and sinful exploitation of the supporters which characterised Gianni Paladini, Briatore and Ecclestone’s time in charge, the failure of any actual refund to emerge has gone almost entirely under the radar.
Supporters are being given a choice, admittedly, and the owners had no obligation whatsoever to offer any refund to those who shelled out upwards of £750 to watch their team. However, if you promise a refund, then a refund you must offer, not a slightly dodgy deal whereby no money actually returns to the fans’ pockets, already perilously empty.
Some will be delighted to know that they have the choice to spend £50 on an away trip, many of which are hugely appealing given the R’s Premier League status, or merchandise from the club shop – particularly replica shirts – which are finally ready after the shocking summer delays to securing shirt sponsorship.
Personally, however, this gesture is easy to see through, and supporters still willing to acknowledge that the new regime isn’t infallible will point out that Fernandes and Bhatia have, at the very least, unintentionally misled fans with their promise of a rebate. Also, the fact that the refund must be put to use this year, not at any point during this season, smacks of promising the earth and producing an area roughly the size of Milton Keynes.
The options of supporters are deliberately being limited, and it seems that the underhand tactics of previous administrations at Loftus Road have returned to some extent, albeit in a far less extreme form than under Briatore, Ecclestone and Paladini. The most sensible option would have been to be upfront and honest with fans about exactly what sort of rebate they could expect to receive in financial terms, when they would be issued with this refund, and exactly the form it would take.
Instead, and this may be the fault of QPR diehards like myself who expected so much from this glorious new ownership structure, we have been misled and slightly let down, and probably should have taken Fernandes’ words with a pinch of salt. Offering money off next year’s season ticket would have also been eminently sensible, and is surely far more logical than what has been provided. This would ensure the extended loyalty of fans, particularly if the club were to suffer relegation, and would mean that the club still wouldn’t lose out on revenue.
In addition to this, the refunds are not scaled to the total cost of season tickets, meaning that those who paid the most are being given a similar ‘gift voucher’ to those who spent the least, which is tantamount to a tax rate which charges Simon Cowell and Jamie the paper boy the same amount per year.
I don’t deal in excessive pessimism, despite what certain visitors to this site might believe, and I am still of the opinion that we can stay up as there are teams in this league worse than the R’s. However, with QPR’s past two results a 6-0 defeat to Fulham and 1-1 draw with Blackburn Rovers, Neil Warnock’s side really haven’t taken advantage of two theoretically easy ties against teams that were both in the bottom three when we played them.
The final note of caution I will offer is this; with Chelsea and Manchester City to face at home, and away trips to in-form Tottenham Hotspur, Stoke City, where only a handful of sides secure victory, and Norwich City, long a bogey ground for Rangers, it would be optimistic indeed to expect any more than two or three points from a possible 15.
This isn’t, although most won’t believe me, what I’m hoping for in order to write negative, pessimistic articles and garner excessive criticism. If Warnock manages to keep the players positive and upbeat through this most difficult of runs, and we avoid any collapses in the manner of Fulham away, West Bromwich Albion on December 3 could well be our first victory of the season at home.
Anything before or indeed after then is a bonus, with Rangers facing trips to Liverpool and Manchester United after the Baggies’ visit to W12.
LoftforWords is constantly on the lookout for guest columnists. Be you a journalist (budding or long suffering) or just a supporter with a memory to recall or something to get off their chest about Rangers or football in general e-mail loftforwords@yahoo.co.uk.
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