The New RST

[maineflyer 0]

The Rangers Supporters Trust - remember them?

 

Weeks of blatant lies and deflection as one board member after another slunk into the sunset without the gall to speak the truth. Followed by the contrived appointment of a new half-Board one Sunday morning, much talk of militancy and action (I have it in writing) until Murray told them in no uncertain terms what they could or could not do if they wanted to continue smelling his glove.

 

And now after much further waiting, the New RST appears intent on being as silent and clueless as the last bunch of posers. Who in their right mind would waste a tenner of their money on the pointless RST? Is this the greatest lost opportunity in the world of Rangers?

[JMS 0]

The Rangers Supporters Trust - remember them?

 

Weeks of blatant lies and deflection as one board member after another slunk into the sunset without the gall to speak the truth. Followed by the contrived appointment of a new half-Board one Sunday morning, much talk of militancy and action (I have it in writing) until Murray told them in no uncertain terms what they could or could not do if they wanted to continue smelling his glove.

 

And now after much further waiting, the New RST appears intent on being as silent and clueless as the last bunch of posers. Who in their right mind would waste a tenner of their money on the pointless RST? Is this the greatest lost opportunity in the world of Rangers?

 

I have been a member since the start and find it hard to understand how they have fallen so quickly but then mabye they just don't have the balls

to stand up to murray.

 

As you say a waste of a tenner.

[Guest TheWorthyEd]

Easy to sit on the sidelines and bump yer' gums - far more difficult to get involved with the RST and see what you could do to improve the situation.

 

All of the Board of the RST are unpaid volunteers, so a little slack wouldn't go amiss.

 

I've been a member since the beginning and although there are some items I have an issue with, generally I'd say I'm happy with what the RST has achieved so far.

 

The truth is, they are the only group who are fighting for the good name of Rangers FC and its support - not something Murray or Bain could ever be accused of.

[Frankie 8,562]

 

And now after much further waiting, the New RST appears intent on being as silent and clueless as the last bunch of posers. Who in their right mind would waste a tenner of their money on the pointless RST? Is this the greatest lost opportunity in the world of Rangers?

 

Never been called a poser before... It's cut me to the quick!

 

For what it's worth, I think the work done in the 5 years so far has been reasonably good given the obvious apathetic nature of the vast majority of the Rangers support.

 

Getting innovative schemes such as GerSave off the ground took a huge amount of hard work and while the scheme certainly wasn't perfect initially (mainly with regard to the price), once the buy price was reduced the scheme remains one constructive and positive way for the fans to increase their say.

 

Add in the other good work such as combating the media issues and various 'political' stuff then you have a voluntary organisation who deserve a wee bit more credit for their achievements than more petty name-calling. There was a wee bit more than clueless posing going on I can assure you.

 

I also still strongly believe that having an elected supporter on the board of RFC would have been a good move not only for the supporters but for the club. Again, this may not have worked perfectly to start with but it was a step in the right direction and it would have been fascinating to see how it worked over the piece. A RST rep would have been the best way to progress this but I doubt that's going to happen any time soon.

 

Certainly with the recent problems I think the RST is now less likely to be successful but the continuing issues at the club suggest there is always a place for a strong Trust with clear aims. Unfortunately, despite recent promises from their senior office holders, it's difficult to tell what's happening in that regard as communication hasn't improved and has actually got much worse. I believe there have been no member emails, minimal website updates and the latest issue of the Blue Spirit is long overdue. Indeed, it seems the only way for members to have access to information is if you use another supposedly non-linked website. That's not a good start for the new board but I guess some things can take time to reorganise.

 

As someone who was a part of the 'old' board I definitely agree that opportunities have been lost via the Trust. Arguably not as much as the original poster claims but it remains to be seen what kind of future the organisation has. That of course is down to the members (existing or potential) to decide if they can influence it. It's always been the case that more people (members and non-members alike) offer non-constructive criticism as opposed to support. So it could be said they have contributed just as much to lost opportunities as the people they blame.

 

Anyway, it now seems the people who prefer a more militant strategy have another group to fill any perceived vacuum. Unfortunately, the questions surrounding this group also remain similarly unanswered. 'Silent', 'clueless', 'lies' or just 'posers'? I hope not but all fan groups should be doing more to improve representation for our supporters.

 

As it stands I don't think the Assembly, the Alliance/Association, the Trust or Reclaim Rangers offer a stand-alone opportunity for the fans. That's the sad thing here and that's what we should be looking to improve instead of slagging off honest people who have tried to achieve genuine, democratic supporters representation.

[elderslieblue 0]

Easy to sit on the sidelines and bump yer' gums - far more difficult to get involved with the RST and see what you could do to improve the situation.

 

All of the Board of the RST are unpaid volunteers, so a little slack wouldn't go amiss.

 

I've been a member since the beginning and although there are some items I have an issue with, generally I'd say I'm happy with what the RST has achieved so far.

 

The truth is, they are the only group who are fighting for the good name of Rangers FC and its support - not something Murray or Bain could ever be accused of.

 

You're wasting your time. The guy doesny like the RST, no matter what they do.

[johnnyk 158]

You're wasting your time. The guy doesny like the RST, no matter what they do.

 

 

He doesn't seem to like much about Rangers going by his posts

[calscot 0]

Yeah, I think if he finally says something positive about Rangers, I'll fall off my chair...

[maineflyer 0]

Yeah, I think if he finally says something positive about Rangers, I'll fall off my chair...

Watch yer backside when you land then. In the early days I felt so positive about the RST that I couldn't wait to pay my �£100 to become a life member. I really thought the board members had the chance to speak for the fans and against the slide that's plagued us since Advocaat left. Then nothing happened, except certain individuals pursuing personal glory instead of acting in the interests of their members. Frankie knows this is true. The only thing I'm aware of disagreeing with him on was the Gersave escapade. Some saw it as a means of achieving influence, I saw it as a ball and chain to make sure we could never act freely and independently.

 

I've never accused all RST board members of misrepresenting their responsibilities but enough of them did to render the exercise ineffective. BTW, it's not being negative to want something to work, or to point out when it doesn't. But that's only an opinion of course.

[Zappa 0]

I'll have all the time in the world for RST as soon as they stop making an arse of themselves & the club in the public arena aka press with their winging, whining & completely trumped up egos. Not that that applies to all of the board or all of the members for that matter, but there's surely ways of polishing ones ego that don't involve embarrassing RFC.

[maineflyer 0]

As someone who was a part of the 'old' board I definitely agree that opportunities have been lost via the Trust. Arguably not as much as the original poster claims but it remains to be seen what kind of future the organisation has. That of course is down to the members (existing or potential) to decide if they can influence it. It's always been the case that more people (members and non-members alike) offer non-constructive criticism as opposed to support. So it could be said they have contributed just as much to lost opportunities as the people they blame.

It must be selective memory Frankie. I was one of several RST members who volunteered suggestions to the Trust. When posted on the RST website these were generally ignored completely, leaving only that other chosen RST medium, the FF forum, as an option for communication. Of course, as you well know, in recent times even a mention of the RST on that forum invariably resulted in life bans. This happened to over forty long term FF members with more than 1000 posts, as well as many others. The RST removed itself from its membership, not he other way round. You also know that there is no way this is going to improve until and unless the Trust becomes a truly independent and democratic organisation. Or have I got it wrong?