Attention: Please take a moment to consider our terms and conditions before posting.

#TaxiForRoland: CARD launches three-day birthday trip to Belgium (Nov 2016)

11314151618

Comments

  • Shouldn't he have said 'my friend and stooge Bruno Venanzi' or have I got that wrong?
  • For those that went,would you say we are twisting his arm on a similar level to that of the Standard Liege fans?

    Just wondered if you got any insight as to what tipped him over the edge then?

    Thats on the agenda for my meeting with the Standard Socios in Liege on Sunday evening. And not just what tipped him over the edge, but how he looked to get his money back and where it went. We are working with them in trying to understand the Staprix accounts. Thanks to @The Red Robin for the reminder about third party ownership, that will be on the agenda too.

    We all want him out, but we have to be prepared for it to be financially ugly.
    Yes, teh battle has to be on every front.
  • For those that went,would you say we are twisting his arm on a similar level to that of the Standard Liege fans?

    Just wondered if you got any insight as to what tipped him over the edge then?

    Thats on the agenda for my meeting with the Standard Socios in Liege on Sunday evening. And not just what tipped him over the edge, but how he looked to get his money back and where it went. We are working with them in trying to understand the Staprix accounts. Thanks to @The Red Robin for the reminder about third party ownership, that will be on the agenda too.

    We all want him out, but we have to be prepared for it to be financially ugly.
    I think the third party ownership route is an intriguing one with Duchatelet. It can't just be that one player.
  • Shouldn't he have said 'my friend and stooge Bruno Venanzi' or have I got that wrong?

    It's a good question - weren't there suspicions that it wasn't a genuine sale just something to get the fans off his back?
  • Sponsored links:


  • Well said, Grandad.
  • Shouldn't he have said 'my friend and stooge Bruno Venanzi' or have I got that wrong?

    It's a good question - weren't there suspicions that it wasn't a genuine sale just something to get the fans off his back?
    There were, and also a modified version which says that Venanzi didn't have the money to pay RD so RD agreed deferred payments (at a suitable rate of interest, doubtless). It seems true that Venanzi has had to button regarding RD after some initial outburst when he first inspected the books, and this may be the reason.

    All that said, the Socios seem convinced they have got shot of him and that Standard is in a much better place as a club. They are away on Sunday, unfortunately, (I would love to see a game there) but they are live on TV against Mechelen at 6, which we will watch before dinner and discussion. I hope I'll have the definitive answers, although the Staprix accounts (which the Trust has) do not give much detail away.

  • Thanks @Chris_from_Sidcup I didn't realise it had already been posted, apologies for the duplication everyone!!
  • Shouldn't he have said 'my friend and stooge Bruno Venanzi' or have I got that wrong?

    Exactly, he could sell us to one of his mates ha ha mates what was I thinking of ...one of his business aquaintances
  • Badger said:

    One of the many local people who came and spoke with us in the square, he was sympathetic and wished us luck.


    @Badger what's the chances this fella's been missing for two days?
  • Sponsored links:


  • Anecdote:

    I was at a lock in in a bar in St Truiden at about 3:30 am.

    People dancing on tables etc, really loud party atmosphere.

    I sat down for just two minutes to reply to some texts and then the music cut out.

    I looked up to where the barman had his laptop for the music, and he was staring at me.

    Then he pressed play and probably the most surreal thing that has ever happened to me occurred.

    The music that came out of the speakers included tunes such as "Wanky, wanky, wanky Millwall", "Build a bonfire, put the Palace on the top", "You dirty northern bastards", "the Orient Family" and "VFR".

    Where they found this, I have no idea - the locals were loving it.

    I was so drunk I could hardly work out what was happening and it wasn't until the next day that I realised how funny it was.

    Presumably this?
    https://open.spotify.com/album/1iNauPVYV2MeWvdSDoZmcG

    Great story though!
  • Anecdote:

    I was at a lock in in a bar in St Truiden at about 3:30 am.

    People dancing on tables etc, really loud party atmosphere.

    I sat down for just two minutes to reply to some texts and then the music cut out.

    I looked up to where the barman had his laptop for the music, and he was staring at me.

    Then he pressed play and probably the most surreal thing that has ever happened to me occurred.

    The music that came out of the speakers included tunes such as "Wanky, wanky, wanky Millwall", "Build a bonfire, put the Palace on the top", "You dirty northern bastards", "the Orient Family" and "VFR".

    Where they found this, I have no idea - the locals were loving it.

    I was so drunk I could hardly work out what was happening and it wasn't until the next day that I realised how funny it was.

    Presumably this?
    https://open.spotify.com/album/1iNauPVYV2MeWvdSDoZmcG

    Great story though!
    Ha, yep - that'll be the one.

    I remember the Andy Hunt song, too.
  • edited November 2016
    Just seen the video of banner outside restaurant with Roland looking uncomfortable. Why on earth didn't anyone go in and have a rant at the. I could not have resisted telling him to Sell our Club, Sack Liar and that he was an utter failure at Charlton and Politics. Blimey missed opportunity or what !
  • If the poor fellow cant even go out and enjoy a nice family meal out then i think this time cards overstepped the mark invading his personal space !!
    Ha good hes ruined our lives enough
  • I've never understood why certain people crave wealth & power, particularly in their latter years, but they do.

    Presumably, it's what they are, it's what validates them.
  • seth plum said:

    I have tried to reflect on this excursion and simplify a pretty fulsome experience to things that might inform the situation we find ourselves in.

    It is a given that the taxi group followed the 2percent group, and that everybody in both groups was trying their best to influence things for the betterment of Charlton Athletic. And from my own experience those in the taxi group were to a man and woman totally dedicated to 'the cause' first and foremost, they were an awesome bunch.

    So what are my first hand impressions?

    One part of the mood music I experienced in St Truiden itself, and I must have interacted with about 50 local people in the street, the bat, the taxi and the hotel is that Roland is all about money...this was stated absolutely consistently.

    However there was also a conundrum in that Roland was also seen as scrooge like. Both with his ownership of St Truiden, but in personal ways like driving an old banger, or not buying decent clothes. So the question remained well what does he want the money for?

    One theory is that nobody understands, he is unfathomable, and probably a rich nutcase.

    However two angles were put to me. One was that his wife is a pretty well known and influential figure around the place, information that people volunteered and that I didn't need to deduce. Maybe one answer as to why Roland is so acquisitive is the influence of Mrs Duchatelet in all this, maybe it isn't just about what he want's but also somehow what she wants.

    The other angle was put to me by a Belgian man in a cafe. This guy interrupted proceedings and insisted on buying a group of us coffees. He was an ex-footballer but had spent most of his life as a school sports teacher. The money he suggested was simply about having power for the sake of power, that control is seductive and compelling to Mr Duchatelet.

    I will leave it to others to decide if those impressions can help focus on how to unseat Mr Duchatelet.

    Another major impression I certainly felt was the sheer influence and presence Mr Duchatelet has there.

    Very friendly police visited us in the square twice. Firstly to suss out what was going on, and then they shortly returned and actually asked 'when are you going to deliver the presents to Mr Duchatelet'. We said in about ten minutes. The people at the stadium were certainly prepared for our arrival

    I was in the second vehicle to arrive at the stadium (the taxi) and it was quite a full on experience which would take too long to cover completely.

    However some things are true in terms of my first hand experiences and what i made of them. The people working in the vicinity of the ground were on edge. The wanted to control the space, suggesting nearly everywhere was private property (the pavement even), we couldn't park, the police were on their way, the hotel was full, we should go. This was expressed in the clumsy context of pathetic attempts to deceive, pretend filming to identify us and especially lies. The bloke I had most to do with was cool about accepting he was frequently lying. I felt pretty annoyed by him.

    However in my encounters with him he said everybody was happy with Duchatelet in St Truiden, and denied with a 'no no no' that Duchatelet hated us, but offered the opinion that the problems were created by the players not Mr Duchatelet. He (like others back in town) was aware of Thomas Dreisen too. When I said to him it wasn't going to stop (the protests) and that we would be back, and keep it all up, he seemed a bit annoyed about that.

    I suppose all this adds up to a sense of scurrying reaction from some Duchatelet loyal locals, and meant they were fully aware we were around and they didn't like it.

    This sense was mirrored the next morning at Melexis when two employees came out to debate the degree to which Mr Duchatelet was involved with the company (a lot of half truths here, and equivocation), but they really didn't like us pitching up and wanted us gone. They were very exercised in trying to persuade us how distant Mr Duchatelet was from their company.

    Being out there I only have a vague idea of how it was impacting in a wider sense, but seeing immediate coverage in the Belgian media suggested to me that things we were doing were thought to be newsworthy.

    As I say this is part of the story told from the perspective of one of the people who went, but I have tried to make it similar to a reportage and will leave it to others to extrapolate what they will from it.


    Thank you Seth.

    Very informative. Brilliant work by the way.
Sign In or Register to comment.

Roland Out Forever!