|
Welcome to the home of the Margate Independent Supporters Association..
From here you can find out about our forthcoming events and how to join MISA.
To join the Blue Gate Lottery and for further information view the application form here.
Current News / Event Info:
|
MISA ‘200 Club’
|
For £12 for a year you will be entered into twelve monthly draws. 50% of all monies collected from participants will be returned as prizes. The balance will be donated to Margate F.C. Application forms are being handed out at all home matches until the end of December with the first draw planned for January 2008. Alternatively you can obtain a form by ringing Keith Lewis who will be happy to send you one.
There is also a Quiz to be held of Friday 7th December at the British Legion Club starting at 7.30 p.m. Cost only £3 per head to include food.
A relaxed, fun evening for all to enjoy. To book a table ring Keith Lewis on 01843 226963.
Both the above are MISA fundraisers as we, the supporters, continue to do our best to help our football club. |
|
|
|
MISA article - Boreham Wood game
|
I’m not sure how much we learned, if anything, from the last home game regarding the vexing problems of falling gates and ‘atmosphere’. Certainly it was more than pleasing to see the bodies streaming through the turnstiles, a reversal of the recent trend, as the second highest gate of the season was recorded, incidentally the number being larger than two attendances in the Blue Square Premier. However on a cautionary note it may well be the amber clad figures, having made their way to Hartsdown from Maidstone for the first time in nigh on thirty years, made up 50% if not more of the crowd. If so the win over Harrow Borough had had no effect. The club had introduced pre-match entertainment and should be applauded for doing so. Pertinently as the game unfolded no-one could deny, particularly in the second-half, that home fans were outsung, outshouted, swamped by the vocal encouragement afforded to the away team. As to the game neutrals, as noted in various reports, were enthralled, five star entertainment awarded by the Non-League Paper. And here lies the rub! Do we want to see end to end action, leaky defences looking likely to be breached from every attack? ‘Yes’ I hear you say. ‘No’ I hear you say. Thus the debate on what attracts punters through the gates is destined to rage on. As the Stones followers filtered out of the ground they must have been puzzling how their team had risen to sixth in the table with a goal difference of minus 15! Similarly perplexed would have been the Gate fans contemplating the next trip, to Billericay, the Essex side having slipped into the bottom three with a goal difference of plus 3! It’s a funny old league this Ryman Premier!
A survey reported in the NLP highlighted the falling attendances in nineteen of the twenty-six divisions from the Blue Square Premier down to Step 5 without attempting to address the question ‘why?’. If only we knew! In contrast to the general depression the story of Bradford City from League 2 makes for interesting reading. Their gates are up 50% this season, that is a head count of about 7,000, despite the fact that they are languishing in the bottom third of the table. The reason: season tickets were offered at £6 per match before the season commenced and the response was spectacular. The loss of entrance fee income, if indeed any, has been more than matched by the increased sales of food, drink, programmes, etc. Something to think about?
Bob Harrop’s funeral was attended by hundreds at Margate crematorium whilst a line of supporters stood beneath the match details board, which portrayed his name, as the funeral procession passed Hartsdown Park. A fitting tribute to a lovely man.
The race night was an abject failure. Financially it was as rewarding as having a punt on England last Wednesday! Apologies to anyone who was inconvenienced. Never mind; onwards and upwards! The quiz will go ahead on Friday 7th December at the British Legion Club the cost being £3 per head with food included. Please book with a committee member at the ground or by ringing me, Keith Lewis, on 01843 226963. There will be a different quizmaster trying to keep control; it should be a fun night judging by previous contests. Further quizzes are being planned back at ‘The Hartsdown’ but on this occasion there was a clash of dates. Hopefully you are not put off by the piece of paper constantly thrust in your face as you enter the ground, this being the form to join the MISA ‘200 Club’. This is a way of having a gamble, with monthly prizes throughout next year, as well as helping MFC financially with 50% of the monies collected going to the club. Please spare a moment to read the sheet and consider joining. Your involvement is very much appreciated.
It may be cold, it may be damp, after all it is November and the numbers around the ground may consequently have shrunk. For the true ‘Blues’ who have ventured out a big thankyou and a plea for you all to make twice as much noise as you normally do. Enjoy the game.
|
|
|
|
MISA programme notes from Maidstone match
|
The untimely death of Bob Harrop will sadden many, many football folk not just in Margate but across east Kent and much, much further afield. Here was a true Margate F.C. giant his 563 starts in a blue shirt only telling part of the story of his love affair with our club. As one of the fresh-faced youngsters at Hartsdown in the 1960s following what seemed to be unrivalled success at the time, particularly in cup competitions, I perceived that Bob stood out as the perfect leader of a fine team, a more than able lieutenant Almer Hall could rely on. Much will be written elsewhere, whilst Bob’s career details may be found on Jeff Trice’s history site, so I shall add just two stories. I was able to pass to Bob a piece of football memorabilia that came into my possession, this being a printed copy of the autographs of the ‘Busby Babes’ which included that of Bob. I trust he was pleased to have a keepsake which reminded him of his former playing colleagues, many of whom had died so tragically in the Munich disaster of 1958. As a referee Bob was respected. After one match, as players engaged in banter with the man in black in the communal showers, my brother-in-law turned to him and said “Bob, don’t you think that you weren’t cut out to be a ref?” Bob responded succinctly. “Well” he said “you may be right, Smeths. But don’t you think you weren’t cut out to be a footballer?” Volumes of memories; Bob, you will be missed deeply. Our thoughts at this time are with his family.
There has been some debate in recent weeks about the lack of atmosphere at the ground. Indeed it came as a shock last Saturday to find that no fewer than five other Ryman Premier matches attracted more customers than attended Hartsdown surely something that hasn’t happened before. To me there is a simple relationship to numbers attending and the noise created, sounds blatantly obvious, with the amount of sound being made contributing to ‘atmosphere’. Not as the dictionary sees it, but no matter. I don’t have the answer but I would like to see smiley faces and more of them. Amidst all the discussion it was a relief to find that the terraces haven’t entirely lost their sense of humour with one wag, that’s the joker definition not an England international’s partner! , concluding that the improvement last week was due to the 150 who had stayed away being the quiet ones! Priceless!
So Tottenham’s new saviour, Juande Ramos, believes that midfielder Tom Huddlestone is overweight, carrying a bit of a paunch, porky even. Sadly it seems that barrel-chested, thunder thighs and Benny Hill’s alter ego Hugh Jars are out! I guess we won’t be seeing the likes of that Russian team who turned up for a friendly a decade or so again! In these days of perfectly honed figures produced from a combination of training and diet we may soon be watching the male equivalents of Kate Moss! Now there’s something to dream of. For others thoughts of a comeback are dashed!
MISA has a quiz taking place at the British Legion Club starting at 7.30 p.m. on Friday December 9th. Cost is £3 per head with food provided. This is a fun evening where you can expect the unexpected. To book places contact a committee member or phone me, Keith Lewis, on 01843 226963. The first members of the ‘200 Club’ have returned the forms which are available at home games up until the end of December. Remember 50% of the cash received is returned in prizes with the balance going to the football club. Please help to make this a success. For any further information give me a ring.
We rose to seventh after the win over Harrow Borough which endorses the view that the competition this year is very open. Yes we may have lost a number of supporters, hopefully temporarily, but those remaining can still play their part by encouraging the team. It doesn’t hurt to shout or sing!
Footnote. Last week I wrote about the Sodje brothers. Whether they were boosted by the praise or not something spurred them into positive action which resulted in their faces appearing in the tabloids and their goal-scoring feats hogging Meridian TV’s sports highlights. I’m not sure if I watched with joy or envy! |
|
|
<< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 Next >>
|
