Listed

30/04/2020

30-APR-2020 Email Bulletin

In this email update

[1] Rail Seats at Old Trafford - victory at last...
[2] 
David de Gea signed shirt- Foodbank Fundraiser 
[3] Reaction to Rail Seat Trial news

[4] Reset Your Password - regularly
[5] Contact Us



[1] Rail Seats at Old Trafford - Victory for MUST's 20 year campaign!



At last -  the Club has been given the green light to proceed with a rail (barrier) seating trial at Old Trafford. Statement from Club here 

Duncan Drasdo - MUST CEO commented "Some of us embarked on this campaign to reinstate the right to stand the moment we were ejected from the Stretford End terraces ahead of conversion to all seater in the early 90s. An illustration of how long this campaign has run - at the outset we were in our late 20s - we're now looking forward to leaning on these hard won rails to rest our aged backs. In terms of standing - in truth we're not quite there yet - this is a rail seat trial - it will require a change in Government legislation to finally reinstate standing areas in top flight English football. However we're confident the momentum is absolutely unstoppable now with Government plans in the pipeline for safe standing trials soon to be announced"


On 16th April the Club received a written agreement in principle from the Trafford Council Safety Advisory Group (SAG) for this trial to proceed. MUST was briefed on this and has been working with the Club on the next steps.

The trial allows for up to 1,500 seats in the North East Quadrant to be replaced with barrier seats. This area works for the Club logistically and it was also preferable due to being an area where fans stand now and therefore barrier seats should enhance safety.
 

While it is the Club who formally requested the trial, it is the culmination of many years of work by MUST (previously SU & IMUSA) representatives stretching back 3 decades since the very inception of the all seater regulations. MUST was also a leader in the national campaign through the FSA working with fans of other clubs so we claim our share of ownership of this victory.

MUST is encouraging fans to register interest in the rail seat trial here:
https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/RAILSEAT1

We have put together some answers to likely questions on the trial below - noting that we don’t have all the information to be able to answer in more detail yet and much is still to be decided by the Club.

Where is the trial to take place?
Part of the North East Quadrant (NEQ) - aka J Stand

Why is the trial focussed on the North East Quadrant / J Stand?

1. To be accepted by the SAG the area selected by the Club has to have a prolonged history over a number of years of persistent standing where it can be demonstrated to the satisfaction of the SAG that it has not been possible to suppress through stewarding and other measures.

2. As it is a trial the area needs to be of manageable size - so the minimum number of seats affected while still achieving a meaningful trial

3. Sightlines - putting it in a corner section (rather than part of an end or side) so that spectators seated in adjacent sections do not risk having their sightlines blocked (necessitating them to stand e.g. when the ball is in the corner area) by fans who are standing in the barrier seat section. 

4. In our opinion, to create the best chance of a successful trial it ideally needs to be populated with the same supporters every game to ensure all involved understand the trial and how to behave especially when dealing with requests from stewards. 

When will it be expanded to other parts of the ground?
TBC by the club, although they have indicated that if the trial is a success they will look at expanding it to other areas of the ground in the future. Clearly the key to any future expansion is that this trial proves a success.

Who will be able to participate in the Barrier Seat Trial?
This is under discussion with the Club currently as to how this will work but clearly to maximise chances of a successful trial it needs to be populated by fans who support the objectives and understand the regulations around barrier seating.

We are engaging with the club on the specific details and logistics for the trial in order to be able to finalise these ASAP. MUST has recently provided the club with our suggestions for how it could best work and continue to liaise with them on implementation


Can I register interest in the trial now?
Yes, MUST is encouraging fans to register interest here:
https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/RAILSEAT1

We don’t yet know exactly what the Club will decide regarding how the trial operates but we hope it’ll be the same people in the rail seats throughout the season with the option to move back to existing seats at the end of the trial (or part way through) if desired. We'll communicate information to all those who've registered interest as soon as we get it.
 



[2] Covid-19 Foodbank Fundraiser Appeal 

New Prize Draw - this time it's a beauty - a David de Gea signed shirt - and we've already donated to Juan Mata's Common Goal charity for each shirt signed but it's a double fundraiser as now the proceeds of the 17th draw will also go to our Covid-19 Foodbank Appeal

We also have our MUST Fundraiser which ends tonight (Thu 30th April 23:59) #16 SIR BOBBY CHARLTON HAND SIGNED 1968 EUROPEAN CUP FINAL SHIRT - you can enter one of both if you wish to.

To date that fans' fund has raised over £11,000. MUST is adding its own contribution by donating all profits from alternate signed shirt draws and this has already added over £1000 to the fund. So if you'd like to donate via a £5 ticket purchase (max 5 tickets) - you can enter the 17th MUST Prize Draw at https://www.imust.org.uk/Competition (the current foodbank fundraiser is #17 DAVID DE GEA HAND SIGNED OFFICIAL MUFC GOALKEEPER SHIRT) and we expect to hold further such draws as long as there is support. Note we continue to run our Prize Draws for MUST as well so your support for us is also much appreciated - and good luck in the draw. 

(If you have forgotten your password - see [3] RESET PASSWORD instructions at the end of this email)

Enter the MUST Prize Draw Fundraiser


 


[3] REACTION TO RAIL SEAT TRIAL NEWS

Click for full article - Manchester United to try out safe standing at Old Trafford when football returns Club has been allowed to introduce a 1,500-capacity section of ‘rail seating’ by local council with MUST negotiating participants
 



#mufc confirm council approval “to install 1,500 barrier seats in the North East Quadrant”. Richard Arnold acknowledges importance of  @MU_ST  “representations”. Adds: “If the trial is successful, we may consider further implementation of barrier seating in other parts of stadium.”
 



Manchester United will trial 'safe standing' at Old Trafford when Premier League football eventually resumes, as council gives permission for 1,500 'rail seats' for fans to lean against
 



Great news that  @ManUtd  have got approval for a rail seat trial at Old Trafford. Much credit must go to  @Drasdo  &  @MU_ST  for lobbying for this for many years and to the club for engaging with them on it.

 



Talks between the club and the Manchester United Supporters’ Trust (MUST) led to the application for the safe standing project to be submitted to the local council and United’s group managing director Richard Arnold believes the Barrier Seating falls in line with their efforts to modernise Old Trafford and ensure it is “future-proofed”, should the Premier League changed the current all-seater stadium policy that has been heavily discussed in recent years.
 

Big news this.  Fan groups including  @MU_ST   had been calling for it for many, many years saying it will improve fan experience and atmosphere.

 


[4] PLEASE RESET YOUR PASSWORD REGULARLY

We recommend that you reset your password regularly - you can do so by entering your membership number here: https://www.imust.org.uk/Account/ForgottenPassword

Then click on the link sent to your registered email address and you can then reset your password.

If you need to reset your password you can do so by entering your membership number - [[MEMBERSHIP_NUMBER]] - here: https://www.imust.org.uk/Account/ForgottenPassword



[5] CONTACT US
Please login to send us a message via our helpdesk https://www.imust.org.uk/Contact





 
blog comments powered by Disqus