It matters because we didn't organise ourselves well against it and as fans we need to learn our lesson from it. Football is full of owners who will fuck over the fans for their own greed or whim. Look at Cardiff, their owner changed the colours, the crest etc and most of the fanbase stood by and let it happen. We were about to be moved to East London and now people say "Levy's Spurs through and through" or "it was never going to happen", rather than seeing it for what it was...a threat to our existence as we know it, which could happen again, not with the OS but in some other form.
-
The Fighting Cock is a forum for fans of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. Here you can discuss Spurs latest matches, our squad, tactics and any transfer news surrounding the club. Registration gives you access to all our forums (including 'Off Topic' discussion) and removes most of the adverts (you can remove them all via an account upgrade). You're here now, you might as well...
Latest Spurs videos from Sky Sports
I've never seen anyone say Levy is Spurs through and through. We were rejected in the bidding process for OS, so we were never ''about to be moved to East London''. Like saying we were about to get Aguero when we bid for him in '11. Never happening.
A threat to our existence won't happen again. We're building a new stadium on the site of our current stadium. Where is this dark threat you speak of? Are we secretly building a mall and not a stadium?
He used Stratford as leverage, and got exactly what he wanted from it. As he generally does in his business dealings. Even so, the uproar from the fans was palpable and abundant, so this ''we didn't organise ourselves against it'' stuff is rewriting history. It was opposed by the majority with a few noisy minorities. Even the Trust got involved.
Comparing Daniel Levy to Vincent Tan is so far off the mark I'm not even going to start with that one.
Again, we're building the best stadium in London currently and have the best training facilities in the world. Maybe let's look forward to that rather than digging up Stratford chat which is now beyond irrelevant. Look forwards, not backwards.
Someone did say Levy's Spurs through and through on the last page.
I'm not usually this argumentative, so apologies for being so angry, but the Stratford thing really, really gets me.
It really angered me at the time, that whilst there was uproar from the fans online and with songs at away games, only 200-250 came to the largest of the protests organised. People were literally preferring to have a pint before the game rather than protest, and others were going round the pub almost trying to drag them out onto the High Road. It pissed me off, and still does, that our support had become so uncaring. And now, it pisses me off that people are just sweeping the whole thing under the carpet as if it never happened. So that's why I'm reacting in this way.
At that point we may have been chosen as the preferred bidder, and the only thing that would have stopped it would have been 10,000 yids protesting at that United home game before the decision was made. As it was Levy could say (as he did) that it was a small minority opposed to it. I think you're right that the majority were probably against it, but largely people were just so insouciant and apathetic, whilst I think quite a lot of people would have secretly been OK with it because it would have been good for winning trophies.
I've seen no evidence as to this idea that Levy was using it for leverage, and no one has answered my point that were this the case, why would he have been spying on West Ham and their bid? The comparison to Vinny Tan is very apt; both men would have destroyed a part of their club's identity in the pursuit of an economic advantage.
But you and others will probably think what you like, so I'm happy to leave it.
I don't know what the next threat will be to us, possibly it won't be from Levy but from other money man. I just hope there will be more than 250 of us there to try and stop it next time.
I don't doubt there are worse chairmen/owners out there.
Fair enough. But politely, the comparison the Vincent Tan is nonsense. He changed everything about the club within 2 years of being there. Levy has been here 15 years and hasn't done anything even close to resembling what Tan has.
Insouciant? What a lovely word that is.
I suppose it depends on your point of view. Levy only didn't change anything because the decision went against him. Tan changed the kit and badge. In my view, moving us to East London is equal to or worse than changing the kit and badge, because our North London identity is more important to me than those things. But others may disagree.
Edit: What's interesting is that Tan changed the colours/badge back (somewhat) after an FA Cup tie with Colchester was attended by only 4,000 or so people, Cardiff's lowest ever attendance (thanks wikipedia). It seems that he had alienated both the hardcore support and also those who were happy to put up with the changes as long as it meant success. I think perhaps that Levy trying to do the Stratford thing would have not been possible had we been struggling more at the time on the pitch.
The fact AEG were involved is another ting that blows the leverage bollocks out of the water.
Mad init
I agree with all you say but levy son is not responsible for his dad actions. He's a Yid he stood with us. Good luck to him.
I was at the protest and even managed to get my mug on the back page of several papers. still makes me laugh that if you search Tottenham riots on Google images my ugly mug pops up. On a series note I agree with the anti levy sentiment. Whilst he should be commended for the way the club had developed under his tenure we should be under no illusion that the only thing he cares about is money. It almost strange that the stadium was delayed in till a time when the real estate value in Tottenham has massively gone up. We the fans will be made to pay for the new stadium whilst levy et Al rakes in millions of pounds worth of profits which they will pay fuck all tax on.
Right, listen to this. I quote an unimpeachable source.
The Govt. realised that they had a turkey on their hands and panicked.The Dildo Brothers saw this and pulled up by the side door saying 'Oi, John.'
They then realised that they could not go out on a single action Tender. Levy got a phone call from some bumbling opportunist blagger, with unfortunate initials.
Our Laniel said we'll have it, which pleased the then Mayor of Langdon, who asked what his plan was.
"Knock the fucker down!" said Lan. 'Can't do that," said JB . . . . . . "hello . .. hello, Operator, I've been cut off."
After a time he said OK, bid, If nothing else it will give Lanny a chance to look a twat.
When the Tenders were opened the Langdon Legacy Fuck up Committee, were horrified to learn of Laniel's plan so disqualified the Bid, awarding a brand new Taxpayers Stadium to Steptoe and Son.
Meanwhile back at Harringey, various little dictators were shitting themselves, and our Laniel was doing his best Mr. Burns impression.
And the rest they say is history.
This is a true story. Some names have been changed to protect absolute cnuts.
One day, I'll tell you about the Olympic Aquatics centre.
The Govt. realised that they had a turkey on their hands and panicked.The Dildo Brothers saw this and pulled up by the side door saying 'Oi, John.'
They then realised that they could not go out on a single action Tender. Levy got a phone call from some bumbling opportunist blagger, with unfortunate initials.
Our Laniel said we'll have it, which pleased the then Mayor of Langdon, who asked what his plan was.
"Knock the fucker down!" said Lan. 'Can't do that," said JB . . . . . . "hello . .. hello, Operator, I've been cut off."
After a time he said OK, bid, If nothing else it will give Lanny a chance to look a twat.
When the Tenders were opened the Langdon Legacy Fuck up Committee, were horrified to learn of Laniel's plan so disqualified the Bid, awarding a brand new Taxpayers Stadium to Steptoe and Son.
Meanwhile back at Harringey, various little dictators were shitting themselves, and our Laniel was doing his best Mr. Burns impression.
And the rest they say is history.
This is a true story. Some names have been changed to protect absolute cnuts.
One day, I'll tell you about the Olympic Aquatics centre.
Absolutely. Never said nothing against Levy Jr, all I remarked upon were people saying that Levy was Spurs through and through.
I'm starting to respect this-as much as it goes against the grain. I love spurs. Our history, style & fanbase. I've called Levy all the cunts under the sun- on here & to mates. BUT...if I was thrown under the bus & told I was the torch bearer for our club, then I'd have to admit I wouldn't have done it too differently. Maybe I wouldn't have been so inflexible if my manager told me he wanted "x" player in whichever window. I would have paid the money for Berahino if my manager wanted him, instead of losing the deal at the last minute.
He could have been more bold (he couldn't be any more bald) & maybe we would have collected some trophies. But I like the fact that he has an unshakeable ethos & his kid mixes with the fans. I'm sure he could have wangled an executive suite but chose to be in the thick of it. Have to say, under his stewardship we may not have won things as we had hoped, but we have not fallen away into mid table obscurity. We are top 4-6 every year. That is no mean feat for a team that hasn't had a huge injection of dodgy money from a dodgy source.
He doesn't, but there's few other options. I'm pretty sure last time they let him have his own box in London he didn't leave for 44 days.
Levy Senior may be a Spurs fan, quite a lot of Spurs fans wanted us to move to Stratford. But I can't stand the mentality of putting success ahead of identity and meaning, which that kind of fan has. And if he had been successful there would have been massive splits in our fanbase, and our support would have become a lot more like them; I don't think this can be denied.
It may well be true that most other chairmen would have done the same thing in the same situation. The honourable thing would have been at least to put it to a vote amongst members, as I think Everton did with their proposal for a new ground, though I'm sure if Levy had done that it would have been framed as "WHL vs OS" (still a no brainer for the likes of me) due to the NDP being apparently "not viable" at the time.
We have certainly done very well on the pitch under Levy. But with the Stratford thing I cannot ever see him as truly one of us.
I definitely think that among the hardcore, i.e. the people who regularly go to away games, there's not many with the success-at-all-costs mentality.