Dear Red Passion...

Chris Pinlane responds to your letters

We greatly appreciate the quality and variety of letters we receive. Any correspondence received by RP will be considered for publication - unless there is a note to say otherwise.

It is now Red Passion's policy to forward copies of the most constructive letters published in the magazine to the club in the hope that it may feel able to respond to matters raised. Watch this space.

Please send your letters and any other articles to editor@red-passion.com

DAN THE MAN - AND THE SINGAPORE LINK

Dear Red Passion

I have written to Red Passion a few times in the past with various bits and pieces of info for the fanzine which, I have to say, is ace!

Based down here in Essex, I don't get to as many games as I'd like to but still follow the boys religiously. Anyway, to cut to the chase, I had a rather interesting conversation a fortnight ago with my sister-in-law's friends from Singapore. Although they now live in Singapore, the husband of this couple, John Dyke, is from up the road from me in Hatfield Peverel. His wife is Singaporean by birth. Anyway, the reason John and his wife Georgina (who went to Uni with my sister-in-law in Portsmouth) were over here was to commentate on Wimbledon for Singapore TV as he is a sports commentator. Naturally, I was eager to meet him and talk about Dan Bennett - which I did. It turns out John knows Dan well and his dad! Got some good info on him and a few things to rib him about if I ever get within hollering distance!

I asked him his opinion of Dan's abilities and his response was that Dan is a great player and needed to come over here to make a name for himself. Although the domestic game is good, he wanted to play in a better league with better players. He said he would suit our club well as it is the ideal platform for his ability. I asked where he felt Dan plays best. He said he would be best playing at the back - which I found odd. An ideal candidate for a sweeper were his words. I told him he had been put in midfield and he tended to say he looks better at the back.

When Wrexham are playing bad this season (which I hope they never do) I was told to shout: 'I have seen the Colbar Tigers play better than this Dan!' John said that this should put a smile on his face as they are a really crap side in Singapore and Dan turned out for them a couple of times. Most of all, he wished us luck for the season and said he would be keeping an eye on our performances. Most of all, he said he would be interested in following the performance of Dan and would like me to send him some info via email so he can possibly do a piece on him over there! How cool is that? So any news or gossip we get, perhaps I could set up a direct link with yourselves? 

Obviously this could cut both ways and benefit Red Passion as well as the nation of Singapore. What do you think? 

Andy Davies, Essex (via email)

CP SAYS: Keep in touch and keep us to speed on Dan B.

LOOK OUT FOR HARTLEPOOL in 2002-3

Dear Red Passion

I really enjoyed your website. Moved to the area late last year and got to see a couple of home games. What a treat to be able to stand behind the goal to watch a game of football, so much more enjoyable than that over-hyped Premier League. Hope to be able to get to see a few more games this year, especially Oxford, where I was born, and Hartlepool, a much maligned town where I lived in my prime for a few very enjoyable years. 

All the best

Dave Newman (via email)

PS Get on Hartlepool at 10/1 - this is their year. 

CP SAYS: Cheers for the mail!

BRING BACK DIVISION 3 NORTH AND SOUTH

Dear Red Passion

My plan had been to go to the first match of the season but, alas, duty was to get in the way. Instead of a two-week deployment to beautiful Alaska I had a last-minute change, ending up in sunny Saudi Arabia. As they say in the Royal Air Force: 'If you can't take a joke, you shouldn't have joined.'

Enough of my misfortunes because they pale into insignificance compared to poor old Waynne Phillips. After his recent, horrific accident he truly is the unluckiest player at the Racecourse. As proven before, I am sure he will make every effort to come back, and I wish him well. Thankfully, the new Chairman has a heart of gold; his offer to give Waynne a contract must have taken a load of pressure off his and his family's shoulders.

Before heading off to the desert, my brother and I went to Colwyn Bay for the friendly match. Some good efforts from the team but all our goals came when they were fairly exhausted. So, initially, I wasn't overly optimistic about our chances but the team continued to progress and had a very good pre-season workout. More importantly, they have got off to a good start to our campaign in Division 3. I am desperately looking forward to returning to our more temperate climate to enjoy some decent beers - it is tea-total out here, and not much fun. I certainly would not recommend here for a holiday, although I understand Bahrain is a different kettle of fish.

The news that the League had lost its legal challenge to ITV Digital did not come as a surprise. The main fault lay with the previous executives and their lawyers for not establishing a sound contract. Seems as if 'Monkey' made a monkey out of too many supposedly smart individuals. It was reassuring to see the Chairman and CEO accepting responsibility by resigning - unlike our politicians who are sponsored by Teflon, and would not understand the concept of integrity - as they did progress the course of action that let BSkyB obtain a bargain deal. Unfortunately, the whole League set-up looks increasingly fragile and in desperate need of an overhaul. Let's hope some very bright and influential people can create a new league architecture which can minimise clubs' costs, increase their revenue and entice more people to go to the games. I also recommend everyone continues to boycott ITV's football coverage. That course of action would certainly hit their revenue generated from the adverts. Unfortunately, It would not improve our lot, but such vengeance would be sweet!

Hopefully, whoever the new incumbents are, these people will have the opportunity and drive to look at the issue afresh, and not just paper over the cracks. Personally, I think it ludicrous that we Division 3 teams have to travel so far to play our opposition. The thought of the Carlisle team and fans having to head south to Torquay, with the associated costs, is ludicrous. If the League were to readopt something akin to the old Division 3 North and South set-up it would be so advantageous to all. Not only would travelling costs be reduced, but we would also see more local derbies which should generate larger crowds.

Unfortunately, the Premier League takes far too much money out of the pot and the gap between the likes of Man Utd and Wrexham will get ever wider. Fortunately, the new Board appears to be more inventive in their efforts to generate revenue but, judging by the attendance against Oxford United, a great deal of effort and imagination is still called for. Obviously, if the team can keep winning and score more goals, this would go a great way to improving the club's bank balance by increasing the attendance figures to over 5,000 per game. So, good luck against Boston United, and hopefully a good away win against Macclesfield when, fingers crossed, I should be back home to get my first fix of the season.
Kevin Wynn, Prince Sultan Air

Base, Saudi Arabia (via email)

CP SAYS: I definitely like the idea of regional divisions.

FLYNN TO MANAGE QUEEN OF THE SOUTH?

Dear Red Passion

I was interested to read editor Peter Davies' comments in the Wrexham Mail about our erstwhile manager Brian Flynn and the speculation as to his next appointment.

I think it is interesting that apart from the Swansea City offer, which he ultimately rejected, Brian Flynn has been somewhat bereft of offers. His loyalty to his friends, while commendable, hardly pays the mortgage, let alone increases his employability profile.

I have always argued that BF was the architect of his own downfall mainly because of his inability to connect with the supporters but also because of some poor judgements on players' ability (goalkeepers in particular) and the overt favouritism shown to some players. The decision by Denis Smith to cut Martyn Chalk proves this point.

However, the real difficulty for BF is that with diminishing budgets, thanks only in part to the demise of the ITV Digital deal, the job specification of the manager has changed. BF may be an excellent coach(?) but the job now demands more. Denis Smith has shown by example that today's lower league manager must also be a shrewd wheeler-dealer, with both eyes firmly fixed on the business side of the club as well as a coach and mentor to young players. His rapport with the supporters is based on being available within reason, honest and straight-talking.

In the present circumstances I see BF restricted to a coaching role perhaps within a First Division set-up such as Burnley, with someone else in charge of contract negotiations and so on.

On a more trivial note, in the PC game Championship Manager 00/01 BF regularly retires from Wrexham AFC in September 2000 and turns up as coach at Queen of the South or Stevenage Borough. Could fiction point the way forward for Brian? Whatever, I wish him well. Whither Kevin Reeves? No-one I've spoken to has any idea where he is?

Look forward to seeing you next season.

Wyn Fisher, Bradley, Wrexham (via email)

CP SAYS: I think BF would do well in Scottish football.

WELL DONE…AND GET WELL SOON

Dear Red Passion

Some words of praise for the majority of the people behind the Red Passion fanzine. It's a largely thankless task writing every month for RP, but the dedicated few who take the trouble to do so, I salute you! Pete Davies works very hard bringing it all together, and with such masterpieces as Bryan Jones' 'Travelling Hordes', coupled with the (much worthier than mine) thoughts of people such as James Morris, Ian Hughes, Ian Morris, Andrew Morris, Tim Edwards, and many more, it's a great little fundraiser for Wrexham Football Club. I hope they all enjoy doing their columns as much as everyone enjoys reading them. It complements the (still superb) matchday programme well, and offers every fan a voice. 

Finally, I hope some of our recent illness victims, Les Evans and Joey Jones, are feeling much better very soon! Both are part of the very fabric of the club.
RP, the matchday programme, and stalwarts such as Les and Joey all go to make the matchday experience at Wrexham what it is. All these things (and let's not forget the great atmosphere being created by our new band too, who we all clapped and cheered as we left after the Oxford game) spur on the team to what we hope will be a successful season. 

Keep it up everyone.

Simon Irving (via email)

CP SAYS: Agreed!

HOOLIGANISM - CAN YOU HELP?

Dear Red Passion

I am a second year Geography student at the University of Sheffield and for part of my degree I am undertaking some research (for my dissertation) into football disturbances or football violence or hooliganism. I was hoping you could possibly offer me some insight into the matter of football violence, particularly at Wrexham.

As part of my research so far I have found from the Football Intelligence Section the number of arrests made from each club for the 2000/01 season and then compared them against the average attendances at each club. My calculations showed Wrexham had a reasonably high amount of arrests compared to their average home attendance. While the number of arrests (24) clearly shows the problem is not widespread among most fans, I would be grateful if you could offer some insight into why you believe Wrexham had this high level of arrests, compared to average attendance. For example, do a large proportion (compared to other clubs) of Wrexham fans reside in 'rough' estates? Do you think, bearing in mind both other professional teams in Wales had high levels also, that feeling of Welsh nationality may contribute to the matter? Although the majority of Wrexham fans will be perfectly well behaved, why do you think the club has an element of troublesome fans, possibly of larger size than many other clubs?

Basically I would be extremely grateful if you could offer your own opinions on why Wrexham appear to have high levels of arrests when compared to their average attendance. If you would like to ask any questions please feel free to do so and I will be happy to respond as best I can. Wishing you all the best for the new season.

Geraint Moore (via email)

CP SAYS: Please pass any thoughts on to Geriant via the usual RP addresses.

MICKEY, FLYNNIE AND CHRIS TARRANT 

Dear Red Passion

I enclose a gift of £10 with this letter. Do with it what you wish. Red Passion does a sterling job. Put it towards the continuing cause. As you know, I am a Leeds United fan who has a soft spot for WFC. Consider this offering as a token of my appreciation.

You might be interested that last year I backed Wrexham to win 2-0 at Cambridge (odds of 18-1). Good news - they did. Bad news - other games let me down!

Talking of bookies, I was at William Hill in Colwyn Bay the other day. Who walks in but Mickey Thomas! I think that he's got to know me by now. 'Hello Mick,' I said. 'Leeds, Leeds, Leeds,' he replied. He's a character. He also told me that he was going to be on 'A Question of Sport' as a mystery personality - he looked well pleased with life.

I met Brian Flynn at a sportsman's dinner in Menai Bridge in 1994. Being a Leeds United fan, of course, I got on like a house on fire with him. It was an excellent evening. A really nice chap.

Chris Tarrant still hasn't phoned me. But when he does, and I manage to get into the 'Millionaire' hot-seat, I'll do my best to give Red Passion a plug!
I also took part in an audition for Countdown. I didn't pass. I've been told that I'm more than welcome to apply for another audition. I don't know what to do. I'd have loved to have got on TV and hopefully given RP a mention. Maybe I'll give it another go.

Ceris Phillips, Penmaenmawr

CP SAYS: The £10 has gone to the club. Mickey in a bookies? Whatever next…

£395.31 MORE FOR DENIS TO SPEND

Dear Red Passion

On Easter Saturday, March 30th, I did a sponsored walk from the Potters Wheel, Buckley, to the Racecourse. I set out at 11am accompanied by Rex the Dragon and a gentleman who I only know as Brian, who had heard about the walk the previous day and volunteered to walk with me.

We had a short refreshment stop at Hope and finally arrived at the Racecourse at 2.25pm. At half-time I was invited to do the 50/50 Draw and was then given a bucket to round the ground collecting money.

I should like to thank the fans - grown-ups and children alike - who put their hands in their pockets to put money into the bucket. I should also like to thank my Gold Bond customers, family and friends, who sponsored me as I was able to present a cheque for £395.31 to Denis Smith before the last game of the season. I should also like to thank Wrexham Football in the Community officer Mark Morris, who arranged for Rex the Dragon to walk with me.

On a different subject, I would like to express my disappointment at the lack of WFC news in the media (Evening Leader excepted). Any items on BBC TV Ceefax are rare and are only on for a day at the most, whereas items on Cardiff or Swansea are sometimes on for two or three days. Who is responsible for providing information to Ceefax?

Even Marcher Radio, our local radio station, failed to mention the Everton-Wrexham game on its midday news on Sunday 4 August.

Here's hoping for a good 2002/3 season and Division 2 football in 2003/4.

Yours sincerely
John Funnell, Buckley

CP SAYS: Well done, sir - and very much agree about the media bias.