URGENT MUST READ

[tez]

you can go here: www.expressadvocate.com.au/

and on the left hand side of the website there is the heading "Send us"

under that heading there is the option:
Letter to the Editor

[Spike]

Yeah i tried emailing them directly but got a wrong address. Just flood the letter to the editor link. Also if you are going to use the word Marinators be carefull, though im sure you all understand that.

Just ridiculous.

[Adz]

The guys in overalls *are* riot police. Just because they don't have all the shields and whatever doesn't mean anything. There are riot police at all the games anyway so it's not like they are being called in specially for this imaginary fight.

[marinermick]

My letter:

It seems inconceivable that any newspaper would use a "blog website" as the major source for a front page story (Fighting Talk - Express 31/11/06).

That "blog" was proven to be false and carrying no substance a week before this story went to print. It is shoddy journalism at best that a story with no susbstance whatsoever could ever go to print.

The Express' soiling of the Mariners name and the good relationship between Mariners and Sydney fans is disgusting and the journalist in question should be sacked for totally misleading the Central Coast community.

[DJ]

can also email [e-mail]

that's where mine went anyway

[Jeff (LouMacari)]

I just did a piece with NBN (adam harper...'good guy')
He apparently interviewed Lyall at Tuggerah, then came down and did a piece with me at the stadium and then Monique.
So hopefully that may 'hose down' some of the paranoia and make the express look a bit like the beat up merchants that they are.

[greenpoleffc]

Just sent

I of course refer to the disgraceful article that you ran on the front page this week about "supposed" planned violence at this Sundays' Mariners game.

My main issues with this are:-

1) Your journalistic skills have been reduced to beat ups of stories posted on a blog and subsequently proved to be untrue.

2) You refer to 6 people ejected from Bluetongue last time the 2 groups "clashed". Had you checked this for accuracy you would have found that most of the ejections were for public drunkeness and there were no outbreaks of violence whatsoever.

3) The story seems to have no other purpose than to sow fear and doubt into the minds of potential supporters.

4) As you read various message boards for your stories, had you thought of looking at the SFC board where you will find NO (that's right, not one) posts about violence on Sunday.

Sponsorship of the club should not compromise journalistic integrity (that's a phrase you might care to Google when trolling for next weeks stories) but surely you have a duty to check your facts?

Coming on the heels of Mr Nixon's disgraceful assault on the club earlier in the season, perhaps it would be better if you didn't bother to report on the club at all.

Did you miss the irony of your back page story about Rugby shafting the Coast while attacking the only National sporting franchise we actually have on the front page??

Regards

[roonytunes]

calm down folks. Lou sounds like he did exactly the right thing, TV beats newspaper every time, and allows you to respond (to an edited point). When has that free rag ever given more than a perfunctory coverage of the team this year? Slow news day....nevertheless scurrilous, however, like the FFa email i sent off in a pique last week, all emails that do not have something along the lines of "and so with regret I am withdrawing my company's advertising from your paper" will be deleted about half a second after you have pressed the send button. Mick is right, don't use the marinator name, but where were the girls in the photos' heads at?
"here, you stand next to this copper, now scowl and look concerned"...
So, who does advertise in that rag here?
On a brighter, more positive note, who has a tv-quality video camera who can document the excellent relationship with the cove, some footage in the kendall bar before the game and knock it up enough to generate our own positive media? i have to admit i was shocked, in between that and a naked gumps out the back...slow news day (and no gay asides, ok!)

"Did you miss the irony of your back page story about Rugby shafting the Coast while attacking the only National sporting franchise we actually have on the front page?? " - exactly.

Hold on, am I reading his name right - Richard No-one?

[Perm]

media made a massive fuss about the locations of the supporter groups last Mariners v Syd fixture. maybe this is express' shit attempt at getting on that bandwagon.

[Jeff (LouMacari)]

"Richard No-one"....I love it Rooney! (isnt Richard the full name for 'DICK' ?)

Here's my letter to the editor...
I read with disgust and horror at your 'story' (certainly not news!) on the apparent 'trouble brewing' at this weekend's football between the Sydney FC and the Mariners FC.
I, along with many others (in conjuntion with and including the Mariners FC and Blutongue Stadium) have been working tirelessly over the last 18 months to promote the fact that the A-League (and certainly Mariners FC) is a 'new and exiting' emergence of our sport with a family / carnival atmosphere in the hope of attracting families who may have a percieved view of what our game is all about from past footage and media reports from either the English premier league, European games or the old 'NSL'.

Thanks to Richard Noone (who obviously does not know how to research a story properly, or simply has his own agenda?) some families who may have been thinking of coming this weekend may now think twice or not even bother!
Our only up side to this is that there will be 10,000 to 15,000 spectators who will realise after being at the game, that the Express Advocate doesn't know what it is talking about and completly out of touch with what is happening on the local scene, and hopefully it will taint their view of ANYTHING they read in the rag from now on!

Furthermore, I would expect any decent editor to be demanding to see some proof of research on such an obvious 'beat up' story.

A disgracefull, shamefull, unethical way of reporting whatever you want rather than the 'News'. And to think that your paper is actually a 'partner' of the Mariners FC! Who needs enemies with 'partners' like YOU?

[roonytunes]

Cheers Lou, I didnt send in a letter, I started a Mariners blog with this story.
All things Mariners and A-league, no adverts, and perhaps less arguing here from me, and more writing there...get the message out folks!
The Fisherman's Friend -
www.happinessforsale.org/ff/
dont ask me about the URL, its a long story.. sorry to divert this thread, but the lead story is my 256 cents worth....better than seeing the board here flooded with my multiple two cents worth..cheers all. I hope Lyall puts in a phone call to this lot.

[Jeff (LouMacari)]

The paper have apparently appologised to the stadium. Too late now, damage done. Stadium management wanted me to let you all know that they are just as disgusted and annoyed as we all are and were in no way party to this apart from being 'duped' by 'Dick No-one' from the express.
So, on the stadium's (Monique & Kathy) behalf, 'sorry guys, lesson learned there!'

[alicia]

jazzman said:

The paper have apparently appologised to the stadium. Too late now, damage done. Stadium management wanted me to let you all know that they are just as disgusted and annoyed as we all are and were in no way party to this apart from being 'duped' by 'Dick No-one' from the express.
So, on their behalf, 'sorry guys, lesson learned there!'

Where's our apology. They may have said the "Central Coast Stadium Elite" but it still reflects badly on football supporters in general.

[Adz]

I want a front page apology!

[Ursus]

Is this the same Advocate that no longer has naming rights to the stadium?
Do I catch a whiff of sour grapes maybe

[NOMESSSS.]

Thats really bad.
And it makes us look bad.
Think of the chants..OH god.
We'll just have to show everybody where not into that!
C.C.S.E?joke..
Express Advocate?Even bigger Joke IMO.
Sunday should be a tough but good game.
Has anyone posted on The Cove's forum to let them know whats going on?

[marinermick]

nomes said:

Thats really bad.
And it makes us look bad.
Think of the chants..OH god.
We'll just have to show everybody where not into that!
C.C.S.E?joke..
Express Advocate?Even bigger Joke IMO.
Sunday should be a tough but good game.
Has anyone posted on The Cove's forum to let them know whats going on?

they know

[serious14]

f*** you Central Coast Express Advocate, f*** you. 2 and a bit years of solid work with the community potentially flushed away with one misguided piece of shit article from a wannabe hack. Go write for the Telegraph you moron.

[greenpoleffc]

I think thats the general idea serious. CC Express is part of Uncle Ruperts dark empire and maybe Dick No-one hopes that if he writes enough stories bagging "socka" the Tele will take him on.

Whats the betting that bay 15 has some hack in it "just in case"

[serious14]

Before today, I would have reckoned about 50 to 1......... now it's more like 1 to 1........

I know we were going to be anyway, but EVERYONE has to be on their super special best behaviour. We can't give dickhead Journo whatever-his-name-is anymore ammo. Make as much noise as possible, sing-off with the Cove, and get our boys over the line. Let's see what he says then.

Here's also hoping that some random who goes along to the game writes the dickhead a letter next week saying how great it was.