REDaction Gooners

ARSENAL SUPPORTERS UNITE TO EXPRESS CONCERN AT TICKET PRICE RISES.

2011-05-04T06:49:00.001-07:00

The undersigned Arsenal Supporters Groups have united for the first time to express their significant concern at the impact the increase in general admission and season ticket prices for season 2011-12 will have on loyal Arsenal Fans.

In what will be our 125th year anniversary season, the 6.5% increase will only act to marginalise the bedrock of Arsenal supporters from feeling they belong to the club. Arsenal has a proud history of custodianship and social inclusion at Arsenal and this is in danger of being eroded.

This issue has united supporter opinion like no other and it is the first time that so many supporter groups at Arsenal have come together on one issue.

All of the groups below call on the club’s Board to review this decision and take positive actions during the season to ensure that Arsenal’s fans are treated as supporters and not just customers. We also welcome Ivan Gazidis commitment to review the entire ticketing structure and believe that making tickets more affordable should be the number one objective of this exercise.

Arsenal Independent Supporters’ Association (AISA)
REDaction
Arsenal Supporters Trust
The Gooner
Where Has Our Arsenal Gone
Essex Arsenal Supporters Club
Herts & Beds Arsenal Supporters Club
Maidstone Arsenal Supporters Club
West Midlands Arsenal Supporters Club

Liverpool and Bob Wilson

2011-04-13T10:05:00.000-07:00

Liverpool on Sunday, and a chance to close the gap on the Mancs whilst they aren't playing. The Rocket opens at midday with all the usual drinks, food and assorted other stuff. We will head for the ground around 3:30pm, and our big new flag (first seen at the CC final) will be out and about in the North Bank.

As well as Sunday's activities, Bob Wilson will be visiting Emirates Stadium on Monday 18th, as part of his bike ride around all Premier League grounds. He is due to arrive at 2pm, so we are asking those who can make it to meet on the Armoury side of the stadium (near the picture on the outside of the ground that features Bob himself), from 1:30pm. More details about Bob's bike ride here

Nine games to go

2011-04-01T04:04:00.000-07:00

A few things to let you know about, before tomorrow's game.

1. The Rocket opens at midday, and will be showing the early game - West Ham vs Man Utd. Hopefully West Ham can do us a biiiig favour. We'll have the normal other stuff at The Rocket, like drinks, food, TV and music.

2. After the game, The Rocket is running a special, all-ticket event to remember David Rocastle. If you don't already have a ticket, we're sorry but they are all sold out. If you have a spare ticket for this event, we are sure there will be plenty of takers in the Rocket before the game! We will be selling raffle tickets pre game in The Rocket, for the chance to win some fantastic Arsenal related memorabilia, and to raise money for Great Ormond Street Hospital - so even if you aren't going to the post match event, you can still buy raffle tickets.

3. Talking of David Rocastle, you would have to have been on another planet to be unaware that yesterday was the tenth anniversary of his untimely death. We have had a big new banner made, which will be making its debut inside the stadium tomorrow. It looks a bit like this.

4. Finally, amidst all the doom and gloom, we are in a title race here. If a hero emerges like Freddie in 2002, we could well be champions in 2 months time. If we are to get anywhere close to that, the team needs your positive support. You may not like Almunia/Bendtner/Denilson/etc - but slating them over the next two months isn't going to make them play any better, or improve our title chances. Now is the time to play our part as SUPPORTERS.

Crunch time - a view from REDaction

2011-03-18T11:55:00.001-07:00

Lots of people have been asking us this week, so here is our view on the current state of all things Arsenal.

With 10 games to go in the League, the supporters main emphasis should be on encouraging the team in their attempts at winning the title. There is nothing to be gained by questioning either the manager or the squad before the end of the season.

Arsene Wenger always says ‘judge me at the end of the season’ and that is what we will do. Only at this stage can anyone make a clear judgment on whether ‘Project Wenger’ is working and whether it is likely to work in the future.

In the meantime, we do have concerns with the rumoured price rise on tickets to general admission levels, and we would encourage the club to look at other areas such as commercial and marketing to improve revenue streams - rather than expecting supporters to dip even further into their pockets in these hard times.

How to sort out the problems at Arsenal - an email we received

2011-03-14T03:11:00.000-07:00

Formation will be Four Three Three.

Player That Need To be Purchase:

Goalkeepers: Ika Casilas of Madrid:
Joe Hart Of Manchester City:
Rob Green: Westham

Defenders:
John Terry of Chelsea:
Rio Fairdinard Of Manchester United:
Ashley Cole Of Chelsea:
Glen Johnson of Liverpool:
Joeleon Lescote Of Manchester City:
Michal Richards Of Manchester City:
Ledly King Of Totenham:
Mathew Upson Of Westham:

Midfielders: Gerrald of liverpool:
Inesta Of Barcelona:
John Bostock Of Totenham:

Forwards: Messi Barcelona:
Christiano Ronaldo: Real madrid:
Kaka Real Madrid:
Maradona's Brother in law at Atlectco Madrid:
Fernando Torres: Liverpool:
Pato Of Ac Milan:

Players That need to be sold:

Defenders: All the Current Arsenal Defenders:

Midfield: All the current Arsenal Midfielders must be sold, and only Fabregas, Jack wilsher , and Aron Ramsey may stay at Arsenal Football Club.

Forwards: All the current forward must be sold, apart from Theo Walcott.

Now if any person who have a problem with this formation and list of purchase players must answer to European Commission.

The valuation of these players will not be a problem, especially its my Birthday and I am in the good mood to spend and have fun with the Toys.

If you are going to Barcelona.....

2011-03-04T08:08:00.000-08:00

....you may be interested to know that REDaction are running an Arsenal Fanzone (with AFC and Barcelona city council) on the day of the game.

It is at Port Olimpic, in front of the twin towers - open on matchday between 11am and 6pm. Among the things to do there include music, past Arsenal games on big screens, well priced food and drink, and guest appearances from ex-players and Arsenal celebs. So, if you are in town, come and have a beer and a sing song in the company of fellow Gooners.

See you there!

Rocky Remembered

2011-03-03T08:47:00.000-08:00

It is almost ten years since the untimely death of David Rocastle shocked us all.

To remember Rocky, various fans groups are coming together to organise a night of live music and charity fundraising - supported by many of Rocky's former teammates. The venue is The Rocket, the time is after the Blackburn game on Saturday 2nd April.

This means that The Rocket will be an ALL TICKET event after the Blackburn game. Tickets are £10 with all proceeds going to Great Ormond Street. They are selling very fast, but there are two ways you can get hold of one:

1. From this website

2. We will have a very limited number on sale before the Sunderland game this Saturday, from the DJ booth in The Rocket. These are strictly "first come, first served" from around 1:30pm.

More details about the event are here

RIP Rocky - never forgotten

Ways to help Centrepoint this season (including a trip to Amsterdam!)

2011-03-02T02:57:00.000-08:00

Centrepoint would like to thank Arsenal supporters for all of their commitment to the Be a Gooner. Be a Giver charity partnership between Centrepoint and Arsenal. All of us at Centrepoint have been blown away by the hard work and support we have been given towards raising our target of £500,000 to refurbish a facility in Soho, helping young people learn essential life skills to get back on their feet and stay off the streets permanently.

Below are some ways supporters can get involved in the remainder of the season, please email arsenal@centrepoint.org if Centrepoint can assist you in anyway with your fundraising efforts.

Skydive and Amsterdam Cycle Ride

Bergkamp, Overmars, Van Persie. Arsenal has a fantastic heritage of Dutch players with attacking flair, fantastic technical ability and commitment to the cause. These great players are the inspiration for a charity cycle challenge that will see a group of Arsenal fans travel from Amsterdam to the Emirates Stadium. The challenge will begin on Friday 8^th July with either a free tour of the Amsterdam Arena or a free afternoon to explore the city. The group will then cycle 230km in three days and will arrive at the Emirates Stadium on Monday 11^th July. Here they will be able to celebrate their fantastic achievement and toast what we hope will be a successful season for the Gunners.

To secure your place on the cycle challenge you will need to pay an entry fee of £150. The fundraising target will be £1,200. This will cover the costs of the challenge with the rest going to Centrepoint. There are limited spaces so don’t delay!

If you’re not a cyclist why not mark the 40th anniversary of Arsenal’s double winning season by taking part in a charity sky dive on 8^th May. Centrepoint would love to see as many Gooners as possible filling out Skyline centres up and down the country on this day, but if you can’t make it then you can jump whenever you want! Click here to visit the Skyline website to find out more. To book a skydive you will be required to pay a deposit of £70, which will be refunded if you raise at least £395.

Be a Gunner. Be a Runner – March 19^th 2011

Arsenal Football Club and its Charity of the Season, Centrepoint are delighted to announce the launch of the third ever ‘Be a Gunner. Be a Runner.’ event, which will unite Gunners at the world famous Emirates Stadium on Saturday 19 March 2011.

Registration for the 10-lap 6.4 kilometre fun-run around the outside of the Gunners’ home is now OPEN for all Arsenal fans, keen runners and anyone else who would like to support Centrepoint. To enter, click here to fill in an application form and set up your personal fundraising page through Just Giving.

All participants are asked to raise at least £100 in sponsorship in support of London’s largest youth homelessness charity and are asked to pay a registration fee of £15 upon signing up, made payable as a donation to your individual fundraising total.

Song for Jack Wilshere

2011-02-23T04:21:00.001-08:00

Ohhhh Jackie Wilshere cant get you out my head,

I just cant get enough,
I just cant get enough,

You were born to be a gooner and wear the Arsenal red

I just cant get enough
I just cant get enough

We jump around as we sing your song
Cos we just cant seem to get enough of

DO DO DO DO DO DO DO DO DO DO DO DO DO

Do you like beer?

2011-01-19T10:13:00.001-08:00

Ok, who likes beer? If you are going to the Ipswich game next week, we have vouchers for cheap beer. The voucher gets you a pint for £2.50, if purchased inside the ground before 7:15pm. You can pick up a voucher either:
1. In the foyer of the Rocket before the Wigan game on Saturday.
2. At the block 6 bulkhead during half time in the Wigan game.
3. If there are any left, at the block 6 bulkhead from around 6:45pm before the Ipswich game.

Obviously these are first come, first served (although we have loads of them), and you need to be 18, have ID etc, to be able to buy the pint at the bar.

Talking of Wigan on Saturday, the Rocket is open at midday as usual. Looks like Wolves vs Liverpool is on at 12:45, so there could be a(nother) good opportunity to laugh at Gerrard and co. Usual beer deals are running, food in the courtyard etc - you know the drill.

We've got Raymond Parlour

2010-12-16T06:47:00.000-08:00

A few final details about the REDaction Christmas party, which is happening after the Stoke game:

1. We expect to have Ray Parlour, Perry Groves, and Jack Whitehall at the party, and available to sign autographs, pose for photos etc. Obviously things sometimes change (and ex-footballers sometimes get so drunk in stadiums then don't make it to bars afterwards), but we expect them all to be there.

2. We have a raffle going on during the party, with some pretty ladies selling tickets. Details and prizes below:

3. Tickets are £10 on the day, or only £6 if you order in advance (you can pick the tickets up on the door). Link for tickets here

4. 300ml bottles of "Bud 66" will be £1.50 on Saturday - and as the party is a ticketed event, you can keep the bottle instead of having it poured into a plastic glass. Bonus.

5. Ska Wars' first set will start around 6:30, with a second set later in the evening. Madness and Specials covers galore, with lots more good stuff besides.

6. That's all for now - see you all on Saturday.

Victory Through Harmony

REDaction

Stoke, Tayo and Christmas

2010-12-14T13:33:00.000-08:00

A few things to let you know about before the Stoke game and our Christmas party afterwards.

The Rocket will be open at midday on Saturday - the usual beer deals, Arsenal DVDs and the joys of Sunderland vs Bolton on telly. We also have decent food in the courtyard, including pie and mash!

As you may remember us telling you, REDaction won a signed Arsenal shirt in a charity quiz recently, and auctioned it for Centrepoint. Part of the deal was that DJ Tayo from the Arsenal podcast would come to The Rocket to present the shirt to the winner. That is happening this Saturday at 2pm - so if you want to come see Tayo, that is where he will be!

Then of course we have our Christmas party after the Stoke game. Tickets are £6 in advance from here or £10 on the day. We have a fantastic band called Ska Wars, who will be playing a load of mod/ska classics across two sets on the night; plus the usual Arsenal raffle and other fun. Their first set will be around 6:30pm, and it goes on late.

That's all for now - more details about the Xmas party when we have them later in the week.

Brrrrrrrrr!

2010-12-03T05:45:00.001-08:00

Quick couple of things before the Fulham game. Obviously half of you are probably skiving off work today anyway, so we'll keep it short.

The Rocket is open at midday tomorrow, with Arsenal DVDs on before the game, and the Man U game after ours (if it survives the weather). As usual, there will also be excellent value beer available in the bar, and excellent value food available in the courtyard.

We will also have tickets for the REDaction Christmas party available in The Rocket both before and after the game. These are £6 in advance, but they go up to £10 on the day (i.e. the day of the Stoke game and the party). So, tomorrow is your last chance to get tickets in person. If you can't make it along tomorrow, you can also buy tickets online via PayPal. All the details (including how to get tickets online) are here.

That's all for now - it looks like excellent weather for wearing an Arsenal scarf!

Two days to Tottenham

2010-11-18T09:21:00.000-08:00

Few things to tell you about before the game on Saturday.

The Rocket opens at 10:30am, so get in nice and early for a few pre match drinks.

We will have "Forever In Our Shadow" t-shirts for sale - as featured on Arseblog this week, and with all profits going to Centrepoint. These will also be available on the Gooner stall on Drayton Park (on Saturday only), and online from here. An ideal Christmas present for any Arsenal (or Spurs) fan!

Talking of Christmas, we will also have tickets for our Christmas party available in The Rocket from Saturday. All the details of what's going on (including the excellent band that will be playing) and how to get tickets are here.

Finally, if you fancy clicking a couple of links for the glory of The Arsenal, you could try these:
This one, to vote for Samir Nasri's goal for FIFA goal of the year.
This one, a petition to send Spurs to Stratford and the Olympic Stadium.
And this one, its our Facebook page, where you can become a "fan" if you aren't already.

That's about all for now - more soon!

2010-11-18T09:14:00.000-08:00

REDaction Update - Newcastle, Spurs T-Shirts & Christmas Party

2010-11-05T01:39:00.000-07:00

Hi all

A few things to share with you before the Newcastle game - about that game and festivities to come.

1. The Rocket is open at 11am on Sunday, we'll have some Arsenal DVDs on telly before our game, then Liverpool vs Chelsea once our game has finished. We'll have our 4-pint pitchers of Fosters to share for a tenner each after the game again. Food will be available as usual too.

2. "Forever In Our Shadow" t-shirts are selling well, so if you want one, get one! They will be on sale in The Rocket both before and after the game (for a fiver), or you can get one online, with details here - http://www.redaction.org.uk/PDFs/REDaction_Shadow_Shirt.pdf

3. Our Christmas party will be on 18th December after the Stoke game. Tickets will be £6 in advance, and £10 on the day (i.e. both before and after the Stoke game). Tickets will be available from the Spurs game onwards, and we recommend getting them early for this one as we have a cracking band called Ska Wars (who are unsurprisingly a Ska tribute band - Madness, The Specials, Bad Manners and The Selector, as well as some of the older Ska and MOD Classics), who you can find on:
Facebook - http://on.fb.me/9MzPdA
MySpace - http://www.myspace.com/skawarsuk
Amazon - http://amzn.to/beXu6v

That's about all for now - if you went to Donetsk (especially if it was your second time there), you have our utmost respect!

Victory Through Harmony

REDaction

--
REDaction is an open forum of Arsenal supporters, whose aim is to improve the atmosphere at Arsenal matches, and to help support our team as best we can. We can be found in The Rocket, 166-220 Holloway Road, before and after weekend home games, where we also have a range of attractions for all Arsenal fans.

We rely on ideas and input from all Arsenal fans, and all comments and suggestions are always welcome.

To join our mailing list, send a blank email to redaction-gooners-subscribe@yahoogroups.co.uk - then send a blank reply to the message you get back. To unsubscribe, send a blank email to redaction-gooners-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.co.uk.

Dig deep for Centrepoint

2010-11-01T15:28:00.001-07:00

A quick charity update for you. Firstly to tell you that REDaction's team "Martin Keown's monkey head" entered and won the Arsenal supporters quiz at the Herbert Chapman pub last week. The prize was a signed Arsenal shirt (with certificate of authenticity). As the evening was in aid of Centrepoint, we thought we would put the prize up for auction to raise even more money. The quiz raised £300 on the night for Centrepoint, so lets see if we can double or treble that.

So, if you fancy getting hold of a signed Arsenal shirt for Christmas, you can bid here (or search for "Arsenal Centrepoint" on eBay).

If you don't want the Arsenal shirt (or the bidding goes too high), there is one other big way to get involved and help Centrepoint. Arsenal vs Fulham on 4th December is this season's charity day, where many of the players will be giving a day's wages to Centrepoint. On the day, Centrepoint are looking for volunteers to sell raffle tickets, shake buckets and generally get the word out about the good work the charity does. Everything will be finished before the game kicks off, and anybody that helps will be put into a draw for a signed Arsenal pennant. If you can help, please email arsenal@centrepoint.org

Whilst we're here, we should also mention that we have our "Forever In Our Shadow" shirts available both in The Rocket, and online here. They are selling well, so if you want one, get stuck in before we sell out.

Victory Through Harmony

West Ham update

2010-10-26T17:17:00.000-07:00

Quick update in advance of the West Ham game on Saturday (not forgetting we have an important Carling Cup game tonight!).

The Rocket opens at midday, with Arsenal DVDs and Soccer Saturday on the big screens before the game. We will have food available as we have done for each game this season. Then after the game, we will have Man U vs Spurs on telly. Four pint pitchers of Fosters will be available for a tenner, to share whilst watching the game we want both teams to lose.

We will also have our "Forever in our shadow" t-shirts available for sale from Saturday - cost a fiver, with all profits to Centrepoint. If you can't make it to the Rocket to buy one, this here flyer tells you how to get one by post.

Lastly, a date for the diary - our Christmas party will be on 18th December after the Stoke game - more details soon.

That's about it for now, see you all on Saturday

Laughing at Spurs (again) and Aaron Ramsey news

2010-10-21T05:51:00.001-07:00

Nothing to do with last night's game (although we were hoping Spurs would make history by becoming the first English club to lose a CL game by five goals - sadly they couldn't even "achieve" that). As you will all know, it is almost 50 years since Spurs were last able to call themselves Champions of England (at least with a straight face). We have a number of things planned to mark this "Golden Anniversary" - both in April when the real anniversary falls, but also when we play them in a few weeks.

As part of that, this t-shirt will be available from the day of the West Ham game - in The Rocket, and we will set something up so you can buy them online as well. They are yours for a fiver, and all profits go to Centrepoint. Only 1000 available (in a variety of sizes), so get one while stocks last.

Not quite as funny, but certainly good news is that Aaron Ramsey can walk again. When Ryan Shawcross first maimed him, many of you gave generously for a banner to support him (Ramsey, not the idiot Shawcross). As he nears full fitness again, we will start to get this out again more often in the stadium. At the time, we promised to give the banner away to one contributor chosen at random, once Aaron is playing again. So, keep a look out for more details on that - we will have Aaron sign the banner, and are working on getting him to present it to the lucky winner. More details when we have them

That's all for now, lets hear you all on Sunday if you are heading to Manchester.

Arsenal quiz night for Centrepoint

2010-10-06T01:14:00.000-07:00

In the middle of a big lack of interesting football, we wanted to let you know about an Arsenal pub quiz that Centrepoint are running later this month.

It is happening on Thursday 28th October at the Herbert Chapman pub (274 Holloway Road, N7 6NE). The quizmaster is DJ Tayo from the Alan Davies podcast, kick off is 7:45pm, and it costs £5 per person with a maximum 6 people per team. The prize is a signed Arsenal shirt - but the aim of the game is to have a fun evening and raise some decent money for Centrepoint.

If you are interested, you need to register in advance by emailing arsenal@centrepoint.org

Update - pre Bolton (h)

2010-09-08T11:29:00.000-07:00

Hi all

A few things to tell you about before the Bolton game on Saturday, thank God yet another dull international break is over!

This Saturday marks the return of the Arsenal Away Boyz to The Rocket. Those with long memories will know that we were the first venue to regularly have them along for live performances - now it seems that all the pubs in N5 and N7 are in on the act! They will be playing 2 sets - one before the game (starting at about 1:30pm), and one after the game (starting around 5:45pm).

Other than the Away Boyz, we will have the Everton vs Man U game on the telly at 12:45. We might even stick Burnley vs Preston (5:30 kick off) on a screen or two after our game, if anybody is remotely interested. Ok, thought not, so we'll stick to Arsenal DVDs instead.

There will be food available at The Rocket again, following on from the good feedback we had after the Blackpool game. We will be open at midday - so you can grab lunch and beer, and get a good spot for the Away Boyz. As we are expecting to be busy again, its probably also worth mentioning the side bar - where there are very rarely any queues to get served, and where you can get 2 beers for under a fiver.

Final thing to mention for now is that we will be running an open meeting / idea gathering / brainstorm session in The Rocket before the West Brom game on 25th September. Anybody and any ideas are welcome. We are particularly interested in ideas for how we can "welcome" Spurs to our stadium in November, especially since it is 50 years since they last won the League! So, if you are around before West Brom, please come and see us.

That's all for now, lets hope for 3 points and no injuries on Saturday

Victory Through Harmony

REDaction

Elvis has left the building!

2010-08-18T13:13:00.001-07:00

First home game of the new season, and there is an absolute ton of stuff going on both inside and outside the stadium.

Inside the stadium, the clock is back - as is the Clock End, North Bank and East and West stands. The Club are planning an “opening ceremony” for the “new” stands, and of course a welcoming ceremony for the clock. This will be happening inside the ground from about 2:40pm on Saturday, so please get into your seat by then (and spread the word to everybody else you know).

There will be fireworks, there will be massive banners, there should be freebies, and the players won’t be running out to “The Wonder Of You”. What more could anybody want?! Seriously, it will be well worth getting in early, and even The March from The Rocket will leave at around 2:20pm to make sure we get into the ground in time.

Also in the stadium, we really need to get the “North Bank” and “Clock End” songs going – renaming the stands is something we as fans asked for, and that the club have delivered on, so lets make the most of it. Wherever you sat at Highbury, forget about it, that’s the past. We want to hear lots of noise from each of the new “stands”. Loads of “We’re the North Bank, we’re the North Bank, we’re the North Bank Highbury”.

Before and after the game, we will be in The Rocket as usual. We will have Arsenal DVDs on the big screen, the usual beer deals, and a free t-shirt - click for a picture . When we say “free”, we mean “free in exchange for a donation to charity” – a double bonus as you get a t-shirt and a good conscience. Stocks are limited, and when they’re gone they’re gone. After our game, we will have Wigan vs Chelsea on a couple of TVs and more Arsenal highlights on the other screens.

Finally, a plug for our Facebook page, which is here. Become a fan of REDaction and who knows what great things might happen to you!

Victory Through Harmony

REDaction

AFC Wimbledon this weekend!

2010-08-03T02:01:00.000-07:00

Couple of things to update you on, followed by an invitation to our pre season game against AFC Wimbledon this weekend. First though:

1. Thanks to all who filled in the survey about what beer we should sell in The Rocket. The winner was Tuborg, so we'll get the orders in and have it there for the Blackpool game.

2. If you fancy filling in another survey (bored at work maybe?), a university student at Essex university sent us a very nice email asking for football fans to fill in a survey for his dissertation. It is here is you fancy helping him out - http://bit.ly/aKuIQ5

3. Emirates Cup Supporters club 5-a-side was held on Sunday. REDaction's team got to the final, losing out to Herts & Beds Supporters club in the final 2-0. We had many different teams from local north London teams, various other AFC Supporters clubs inc the famous Arsenal Scotland, Green Gooners (Arsenal Nigeria), Arseblog, a team from Celtic, and a team from the Blackpool London supporters club branch! Thanks to all that participated.

Now, AFC Wimbledon vs an Arsenal XI on Saturday, and over to Steve for ticket news, directions, and all you could want to know!

I've just heard that pre-match sales for the above game are going very well, both for seats and standing. For those not heading out to Warsaw for the first team friendly I'd thoroughly recommend a day out down in south-west London. All visiting Gooners are guarenteed a very warm welcome. The Cherry Red Records Fans' Stadium at Kingsmeadow has two large bars where the pre and post-match service is friendly and fast, even during the post-match rush. The prices are very reasonable too and there's a much better selection of drinks and beers than we "enjoy" at the Grove.

There's also a blinding cafe in the parade of shops just by the entrance into the ground where Cambridge Road becomes Kingston Road about 150 metres from the ground. It's called Fat Boy's Cafe (204 Cambridge Road, Kingston Upon Thames, Surrey, KT1 3LU). Fry-ups, good Italian and Turkish food and very reasonable prices. It's always open early on matchdays.

Tickets cost £10 to stand (£5 full-time students-over 60s-unwaged/£ under 16s) and £12 for a seat (£6/£3). You can book on-line ("standard ticket" means a seat) here - http://bit.ly/cJDOGj . There's a one-off £1.50 booking fee per transaction rather than per ticket. All Visa and MasterCard credit and debit cards accepted. I'd recommend buying in advance to avoid having to queue at the turnstiles or to buy a seat on the day BUT those who rock up on the day will be very welcome too and all turnstiles will be open to get fans in as quickly possible.

Parking in the area of the ground is a bit of a 'mare so I'd recommend going by public transport. The neareat station (about 700 metres from the ground) is Norbiton from Waterloo. If you're either unsteady on your pins or just lazy (like me) you can go to Kingston Upon Thames station and get the 131 bus which drops you literally in front of the very short road leading to the ground. Norbiton is in London travel zone 5, Kingston is in zone 6. You can now use pre-pay Oyster cards on all suburban trains in the Greater London area. The alternative is a one-day zones 1-6 off-peak Travelcard. The 131 bus also runs from Wimbledon Underground/railway station.

I hope to see as many Gooners as possible over there on Saturday for what should be an excellent Barnet style pre-season day out. A very pleasant way to painlessly invest some cash into the game's grass-roots and to see what a supporter-owned and run club looks like.

The address of the ground for those wanting to employ satnav systems is:
AFC Wimbledon
The Cherry Red Records Fans' Stadium - Kingsmeadow
Jack Goodchild Way
422a Kingston Road
Kingston Upon Thames
Surrey
KT1 3PB

OK, that's all for now - more as we get closer to the Blackpool game

Look who's back!

2010-07-09T02:38:00.000-07:00

REDaction End of Season Party

2010-04-22T02:09:00.000-07:00

Flags pre Barcelona

2010-04-01T07:21:00.001-07:00

Five ways to help The Arsenal between now and Wednesday

2010-03-29T12:48:00.001-07:00

Big game on Wednesday, so here are a few ways you can help the cause. Pick one, try a couple, or even do all of them!

1. Get into the ground early. Now I know we often ask this, but this time even Arsenal are asking too. Give up that last pint in the pub beforehand, and get in by 7:15pm to start building the atmopshere ready for kickoff.

2. Bring a flag. You may have noticed that we have been hanging lots of flags from Club Level recently. If you have an Arsenal flag or banner you'd like to hang up, email us a picture of it, and the contact details for somebody who can come up to Club Level and look after it. By the way, we should be displaying this little baby at the game. And this. And this. With much credit to Dan_85 and Alex Hill for their design work on the last 2.

3. Wear a scarf. Same request as always, but we want the team to see something special when they walk out onto the pitch, something to fire them up to win the game for us.

4. Sing all game. This is one of those games where you should be singing until you lose your voice, from the first whistle to the last. Every time they get the ball, whistle, shout and make it a horrible atmosphere for all of the Barca players. And whenever we have the ball, get behind our lads with all your energy.

5. If you see Lionel Messi between now and Wednesday, "accidentally" kick him. Hard.

That is all for now - see you there for the one we've been waiting for.

A simple guide to displaying big flags

2010-03-24T14:44:00.001-07:00

One Aaron Ramsey - the banner

2010-03-01T06:47:00.000-08:00

Ok, here it is. It is 18ft by 15ft, it is on order now, and it should be with us in time for the Burnley game on Saturday, for us to drop from Club Level. Failing that, for Porto on Tuesday week. Thanks must go to the posters on the Gooner forum who (among others) had the idea, and one in particular who came up with the design.

Now, one thing about 18x15ft banners is that they are not cheap. Not cheap at all. To help pay for it, we are accepting donations, large or small. We will get Aaron Ramsey to sign it, and when he is playing football again we will give it away to one of the people that contributed towards it. Think of it as a raffle, for a good cause, with a great prize.

You can contribute in a couple of ways:
1. By PayPal. Please make payments to steveg@mbc-n.com and mention "REDaction Ramsey" in the payment. Please also give us your email address and phone number so we can contact you if you win the draw.
2. By cheque. Please make cheques payable to REDaction. One option is to post to REDaction c/o MBC-n, 2nd Floor, Fairman Law House, Park Terrace, Worcester Park, Surrey, KT4 7JZ. Or, you can drop cheques off at The Rocket this Saturday, where we will also be running a bucket collection in the foyer. Again, please write your email address and phone number on the back of the cheque if you want to enter the draw, or give your details to the person with the bucket.

That's all for now, anything you can contribute will be a great help towards paying our big new credit card bill.

Victory Through Harmony

REDaction

The next stadium core

2009-10-23T03:08:00.000-07:00

Calling all Gooners! Great Ormond Street Hospital needs you!

2009-09-28T04:03:00.001-07:00

On the 25th of October, Arsenal travel over to West Ham united for the day’s big London derby. To coincide with this, REDaction are calling on all Arsenal supporters and staff to join us in a ‘Sponsored Bed Push’ between the two grounds.

We will start at the Emirates Stadium at 9.30am where breakfast will be served, and then we will travel through the streets of North and East London, collecting money as we go - arriving at Upton Park around about an hour before kick off. No doubt there will be a ‘refreshment’ stop on the way as well.

This is a great opportunity for all our supporters to join together and raise a lot of money for Great Ormond Street Hospital, whilst having a good laugh on the journey over there. So come on - young or old, Clock End or North Bank we need your support and more importantly, Great Ormond Street needs your support. Don’t just take the District Line to the game, come and burn some calories as well. It will make the 3 points (we hope) even more fulfilling.

If you want to get involved please let us know at our e-mail address of redaction.gooners@gmail.com and we will provide all the sponsorship forms etc, or if you just feel inclined to make a donation to this great cause then you can go to our JustGiving page.

We are busy organising a few ‘surprises’ for the day and we will publicise these as we get confirmation.

Victoria Concordia Crescit

REDaction

An open letter to Martin Samuel

2009-09-15T13:57:00.000-07:00

Dear Martin

I thought I would respond to your article in the Daily Mail on the 15th of September with regard to Emmanuel Adebayor and the events at Eastlands on Saturday.

The first point to make is that the chant you mention is of course intolerable.

You use the term a ‘significant percentage’ to describe the numbers of Arsenal supporters partaking in the chant. You must have good hearing in that case, as an even more ‘significant percentage’ soon drowned out the offensive chant with the reworked version which relates to Andrei Arshavin and that we have no need for Mr Adebayor in no uncertain terms.

Now obviously two wrongs do not make a right, but I do not remember anyone from the press expressing concern when the racist chant was being directed in far more vocal terms at Adebayor all over the country last season. In fact apart from the usual expected protagonists of Chelsea and the team from Middlesex, Man City were one of the worst crowds for singing the chant last season.

They have subsequently re-jigged the song to boast about Adebayor's alleged sexual prowess, but then again maybe racial stereotyping is ok, or maybe you did not pick up on that one.

Of course the other point that you made was that Arsenal supporters and in fact all supporters just because they pay to go and see their team do not have a right to complain, or at least to complain in such vociferous terms.

To an extent you are correct of course. However the supporters do not have access to the National Press to put their views over in more lucid terms nor do they have time on a match day to ponder their argument before letting go of their pent up feelings.

Allied to this I think you need to look at the history of the case in question, and this is something that nearly all club supporters (except maybe Chelsea, Man City, and Real Madrid) will appreciate.

Emmanuel Adebayor was given his chance at The Arsenal by Arsene Wenger and when we signed him it was generally felt that it was another gamble by Arsene. Most Gooners and no doubt the rest of the Football supporting public wondered just who this guy was. He came with a bit of a reputation for being a trouble maker as well.

He then had the unenviable task of replacing a legend in Thierry Henry. In his first season he did a remarkable job, of that there can be no question.

He was well on the way, however that summer he spoilt it by touting himself around Europe as though he was the greatest thing since sliced bread. As anyone with an ounce of Football knowledge will testify a ’great player’ can only become one after many years of consistent performances.

During that first season the Arsenal fans really supported him and sang his name to the rafters. How were they supposed to feel on finding that having taken all the acclaim he then threw it all back and tried to engineer a move?

Once last season had started he had brokered a tripling of his salary. On the evidence of his first season performance some would say that was justifiable, and of course good performance should be rewarded.

At the Emirates Cup at the start of the second season he did get some stick from supporters, especially when he decided to ‘kiss the badge’ after scoring. Come on, we don’t mind the man getting his pay rise but let’s not take the proverbial out of people.

During the season the previous ‘love’ shown to the big man was not forthcoming, however there was very little if any abuse directed towards him. Emmanuel Adebayor is a grown man - if he cannot run out onto a pitch and give his all every week because people with some justification are not singing his name every week, then I think he is the one who needs to grow up, rather than the supporters.

The one time that people did really get behind him was to counteract that intolerable racist song at various grounds. Again obviously missed by you and your contemporaries and by Adebayor himself.

Moving onto this summer and along come Man City waving the big cheque book about. No offence to City, a great club with a great history, but in reality do you think that it was likely that Mr Adebayor even knew that there were two teams in Manchester when he moved to England?

The only reason he went is because he was offered another monumental pay rise. No Champions League this season and no guarantee of any next season or for seasons after that. Arsenal of course were willing to let him go for a vast profit on their initial investment. Whether that is a good bit of business we will have to wait and see, but one thing is for sure not only did it assist Arsenals bank balance it also improved team morale.

The lack of loyalty shown by Adebayor to Arsene Wenger, Arsenal FC, and Arsenal supporters will be replicated all round the league by various players for ever and a day and maybe we should just accept the way things are. However one of the main characteristics of all supporters is loyalty so how can we ever understand the lack of loyalty shown by these people.

Today most players live in a totally artificial world that has no relevance to the supporters and that divide continues to grow. Their avarice (in most cases) seems to know no bounds. Arsenal fans have of course been through this before with the Ashley Cole example, who amazingly seemed shocked when not only Arsenal but every other group of fans in the country booed him to the rafters for nearly crashing his car when only offered £55,000 a week.

With the divide getting ever wider how are supporters supposed to show any displeasure if not vocally, after all we will not get interviewed on Football Focus pouring out how hurt we are etc as per Mr Adebayor.

Compare Adebayors treatment to that of a certain Kolo Toure on Saturday by the same set of fans. Well I don’t again see any comment from you as to how Kolo was received. Just in case your spies did not advise you from the top tier Kolo was given warm support by the travelling Gooners. A player who always did his best for The Arsenal and never bad-mouthed the club even when he felt hard done by.

In one of your final paragraphs you talk about ‘whitey’ getting on the pitch and maybe coming off worse to Mr Adebayors fists. Whilst fully understanding your boxing reference it is a shame that you have to put things into racial terms. Arsenals support has long been the most racially diverse of all the London clubs and in fact nationally as well. We have never had the problems of the likes of West Ham, Chelsea, and Leeds etc with the far-right. I am sure if you looked carefully at the pictures from Saturday that you will spot many black faces in our support, still not something you see too regularly at some grounds, and I can assure you that my black mates who were at Eastlands on Saturday were giving Adebayor just as much stick as the white majority.

As I said at the start there is no excuse for any racist chants towards Emmanuel Adebayor and any Arsenal fans who did partake in them on Saturday need to take a good hard look at themselves. However the supporters at Arsenal are frustrated (maybe for more reasons than player loyalty) and unfortunately for the man from Togo he bore the brunt.

Not an excuse for some of what happened on Saturday, but nevertheless we will not be the last in a similar situation, and then maybe people will have really something to moan about because of crowd behaviour. After all Arsenal supporters are positively saint like compared to some around the country.

Mark

Arshavin songs!

2009-02-06T03:35:00.000-08:00

So, after a month of torture, the little Russian finally signed. 2 days later, our inbox had been deluged with song suggestions for the new boy. Here are some of the best, with YouTube links to the tunes:

To the tune of Kumbaya:
Arshavin my lord Arshavin
Arshavin my lord Arshavin
Arshavin my lord Arshavin
Ohh Andrei Arshavin

To the tune of Ra Ra Rasputin:
Ra-ra-Arshavin, Arsenal's Russian goal machine,
Through the middle, or on the wing,
Ra-ra-Arshavin, Arsenal's Russian goal machine,
Whenever he plays, we're gonna win.

To the tune of I See You Baby:
I see you baby, shavin that ars, shavin that ars…….!

To the tune of The Addams Family:
He shoots like Rivelino,
He shits on that Yid Keano,
Hes better than Robinho,
Hes Andrei Arshavin,
Arshavin Arshavin Arshavin Arshavin

Another to the tune of Ra Ra Rasputin:
Arrr arrr Arshavin. Russian fella on the wing.
It is a fact that he loves to score
Arrr arrr Arshavin. Is the song The Arsenal sing.
Cos he's a Gooner to the core

To the Tetris tune (a Russian song called Korobeiniki):
An-drei Ar-shav-in
OH An-drei Ar-shav-in,
he's the Russian who plays for Ar-sen-al,
He's not bad,
for a boy from Leningrad,
now he wears the red and white of Ars-sen-al.

To the tune of Chase The Sun (aka the Sky Sports darts music)
Its the song where the fans chant Oi Oi Oi. Ar Sha Vin fits well.

And yet another to the tune of Ra Ra Rasputin:
Andrei Arshavin
Arsenal's Russian goal machine
He gets the ball and then he is gone
Andrei Arshavin
We bought him from a Russian Team
It was a shame how they carried on.

And whilst you're on YouTube, this little beauty should help get you excited about the new boy.

A rallying call for the run-in

2008-02-29T03:19:00.000-08:00

*As a precursor to this article, I would like to forewarn that, while I usually censor any profanities I use in my articles, on this occasion, I feel it inappropriate to do so. So if industrial language is likely to cause offence, please don't read on.*

It is fair to say that things haven't really gone our way in the last week. From Adebayor's late flirtation with the Milan crossbar, to Mike Dean's costly and terrible officiating to Eduardo's awful injury. Mohammed Ali once said, 'champions are not made in gyms, they are made by something deep inside them, a burning desire to win.' Strength in adversity is a crucial ingredient to anybody who wants to achieve, you can't get the gold without digging through the dirt. With Eduardo's misfortune and Bacary Sagna's tragic personal circumstances, fate is turning its cruel hand squarely against key personnel, it would be easy to feel that everything and everyone is conspiring against us. This feeling was embodied by the irate figure of William Gallas yesterday. Much has been said of Billy's reaction yesterday. Personally, I can fully understand it. I was sat amongst around three thousand Gooners yesterday and we all felt what William felt. (For my part, the seat in front of me took a blow that might have split that cunt Hansen's shin in half, but it's alright Alan, it wasn't two footed). Some might label Gallas' reaction petulant, it was. But we had a diplomat for a captain, it didn't work. Henry came in for untold criticism last year after a last minute defeat at Upton Park when he stood laughing and joking with Reo Coker after the final whistle. We don't need a diplomat, we need a warrior. In an emotional day, Gallas may have let his emotions get to him. Different people react differently on these occasions,what is clear is that Gallas cares deeply about his team and his team mates.

Unfortunately, odious little fuckwits like Hansen and the lovable media, showing no remorse for their own part in Eduardo's unnecessary tragedy, have focussed on Gallas kicking an advertising hoarding. (Worry not folks, word from the surgeon is that the hoarding has undergone surgery and hopes to whore products to the nation again soon). Hansen has since dismissed the severity of Taylor's challenge on the grounds that, 'it wasn't two footed.' Tell that to Eduardo's surgeon you despicable little cunt. Hansen has been one of the key propagandists when it comes to the 'Arsenal don't like it up em' brigade, his responsibility should not be overlooked. Hansen comprehensively wrote Arsenal off back in August, and his praise since we comprehensively elucidated his ignorance has been lukewarm. This guy would flannel his arse with a Liverpool shirt before he would give us credit or criticise anybody who commits wrong against us. So let's roar to the title and rub that precocious little twat's nose in it. Steve Bruce and David Platt have also come out and said that Taylor's tackle might not have even been a yellow card. With all the best will in the word to Stevie and David. Fuck you too. Fuck both of you.

Even withstanding Gael Clichy's barely forgivable stupidity and arrogance in injury time at St. Andrews yesterday, that was never a penalty. All afternoon, Dean appeared incapable of giving anything to Arsenal. The only thoroughly correct decision he made all afternoon only occurred when an Arsenal player's ankle was hanging off of his leg. Dean's refereeing rivalled Coward Webb and Mike Riley in its one eyed thought process. We must use biased little fuckers such as these to propel us to the title. Starting with Villa next week, we must go into every game with a snarl (whilst not manifesting that aggression on the shin bones of opponents). Gallas showed us all yesterday how much it means to him, now he must show it to his team mates. We as fans have a part to play as well, we must whistle and bitch for every decision. Even if we know it's not a foul, let's whinge and shout and scream that it is. The authorities look hellbent on handing United the title, lets snatch it out of their grubby mitts. Fuck them, it's time to blow the motherfucking roof off, because the mood has just changed.

As Franklin Delano Roosevelt once said, 'we have nothing to fear but fear itself.' So let's leave that twat Nani medalless come May, Gallas can do some keepy uppies in the lap of honour. Bacary Sagna, your bravery in the face of adversity is utterly commendable, your brother would be very proud of you. You deserve a title winners' medal, go out and earn it son. We must imagine that 'oh shit' look smeared over the faces of Nani and Ferguson, the sight of Mike Dean tearing up his betting slip in disgust, Hansen's appearance on Match of the Day as the highlights reel of Arsenal's season is run in our tribute. Fuck em all, fuck em all, United, West Ham, Hansen, Tottenham, Bruce, Ferguson, Nani and Liverpool. Fuck them all, fuck anyone that doubts us. I posted a quote from the latest Rocky film in an article last week that bears repetition, 'life isn't about how hard you can hit, it's how hard you can be hit and keep moving forward.' Arsenal,the time to hit back is at hand. As myself and 3,000 other travelling fans sang yesterday, 'we're gunner win it for Eduardo.' The sight of him walking onto the podium to collect his medal come May should be motivation more than any of the aforementioned.

Victoria Concordia Crescit.