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[midds]

Steve Wraith

 

Time To Bury The Hatchet With The Mag , True Faith And The Newcastle United Supporters Trust By Steve Wraith June 23rd 2013

 

A lot of people ask me why I don’t get on with Mark Jensen and Mick Martin from The Mag and True Faith fanzines? Well the answer is….I do. I don’t actually have a problem with these lads. Let’s face it they both edit the 2 most successful Newcastle United fanzines in town. Both were involved in putting the Supporters Club together during our last crisis…Mick chaired the meeting before departing for a steak dinner if I recall. The Supporters Club became the Trust and then for a variety of reasons they hit a brick wall and the wheels came off as far as there bid to buy the club is concerned and the original gang split and went their own ways for various reasons.

 

When the Supporters Club was launched I attended, I joined and I got behind it. I didn’t want to be a leader of men. I was chuffed to see others finally pushing for something I believed in without me having to bother my arse. A lot couldn’t understand why I was sitting back. It’s because the lads were doing a great job and wouldn’t have wanted me involved anyway. When it became the trust I helped get the huge flag into the ground as part of a protest. I helped leaflet the bars around St James Park. If I believe a cause is a just one I don’t really care who is in charge as long as I can help make a difference.

The wheels fell off for me when I was asked to carry adverts in my fanzine. I said I would do it for free if the others were. They weren’t so I told them what I would charge them my going rate at the time. Without getting into a slanging match and boring you all to death let’s say my invoices took a while to be paid!! If it hadn’t been for friends on the inside looking after me then maybe I would still be waiting who knows but I did get paid eventually.

 

Rewinding a little, at the start of the Millenium when I was the paid Fans Liaison Officer at the club (as Lee Marshall is now) I was the victim of a character assassination by Jensen and Martin via their respective fanzines. (I guess I’m an easy target being an associate of the Kray family.) But they didn’t give me a chance at the job. I may not have been able to change the NUFC world in that position but the committee that was voted in were top class and by undermining me they ruined any chance that the FLC had of making a bond with the club. It was eventually disbanded after the club had spent thousands on the whole process. What I couldn’t understand is why we had ALL being calling for communication with the club, yet when we got the opportunity they let their personal views on me get in the way of the biggest chance we had been offered in years. My departure at the club 2 years later (which I engineered myself) was greeted with delight and ridicule. I wonder if a different fanzine editor had been in that position would have fared better? I certainly would have supported them and not revealed that at school they supported Liverpool but that’s a different story! (C’mon I have to be allowed one dig!)

I kept all the articles that they published about me and read through them the other day. I had to laugh to be honest at the childish undertones. I then looked back at a few issues of ‘Number Nine’ fanzine that I used to edit…I’d forgotten Michael used to write for me.

 

So I started thinking why would Michael be upset with me? Did I edit a piece of his work? Did I bin an article for the political bullshit he loves so much. Maybe it was another review of ‘Joy Division.’ Whatever it is though he has always had it in for me since he nestled under Jensen’s wing.

Now Mark. Well he created the monster within me. I sent a few articles to him after the first Mag came out and he didn’t want to publish my work. So I thought stuff him then, I’ll make my own fanzine. ‘The Mighty Quinn’ was born. It was never a money making venture. It was always just a chance for me to get my views that Jensen wouldn’t print out there to all of you.

I’ve seen them around over the years. There’s often a smile that coveys a different emotion behind the matchday mask. People tell me what they have allegedly said about me behind my back yet they have never said anything to my face. I’ve learned to live with it. We have shared the same airwaves and the same column inches and quite often the same views and opinions for over 20 years now. Time flies when your enjoying yourself!

 

So what’s the point of this rant? To sort a fight in the car park opposite St James? To challenge them to a fight to the death wearing Sports Direct kit? No not at all. It’s a challenge of a different type. I’m 41 lads. I’m not sure how old you 2 are but you look older (joke). I’m prepared to put the past behind us. I’m prepared to forget about all those awful things you have said in print about me and the alleged things you have said to our mutual friends. It’s time to put aside our differences and ‘Unite’ the supporters for the greater good. We are never going to agree on everything (that’s NUFC for you) but I’m prepared to sit round a table with you and make a few plans to take this club forward from a supporters point of view.

 

I get that some people don’t like me. I am a divisive figure, but I will give 150% to any cause I believe in and I’m not that fussed at being a leader of anything. I prefer to use my experience and contacts to help make things happen.

 

NUFC Fans United is a coalition of supporters. We meet once a month with the same club officials you met on that freebie at the Europa game last season. We discuss all things NUFC over a pint and the minutes are typed up and sent to the club, the media and our ever growing database. We are not looking to lead the fans. We are a critical friend and are here to help groups with a plan or something to say. We may be able to help you who knows!?

So come on. Let’s put the past behind us eh and grow up. Come along with your friends and give us your voice, support and experience as part of a fans coalition…Our Club needs us…..

 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/138858761796/permalink/10151679675201797/

 

What an absolute cunt he is. Let's have another funeral, eh? Let's get the fancy dress out and embarrass ourselves in front of the TV cameras again, sounds fucking mint.

[Mick]

An associate of the Kray family.

 

Wants everyone to think he's Silvio Dante.

 

Bit daft putting that in but to be fair rightly or wrongly it is something people use to have a go at him with and why he has waffled on the basic point he is making is a good one,  the fans, while never going to eye to eye on everything need to have a collective voice when needed and with the trust seeming dying a death, NUFCfansunited have come together and have managed to get into regular communication with the club through Lee Marshall and Wendy Taylor.  It can only make the fans views more credible and get heard even more if the likes of True Faith, The Mag and .com come on board.  I have always thought NUFC's independant fanzine scene(will include .com and even this place in that) as one of the best in the country but unlike other clubs we never seem to join together and make ourselves heard properly.

 

Wraith has got the biggest ego out of all of the people he mentions in the above, what he's basically saying is get behind me.  I've never seen Mark Jensen, Biffa or Michael Martin turning up outside of St James' Park whenever a TV crew turns up, I've seen Wraith appearing from nowhere plenty of times.

 

Anybody who thinks Lee Marshall and Wendy Taylor are going to do any more than window dressing are deluded.

[TheHoob]

He's an absolute thundercunt like.

[binnsy]

An associate of the Kray family.

 

Wants everyone to think he's Silvio Dante.

 

Bit daft putting that in but to be fair rightly or wrongly it is something people use to have a go at him with and why he has waffled on the basic point he is making is a good one,  the fans, while never going to eye to eye on everything need to have a collective voice when needed and with the trust seeming dying a death, NUFCfansunited have come together and have managed to get into regular communication with the club through Lee Marshall and Wendy Taylor.  It can only make the fans views more credible and get heard even more if the likes of True Faith, The Mag and .com come on board.  I have always thought NUFC's independant fanzine scene(will include .com and even this place in that) as one of the best in the country but unlike other clubs we never seem to join together and make ourselves heard properly.

 

Wraith has got the biggest ego out of all of the people he mentions in the above, what he's basically saying is get behind me.  I've never seen Mark Jensen, Biffa or Michael Martin turning up outside of St James' Park whenever a TV crew turns up, I've seen Wraith appearing from nowhere plenty of times.

 

Anybody who thinks Lee Marshall and Wendy Taylor are going to do any more than window dressing are deluded.

 

You are probably right,  no idea what Lee and Wendy will do,  i don't know much about NUFCfansunited but do know they have had a few meetings with them and they have been at there last few meetings and while it might not be much, bearing how much the fans and media have been blanked by Ashley and Llambias in the last few years i suppose any contact with club officials as got to be a good sign but whether it has any effect we won't know but at least they will here what is going on and its up to them to act on it.  Also not sure Wraith is running it or anything, just think he has ended up "the voice" probably due to his relationship with local media, think Steve Hastie who was chairman of the NUST before it went tits up is but i maybe totally wrong.  I have decided to pop along to the meeting 2moro to see what the craic is so will find out then.

 

Agree about Biffa and Michael Martin not going on TV, although Michael was on talksport last week and Mark Jenson does a bit of TV,  just think the media have now just got into the routine of going straight to Steve for a soundbyte of any NUFC related news story,  but then that is also partly due to Steve and the local media being quite close as it works both ways,  he will give them his opinion on NUFC and they will get the interviews with the ex players who Steve has doing talk ins.  Won't deny he probably has the biggest ego but in Wraiths defence when he is on the tv he always says its his view and never says he is speaking for anyone but himself.

[Big Geordie]

I'm no fan of Wraith, but at least he does something whilst others are content to sit and whinge, whilst doing nout.

 

If anyone goes to the meeting tonight - I would love some feedback of what is said and if possible - could someone record it as was done 3/4 years ago? Work beckons for me, otherwise I would have gone.

[Guest antz1uk]

What an absolute bellend.. I,I,I,I,I,I,I,I,I,I,I,I, me,me,me,me,me,me,me....

[loki679]

Why does this club feel so full of tosspots right now?

[AyeDubbleYoo]

Why does this club feel so full of tosspots right now?

 

Because it is?

[binnsy]

I'm no fan of Wraith, but at least he does something whilst others are content to sit and whinge, whilst doing nout.

 

If anyone goes to the meeting tonight - I would love some feedback of what is said and if possible - could someone record it as was done 3/4 years ago? Work beckons for me, otherwise I would have gone.

 

i am sure i saw on twitter earlier that they are setting up a stream for the meeting.

[Big Geordie]

Has it been uploaded anywhere, fellas?