As someone whose whole formative experience of growing up watching Town revolved around belonging to a supporters' club, I write this with a tinge of sadness. The last few months have seen heavy criticism of the club’s relationship with fans and it seems with the rise and fall of various groups, some of the longer-standing ones might want to take stock.

The concept of a supporters’ club is a relatively simple one, but out of the tens of thousands of Ipswich fans barely a single percent of fans will likely ever come into contact with them (excluding the official one, arguably due to the mandatory membership) by being part of them. These small kernels of support are sadly looking like vehicles which possibly belong to a bygone age these days.

The Halesworth branch is one of the oldest and most well established – it’s also been run by my old man since God was a boy and before that it was established and thriving, so I’ll try to choose my words carefully.

In the last 20 years it’s gone all over the place figuratively and literally. Its coach is often the only one accompanying Galloways to away games, whereas in the past other small towns and outposts of Suffolk fans were ever-present.

These days the demands on people, the recession, a lack of good football has seen attendances dwindle in the stands and on the coaches. This impacts the memberships of supporters' clubs – but so does the way in which we interact as fans. Sites like this bring people together, lifts can be arranged, tickets shared and swapped and you can do the simple things with people whose company you prefer.

The little rivalries amongst branches and even within them can often sour things irreparably like any community group – the inconvenience of any necessary social aspect is now removed much easier these days.

Likewise interaction with the club is easier and much more personal, through emails and membership numbers. It’s more logical to do it yourself, rather than get the bloke on the bus who ‘does the tickets’ to order you one week's in advance tying you in to a full day of paying out to see a match.

In the past I’ve called for various reforms of the Official Supporters' Club and encouraged them to go out and meet people who could bolster their role and remit. So far I understand that hasn’t happened and probably won’t. There has certainly been a sense from those who work alone in their own areas, that any membership and any relationship with the Official Club is merely tokenistic and offers no real value.

The good work these supporters' clubs have done for the young and old fans who find it harder to access football is something I worry will be lost, sooner rather than later. Who will pick up the slack of the hundreds of the elderly or immobile youngsters who live further afield and can’t access public transport easily? Suffolk is after all relatively vast and rural compared to the catchment areas of most clubs. Will the ITFC board be interested in laying on coaches for supporters (we have/had regulars well into their 80s and 90s) who can’t get their under their own steam?

There is more than just logistics at stake – there’s continuity and inclusion across the fanbase. If the mechanism of a 'supporters' club' is dying out, regardless of the lack of success on the pitch then something must be done to replace it. Meeting players as a young kid was something I looked forward to at many supporter-run events across the county throughout the year – the idea that kids these days will not do that so easily is a sad one.

Football is a game where accusations of homogenisation and 'pushing out' the working man are levelled at it willy-nilly. What about all the other fans, the next generation who might not be lucky enough to have a Town supporting dad, uncle, older brother, or elderly regulars to blood them at the Portman Road Mecca? There’s no better way to get hooked on anything than to have it pushed on you early from someone you know after all.

To see and hear these new fan groups come to the fore briefly and loudly, immediately demanding and chastising all and sundry makes me feel that only one course of action is likely. They will fail and fail miserably, blaming the club and those already in place for it. More importantly they will tarnish the good name and good work of others with their approach by assumption of affiliation alone.

Those branches and supporters' clubs who work away on their own will take their chances with the fortunes of the team. As the side wins and loses, so they will gain and lose regulars until the sands of time remove that generation; not so dependent on the older models of getting to and from games, not so sold by the cheaper cost of splitting a coach than buying a train ticket etc. Thus making the need and viability for communities of support impossible until these clubs fold and die out, as many already have.

If your motivation for running a supporters’ club is recognition, you’ve picked the wrong thing. You’d be better off streaking at a game or protesting about as many things as possible. It’s a thankless task more often than not. Someone will always think they know better. But there is good reason for ITFC to review and try to preserve as many channels of support as possible.

As argued before we as fans are their 'market' – appeasing and appealing to us keeps the coffers swelled. By letting individuals slip away at a constant rate soon adds up. If the club is serious about retention and serious about keeping fans happy, to me it’s simple.

The best place to start is to put the good work and good grace of the Official Supporters' Club to work and multiply that. Take every opportunity to encourage, embrace and involve those who want to be, in every aspect of the club whenever and wherever possible. If they can, why not make it easier for fans to use the vast networking and know-how of the club to get things going, coordinate events and travel and adopt a 'many hands make light work approach'?

The Charitable Trust, the Junior Blues etc are all fantastic facets of our club. If there is a way to streamline the operations and interactions of fans at all stages and places under one bigger umbrella I’d be all for it. The actions of a very few combined with the inaction of others shouldn’t be something which defines how people interact with ITFC.

Joetown95 added 16:34 - Jun 30 Great blog. Are you a Morrissey fan by any chance?
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Mullet added 18:31 - Jun 30 Many Thanks. I am indeed although the puns are running out/getting more obscure these days!
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Superfrans added 20:19 - Jun 30 Good blog. I think the concept of the supporters club is becoming a little outdated - although I would also say that Liz Edwards is extremely open and accessible if you want to speak to/make contact with her. I would even wager that you may well even hear from her following this blog. Having said that, I find our club much more accessible than I imagine many others might be. It is relatively easy (with a little effort) to meet players past and present, for a start. Without really making a particular effort, I was at three events last season which were attended by past stars - including the likes of Ted Phillips, Ray Crawford, Kevin Beattie, Russell Osman etc. and I've often been surprised how few fans have bothered to turn up. My instinct is that the club does do a decent amount in this area and is trying hard, often through the supporters club. But i often wonder if the cynicism or apathy of many of our fans means that these activities are not supported by them. And if the fans don't support them, they won't take place. This is a vicious circle, of course. But the effort is often being made.

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michaeldownunder added 02:26 - Jul 1 Good read Maybe you should take note from another Morrissey song The more you ignore me, the closer I get (to being an armchair fan) (I added the last bit)
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COBWEB added 13:39 - Jul 3 Brilliant Blog and every point valid. I wonder, though doubt, if any of those that should, will take any notice of this excellent piece.
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Nthsuffolkblue added 20:17 - Jul 3 As a boy I used to play sport on a Saturday afternoon and would only occasionally to watch the Town. What put me off the Halesworth branch supporters club at that time was the one and only time I decided to travel on their coach to a match. There was a distinct sense that came across that because I was not a regular I was not a true fan. I decided there and then to steer clear of them and travel to games by train. Once I learnt to drive the thought of going on a supporters' coach other than to the odd away has never crossed my mind. I know it may only have been a few around me on that coach that gave me that impression but I think members of supporters clubs need to be aware of how such an attitude can put off some truly loyal (if not ever-present) fans.

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Mullet added 16:07 - Jul 4 Thanks to those who took the time to read as always. Nthsuffolk, I've had a couple of branch members express their concern at your post. But you do raise a valuable point. The perception of others to an already well established and close group is something all supporter's clubs needs to overcome. Personally I'm very sorry you felt that way and I can assure you broadly speaking I've never come across that mindset, so as what sounds like a one off, it's a real shame it went that way. As enthusiastic amateurs if you like, all branches suffer somewhat from being at the mercy of those willing to do what they can/feel like doing but any kind of 'customer service' falls under their remit. Which really only goes to enforce the message of the blog. If you'd like to pass anything on to the branch feel free to PM me, I know for a fact they'd be keen to hear any feedback.

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s6blue added 22:00 - Jul 4 good read
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Doctor_Albran added 13:01 - Jul 5 The hard work required to run a supporters club (and any small society/club/football team) is often taken for granted by those who use them, that combined with the pressures on people's time caused by work, family/social issues and a general increase in costs for everything over the past 10-20 years means that many of these small institutions are struggling for membership. Unsure what can be done (if anything) to reverse this. Very good blog, interesting, if a little depressing (nothing to do with the writing, more the sentiment it delivers about the passage of time and that whilst technology has advanced, some simple pleasures have become/are becoming too complex).

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madmouse1959 added 10:43 - Jul 7 An interesting blog. We all remember the local coaches and mini buses queued up in Princess Street.
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the_toff added 10:26 - Jul 8 Well written and very valid points. What I would say is, and correct me if i'm wrong, but don't you live in Manchester now Mullet? Presumably you are one of the dwindling supporters club members. I appreciate you still get to games but you are a living example of the type of person who isn't taking on the baton. If we all look around waiting for others to make changes then nothing will get done.

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Mullet added 21:14 - Jul 9 I am indeed still Manchester based. Although my car doesn't quite equate to a supporter's coach, I do my best to help out fellow blues although there is somewhat less demand up here it has to be said. I think however you may miss what is essentially the wider point. The Halesworth branch has held on for dear life where others have succumbed or simply been starved into disappearing. It's more an example to be held up amongst the few still going as to what is/can happen in a very shirt space of time. You're quite right my circumstances and the mobility of people compared to 30 years ago when the HITSC started is certainly a massive factor. However there is a lot more scope to both the blog and my point than saving a single club, but reinvigorating the approach towards the fan base as a whole. Maybe events will conspire and I'll inherit the role as it were, maybe not. However should the fate of anything rest on one person's shoulders then ITFC would be in dire peril regardless.

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petersongoal added 16:08 - Jul 12 this was a very insightful read. if i may, i'd just like to go off track for a moment. I'm a big MLS fan and over there every team has atleast 2, if not more, supporters groups - run by and for fans. The clubs all maintain a high level of communication with these groups and this in turn leads to healthy support at games and a big community spirit. I wonder if the likes of Ipswich could learn from this example and really include our supporters clubs, as you say: many hands make light work.

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