LongsightM13
Well-Known Member
Demo'd even with a broken leg. My plaster cast with 'Swales Out' written down the front in sky blue paint was shown on News At Ten
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Were you Swales out, or Swales in?
- Thread starter awest
- Start date
fat boy blue
Well-Known Member
Forest away . Night match not sure when
Peter Swales Peter Swales
& his puppet men
Peter Swales Peter Swales
& his puppet men
Can't remember the rest , to the tune of Robin Hood
Swales out . The buzz would go round the ground & we would leave early to get a good spot outside the main stand for another demo .
Forward with Franny - that's needs its own thread
Peter Swales Peter Swales
& his puppet men
Peter Swales Peter Swales
& his puppet men
Can't remember the rest , to the tune of Robin Hood
Swales out . The buzz would go round the ground & we would leave early to get a good spot outside the main stand for another demo .
Forward with Franny - that's needs its own thread
I was Swales Out but I regret it to this day even though I was only a young lad at the time. The campaign drove a man who lived and breathed City to an early grave even if a lot of his policies were either naive or misguided but none of us could have imagined what a disaster Franny would be at the time.
Gary James
Well-Known Member
I think it's worth remembering there were 2 major phases to the Swales Out protests. The first lasted from c1982-83 and throughout the period to August 1993 and the second came after Francis Lee showed interest.
With the original pre-Lee protests fans demonstrated for years and were supported by fanzines and so on, but it was very much supporters on their own. Because we had no financial clout (other than boycotting games which we didn't do) we were never listened to. Occasionally journalists would mention the demonstrations but it was reported as if we were impatient fans, not that we cared passionately for the well being of the club.
Peter Swales used all the opportunities at his disposal to end our protests - sometimes all it took was the rumour that we'd be buying a player to kill off some fans' criticisms. He also ensured the Supporters Club and others were encouraged not to take the view that his time was up.
In 1993 when he sacked Reid (or appointed Maddock to do the dirty work) only a few weeks after giving him a new contract (what planning!) we demonstrated of course, but Swales believed it would all die down as it had at other times once a new manager was appointed and players' signed.
In truth it probably would have died down because fans were simply not listened to and the media did not back us at all. Then it all changed because the media had the chance of a great story.... Forward With Franny.
From that point on I feel the Swales Out protests were not typical of what had gone before. Suddenly it was 'good V evil' and we had the pantomime situation of cheering the hero and then booing the villain, plus the ridiculous threats and private detectives operating on behalf of key figures (I've heard stories that are truly shocking from both 'sides' - some are clearly true others totally made-up).
I wanted Swales to stand down more than anything at this point and, like most fans, hoped Franny Lee was the answer, but it was Swales Out that mattered most. I attended one of the Franny meetings where Elliot Rashman made a very interesting point - he said something along the lines of "you need to think about what you want most is it Swales Out or Franny In - don't urge Franny in if you just want Swales Out."
Basically he went on to say that we had to be certain that Franny was what we wanted.
There's no point debating the rights and wrongs of Franny's time on this thread (needs another maybe), but I do have a lot of sympathy for the state he found the club in. His biggest mistakes for me were bringing in Ball after sacking Horton; keeping some of Swales' supporters on the Board and in key positions (they'd been part of the issue - when I interviewed Swales shortly before his death he felt totally betrayed by those that remained at City who claimed they would back him all the way); and not understanding the make-up of the modern day footballer & his pay/conditions.
As for Swales Out - I do think we have to remember that Swales Out demos occurred throughout a decade before Lee's campaign started and during that time it was the fans' alone that protested without media support. Whenever I think of Swales Out demos I think of the stuff from about 1987 on the forecourt and the over-use of police horses to chase our peaceful but noisy demos away!
With the original pre-Lee protests fans demonstrated for years and were supported by fanzines and so on, but it was very much supporters on their own. Because we had no financial clout (other than boycotting games which we didn't do) we were never listened to. Occasionally journalists would mention the demonstrations but it was reported as if we were impatient fans, not that we cared passionately for the well being of the club.
Peter Swales used all the opportunities at his disposal to end our protests - sometimes all it took was the rumour that we'd be buying a player to kill off some fans' criticisms. He also ensured the Supporters Club and others were encouraged not to take the view that his time was up.
In 1993 when he sacked Reid (or appointed Maddock to do the dirty work) only a few weeks after giving him a new contract (what planning!) we demonstrated of course, but Swales believed it would all die down as it had at other times once a new manager was appointed and players' signed.
In truth it probably would have died down because fans were simply not listened to and the media did not back us at all. Then it all changed because the media had the chance of a great story.... Forward With Franny.
From that point on I feel the Swales Out protests were not typical of what had gone before. Suddenly it was 'good V evil' and we had the pantomime situation of cheering the hero and then booing the villain, plus the ridiculous threats and private detectives operating on behalf of key figures (I've heard stories that are truly shocking from both 'sides' - some are clearly true others totally made-up).
I wanted Swales to stand down more than anything at this point and, like most fans, hoped Franny Lee was the answer, but it was Swales Out that mattered most. I attended one of the Franny meetings where Elliot Rashman made a very interesting point - he said something along the lines of "you need to think about what you want most is it Swales Out or Franny In - don't urge Franny in if you just want Swales Out."
Basically he went on to say that we had to be certain that Franny was what we wanted.
There's no point debating the rights and wrongs of Franny's time on this thread (needs another maybe), but I do have a lot of sympathy for the state he found the club in. His biggest mistakes for me were bringing in Ball after sacking Horton; keeping some of Swales' supporters on the Board and in key positions (they'd been part of the issue - when I interviewed Swales shortly before his death he felt totally betrayed by those that remained at City who claimed they would back him all the way); and not understanding the make-up of the modern day footballer & his pay/conditions.
As for Swales Out - I do think we have to remember that Swales Out demos occurred throughout a decade before Lee's campaign started and during that time it was the fans' alone that protested without media support. Whenever I think of Swales Out demos I think of the stuff from about 1987 on the forecourt and the over-use of police horses to chase our peaceful but noisy demos away!
henrythedogcity
Well-Known Member
Remember one protest when my dad who was a friend of swales was in the directors box,at the end of the game i left the north stand to go and meet him at the main gates only to see 4000 fans shouting fuck off swales.I went and asked a police man if he would let me get to my dad who was behind the main gate looking for me and was told to fuck off by the police man!
So i then started chanting fuck off swales with the rest of them until another police man let me in as my dad had seen me,then went into players lounge and shook hands with mr swales and had a cup of tea.
So i then started chanting fuck off swales with the rest of them until another police man let me in as my dad had seen me,then went into players lounge and shook hands with mr swales and had a cup of tea.
Gingers Dad
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- 8 Mar 2011
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Swales was only at City for himself. Franny Lee made a mess of it when he was in charge but at least he had the sense to get out. I will always be grateful to Franny for ousting Swales. You only have to look at Sheff Weds, Sheff Utd or Coventry to see what we would have become if Swales had stayedM19Blu said:I was Swales Out but I regret it to this day even though I was only a young lad at the time. The campaign drove a man who lived and breathed City to an early grave even if a lot of his policies were either naive or misguided but none of us could have imagined what a disaster Franny would be at the time.
M19Blu said:I was Swales Out but I regret it to this day even though I was only a young lad at the time. The campaign drove a man who lived and breathed City to an early grave even if a lot of his policies were either naive or misguided but none of us could have imagined what a disaster Franny would be at the time.
You was a young lad so can be excused for your blinkered view of Swales at a certain period of time. Otherwise I suspect you live in a parallel universe where black is white.
Better read what Gary James and others who remember the whole Swales era have written. Disatisfaction with him on the terraces goes back to the appointment of Ron Saunders.
Alan Oakes Shinpads
Well-Known Member
+1Alex the Blue said:I thought it was time for Peter Swales to go but I didn't join in any of the demos. I felt the abuse he got was over the top and I didn't want to be part of it. IIRC supporters even turned up outside his home to protest against him and that for me was bang out of order.
I just wish he had gone before things got as bad as they did. Initially a decent chairman but turned into a bad one.
Prestwich_Blue
Well-Known Member
Reading all this just begs the question - was Swales actually a rag working undercover?
He took over a decent team that had a chance of going places, changed his managers as often as his underpants, sold good players and replaced them with over-priced dross, wrecked the club finances and infrastructure, relegated us and then sold a rotting hulk of a club to Franny Lee, when anyone who truly loved the club would have given up and gone years before.
Was he Louis Edwards' bastard son?
He took over a decent team that had a chance of going places, changed his managers as often as his underpants, sold good players and replaced them with over-priced dross, wrecked the club finances and infrastructure, relegated us and then sold a rotting hulk of a club to Franny Lee, when anyone who truly loved the club would have given up and gone years before.
Was he Louis Edwards' bastard son?