STAR Royalty Points

[Scrappy]

I noticed after the recent fiasco that a number of people missed out on first opportunity tickets by small amounts. Small amounts which could have been accumulated by becoming a member of STAR and earning 10 points on your Reading membership per season since they were introduced. For a large majority of supporters, STAR does not appeal due to the fact that people don't want to travel by coach and the fans forums aren't an interesting prospect. Why is it that being a member of an external group means you are more loyal? Surely loyalty should be based on how many games a supporter goes to?

[Sarah Star]

Surely it's just another benefit of joining a supporters' group for the team you support.

FYI, I've never travelled on a STAR coach anywhere, but I've found the Fans' Forums really useful and entertaining, giving me the chance to hear players and managers talk about whatever is concerning fans at the time, giving you an insight that you won't get from the media. They often stay and chat to fans afterwards as well and it helps us get to know what they're really like.

[TheMaraudingDog]

You shouldn't be rewarded for joining STAR. A lot of RFC fans don't agree with STAR principles so why would they join? I didn't realise you got extra points for joining, wrong wrong wrong.

[Sarah Star]

LOL!

Let me know which of these principles any Reading fan wouldn't agree with.

THE OBJECTIVES OF STAR AS WRITTEN INTO ITS CONSTITUTION

• to strengthen the bonds between the Club and the community which it serves and to represent the interests of the community in the running of the Club

• to benefit present and future members of the community served by the Club by promoting encouraging and furthering the game of football as a recreational facility, sporting activity and focus for community involvement

• to facilitate the participation of supporters of the club in activities promoting football in communities throughout the United Kingdom

• to encourage the Club to take proper account of the interests of its supporters and the community it serves in its decisions and to honour the contribution made by the community in the past to the life of the club

• to acquire and hold shares in the Club or any company controlling the Club and to be an active and growing shareholder thus giving supporters collectively the opportunity to have a stake in the Club

• to promote the full, accountable democratic and constructive involvement of supporters in the running and direction of the Club, including the principle of supporter representation on the board of the Club

• to continue the work of Reading Football Supporters’ Club, with particular reference to away travel, ticket priority and Fans’ Forums.


WHAT IS A SUPPORTERS' TRUST?

A Supporters' Trust is a secure, not-for-profit, community-minded and democratic organisation run by its shareholding members in accordance with its Constitution and is registered with and regulated by the Registry of Friendly Societies, part of the Financial Services Authority.

There are now well over 100 Supporters’ Trusts and STAR is one of the largest.

The ‘umbrella body’ for these Trusts is Supporters Direct (http://www.supporters-direct.org), a government-sponsored organisation created to encourage the formation of Supporters’ Trusts and to provide them with support and advice for the benefit of football supporters and the football clubs they support.

http://www.star-reading.org/index.php?o ... &Itemid=37

[TheMaraudingDog]

There's so much of that list that many people may not give a toss what. Community work, nice as it is but it doesn't benefit me. Holding shares...many just want to get behind the team. Away travel...many are happier driving themselves, getting the train or a minibus. About the only valid point on there for all fans is the allocation of tickets.

Added to the fact that STAR have delevered on pratically none of those and how even the BNP can put a pretty manefesto together there are many, many reasons why supporters would wish to stear clear.

[Sarah Star]

Community work benefits almost everyone as it improves the area you live in. Away travel benefits a lot of people or STAR would not run coaches to games. Shares enable supporters to have a legal voice in how the club is run. The allocation of tickets came up recently and STAR are continually talking to the club to encourage them to take supporters into consideration. I'd say they spend all their time doing all of those. Just because you don't hear about it doesn't mean they aren't doing it.

[TheMaraudingDog]

Some people, rightly or wrongly, through ignorance or other don't give a flying one who / how the club is run. The community projects benefit very few, mainly kids who get free coaching or disabled who get cheered up when a player turns up at their hospital.

How many coaches to STAR take on average to games? You've got to be a certain type of fan to go on one and if you are fair play but don't think that its an appeal to those who like to either have a drink or even stop off somewhere on route, visit family etc. Official coaches are very restrictive in what you can do.

I can appreciate why people would join STAR but the fact you can't see why someone wouldn't is very worrying.

[Sarah Star]

I can appreciate why someone wouldn't want to pay money if they didn't use coaches or go to fans' forums, but the fact is that STAR is not limited to those things and all Reading fans benefit whether they join or not.

[Royal Lady]

to encourage the Club to take proper account of the interests of its supporters and the community it serves in its decisions and to honour the contribution made by the community in the past to the life of the club

Didn't work very well with ST renewals or Man City tickets did it...

[Sarah Star]

I suspect the club regret that now.

[TheMaraudingDog]

I can appreciate why someone wouldn't want to pay money if they didn't use coaches or go to fans' forums, but the fact is that STAR is not limited to those things and all Reading fans benefit whether they join or not.

Do I get points for joing up with the Firm on Saturday afternoon's?

I can appreciate why someone wouldn't want to join the firm if they wern't into fighting, but the fact is that The Firm is not limited to just fighting and all Reading fans benefit whether they join or not.

[Harpers So Solid Crew]

to encourage the Club to take proper account of the interests of its supporters and the community it serves in its decisions and to honour the contribution made by the community in the past to the life of the club

Didn't work very well with ST renewals or Man City tickets did it...

Man C tickets sold out, and ST renewals selling ok, and that was without STAR being involved in discussions.

[Royal Lady]

to encourage the Club to take proper account of the interests of its supporters and the community it serves in its decisions and to honour the contribution made by the community in the past to the life of the club

Didn't work very well with ST renewals or Man City tickets did it...

Man C tickets sold out, and ST renewals selling ok, and that was without STAR being involved in discussions.

1. Without wishing to go round in circles, it's hardly surprising that only 2,800 tickets sold out and
2. How do you know that ST renewals are selling ok? Got any figures?

[Harpers So Solid Crew]

With regards to City tickets 40 people turning up on the morning of sale at the ticket office is hardly massive demand that failed to buy.

As for season tickets, more renewals than this time last year.

[Royal Lady]

With regards to City tickets 40 people turning up on the morning of sale at the ticket office is hardly massive demand that failed to buy.

As for season tickets, more renewals than this time last year.

Only 40 turned up because the rest of them already knew they were sold out via the online ticketing.
Where does it say more renewals than this time last year? It couldn't possibly be spin from the club could it? Because, of course, hardly anyone would have bothered to renew at this point last year.

[PEARCEY]

With regards to City tickets 40 people turning up on the morning of sale at the ticket office is hardly massive demand that failed to buy.

As for season tickets, more renewals than this time last year.

Come off it. That is not a reflection of how much more interest there was. Besides there were a fair few of us who had no option but to watch the game in the home end. I can assure you it wasn't much fun having to sit silently and even worse when they scored. You need to accept the club screwed up over this.

[Kitson12]

With regards to City tickets 40 people turning up on the morning of sale at the ticket office is hardly massive demand that failed to buy.

As for season tickets, more renewals than this time last year.

Come off it. That is not a reflection of how much more interest there was. Besides there were a fair few of us who had no option but to watch the game in the home end. I can assure you it wasn't much fun having to sit silently and even worse when they scored. You need to accept the club screwed up over this.

Yes, but not STAR, which a lot of you think are culpable for this c*ck up!

[Scrappy]

I feel that Supporters group in general really do have to rethink the way they canvass opinion now in this digital age. The fans forums were great 15 years ago when the only interaction you got with the players was a soundbite in the local news, you could find out what was really going on behind the scenes. But now, with the invention of these social media outlets they're not really required as players are constantly filmed and tweeting.

If the club wants to find out a generalistic fans' opinion they don't have to go to STAR anymore who can probably get realistically 20 fans opinions in a week, they can come on to this forum and other outlets and get 50 opinions within minutes of posting news, and, as what happened with the Man City tickets, can respond or risk loosing face. What I can't understand is why the club will give you 10 Royalty points for being part of STAR when really STAR cannot realistically be seen as the true voice of the supporters anymore. If the club started offering coach travel directly, then you would probably see the death of STAR as people would not need to use them.

[Harpers So Solid Crew]

A lot of truth there Scrappy, I have never understood why about 200 ish members get subsidised travel, on a regular basis, who is subsidising it?

As for the tickets, I still think it was wrong that City took to selling the stand next to the away section first, they did not expect a full house, so should have left that for later sales.

Oh and look at litle old Reading attracting 39k while Kiev just 27k.

What great fans they have, not.

[Kitson12]

If the club started offering coach travel directly, then you would probably see the death of STAR as people would not need to use them.

No you wouldn't. Because the atmosphere on the STAR coaches would be about 100 times better than that on Club run coaches. It's all about the little things, the organised events etc that make STAR much much more attractive. Also I reckon 90% of the people that use STAR are loyal. Also I doubt the club would offer cheaper travel than STAR, if anything it'd be more expensive.