An organisation aimed at helping football fans have a greater say in the running of their clubs was officially

An organisation aimed at helping football fans have a greater say in the running of their clubs was officially launched yesterday with the backing of Kevin Keegan and Sir Alex Ferguson, and a promise of £750,000 from the Government over the next three years. Supporters Direct, based at Birkbeck College in London, will encourage fans to form representative bodies, acquire shares in their club to improve voting power and win a place on the board.
It has already been in contact with 60 supporters groups, from Manchester United and Celtic to Aylesbury United and Enfield, and assisted Crystal Palace fans with advice when they set up a trust that recruited 4,000 members and raised £1m in loans during the club’s recent financial crisis. At least seven clubs now have a supporters’ representative at board level, including Charlton in the Premier League. “I hope to see the day when there are supporters’ elected representatives on all boards,” said Brian Lomax, one of the organisation’s directors, who helped set up the country’s first supporters’ trust at Northampton eight years ago.Those working with him include Professor Jonathan Michie of Shareholders United, the group set up to fight BSkyB’s unsuccessful takeover bid for Msnchester United.

Sir Alex Ferguson has urged United fans to join the organisation, which according to Michie now enjoys a greatly improved relationship with the club since Peter Kenyon replaced Martin Edwards as chief executive. Ferguson sent a message to yesterday’s launch, saying: “I welcome Supporters Direct. It will strengthen the bonds between supporters and their clubs. Supporters are the lifeblood of the game.”Keegan’s message of support said: “It will hopefully provide new opportunities for supporters to become more involved in the running of their football clubs and perhaps gain more of an understanding of the difficulties which that entails.”Chris Smith, Secretary for Culture, Media and Sport, stressed that supporter involvement was good for clubs as well as fans. “I hope people in football will see it as an opportunity, not a threat,” he added.Meanwhile, Smith has promised Government support to prevent the abolition of the transfer system, currently under threat from the European Commission.”We’re very worried by the proposals, because of the effect on smaller clubs,” he said “There’s still a lot of discussion to be had.

I’m in touch with my fellow sports ministers throughout Europe and we’ll be trying to ensure that the football authorities and the Commission approach it in a constructive way. There’s a good argument to be had about the level of investment and commitment made in players developed by a club: it’s not like selling an ordinary piece of merchandise.”. Davor Suker may be delivering, but he still cannot lift West Ham off the bottom of the table. They remain in a degree of early season difficulty after failing to register that first illusive win which for a time looked theirs after Suker’s goal lifted Harry Redknapp’s spirits. Yet, perhaps given the nature of their promising start, it is Sunderland who will have to regard this as a missed opportunity.

Davor Suker may be delivering, but he still cannot lift West Ham off the bottom of the table. They remain in a degree of early season difficulty after failing to register that first illusive win which for a time looked theirs after Suker’s goal lifted Harry Redknapp’s spirits. Yet, perhaps given the nature of their promising start, it is Sunderland who will have to regard this as a missed opportunity.
It was a night for fireworks judging by the spectacular pre-match display which lit up the skies around the Stadium of Light. Apparently that was to be symbolic of Sunderland’s explosive attacking intent which took shape in their very first attack.However, instead of beating goalkeeper Shaka Hislop with his shot as he burst from the deep, Kevin Kilbane smacked his drive against the base of the goal.If that did not quite set Sunderland up for something special then at least it gave the Republic of Ireland winger the confidence to try anything.So it was no surprise, then, that he was the man who kept the visitors fully stretched or that he was the designer-in-chief of a goal which gave Sunderland a potential new hero in Julio Arca.Arca, recently recruited from Argentinos Juniors for £3.5m, celebrated his Premiership debut with a stylishly taken 25th-minute goal.

He timed his run perfectly to connect with Kilbane’s cross and headed in despite Trevor Sinclair’s earnest attentions to distract him.It is with good reason, though, that Sunderland have launched their second season back in football’s high country in uncertain fashion. Which is why it took the Hammers only seven minutes to square matters through Suker.Jurgen Macho made a ham-fisted attempt to punch Paolo Di Canio’s corner clear, allowing Suker to drift in at the far post and stroke in an equaliser.That goal was just reward for West Ham’s enterprise, epitomised by the work of Di Canio, Suker and the energetic Joe Cole.Indeed Sunderland should have fallen behind by half-time. Suker delightfully played in Frank Lampard, whose well struck shot drifted wide of the post.That move emphasised the growing suspicion that Redknapp’s side had the edge in subtlety. When in the closing stages of the opening half Suker’s clever turn left Jody Craddock in a temporary state of confusion, Sunderland ought to have been punished with a second Suker goal.Curiously, at that stage, there had been little evidence of Kevin Phillips’ presence other than when receiving Uefa’s Golden Boot Award.Phillips did, though, give Sunderland hope that they might recover lost momentum, producing a shot which obliged Hislop to exhibit a brief display of acrobatics.Yet while Peter Reid’s team assumed a period of dominance, it was scarcely of an overwhelming nature as they attempted to bounce back from defeats at Ipswich and Manchester City.