How would you react (from Official MB)

if youngsters get treated like this at the ground by the stewards
an they go home an tell there parents they could stop them going to
future games,i let my 15yr old go to theses kind of matches on his own
an there has been no issues.
but this has made me think twice now about other games,

i dont disagree with them trying to get the ball back by any means.

Even thats a bit pathetic, its not as if the ball just went out of play and someone tried to take it home. Gunarsson kicked it into the crowd and (im guessing) did it for a fan to get? I would have done exactly the same and took it home (or tried)

The problem is, the ball is the property of the club. Not Gunnarsson.

i dont disagree with them trying to get the ball back by any means.

Even thats a bit pathetic, its not as if the ball just went out of play and someone tried to take it home. Gunarsson kicked it into the crowd and (im guessing) did it for a fan to get? I would have done exactly the same and took it home (or tried)

The problem is, the ball is the property of the club. Not Gunnarsson.

still no need for the steward to be so heavy handed

i dont disagree with them trying to get the ball back by any means.

Even thats a bit pathetic, its not as if the ball just went out of play and someone tried to take it home. Gunarsson kicked it into the crowd and (im guessing) did it for a fan to get? I would have done exactly the same and took it home (or tried)

The problem is, the ball is the property of the club. Not Gunnarsson.

He is employed by the club though. If someone working in asda came up and give me a free item, id say thank you and certainly wouldn't then expect a security guard to come and rummage through the stuff and take it off me.

surely the trust or supporters club should be making a issue
about the way this youngster was treated by this steward
or at least contacting the parents of the youngster,
to see if they want to make an official complaint

Or maybe they should call a meeting about it.

That takes a week to organise and then 6 hrs debating it, the out come, we cant get involved.

and the reason they give is that they are in 'a difficult position' i.e. they don't want to get off their arse and do something

UPDATE

I have been told by a club representative that common sense should have prevailed over this incident and my son should have been allowed to keep the ball due to the circumstances of him receiving it.
A compensation package is being arranged and an apology has been received on behalf of the club.
For that, and the support I have received from various message board members I am very grateful.
Thank you all very much.

i dont disagree with them trying to get the ball back by any means.

Even thats a bit pathetic, its not as if the ball just went out of play and someone tried to take it home. Gunarsson kicked it into the crowd and (im guessing) did it for a fan to get? I would have done exactly the same and took it home (or tried)

The problem is, the ball is the property of the club. Not Gunnarsson.

He is employed by the club though. If someone working in asda came up and give me a free item, id say thank you and certainly wouldn't then expect a security guard to come and rummage through the stuff and take it off me.

Good point and I can remember football's being kicked into the crowd as part of promotional pre-game stuff before now and there were some also kicked into the crowd during the final game at the Ninian Park 'celebrations'.

Would you expect the stewards to take them back off those who caught one?

The problem is, the ball is the property of the club. Not Gunnarsson.

That is a debatable matter as possession is 9/10th's of the law

i dont disagree with them trying to get the ball back by any means.

Even thats a bit pathetic, its not as if the ball just went out of play and someone tried to take it home. Gunarsson kicked it into the crowd and (im guessing) did it for a fan to get? I would have done exactly the same and took it home (or tried)

The problem is, the ball is the property of the club. Not Gunnarsson.

He is employed by the club though. If someone working in asda came up and give me a free item, id say thank you and certainly wouldn't then expect a security guard to come and rummage through the stuff and take it off me.

Good point and I can remember football's being kicked into the crowd as part of promotional pre-game stuff before now and there were some also kicked into the crowd during the final game at the Ninian Park 'celebrations'.
tony the ones kicked into the crowd during the np celebrations are stilling floating in the wind
they where so light an cheap
Would you expect the stewards to take them back off those who caught one?

tony the balls that where kicked into the crowd
during the np celebrations are stilling floating in the wind
they were so cheap

Okay Jonny, since you keep missing the point, I'll make this simple for you: Touch me or mine and I'll sue you and the club.[/quote]

ok Berwyn ill make this real simple for you as you keep missing my point: Where have i touched you or your own without your permission
the only time im allowed to grab hold of supporters is if it is a direct risk to spectator safety
trying to find a club ball is not in that category
so threaten me with legal action all you want
but i know my job very well
and i think it will be hard to find a case against me[/quote]


Firstly you have no right to 'grab' hold of anyone as you put it.. you may have right to intervene and use 'minimal force' necessary to manage that situation, but if your actions are over zealous in respect of the situation your dealing with then you can actually be charged by the plaintiff for assault... incidently if you or any other steward 'GRABBED' me or one of my children, I promise fists would start flying... I sit in the family stand and there are some great stewards there, but there are some little Hitlers there too and the quadrant manager/ team leader what ever his title is .. well he's nothing but a jobsworth/ bully/ power thrift prick... Secondly you have no powers to search anyone.. you can ask and if I tell you to f**k off then you can't search me full stop.. yes you may be able then to refuse to let me into the ground but you have no power what so ever to search me or my property. In this instance it's a feckin fottball FF's and i'm sorry the team leader and stewards involved should be relieved of their duties ...!!

i dont disagree with them trying to get the ball back by any means.

Even thats a bit pathetic, its not as if the ball just went out of play and someone tried to take it home. Gunarsson kicked it into the crowd and (im guessing) did it for a fan to get? I would have done exactly the same and took it home (or tried)

The problem is, the ball is the property of the club. Not Gunnarsson.

He is employed by the club though. If someone working in asda came up and give me a free item, id say thank you and certainly wouldn't then expect a security guard to come and rummage through the stuff and take it off me.

If that Asda member of staff had not got permission to give out free goods, you'd find it would get taken off you if security staff saw it and he'd be almost certainly fired on the spot.

But I certainly agree it sounds as if this steward was heavy handed at best.

Okay Jonny, since you keep missing the point, I'll make this simple for you: Touch me or mine and I'll sue you and the club.

ok Berwyn ill make this real simple for you as you keep missing my point: Where have i touched you or your own without your permission
the only time im allowed to grab hold of supporters is if it is a direct risk to spectator safety
trying to find a club ball is not in that category
so threaten me with legal action all you want
but i know my job very well
and i think it will be hard to find a case against me[/quote]


Firstly you have no right to 'grab' hold of anyone as you put it.. you may have right to intervene and use 'minimal force' necessary to manage that situation, but if your actions are over zealous in respect of the situation your dealing with then you can actually be charged by the plaintiff for assault... incidently if you or any other steward 'GRABBED' me or one of my children, I promise fists would start flying... I sit in the family stand and there are some great stewards there, but there are some little Hitlers there too and the quadrant manager/ team leader what ever his title is .. well he's nothing but a jobsworth/ bully/ power thrift prick... Secondly you have no powers to search anyone.. you can ask and if I tell you to f**k off then you can't search me full stop.. yes you may be able then to refuse to let me into the ground but you have no power what so ever to search me or my property. In this instance it's a feckin fottball FF's and i'm sorry the team leader and stewards involved should be relieved of their duties ...!! [/quote]

ok maybe 'grab' was the wrong word to use
ill apologise for that but dont pick my words and use them for your own purposes to make me look like an idiot or a jobsworth/bully/power thrift prick as you put
maybe i should have used 'minimal force' instead of 'grab' but thats one error im sure you can overlook
I do have powers to search people i am allowed granted not the same powers that police officers have and you are within your rights to refuse but then we are allowed to ask you to leave and we are allowed to use necessary force to eject you if you refuse to leave.
and yes it is just a football game as you state
but the government in recent years has decided that football stadiums are rather large terrorist targets
so conditions of entry and security measures have been stepped up accordingly

ok Berwyn ill make this real simple for you as you keep missing my point: Where have i touched you or your own without your permission
the only time im allowed to grab hold of supporters is if it is a direct risk to spectator safety
trying to find a club ball is not in that category
so threaten me with legal action all you want
but i know my job very well
and i think it will be hard to find a case against me

Wind ya neck in Jonny. I never said you did. I said IF you did. I also never said you are into picking on kids. But since you are here representing stewards then expect to take some flack on this issue.

Yeah Berwyn's right. You have made yourself the outlet for steward-frustration on here. I have read your posts before and realise you're only doing a job but an incident like this is usually best steered clear of. A boy with what he thought was a great momento being taken away ain't too easy to defend , although I do realise your points which are that stewards act under club instruction.

yes and i dont mind being this steward-frustration guy but remember im not this steward your complaining about
ill explain things if you dont understand them
ill give you a stewards point of view on issues in the stadium
but i dont really want to blamed for everything
i am just a steward above me are
supervisors
team leaders
quadrant managers
chief stewards
safety officers
and
police officers
im at the bottom of a very big pile
and i have no control on how other stewards conduct themselves
i can only hope that other stewards work with the same ethics as i do
and if they go wrong along the way
they either get sacked or retrained depending on the seriousness of the complaint

And there lies the problem. 6 different levels of stewards.

Its no wonder they are on a par with traffic wardens when it comes to being jobsworths.

Stewards are just a jumped up bunch of c*nts who think they have the same power as the police.

All my mates smoke, I dont, so I went outside with them on Saturday, rather than wait inside on my own, and whilst outside thought id pop across to the Mcdonalds, only to be "aprehended" by some jobsworth stating as I walked towards Mcs, that I was not allowed over there. I told him to astop being a jobsworth and carried on, with him shouting I wouldnt be allowed back in the ground.

What the hell were they going to do? Give me a football banning order for eating a cheeseburger ?

WTF if you was allowed out what right has he to stop you ? What did you do Chief ? Did you carry on or did you do what he said ? Sorry chief but i would of told him he was a grade a Wanker. And Jonny you lot think you are the gestapo and one day one of you will get chinned by someone you push to far.
As for the original post. I hope he takes it all the way

I asked was he serious?

He replied "Its a designated cigarette break only"

I then joked he was discriminating against fat blokes.

He still failed to see the funny side so i told him to do one, stop being a jobsworth and went and got two cheeseburgers with him shouting I wouldnt be let back in.

I had to dance around him though, it was quite a farcical to be honest. The other steward with him was embarressed I would say but then maybe he was a mere steward, and the other guy was a team leader.

tony the balls that where kicked into the crowd
during the np celebrations are stilling floating in the wind
they were so cheap

I can imagine Jonny chasing them on his days off

I asked was he serious?

He replied "Its a designated cigarette break only"

I then joked he was discriminating against fat blokes.

He still failed to see the funny side so i told him to do one, stop being a jobsworth and went and got two cheeseburgers with him shouting I wouldnt be let back in.

I had to dance around him though, it was quite a farcical to be honest. The other steward with him was embarressed I would say but then maybe he was a mere steward, and the other guy was a team leader.

They defy belief is it a condition of employment that stewards have to lack the common sense gene?

tony the balls that where kicked into the crowd
during the np celebrations are stilling floating in the wind
they were so cheap

I can imagine Jonny chasing them on his days off

and the point in that is

tony the balls that where kicked into the crowd
during the np celebrations are stilling floating in the wind
they were so cheap

I can imagine Jonny chasing them on his days off

and the point in that is

The point is you get the fun and exercise of running around collecting the Barry Island balls that were thrown in the crowd. The club gets back the 39p each they paid for them.

tony the balls that where kicked into the crowd
during the np celebrations are stilling floating in the wind
they were so cheap

I can imagine Jonny chasing them on his days off

and the point in that is

The point is you get the fun and exercise of running around collecting the Barry Island balls that were thrown in the crowd. The club gets back the 39p each they paid for them.

oh i see because for a second there i thought he was taking the piss
thanks for the info

And there lies the problem. 6 different levels of stewards.

Its no wonder they are on a par with traffic wardens when it comes to being jobsworths.

I was refuesed re-entry at half time of the Wales v Norway match because me and 2 of Merthyrs finest fancied some healthy, protein laden chicken rather than soggy school burgers they serve in the ground, none of which give the club ANY money