A Protest: Sunday 18th October, 2009

Here's the story of the protest I mention in the '2009 Highs and Lows'

It was fitting that on a day when the new darlings of Thai football were presented with the TPL trophy, a hardcore group of long standing Chonburi fans staged a peaceful, good natured protest outside the national stadium. The protesters were making a stand against FAT's seemingly random decision to move The Sharks last home game to Supachalasai, as a punishment for an incident on the car park long after the final whistle of our recent game against Chula United.

The governing body's action has angered the fans of the 2007 Thai champions, as other such incidents have occurred at various grounds around the country this season, and the clubs involved have only received a fine or, in some cases, no punishment at all. There is a definite feeling among supporters that we are being made an example of. A stark contrast to a couple of years ago, when the Thai media and Thai Football Association were all over us like a bad suit, as they wanted a share of our hard earned and deserved success.

It wasn't just the change of venue that triggered our response, but the facts that Chonburi had to foot the bill for the use of the stadium and that all gate receipts would go directly into the pockets of FAT. Thousands stayed away altogether (including some who haven't missed a game in years), but those of us who gathered outside the ground yesterday will remember Sunday 18th October, 2009 for a long time. There was a true party atmosphere, as we ate, drank, banged drums, danced and sang. We also watched the live coverage of the MTUFC v BEC Tero match on a TV that someone had brought along - the set was plugged into the stadium's electricity supply via a very long cable - and joined in with pantomime booing everytime a red shirted player touched the ball or a watching dignitary was shown in close up.

The atmosphere was fantastic and the mood was upbeat but still defiant. As the Thai Port fans streamed past us on their way into the ground, a loudspeaker was employed to tell them what we were doing and why. Their response was terrific. Many of them came over to shake our hands and share a drink. Three of them decided that they'd stay with us for the duration of the protest and they were treated like long lost brothers.

An added poignancy for me was that my good friend, Ian, was able to join us. Before he moved to Vietnam, Ian was my constant companion at matches during the 2004 season and the Pro League championship winning season of 2005. He still follows Chonburi's fortunes and was delighted to be able to lend his support to our cause.

At exactly 6:00pm we followed the drummer down the side of the stadium to the entrance reserved for Chonburi fans. After an initial reluctance to let us in, the two gatemen stood aside and we passed through the gate, up the steps on to the terraces. Our arrival was greeted by loud applause and chanting from the 200 or so Chonburi fans who had been watching the match from the beginning. We stood shoulder to shoulder with them to watch the last twenty minutes of the game and get behind the team. From what little action I saw, it seemed obvious that the players had done a very professional job, but it was noticeable that they disappeared extremely quickly after the final whistle. Probably as disgusted as we were at the farcical nature of the circumstances surrounding this fixture.

For the record, we won 2-1, but I had been involved in something much more important. I was part of a small group of people who'd made a stand. As Thai football continues to grow, and fan clubs spring up all over the country, people need to realise that a lot of what is happening now is a result of what has been achieved by Chonburi. We certainly opened the gates for all the rest and we are quite rightly proud of that fact. But we have also shown that we are made of sterner stuff. Every single one of us who stayed on that car park until the match was nearly over would have preferred to have been inside the ground (our ground!!) cheering our team. However, we all felt that we had to do something. And yesterday, even though you're unlikely to read anything about it in the press, we did something. And it's something that I was proud to be a part of.