Dear North Terrace members and fellow Melbourne Victory fans,

The following statement is a public response from the North Terrace Collective (NTC) to a proposal made by Melbourne Victory Football Club (MVFC) in relation to the North Terrace for the remainder of the 2013/14 season.

The NTC believes supporters of our club are not being updated of the entire situation, and have therefore put in strenuous effort during this holiday period in order to provide as much information to fans as possible.

The NTC is working hard to create a North Terrace that is welcoming to all Melbourne Victory supporters – regardless of status – and that can grow to provide an atmosphere unrivalled in Australian sport.

It is envisaged by our supporters that the North Terrace can one day fill the entire northern end of Swan Street Stadium, demonstrating support that would further establish Melbourne Victory as a standout sporting outfit in not only Australia, but the entire Asia region.

Among other concerns outlined below, it is the NTC’s belief that MVFC’s proposal for the remainder of the 2013/14 season does not allow the North Terrace to grow as freely as it should.

Whilst the club continues to propose measures that serve to stunt the growth of the North Terrace and control who enters it, the North Terrace will continue to boycott the designated ‘active area’ at Melbourne Victory home fixtures.

Despite this, we would like to point out there has been progress on several fronts during discussions. The MVFC proposal is provided in full at the bottom of this statement.

The NTC remains committed to negotiations with MVFC and are hopeful a resolution can be made soon so the North Terrace can return to doing what it does best, without the unnecessary controls and restrictions.

Please follow ‘North Terrace Melbourne’ on Facebook or Twitter for further updates.

Regards,

North Terrace Melbourne





NTC Response to club’s ‘North Terrace Revised Model for 2013/14’

Section 1, point 2 – Remaining 2013/14 Home games:

‘Back of bay 37 will be open subject to demand’.

The NTC believe this section should be open for supporters wishing to participate in the NT every game, not merely at the club’s directive.

We are also opposed to the tarping outlined in Bay 37. The club agreed to remove all tarping surrounding the North Terrace, except for that which covers two rows at the rear of Bay 38 for broadcasting equipment. The presence of tarping in Bay 37 would be a clear breach of the club’s promise.

The NTC accepts that the front part of bays 37 and 39 are populated by reserved seat members for the 2013/14 season. However, we expect this not to be the case in 2014/15, in order to allow the North Terrace further room for growth.

Section 1, point 3 – Remaining 2013/14 Etihad Stadium home game:

The NTC is not satisfied with the differentiation being made between “active” and “non-active” in the smaller NT section of Etihad Stadium, and propose that the remainder of this area is sold as General Admission Active, therefore allowing the NT to be as large and atmospheric as possible for this fixture.

Section 2 – NT Access:

The intended requirement for everyone in the NT to be a member is clearly the club’s vision, but it is not ours. We want our Terrace to be welcoming to everyone. New converts to the sport and Melbourne Victory are not going to start out as members, and a membership requirement to stand in the NT removes the opportunity for these fans to join.

Furthermore, we believe active support is a great way to lure new people to the club, and significantly increases the chance they will purchase a Melbourne Victory membership in the future.

We believe the current model still has some way to come before it acts to assist the growth of the NT.

Section 2, point 2 – Guest Pass Access:

This is a breach of our members’ privacy and is unnecessary to achieve access to the NT on a game by game basis. It also prevents supporters who are non-NT members from spontaneously participating in the NT on match day.

Section 2, point 3 – Membership card exchange:

‘General Admission Members will be charged a small upgrade fee to move to a reserved category’.

There should be no extra fee for ‘upgrading’ your ticket to a section of the stadium where the view is impeded compared to other sections e.g. the wing.

Behind the goals is generally the cheapest seats in the stadium as they have poor view compared to the wings.

If the argument for these seats being more expensive is that there is a supply/demand mark up, then simply increase supply as we have asked. If the argument for these seats being more expensive is because of the atmosphere the NT creates, then we would again suggest the club does not have the right to profit from something it does not assist with in any way.

Section 2, point 5 – Non Member Additional guest access (available after 28th December):

What the NTC was offered here by the club was a limit of 25 guest passes only, and only available if there is remaining unsold seats in the area.

The NTC feels this small number of guest passes and offer is grossly inadequate and insufficient for allowing the North Terrace to freely grow.

The 25 guest passes offered is also significantly less than what the NTC requested.

Guest pass holders would be forced to provide personal details, essentially treating them as members without giving them the rights actual members receive. The club would be using personal details from these transactions and providing them to an external party, which we object to.

Section 3, point 1 – Standing Locations:

The North Terrace has always been a free movement area within the active section, and the NTC believe it should remain this way. Therefore the NTC oppose the system of allocated seating.

Section 3, point 2 – Supporter Materials:

This simply should not be in the document. By agreeing to any sort of formal contract with the club as part of this proposal, we are accepting that these rights of fans are privileges that can be taken away, when this should never be the case.

Furthermore to these objections to specific sections of the clubs proposal, it is quite clear that the stated aims of the club and the NTC remain diametrically opposed. The club still holds the belief that all NT members should also be club members (or treated as such).

Under the inclusive model we are aiming for, we do not believe this should be necessary or that casual fans should be forced to go to such lengths to enter the active area. Rather than help to stimulate the growth of the North Terrace as the club has suggested, these further restrictions placed on people wanting to enter the active area will only make it harder and less appealing for people to become part of our community.

So far this season, the North Terrace has occupied General Admission areas and has continued to support as best it can outside the allocated area.

To date, the NT has been able to organise its support without the need for complex models which decide who can and cannot support actively. People have simply made the choice themselves.

Every week, fans – who may not usually participate in active support – have found themselves joining in because they are close enough to the NT to follow their lead. We do not wish to deny that opportunity to any of the club’s supporters, and it is clearly the best way to grow our support.

What the NTC proposed to the club to assist in the growth of the North Terrace for this season and beyond was a system whereby any MV member could purchase a ‘NT membership’ card from the North Terrace leadership for a nominal fee – cost of production and direct contribution to NT support. You would bring this pass along with your club membership or match ticket to any home game. Your club membership or match ticket would grant you access to the stadium, and your NT membership card would grant you access to the active area. A similar system was in place for a number of fixtures several seasons ago.

The club has repeatedly claimed to object to such a system (both publicly and privately) on the grounds that they want to know who is entering the active area, but, at the fixture at Swan St Stadium against Perth Glory on Friday the 13th of December, 2013, the club themselves implanted a system almost identical to the one we proposed during negotiations.

In light of this, it is difficult to seriously believe their suggestion that the NTC’s proposal was not acceptable.

It also questions the club’s assertion that everyone who is in the North Terrace must be a member, as the club made these temporary passes freely available to anyone who requested them.

Such action completely contradicts the club’s own stated concerns and is blatant hypocrisy.

North Terrace Melbourne

MVFC Proposal for remainder of 2013/14 season: