Dear Mr Middleby,
I write as LONG term fan of Newcastle Football. I watched as Newcastle United were introduced at the Newcastle Showground in 1977 and have followed (and been a member of) every incarnation of the club ever since, KB United, Rosebud United, Breakers (mark I and II), Newcastle United, Newcastle Jets (Owner I and II).
Whilst I commend the club on many things one thing that really needs work is promoting atmosphere at home games. WSW fans showed what can be done when they transformed Hunter Stadium into THEIR home ground when they played here last season. The singing of You'll Never Walk Alone at the MCG was one of the most moving sights ever witnessed in sport in Australia in the recent Liverpool visit.
Hunter stadium needs to become a fortress for the Jets and ironically WSW showed us how it can be done!
Can I ask what is being done by the Jets this season to foster such atmosphere at home grounds. The Squadron do a great job but is the club working with them to assist in developing this culture in Newcastle? For example there is a clear relationship with the fans chosen song Never Tear Us Apart considering the history I laid out in the opening of this email. Can the club work with the Squadron for example to get an easily identifiable part of that song played as the team walks onto the field AND promote the fans to sing along (hand out words, put them up on the big screen etc and actively encourage it).
Don't use the lame excuse that you have to abide by FFA and A-League regulations here, Victory have handed over much of their pre-game entertainment to the fans, Perth Glory also play club music as the team walks out and even CCM play "Yellow" as the team walks out. So it can be done if there is a desire within the club to foster a passionate atmosphere at the home stadium.
We need to engage the fan base and turn it into an asset on game day by creating an atmosphere that spurs the Jets on and lets visiting teams know that they are playing on foreign turf.
So I ask, what is the club doing to be pro-active about this for the coming season?