In my last post I mentioned someone whose season card was confiscated. That person wishes to remain anonymous but here is Bob’s update.
Chaps,
To save me explaining it 10 times later, see below.
I had a letter from Nigel the Finance Director of SUFC on my doorstep when I got in last night. It said that I owe them £305, that they did not know why I hadn’t paid and that if I didn’t pay within 7 days then I would be taken to court. It also said “The club depends on debts being paid on time” (which is presumably why they didn’t set up the direct debit as instructed and never pay the government when they owe them).
Spoke to Nigel who apologised for threatening to take me to court and said that the ticket office hadn’t done the handover properly (shocker). I told him that I’m not paying because it’s their mistake and the whole way this matter has been handled has been (at best) amateur. Nigel didn’t like this. Nigel said that the club has acknowledged that it made a mistake and that I was “screwing them into the ground” over it. I explained to Nigel that if I make a big mistake at work then I get the sack. I got the impression that Nigel’s arris is on the line over this balls up. Nigel said that he couldn’t let me off because it would be unfair on the other 3449 season ticket holders. I told him that I was told that I wasn’t the only one this had happened to and that the only way the club would learn was to be hit in the pocket. Apparently there are ‘about half a dozen’ others that are also doing the same as me and Nigel is sending the bailiffs round to get the money. What utter nonsense.
I told Nigel that he had a decision to make – he can dig his heels in and take me to court and, in all honesty, probably win the £305 and lose me and Fred as fans – or – they can put this down to experience and not ask Doris the tea lady to do the direct debits set-ups next year when I renew my season ticket and continue to take Fred for the rest of his/my lives.
About 10 minutes later he called to say that he had referred it up to Tara Brady and that I’d be getting a call some time that evening.
Tara called – “Ello issat Robert?”…… “I think you mean Robin?”…….. “Oh yeah, sh*t, sorry Robin it’s Tara here”. Basically, Nigel hadn’t ‘referred it to Tara’ – he had ‘Blacklisted’ me so that I was not able to go to any more games and that gets referred immediately to Tara with no explanation so I had to explain the whole thing again.
He followed up his opening gambit with the revelation that the club had indeed “F**ked up big time” and that he “had to have something to go back to the boys with” and could I spread £120 over 12 months? I said that it is now not about the money but about the principle of the way I’ve been treated and he could do one for his £120. Apparently I’ll hear from “the boys” soon. I also told him that I thought I’d had fair value for money so far. How we laughed.
Apologies for the essay, but hey, what else have you got to do on a Friday?