THE MOSTON REVOLUTION
As the
people of Brazil take to the streets to protest against the World Cup and the
FIFA mafia, a small scale revolution is already taking place in Moston,
Manchester. FC United of Manchester (FCUM) is already in town.
Since the
decision has been made for FCUM to start building themselves a football stadium
in the district of Moston, a group of FCUM fans who live in the area have
already started to get active in solidifying ties with the local community. The
fans in the FCUM Moston Branch, had been given permission to use the Lightbowne
Sports & Social Club (an already existing community facility suffering from
a downturn in the economy) in whatever way they please. Since its inception,
the facility is now decked out with FCUM memorabilia, and has played host to
branch meetings, fundraisers and social functions. With so much space available
in the club, the potential for the future is immeasurable; however, there has
already been some impact on the wider community.
Last season
saw the inaugural year of the FC United of Manchester Women’s Team that play in
the Premier division of the Manchester Women’s League. They play their home
games up the road, and use the ‘FC Lounge’ facility for pre and post-match
requirements. In their first season they have had home attendances of up to 300
people, something which the FA has taken note of by sending a representative to
most home games to monitor the situation, as never before has there been so
much support given to lower league women’s football. What is most impressive is that by the end of the season, the
team had managed to finish in a credible second place, behind Manchester City,
which included a much-celebrated home victory against them in the home game.
Despite the huge successes already on the fields of Moston, there has also been
an impact on a local community level.
The district
of Moston is one of the most economically deprived areas of the city,
unemployment is high, there are a higher than average amount of crimes taking
place, and the affordability of the area has, over the years, attracted a large
number of immigrants who are stuck on the lower steps of the wage labouring
ladder. One single parent that I spoke to explained how the arrival of FCUM had
an impact on his family. His son had turned away from football in his teenage
years towards a life of hanging around on the streets and experimenting with
some of the more anti-social aspects the area has to offer. Since the
announcement that the club has full planning permission to start building the
ground, the reality of playing football in your local community to huge crowds
had sunk in to the lad, and he has since turned his life around, dedicating his
spare time back into the football, and has recently been successful in being
accepted into the FCUM development programme. This is just one success story of
an unwritten anthology of FC United of Manchester.
The
potential of the FC Lounge is huge – with a room three times the size of the
main bar room, I can envisage plenty of pre-match refreshment, and packed
post-game parties with bands and DJs. Not only that, the potential of FCUM finally cementing their
home in the area is going to be unprecedented. Lance from the FCUM Moston
branch told me about how the stadium will provide jobs for people, the pitches
will be available for use by all FCUM teams, community teams, and local groups,
there will be affordable football season tickets available to the local young
people, and many more outreach programmes will be set up to encourage
involvement from many different types of socially excluded groups. Whatever
your stake and position, there is going to be something at FCUM for everyone:
this is the true spirit of the reds rebellion. And even though much of the
community is still not aware of the fact that FCUM will be residing here in the
future, when the buzz of the streets and the roar of the stadium becomes
noticeable on that first match day, everyone will be entitled to a slice of the
pie.
Daniel Colbourne introducing his documentary 'Punk Football'
On the night
of my visit, there was the third ever screening of the new independently made
FCUM documentary ‘Punk Football’, which has been directed and edited by Daniel
Colbourne. The documentary provides a fine balance of the history of the clubs
founding and what the club stands for now, and it will
appeal to FCUM fans wanting a little more insight, and to the casual football
fans who want to know what we are all about. It features an array of colourful characters from club officials, players, fans, and social commentators. This is the most insightful video documentary to encapsulate the spirit of FCUM - a must see for all. Daniel Colbourne is currently
touring the documentary at various branch meetings and events around the
country over the next few months, so check out the ‘Punk Football’ facebook
page and find out about your nearest screening. Punk Football Link
As is the
case with the documentary, the community of Moston, and the development of
FCUM, when this buzz all goes viral, the whole world will resonate with this
spirit, and people will want to take a stand against the bitter cold winds of
discontent currently blowing throughout the world.
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