Irons history vanishing in name of marketing

NIGEL KAHN is back!

Here the passionate Iron and ClaretandHugh’s No 1 blogger explains how he feels about planned changes to the club badge.

As you would expect not a single punch is pulled.

The club’s plan to change the badge and and make it more marketable was exposed this week after a SAB meeting.

Against their wishes, one member exposed the club’s attempt to remove, at a stroke, another  part of the club’s history and remove anything that links us to our home of the past 110 years.

The Boleyn ground as many will know is in the grounds of the old Boleyn castle, and it is the reason a castle has adorned our badge since the 60s but has been used by the club since before the war on club suits and on the programme.

It is a symbol that has been used by the club for around 80 years, so why should it be discarded?

The clubs marketeers are preparing the WHUFC  future and the castle – following the move to the Olympic Stadium – represents the past!

They are determined to re-write, no, wipe clean, our past. So when they step out in the bright shiny stadium, they can have a nice new badge, de-cluttered of the castle with the words London 1895 adorning it.

It has started already, check out the club’s website where at the foot of the page underneath “Moore than a football club”we find the words “At the heart and soul of London since 1895”.

It is true, we are in London, but since 1895?  West Ham only joined London properly in 1965 when east and west ham boroughs amalgamated into Newham, before that we were technically in Essex.

As for 1895, West Ham United were formed in 1900 taking over the remains of the DEFUNCT Thames Iron Works, starting afresh with new directors running the club.

But considering most of the decision makers at the club didn’t support the Hammers as children; didn’t live it, breathe it, you can’t expect them to know the club’s history.

Years ago West Ham were a family club, with the huge virtues of family, loyalty and looking after your own running through the veins of the club; the manager, coaches, even the club secretary were all ex players, yet now we are to be marketed as a London club, no different to Arsenal Chelsea etc.

Why should we be fussed over this? Perhaps because little by little, change by change, this club is being taken away from the diehard fans,those that have stuck by the club through its highs and many many lows.

Its history is being rewritten so Malaysians can pick out our badge when shown a list of Premier League clubs, and instantly realise we’re in London, not east London because that would just confuse them, after all how can a team in the East begin with West?

I was asked once how I could still be opposed to the stadium move yet willing after everything I have campaigned against to go there and watch the club.

Simple!  “When We leave the Boleyn West Ham as a club dies, will be no more, but as I like football so much I will still need to watch it, and as it happens, I’ve been told there’s a new club forming to play in Stratford at the Olympic Stadium, I’ll give them a go since West Ham are no more”.

Tongue in cheek it may have been yet even I never thought the marketing department would nearly make that a reality.

Removing of the castle and replacing it with London is the rewriting of our history and who says that is where they will stop.

Bloggers’ views are entirely their own and not necessarily shared by ClaretandHugh