Andy Wilmer · @andywilmer
29th Mar 2017 from TwitLonger
My thoughts on the Checkatrade Trophy final #OUFC
With 4 days to go till the Checkatrade Trophy final there's no better time to share my thoughts and my reasons for not going.
First off this isn't some sort of witch hunt or a finger pointing exercise it's just my feelings on the situation and the competition. I feel better for sharing it.
I'm not going to Wembley on Sunday to watch the team I love, play the game I love in a cup final. These are words I never thought I would have to say. They are words however that unfortunately I have to say because Oxford United, my team, are in the final of the Checkatrade Trophy.
This is a competition that has been rife with controversy for reasons we all know of. I have boycotted every game leading up to the final and I'm boycotting the final. I haven't tweeted about the games, I haven't watched the games, I haven't listened to them and I haven't supported them in any way. I don't and won't however think any less of any Oxford fan that has done a u turn on the boycott because we're in the final but, I do have an view on it all which is my own personal opinion.
The decision not to go and see my team at Wembley in a cup final is an extremely tough one to make. It hurts and makes me angry that Shaun Harvey and the EFL have caused me to miss this. I get that a lot of people want to show their support to the players and the management team saying they deserve the support but, why didn't they deserve the support earlier in the competition? Just a thought. In all fairness they do deserve the support none of them made this decision, they are just doing the job they love playing the game they love. I feel for them, for some of them it may be the only Wembley final they play in and it's one that isn't fully backed by their fans. They are caught up in the middle of a decision they did not make.
Let's not forget who made that decision closer to home though. Taking absolutely nothing away from what's been achieved so far this season and over the last couple of years. The board (less Darryl Eales) chose to trial this format and in basically said it's ok for B Teams to be part of the league cup and to a lesser degree league football. It's not ok and it's not right which is a decision that shouldn't be forgotten easily. I feel like the club have got away with this pretty lightly. Those that have chosen to boycott but are attending the final (again I don't think you any less of a fan for doing it) are giving out the message that basically what they did is fine now. Regardless of whether the EFL change the format between now and the final for next season, the format for this season is/has been the same. The boycott existed to show that this wasn't ok.
I'm an excile of sorts. I don't get to every home game and in fairness this season I haven't been to that many games for various reasons. I do consider myself a die hard fan though and a passionate one at that. I will always support my team through the good and the bad, this time though is the exception. I spent 13 years in the army living by a set of values and standards one of which was integrity. I'm a man of principles you could call it stubbornness. To go and watch the final would in my eyes be totally hypocritical and against what I've stood for over the course of the competition. I wont be listening to the game, I won't be watching it and I won't be actively seeking the result. If you've got this far you are no doubt a fan in the purest sense of the word of the team/game we all love. I hope I'm not judged for making the decision I have in the same way I haven't/won't judge those that are going.
This isn't simply just a boycott it's a stand against those who want to change football as we know it and as it should be. I hope and pray that I get the chance to see Oxford in another Wembley final but if I don't I can go to sleep knowing I've stood by my principles and stood up for what I believe is right. For those that do go I hope you enjoy the day and get to it spend it with friends and family if nothing else. Of course a tiny part of me wants to be there but I've made my bed and I'll lie in it. COYY.