There are two kinds of protests—those whose aim to accomplish something, and those which provide the protesters with a sense of catharsis.
This is of course a wildly simplistic analogy, but you see what I mean here. Sitting outside the parliament building with a banjo wearing a Superman costume will give you positive feelings, but it isn’t likely to change the likelihood of a contentious law passing both houses.
And so this is where we’ve come at Manchester United under David Moyes:
David Moyes’s problems at Manchester United have intensified after it emerged supporters are planning to send a plane over Old Trafford during their game against Aston Villa on Saturday pulling a banner calling for him to be sacked.
Arrangements are being made for the plane to carry a message “Wrong One – Moyes Out” as a response to the “Chosen One” banner that has hung inside the stadium since the former Everton manager was appointed as Sir Alex Ferguson’s successor.
If it goes ahead, the stunt will be the first concerted effort by fans to remove Moyes from his position in a season that has seen the runaway champions last year slump to seventh, 18 points off the top and guaranteed their worst-ever return in the Premier League era.
No doubt this will be potentially very embarrassing for the club, which would ideally prefer a unified support for Moyes. Perhaps it will even provide the catalyst for an earnest discussion among the board over his potential sacking. But it will certainly not play a material role in the decision to let him go.
As with those Man United fans who objected to the Malcolm Glazer takeover in 2005, there was a single, effective avenue for protest which to this day few if any fans would countenance: not going to games. Perhaps because of the risk involved, losing season ticket privileges etc. But the risks are a reflection of the threat to the club.
I’m not saying fans shouldn’t bother protesting Moyes on the weekend, but it’s fan catharsis, and it will be regarded as such by everyone involved.
