MK Dons - an unpopular opinion? | Vital Football

MK Dons - an unpopular opinion?

Edinburgh_Imp

Edinburgh_Imp

Vital Youth Team
Is it time to give the whole MK Dons/franchise club thing a rest? I think it is.

I don’t agree with clubs being able to move like they did, I don’t agree with them being called ‘Dons’ or claiming any history of the old Wimbledon, and I think that if Milton Keynes wanted a football league club they should’ve gone about it in the same way as AFC Wimbledon have. But it has now been over 15 years since they were formed and a whole new generation of fans will have only ever known the MK Dons as they are now. Is it better for them, and other people from the area, to support their local side rather than support the likes Man City or Chelsea just because they're successful? I think it is. Is it fair for them to get abuse for supporting their local club because of the historical decisions of others? I say no.

I can agree with protests against the Football League/commission who sanctioned the move (and continue to make questionable decisions in other areas), I can agree with protests against the people who orchestrated the move, but when it comes to the fans, who would’ve had no involvement in the move, I think we should just give it a rest.
 
I'm not on a soap box about it any more and won't be boycotting them but for me they will always be an abomination and a lesson in history or precedent as to what could happen to our club. Nothing personal towards their fans but I sincerely hope that at some point they fail and fold.
 
I don't really care about them as long as they finish behind us forever and lose to AFC Wimbledon more often than they win. Other than that they are free to be whatever they want to be to whoever gives a toss about them.
 
hulloutpost said:
I'm not on a soap box about it any more and won't be boycotting them but for me they will always be an abomination and a lesson in history or precedent as to what could happen to our club. Nothing personal towards their fans but I sincerely hope that at some point they fail and fold.
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It did happen to our club. Very similar thing to the Ladies (yes differing reasons.) Man with money decides he wants to move. Only difference is the whole "Dons" heritage element.
 
The manner in which MK formed still rankles with me, but there will be a number of their supporters who have only supported them as the move happened 15 years ago. I would be very surprised if any pre 2004 Wimbledon supporters are still going to MK in light of AFC Wimbledons rise through the leagues so perhaps it is time to put this to rest. If they elect to drop the Dons from their name it'll probably go away of it's own accord.
 
GreenNeedle said:
It did happen to our club. Very similar thing to the Ladies (yes differing reasons.) Man with money decides he wants to move. Only difference is the whole "Dons" heritage element.
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Beat me to it GN - exactly what I was going to say. I was so angry at the time that Lincoln Ladies could just be "removed" from the club and moved lock stock & barrel to Notts County, to become Nottingham Ladies. No words can describe just how wrong that whole process was, and all because of the whim of a so-called 'businessman'. More complicated than that, but that was the bottom line. ????

As for MK Dons, I do have some feeling for their genuine fans but beyond that have no feelings for the club at all, other than the fact Wimbledon had to be 'rebirthed' by the true fans of the club, as a new, non-league club and fight their way over a number of years back into league football, whereas MK Dons took the short-cut, again at the whim of 'businessmen'. Why couldn't they have formed a new club and come up through non-league, like every other new club has to, is the question I kept asking at the time. I do agree however that the football authorities should never have sanctioned/approved the whole process. Sometimes you just have to step back and look at the ethical and principled resaons for doing things rather than the business or financial or legal reasons.
 
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PerthImp said:
Beat me to it GN - exactly what I was going to say. I was so angry at the time that Lincoln Ladies could just be "removed" from the club and moved lock stock & barrel to Notts County, to become Nottingham Ladies. No words can describe just how wrong that whole process was, and all because of the whim of a so-called 'businessman'. More complicated than that, but that was the bottom line. ????
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Exactly. I wish no ill to the current fans, but we have to prevent English footy going the way of the MLS. If anyone cares take a look at the background to awarding Austin an expansion franchise. In my opinion it is in breach of the MLS's own policies and to the detriment of the deserving San Antonio F.C. It's not just the principle of franchises it's cronyism that results.
 
Completely unrelated, but I mention it purely as another example of ludicrous and partisan decision-making by "the powers that be".
Perth had a rugby union team called "Western Force" which competed in the Australian Rugby Union national competition, until two years ago when it was "decided" to reduce the size of the league. Despite all the other teams being based in the Eastern States and Western Force being the only team representing Western Australia, the ARU decided/voted to "remove" the Force from the competition. This was a club that was formed from "people power" originally with over 13,000 signatories. Luckily, we have a businessman in Perth who took up the cause and managed to get the club entered into an alternative competition to keep it alive. Not ideal but the club goes on for it's supporters - the story continues...
 
Time to give it a rest. Don’t want them to do well, but fifteen years on think no less of their current fans than any other teams fans.

You may or may not like it but Football has moved on, and Society has moved on.

Right now, for us, this game is all about City’s progress towards League 1.
 
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Edinburgh_Imp said:
Is it time to give the whole MK Dons/franchise club thing a rest? I think it is.

I don’t agree with clubs being able to move like they did, I don’t agree with them being called ‘Dons’ or claiming any history of the old Wimbledon, and I think that if Milton Keynes wanted a football league club they should’ve gone about it in the same way as AFC Wimbledon have. But it has now been over 15 years since they were formed and a whole new generation of fans will have only ever known the MK Dons as they are now. Is it better for them, and other people from the area, to support their local side rather than support the likes Man City or Chelsea just because they're successful? I think it is. Is it fair for them to get abuse for supporting their local club because of the historical decisions of others? I say no.

I can agree with protests against the Football League/commission who sanctioned the move (and continue to make questionable decisions in other areas), I can agree with protests against the people who orchestrated the move, but when it comes to the fans, who would’ve had no involvement in the move, I think we should just give it a rest.
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I agree and MK was a unique situation because where would any club move to now all places of any size have a football team in the league or senior non league.

If anyone is to blame it is Sam Hamman for investing in the team but leaving Plough Lane basically a tip. They were doomed the moment they left Wimbledon tbh.

I have no ill will towards MK because the club is ultimately the fans and the fans of MK didn't create the situation.

I think they should change their name to MK City or something like the junior team that was there before.

Time is a great healer! Only some Spurs fans loathe Arsenal for bribing their way to promotion at Spurs expense a Hundred years ago no one else remembers really it's history.
 
I certainly wasn’t happy with the football authorities at the time as it just didn’t seem right but I sometimes wonder if the same thing had happened to us, a club we all love moving to play miles away in a different guise in a different town. Would any of us have moved with the new club or waited for a re birth? I’m not sure how long it took for afc to form but it would be interesting to know how many old fans still travel. When ever the two teams have met I’ve always rooted for afc but nothing against the fans, more to do with the powers that be that allowed a new club to start up much to high up the footballing pyramid
 
Don’t like them and concerned that accepting them could indicate accepting the franchise system. However I wouldn’t boycott and view them similarly to how I view FGR
 
Dropping the ‘Dons’ from their name would be simple and help things a lot. Arsenal dropped ‘Woolwich’ from their name in 1914 and I think the people of SE London have forgiven them now.
 
Time passing doesn’t make what they and their weird chairman did any more acceptable. It might seem petty to some to retain a dislike but they killed a club to engineer a team in MK in order to feather their own nest.

I’m torn about Saturday. Ive bought a ticket but it doesn’t sit right with me that it’s going into the pocket of that sex pest Winkleman.
 
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