 Welcome to Toffy TV. Today I'm joined by Siobhan and Barry from the Fans Forum to talk about the recruitment process. It's happening at the moment. So, how do we go about it? So, on the club website at the moment is the application form and that is open till Monday so that's the 30th of May. And that's just a couple of questions about why you want to join the forum, time commitment, something that is important to the Everton-Thans Forum at the moment. And then we do a CIFT ac nid oes i ymgyrch, yw 6 ar 10 ddweud. Ac rwy'n ddweud, mae'n gwybod i ddweud fan. Felly mae'r fan yn dweud y ddweud, yn ddweud i chi'n ddweud i'r ffordd, ac mae'n ddweud i'r llwythau. Felly, mae'r ffordd yn ddweud i'r 13 ac y 24 ddweud. Ac mae'n gwybod i'r ddweud i'r ddweud, sy'n gwybod i'r newydd i'r ffordd i'r ddweud i'r ddweud i'r 30 ddweud i'r ddweud. Oh, oeddiwn. This is something, obviously, both of you have been through your body. I mean, it's obviously we sit very close to each other in the mat. I do, I do. Now and I think it's that interesting I think because I think few years ago with the fans forum they got a name for being a certain type of person. It's probably unfair as well, because obviously it's an unpaid role and it's evertonian's given their time up. I globally I know what you're like and we sit next to it in Frontier don't you so I think when I see people like you got one on me I think it makes a real difference that it isn't just for a certain type of fan and people like you who are, voice for us and have a opinion I think that's what it is, right? I think that's what it is, because like I know over the years it's had a reputation for being like a yes, a yes, like a yes culture of barry, you know, one challenge to club or not. And to be honest with you I thought that a few times, a few years ago and then I know what I'll just apply for this and if I get on and get on, you know, like luckily I've been on for a year and you've seen like we've sorted down the atmosphere, you know. So like just I'll use myself for an example I've got together with loads of fan groups and you've seen the atmosphere towards the end of the season from Leeds onwards. That is literally the form being like the spearhead with the support of every other like fan group and individuals and you see what we can create mate, so it's like there is stuff that you can do and it's nice to have like a connection to like people on there so like yourself, like you sit in front of me, whereas people in previous years don't really know where people sit on that. You know, and you've got to have like a type of personality to be honest, like because everyone on there at the minute brings like something different so like I've brought like atmosphere as you've own yourself, I've brought like stuff like hair game so you've got people like Stan on there who does a lot of the just like having in the community and disability work and then you've got David who's got the well-being, you've got Tony who does the international stuff and then. So everyone is, there is lots of different viewpoints and that is, I think it's important isn't it that you have, you do have people who are, I've got an opinion as well and you do want to make, it's changed really isn't it because it is, I guess at times it is easy to go on these things and think I'm part of something and with the club, we're working together but you do have to have that thing where you can't sit at the club now, we're actually not happy with the way you do. You're doing this and fans want different, I mean is that, do you feel like the people you've got on there will are doing that with the football club at the moment? Yeah, yeah, definitely and I think as you said it's really important to have diversity and different opinions and understand that we are a diverse fan base if you had everybody who was in the same group or the same viewpoint that does not represent Everton fans so as Barry said we each do represent and we have our own interests as well that we bring to it. So one of the main reasons I applied is because I wanted to kick discrimination out of football and our club with the All Together Now campaign and how great we are as a club for inclusivity and diversity already. I thought that's a great platform to build on and part of that you know the Evertonians are going to take campaign that we launched which we did things for like History Month, you'll have seen when the players take the knee on the screen as international fans including myself taking the knee to show solidarity. We did a lot with EDSI and Amy was just one fan of the year around the International Day of Disabled Persons and then a big part of it was Hair Game 2 because obviously over time myself, my female friends and women I know from the game even now have been subject to sex and abuse or that we don't know anything about football and it's not about saying all the time I'll look at us, it's about just making it normal that we're part of it. And Everton have already we are as I said we are quite inclusive so I think we've got one of the top female season ticker numbers anyway already just wish obviously they'd sort the toilet out but on to Bramley Mo for that. But I think what's really important is and building on Barry's work that he's been doing with the atmosphere group, the Hair Game 2 piece as well it's not just me speaking to the club with Hair Game 2. I've set up a network like you set up a network and international set up a network for example so I got a group of fans asked who wanted to get involved, we had a meeting in January and then we engage, listen, work together. Then we take the ideas to the club, see what's possible and then we keep that going so we've got like a WhatsApp group that continuously shares ideas. There's another meeting recently about how we continue this on after the launch at the Wolves match and that group has grown and grown and that's what Tony's done with international. I think North America, I think it's 45 plus groups have come together and then obviously the rest of the world is the stuff as well as part of international. But even like the North American toffees and that network have helped obviously with the pre-season planning and like the retail and be able to sell the shirt out in America. It's listening to what the fans want and working with the club to make it happen. So if anyone wants to be a part of that and whether they've got interesting atmosphere, Hair Game 2, New Stadium and the New Stadium Leeds because that's something I wanted to do as well. Everton for change or the climate change or the retail side of it like come and join us, get involved. Is it an easy process like you're saying? If I can do it anyone can. I wasn't setting you off with that buzz at all. I think often in the past I think we have particularly since this owner coming and under the previous incumbent. I feel anyway we felt as though we've kind of moved away from the clubs you know what I mean as if we've been to. I think a lot of fans are a lot of clubs feel like it's our club but it's not really our club. We like go to match and I think that this is really important actually and I know with the ESSG stuff as well trying to get a fan on the board. I think it is important that we are able to influence our football club because we showed during the pandemic footy without us it's not. It's crap. It's a sterile boring thing that we all switched our telly you know. Sadde flat with canned support and I don't know about you but it's just become tedious to watch. You just watch it and go oh yeah we won or we lost and you know you try to like be expert but it was nothing there. Since we've gone back in the stadium the atmosphere and now you know it's all dancing game. The atmosphere was really cool because we were all back but obviously we knew you know there was still people were happy with obviously the manager. That's what we've seen towards the end of the season. I think it is a thing for fans to go actually I can start to influence the club and through this and having people like yourselves on the board I think that does give it a connection. So if there is people out there who think I can bring this to the table and it's something I'm passionate about and other people feel similar then they're the people who can try to get on. And it's really important to listen to all the fans faces and as you said football without fans is nothing. And it's our club you know managers come and go owners come and go but we all remain players come and go we all remain we're Everton. And we all at the end of the day we all want the same thing don't we? We all want Everton to be successful with decenters based art but you know successful and be ran the best and you know put it off on bangs on about something you've just said there about like getting matey and dice out all over the world making it easy to buy Everton stuff now. Why are we making it difficult for people to go have an Everton shit? I can't get one unless you go on the website and bloody, bloody, bloody. So an old Tony I speak to Tony Sampson quite a lot now he's done a lot of work on that it can still improve because it can still improve in this country. Not perfect is it? No, no. I mean I got me Mars bars back in the upper bowlings which is huge. So it's a whole deal of craft here. Shorted that and you know Siobhan's mentioned in the toilet he wants to come and see our toilet up in the upper bowlings which is absolutely not me but that's for another day that's for Bram anymore isn't it? How much, I mean you just mentioned there about being the delete for Bram anymore. How much input will the forum listen to from fans with stuff that's going into Bram anymore. Maybe like the fan part if it's going to be that. Is the plan to listen to the fans for stuff there? It's literally any idea isn't it? Any idea that someone's got just send an email to the fans forum. It'll be delegated to Siobhan. I'm in the group myself. We'll just meet because you've all the questions and we'll take them to the club and then it's on the club's thing to answer them and then once we've got the answers we'll come back and tell the people who've emailed in or even just spoke to us at the match or anything spoke to us at the pub. We'll take it forward and the answer we'll pass on as well. I mean that's the best way to have change really isn't it? I guess is by trying to do it through the fans and then you're making more people happy than not. You're never going to please everybody. It's life isn't it? We know where the Tonians can be very opinionated and have different views but I think one thing certainly on the atmosphere side of it. We've spoken loads of times haven't we in games of like trying to do this and what do you think about this? We've had that discussion I think. What we saw at those last certainly the last three home games was unbelievable. I mean you know being going on a matter of long, long time. I've seen anything like that there in the 80s when we were unbelievable and it was great and that's one of the things that I've laughed at over the past when people have called like flags and stuff, cop-eye behaviour. I remember being a kid on the Gladys Street in the 80s when we were wearing stuff. Flags everywhere. Everywhere everything went there was flags everywhere. Any pity from Rotterdam. All you can see are flags. Even the coach welcome. I said, I wasn't around obviously when it happened but the Watford and the Cup final, we were the first team to do it. So it's not a Liverpool thing it's an everything. I literally said to the ones with the club before the Leeds game because we were speaking about it. I went right, I'm taking that and I'm going to sort that out. To be fair to the club that's what you get with the phone because you meet with club of people who work for the club if it can be done they'll do it. Have you found that? Have you found the club wanting to be more helpful with stuff like that? Just use the atmosphere again. Inside the ground you've probably seen the songs change. We said to the club we want to change the songs and go for it. Because at the end of the day the voice of what people, I'm not saying you speak for everyone but no-one would ever claim to do that but that's how you get the message across. At times the club is out of touch a little bit but then you'd expect that as well. All the ideas really probably need to come from us as a fan base and then go through you guys. Well Hair Game 2 came from a fan, she DMed me on Twitter. DMed the fans for him on Twitter and said I've saw you've ever tuned in to get a heat campaign if you've heard of Hair Game 2. And I was like we have actually and we spoke about it but what are your thoughts and then we pushed it and the club turned round and went we are more than happy to pledge to Hair Game 2 and be the first Premier League club to pledge to them and help with that. So that came from a fan on Twitter. So it isn't listening and passing the message, working together and then galvanising and obviously not stopping. Just a bit of a personality treat a man. Well no no but that's good though isn't it because that means you commit it to what you do. Don't get me wrong like it's not all rosy and plain sailing. The absolute mares that I've had with them. I tried to get free travel for Chelsea. We have had this discussion. And they said no and you could literally like a fly drop in the room once they said no. So it's not all rosy and plain sailing and you know like oh yeah we'll do this. Sometimes they do say no we're not doing it to which most of the time I'll just say alright you're out of order. And look at that we got it for Palace. But that's good though Barry because I think we do need people who will, who won't just go oh we can't do it okay. And the club said no and you're right to what you can say and you're right to if it's something you believe in and they say no then you'll absolutely be able to say it. And to me fair the club is very open. The club going hard in the shell. The club officials won't go hard in the shell or not. They will say like we're not doing it. Because. They give you the reasons why they won't do stuff. Well that's fair enough and I guess the more people are like that at the forum is like that it can be shaped because we were over to Germany very quickly with this. We went over to Germany and met like supporter Lee Aiden officers who were actually employed by the football club and they're not. They're employed by the football club but they're working for the fans so they're able to have that challenge with the football club and say no this is what we're doing and stuff like that. And I think that Dortmund and Dortmund's atmosphere is incredible and what they give their fans is incredible. And I think maybe hopefully it would move towards that where we all end up with a great thing that we love to go to, a great product. I think everyone who's been to goodness in the last three games just on the atmosphere. The hair going too massively important as is all yours but we'll just use the atmosphere a bit because I think sub-fans will go. I know that's saved us. It's in your face though isn't it? It's in your face. People are going oh my god that atmosphere is incredible. Being able to do that and being able to harness that people can see. People will love that now and we're talking about that throughout the summer. How amazing was that? How amazing were the flares and how amazing was the coach welcome and I think if people use that as evidence of what can be done. You should be absolutely applying for people to be part of it. I can say to me the first game of next season, the new normal, this new normal to me is now buying a 10 pack of cans from the shop. I'm going to sit outside the Trinity statue with about 15 flares and just wait for the bus. Exactly, that's the new normal to me. Imagine if you start the season with that, you can get the atmosphere a bit electric and incredible and so. Therefore go on and just give me those dates against you. If you want to be part of it and you want to get on it and make change then why wouldn't you do it? It is a time commitment, that's one thing we will say, but it is as much as you can give. We meet monthly with the club but there's the project route meeting so that's where the extra time comes in and obviously we have emails, social media management. It's basically like a part time job in your spare time for some but again it's as much as you want to give but if you want to apply, which I'd encourage everyone to apply, by the 30th of May so Monday is the application process, go on the event website and you'll see it and there's a couple of questions to submit and then the interviews are between the 6th and the 10th of June and then it goes to the fan vote. So this is where, I'll be honest for me last year, I didn't fully realise it felt a bit like the X factor. I had to start selling myself on social media but that's part of it, I just was, be honest, be your true self, say who you are, what you want to do and what you want to bring to the forum and that vote is between the 13th and the 24th of June. And then the three people who are voted for by the fans will then join us on the 30th of June. So all within a month you'll be part of it. Excellent, excellent, big thanks for coming in and doing that. So if you want to be part of it, that's simple, like Siobhan said, get on the event website, go on and see a couple of questions and off you go, you're in the running and you could be sat here and so on. You've changed everything for the good and will all be delighted with itself. Big thanks to Siobhan and Barry for coming in, make sure you do that and we will see you later.