Disabled section on RLFANS

Hi everyone

First of all I’m sorry for not writing this sooner, but it has been so hard to put how I feel in words as to be honest I find it upsetting but I’m going to try. Please don’t blame RL Fans for taking down the Forum as it was me that asked them to do so. I’d like to see it come back as a resource for us all but probably with a different name unless I can find people to pick the flag back up and take things forward. All I know is I cannot do it anymore and that’s what upsets me and I do feel as though I’ve let a lot of you down.

When the RLDSA was formed a lot of years ago now I really felt that I along with the other founding members had the knowledge, the skills needed and the chance to make a difference to RL fans that were like myself disabled, back then there were so many issues that had to change to make things better and with the constant support from my great husband I really felt that we could pull people together and give them a voice, not just the disabled fans but also their families and friends.

The RFL in the beginning listened; they took on board many of the things that we as fans had highlighted as problems and there is no doubt we did make a big difference, we even helped mediate successfully situations that would have seen some RL Clubs in Court. We travelled here, there and everywhere looking at grounds and helping Clubs decide the best course of action for them to make their grounds more accessible always taking into consideration that money was a huge issue and the solutions had to be cost effective. What I don’t think many people knew is that the travel costs plus any costs for tickets we had to buy came out of our pockets and until the rising costs of fuel etc became too much it was never a problem. We just wanted to do all we could to help the game we loved so much and the people who faced the same problem we did when they followed their team.

We’ve met a lot of really wonderful people within the RFL and I will always have a lot of respect for many of them but changes were made, new staff came into place and it was then we began to see a change. Communications which had until then been free flowing began to dry up, we attended meeting with disabled supporters groups which we helped set up and there was less and less we could pass on to them, there was little we could post on the RLDSA forum for the same reason. We still had a lot of ideas and ongoing issues to be dealt with but we knew we had reached the point that we just could not continue financing the Association on our own. We were promised funding to help us continue the work and we knew one of the things we needed to do was try to get as many disabled RL fans and their families together to discuss a way forward but the funding never came.

In recent times the only communication we have had from the RFL has been through the great members of the RLGSOA (Rugby League Ground Safety Officers Association). We have been proud honorary members of that great organisation for a number of years and learnt so much about the practical side to running a Rugby League ground on a game day and the preparations that had to be made, honest its mind boggling.

There does come a time though when you have to decide what is best not only for yourself but the people you’re trying to help and improve things for and I think we have outlived our usefulness.
We did the best we could and I can say that honestly, we gave everything we could in time, energy and financially. I will be honest and say that in recent years the lack of communication and often being left in the dark has knocked a great deal of the love and passion we had for Rugby League out of us as people and emotionally as well as physically in my case we’ve been left drained and a bit bitter to be honest, we still had a lot to give with just a bit of support that could have been given by some small amounts of funding.

There is however a new broom sweeping though Rugby League as far as disabled spectators are concerned. The Level Playing Field, formerly known as the National Association of Disabled Supporters has now become involved with our game as well as their primary Sport which is Football. Maybe the best thing for anyone interested in being a voice for disabled RL fans to do would be to contact the RFL, ask for the Equality and Diversity Officer and tell them you are interested.
There are so many wonderful fans we have met over the years, many of those are friends and I hope that remains the case and that you can understand why we had to make the decision we have made. I’m just so sorry it has taken so long for me to be able to say this but as I said earlier it really does hurt to type this.

I’m still involved over at my beloved Bulls, given the problems we’ve had this season on that front it really highlighted to me that maybe we were better directing our energy in that direction. My husband Coaches the Bulls Wheelchair RL team and I’m the Club Manager so we now spend a lot of time in schools and colleges using Wheelchair Tag Rugby League to raise disability awareness and it is working, the message is getting across and there is nothing better now that seeing young people learning and playing together. It is rewarding and is helping to mend the hurt just a bit and we are supported by our partnership with the Bradford Bulls Foundation and the Club itself with its new owners. We’re constantly fundraising and at the moment doing so for a van to transport all the chairs and equipment we use around the community events we do as well as the schools and colleges.

Thank you all so very much for your support, your ideas and I do hope that in the time we had we did help, take care all of you and just because the RLDSA is not there anymore does not mean you have to take substandard service or treatment. If I can offer advice to anyone I still will but I do hope you understand.

A big thank you to the great Admins and everyone here on RL Fans, thanks for your patience, understanding and your support over the years, we really can't thank you enough for that.

With love and best wishes to each and every one of you.

Gill Johnson.