#Unity Protest 4th March - Accounts from those there

I am part of one of the organising groups, so in the weeks leading up to the protest there were loads of meetings and lots of stuff to prepare, more so by others than me.
Came up with the idea of an effigy ages ago. Had a vision of it being paraded on a gold throne at the head of the march then either being burnt (a la Wicker Man) or lynched outside Stayen! I liked the idea of ridiculing this self important twat, especially in front of local residents, his own employees and the wider Belgian public.

Never built an effigy before. Thanks to Alwaysneil for prompting me to make a start a week before the protest, never would have happened otherwise. As it was, at 10.30pm on Thursday, it was still in pieces and without a face. By 4.30am on Friday my creation was complete and sitting on the sofa in my living room. At 7am it scared the shit out of my kids when they woke up for school.

Dropped the kids off and ran home to get ready. Picked up at 11 by addicktedoldgit then off to pick up The President with Roly in the back leering out of the window. Odd looks from the French customs fella during an otherwise uneventful journey. Arrived in ST at 8pm, and time for a quick beer then off to meet STVV fans in their pub, making a couple of useful contacts. Back to Wim's to unpack and make effigy repairs. More beers then bed.

Saturday morning saw the buffet venue buzzing with activity. Built Roly's throne with German Addick Marc (Cheers Marc!!) and sat him on it just as the first travelling Addicks arrived. The sense of anticipation was building as more people turned up and it was great to hear the 2 Percent tuning up for the gig. I also began to appreciate just how much had been put into organising the protest, with everything going so smoothly. Special thanks to Wim and his parents for laying on the venue, the food and the beer while cheerfully dealing with local red tape and some last minute logistical changes without a murmur of complaint.

Nabbed some food to go with my rather strong brown Chimay beer, chatted to a couple of Lifers, and then it was a case of welcoming the coachloads into the venue, enjoying the gig and talking to the fella from 442 magazine. That done, it was a sudden mad rush to grab everything we needed as it became clear the march was about to begin. Four of us hoisted Roland and the throne on to our shoulders and we joined the tail of the march. It soon became apparent the throne was not up to the task of bearing our great benefactor so we ditched it after a couple of minutes and I carried him on my shoulders. The rest of the march was a blur of supporters singing their hearts out, curious locals, friendly police and loads of media interest.

By the end of the march, both me and the effigy were feeling the effects of it all, but at least I hadn't lost both my legs, dropped my trousers or had someone rub their arse in my face! As we passed through the barrier towards De Kanarie bar, I took heed of my third friendly warning from police not to burn the effigy, so we stored him in the pub and had a few beers before going to watch STVV. Good to see Igor on top form and scoring. Not so good to see him stretchered off.
After the game we headed up to the Revue bar where Roland usually hangs out in the VIP section for a dance but he didn't show up. We made do with an impromptu pitch invasion that had security running about like headless chickens, then gave renditions of WWRO, Just sell our club and VFR before heading back to base for beer and pizza.

Best bit for me was the sense of togetherness and anticipation at the buffet, plus the 2 Percent getting the crowd going before the march.

Worst bit? Just after half time in the concourse bar under the north stand at STVV. There were a couple of hundred of their fans still in the bar as the second half kicked off, no one rushing to go back out for the game, dance music still playing. STVV scored within a minute or so to go 2-0 up and not one of them cheered, nothing! They just carried on drinking and chatting while the music played. Roland's vision in all it's chilling, soulless glory! This will be our future if we don't fight tooth and nail to rid our club of Duchatelet. We need to keep turning the screw.

So much has already been said - but I'll add my bit

The sea on the way out was very smooth and I felt a bit of a tit for making so much pre-journey fuss (but see later).

Excellent atmosphere at the buffet and loved the 2% - would really enjoy an evening gig. I had my first ever Belgian beer - thought it tasted a bit 'thick' then noticed it was 8.2%. Went out to unfold our WAR banner (many thanks to @MuttleyCAFC) whereupon people appeared with cameras from every angle. WAR started at the front of the protest - and there is some footage of the start on Belgian TV as the man behind the bar at our hotel showed it to us. The noise and strength of the singing was truly great to hear.

The whole march ran smoothly -thanks to people like @Pico and others telling us when to slow down and speed up. We moved further back to let other groups with banners lead - and each did in turn. There were interviews on route and locals watching and waving from their windows. I remember an older bloke looking like he'd had one or two 8% beers cheering and giving thumbs up signs. The final push to the barriers was amazing. We went up to the front again and 'Just sell the club' was repeated over and over.

Totally drained afterwards I got the coach back to Haslett, took to a seat in the hotel bar and shared bottles of wine with fellow WARiors and other Charlton fans. I remember staying for 'just one more wine' and joining @LargeAddick, @sarge1g and some other lifers whose names I don't recall (sorry). They were discussing what the answer was to a question I now can't remember. they'd definately worked out the answer - and at the time I remember thinking it was brilliant. I went to bed at 2am and phoned Mr Tatters to tell him about the events of the day. He thought I should get some sleep.

Sunday was quite a different pace and mood. Standing at Nobby Nightingale's gravestone brought it all home to me. Here was a group of people honoring a player from Charlton's past. Yes Katrien we have a history, and a proud one at that. Roland and Katrien's era will also be part of our history but, I hope, remembered as a time when Charlton fans fought for their club (again).

Ferry home. I couldn't find the way to the outside deck but, fortunately, was spotted by Dan who found it for me (thanks Dan - don't know your CL name). Spent most of the journey back on deck occasionally joined by CAFC fans who wanted a fag. @rananegra I guess it was you I chatted to at the back of the ferry in the howling wind.

Picked up by Mr Tatters at Ebbsfleet. He'd got me a pizza which I coudn't face eating. I went to bed. A weekend I shall never forget.

Late to the party as usual .....poor old "cow" as one of my fans on an alternative planet would say !

Whether a combination of early mornings, late nights and a soupcon of wine is to blame or whether my age is finally catching up with me, I'm seriously incapacitated this morning so apologies for a less than exciting report.

The weekend began at 3.30am on Saturday when I stumbled out of my warm bed and made the final preparations for the trip to Duchatelet Ville. @LargeAddick and Mrs Large picked me up bang on time at 5.15 and we were off !

Met up with fellow travellers at Ebbsfleet & exchanged big hugs with my sisters from WAR , notably @cherryorchard as we had never met before. @Arsenetatters was her usual bubbly self , bless her cotton socks and a new CL recruit , Louise was welcomed to the fold. But a special mention must be made of Jackie whose husband had driven her south from their home in Suffolk before he headed off to the match in Northampton and then back to collect her in the early hours of Sunday morning . Such dedication to the cause & a lovely lady that I had the pleasure of meeting. Bang on time we boarded the overnight coach and a smooth drive to Dover allowed us time to chat to our hearts' content.

La Manche was kind to the faithful & before we knew it, we arrived in a damp & grey Calais. Fast forward to Hasselt. the Holiday Inn Express ( very nice!) and back on the coach for St Truiden and the REAL start of the mission. Food, but sadly, no drink( Note to B20-lack of wine at the buffet seriously affected Fanny's mood!) then the sobering realisation that nil points were plundered at Northampton....The question on everyone's lips was whether KR would follow RS & exit stage left during a Belgium protest trip. Surely not ...?

And so the march began. As we assembled, I caught my first glimpse of the REAL Roland, albeit a slightly haggard version and it wasn't a pretty sight. Superb caricature, B20! I duly took my place alongside my comrades holding the fantastic WAR banner ( thanks so much,@MuttleyCAFC- you're a star!) and we were off. Many miles have I travelled to matches across the country but those walked on a drizzly Saturday evening in the company of hundreds of chanting,singing , passionate Addicks will forever live in my memory. As we snaked through the narrow streets, curtains were twitched as local residents sought to discover where the noise was coming from , people stood in their doorways to watch, whilst many applauded. Cameras snapped us from every angle as we made our way to RD's lair at the stadium & @Arsenetatters was singled out by the ITV reporter at long last for a few words. I felt very strongly that she deserved the limelight as the WARriors would have been at home knitting or ironing( joke) had it not been for her brilliant idea. Every "hen" has its day, dear friend ...

And so a successful & highly enjoyable protest reached its end with a few but perfectly formed words from our favourite WW1 historian & whilst some made their way to the match, others re boarded the coach back to the hotel , weary but triumphant. We had made our presence felt in spades and the humiliation of Mr President was there for all to see ( and hear) Our mission was accomplished most successfully but we vowed that more would follow if necessary until our goal is reached. The knowledge that we were representing all the Addicks back home made us so proud that we had been fortunate to carry their hopes & prayers for OUR club's future into the enemy's back yard.

I shall gloss over the stumbling wreck that was Fanny making her way back to her room circa midnight & the curses that could probably be heard back in the bar when she failed to activate the lights with her key card. The remainder of the weekend turned to the most important battles fought in Belgium over a century ago and reminded us that football is not the be all & end all. Very humbling indeed & I'm unsure if it was the gusts of wind around dear Nobby's grave that caused many of the coach party to dab their eyes.

After a stop in Ypres for a quick bite of lunch, we headed for Calais where unfortunately our ship had sailed...but patient as ever, we awaited the next whilst mulling over the events of the past couple of days. Choppy water made the return voyage less than comfortable and our sea legs were put to the test as we swayed from one side of the deck to the other. That was the closest we came to dancing....The coach journey back to Ebbsfleet was uneventful and we arrived later than expected & very tired but smiles were still in evidence over the memories of a highly successful campaign. We must do it again sometime ! I'm in no doubt that Roland will crack sooner rather than later and regardless of what the few pro regimers remaining say, the protests will have been high on the list of reasons why he throws in the towel. I'm proud to have been a foot soldier in the latest Battle for the Valley but if you happen to want a photo for your next book, AB, please give me some notice....polyfilla takes a while to set.

Onwards & upwards !

PS I can't sign off without giving a special mention to our youngest overnighter, young George. He was a real star and his lovely Dad should be very proud of him.
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