Sign in

Tom Davies

@tomdaviese17.bsky.social
1.7K followers 449 following 2.4K posts

One of them Legacy Fans. Working in Legacy Media. Trade unionist. Chartologist. Crisis correspondent - can sum it up in a word AND a sound. He/him. Views my own, blame no one else

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Tom Davies
Kris (he/him) @portlandkris.bsky.social · 5h
Letter with ALT-text. Also available here docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
We write as a group of concerned individuals from a Protestant background. We hold a wide range of views on politics, faith and identity, and no single label captures our diversity. But we are committed to our shared society, and we feel compelled to speak publicly about what is happening in Portadown. We value the peace and progress built since the 1998 Agreement. We want our children and grandchildren to inherit a future free from the anguish of the past, and we are anxious that some now seem willing to reopen old wounds. While we recognise that the Portadown District LOL regard Drumcree as unfinished business, we are distressed by the trauma that is being visited on the residents of the Garvaghy Road after 28 years of calm. This is a community that has suffered deeply and still lives with the legacy of the parading disputes of the 1990s, which cost lives and left lasting scars. Many of us have family and friends for whom parading is a valued tradition, and some of us have been directly involved ourselves. We recognise its importance to many in our community. The vast majority of loyal order parades take place each year without restrictions - an outcome enabled by agreements and arrangements reached after exhaustive efforts. All of that is now being called into question, with potentially devastating consequences far beyond Portadown. We appeal to the Orange Order to look towards the bigger picture and bring this impasse to an end in the interests of our entire community. We urge the British and Irish Governments to act together and without delay: to restore stability, to ensure that the parading framework is robust and trusted, and to spare the residents of the Garvaghy Road a return to the fear they endured for so many summers. This is a time when all of us committed to a better future have a responsibility to raise our voices to protect peace, progress and a shared society free from sectarianism. We must avoid the abyss we are currently staring into. For the fut…
012
Reposted by Tom Davies
Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 16h
The Conservative party Shadow Culture Secretary to speak at conference tomorrow about how to "defend press freedom", whilst her own party bans journalists whose coverage they don't like
20508205
Tom Davies @tomdaviese17.bsky.social · 15h
Everyone responsible for allowing the 2008 Man City takeover to happen - and every other foreign govt club takeover - bears huge responsibility for all this and owes us all an apology.
093
Reposted by Tom Davies
rich uncle skeleton @alexeptable.bsky.social · 15h
Nothing quite says “innocent” like blackmailing a country to get away with systemic cheating
310427
Reposted by Tom Davies
Spice Albert @spicealbert.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Honestly, beer drinkers at other clubs must weep when they see the amazing, ever-changing range in the LOSC. It's always served in great condition too. #LOFC
153
Reposted by Tom Davies
Jonathan Liew @jonathanliew.bsky.social · 16h
this is not going to happen. it’s outlandish and insane. consider it less a workable solution and more a statement of principles. in that spirit: I present the case for nationalising manchester city www.theguardian.com/football/202...
theguardian.com
How best to punish City? Restitution over retribution, then hand club to the fans | Jonathan Liew
There are no real precedents and emotions are still raw, but good can come from this mess if ownership models change
16889
Reposted by Tom Davies
Henry Dyer @direthoughts.com · 16h
Intrigued to see the Conservative conference will feature a speech on "press freedom" next week while they ban lobby journalists such as @josiahmortimer.bsky.social from attending their conference.
619582
Tom Davies @tomdaviese17.bsky.social · 16h
Disappointed Richard E Grant didn't respond to all the rumoured accusations against him with "What fucker said that?" #Traitors
050
Reposted by Tom Davies
Lee Hurley @hleehurley.com · 19h
I would just like to confirm that Ireland has not erupted into full blown civil war.
1223946
Reposted by Tom Davies
Robert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 23h
The ability to pour hundreds of millions of pounds into a loss-making TV channel, bent on wrenching British politics sharply to the right, is yet another of the ways in which extreme wealth is trying to remake UK democracy. It needs to be part of any serious conversation about political funding.
501535628
Reposted by Tom Davies
Martin Calladine @uglygame.bsky.social · 21h
It's perhaps worth recognising how much worse things could've been had Starmer not removed from the Independent Football Regulator legislation the Tory's requirement that ownership tests "have regard to the government's foreign and trade policy." Burnham can genuinely plead the IFR's independence.
1153
Reposted by Tom Davies
Sam Kunti @samindrakunti.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
The City case should be a starting point for naming and understanding the ways in which football has been colonised by economic and political power and how we might resist them. By @davidgoldblatt.bsky.social for @josimarfootball.bsky.social josimarfootball.com/2026/10/01/y...
josimarfootball.com
You're Manchester City and we know what you are - josimarfootball.com
The City case should be a starting point for naming and understanding the ways in which football has been colonised by economic and political power and how we might resist them.
02410
Tom Davies @tomdaviese17.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
We hear a lot about the threat of shady foreign government interference in our affairs. Well, the government of Abu Dhabi is doing it in plain sight, and the UK govt is proving that it is biddable.
030
Reposted by Tom Davies
The Leyton Orientear @leytonorientear.com · 02/10/2026
No site secured, no planning permission, and no funding: so David Gandler needs to create a sense of momentum around his plans for a new stadium and campus Free to read! This one is public service journalism, after all… #LOFC
leytonorientear.counterpress.media
Orient’s owner seeking more than £2 billion to fund his campus vision • Leyton Orientear • Leyton Orient FC independent news
David Gandler was certainly busy on his most recent visit to London. But how much progress has he made with his plan, and what does this mean for Leyton Orient?
2208
Reposted by Tom Davies
Spice Albert @spicealbert.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
A previous #LOFC owner put money into the squad, but took the club right to the brink of extinction. You'd have to be pretty naive to think that Goosey's main priority here is the continued existence of Leyton Orient Football Club. If his very ambitious plan fails, he's out. What then?
153
Reposted by Tom Davies
Gene Hunt 🇨🇦🇵🇸 @avin-oops.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
To be clear: City's owners are welcome to fuck off and never return and if that means we have to deal with them not owning vast swathes of the country and extracting rent from it well I guess we'll have to deal with that
071
Tom Davies @tomdaviese17.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
"Comprehensive Body of Irrefutable Evidence" would have made a great Fall album title. (Especially as Mark E Smith was a – very much old-school – City fan)
040
Reposted by Tom Davies
James Nalton @jdnalton.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Again, this is what happens when states own football clubs. The Premier League became a land grab for state ownership, billionaires, and private equity. All to the detriment of the game and its supporters. Man City a pawn in a geopolitical game.
24413
Reposted by Tom Davies
I Am Incorrigible @imincorrigible.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Simon Clarke MP was born on 28 September 1984. That's all you need to know. #r4today
1241415353
Reposted by Tom Davies
Kris (he/him) @portlandkris.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Good. Get lost.
071
Reposted by Tom Davies
Henry Mance @henrymance.ft.com · 02/10/2026
1622181
Reposted by Tom Davies
Ian M @marriotti67.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
More nonsense from the footballing world. The body supposedly responsible for the governance and the integrity of the game meekly gave that up when they allowed a private profit making body to take over top flight football in 1992. All of this stems from that. www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...
bbc.co.uk
Manchester City: FA says guilty verdict has "significant implications for integrity of the game"
English football's governing body adds it will "take action where appropriate."
0101
Reposted by Tom Davies
Aidan O’Brien @aidanobrien.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
It's becoming clear the LOL/Bryson were *wildly* over optimistic about the amount of support they'd get from loyalist paramilitaries, or the broader Orange Lodge network and the protestant community in Portadown. Nor did they expect the cross community support for the GRRC protest.
24213
Reposted by Tom Davies
Tom Davies @tomdaviese17.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I like football. And booze. But not at the same time when in the stands. Here's why.
073
Tom Davies @tomdaviese17.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
The re-poshification of cricket continues …
101
Reposted by Tom Davies
The Quietus @thequietus.com · 01/10/2026
'Apocalypse was the record the group had been building up to. But its messages were their most controversial and the presentation of them the most risky the band had yet attempted...' Many Happy Returns to #PublicEnemy's Apocalypse 91 The Enemy Strikes Black, which turns 35 today! buff.ly/UYNVV0x
Public Enemy's Apocalypse 91 The Enemy Strikes Black album cover.
14010
Reposted by Tom Davies
Joel Morris @gralefrit.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Why do the tech guys want to create art anyway? They’ve nothing but contempt for artists. Do they want some of that scorn? Is it a kink?
18677
Reposted by Tom Davies
Rob Davies @byrobdavies.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Yet Chelsea have successfully created a PR narrative that they fessed up, hence the paltry fine. Fact is, the FA appears to have believed that using hidden fees to land players like Eden Hazard, Willian, Nemanja Matic didn't confer a sporting advantage. Make of that what you will.
3216
Reposted by Tom Davies
Rob Davies @byrobdavies.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
What's more, after we initially put our questions to Chelsea, they appear to have leaked some of our findings to another newspaper before we could publish, raising questions about whether they used the opportunity to "self report" some of what we were about to expose.
1133
Reposted by Tom Davies
Rob Davies @byrobdavies.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Getting a bit sick of the narrative that Chelsea FC received a lenient punishment because they self-reported. Many of the offshore payments exposed by the Guardian and media partners were not self-reported (possibly because the new owners didn't know, although we can't be sure of that).
theguardian.com
Chelsea FC face new questions over how Roman Abramovich funded success
Leaked files reveal secret payments that may have breached football’s strict ‘financial fair play’ rules
96020
Reposted by Tom Davies
Football Supporters Europe @fanseurope.org · 01/10/2026
🗺️ Did you follow your team to a UEFA Nations League away match in the last few days? 🗣️ From ticketing & travel to accessibility & stewarding — share your experience, good or bad, in FSE's 2026/27 #AwayFansSurvey. ✍️ ow.ly/PUrA50ZToTX
Promotional graphic for the "FSE Away Fans Survey: Men's National Teams 2026/27" covering the UEFA Nations League and UEFA EURO 2028 Qualifiers. Set against a photo of a crowded football stadium from the perspective of fans cheering in the stands. Features the Football Supporters Europe (FSE) logo in the top right corner.
002
Reposted by Tom Davies
Space Yak 🇻🇪🇨🇺🇵🇸 @spaceyak.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
We remember far too much history through the lens of the upper classes: "Oh it was terrible in the 70s, any time you wanted to enrich yourself your workers went on strike and demanded they get a share.. "
1105
Reposted by Tom Davies
Martin Calladine @uglygame.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
For example, Newcastle's owner has, for some years, reliably been top three in the number of his own citizens he has murdered annually. He has people murdered and tortured for things that are not even crimes in the UK. And yet he remains a Premier League owner in good standing.
2236
Reposted by Tom Davies
Martin Calladine @uglygame.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I have argued for some years that one of the key problems with having football clubs owned by foreign rulers isn't just their limitless wealth, it's the special legal status it confers on them. www.ft.com/content/1256...
ft.com
Manchester City chair shielded by diplomatic immunity
Khaldoon al-Mubarak was granted immunity six years ago, protecting him from potential legal proceedings in the UK
15618
Tom Davies @tomdaviese17.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I like football. And booze. But not at the same time when in the stands. Here's why.
073
Reposted by Tom Davies
Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
'Actually existing Manchesterism' meet 'Manchesterism as a device for making Labour feel good about itself'
bbc.co.uk
Andy Burnham 'really concerned' if Man City owners sell up after rule breaches
The prime minister compares the allegations against Man City to the plight of his own club Everton.
1312028
Reposted by Tom Davies
Kris (he/him) @portlandkris.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
The man is supposed to understand this one thing, football, and he doesn't. Deliberately, because of money.
24811
Tom Davies @tomdaviese17.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Lots of us were right about Man City from the beginning. There were plenty of dissenting voices before the recent Great Noticing
050
Reposted by Tom Davies
Youngy @mancversusfood.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
This is just further proof of the bent nature of the sponsorships. No regular sponsor would threaten to sue the Prem for the reputational damage of a report they arent even named in. They would just cut ties with the club www.theguardian.com/football/202...
40455123
Reposted by Tom Davies
Martin Calladine @uglygame.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Looking forward to the new "I Know It's Over" banner.
4412
Reposted by Tom Davies
Martin Calladine @uglygame.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I think this will be one of the defining images of the Premier League's void years: a proudly working class fanbase celebrating that the ruling family of an oppressive regime had hired a barrister on £10,000-an-hour to try and prevent them suffering consequences for their cheating. Embarrassing.
A bunch of mugs celebrating their perceived impunity
23317112
Tom Davies @tomdaviese17.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Have to say I wasn't expecting Burnham's first major mis-step to be on football
390
Reposted by Tom Davies
Adam Powley @adampowley.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
A much-merited shout out for the dogged journalists who pursued the Man City story, often under huge pressure and subject to disgraceful abuse. We see a lot of criticism of sports journalism, sometimes merited, but the likes of @sportingintel.bsky.social @tariqpanja.bsky.social, Rob Harris et al
1132
Tom Davies @tomdaviese17.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
So is Burnham crediting a despotic Middle East regime for Manchesterism? A city built on slavery, then and now?
140
Reposted by Tom Davies
Lee Hurley @hleehurley.com · 30/09/2026
The new football regulator has the power to force the sale of a club and this is as clear a case as you will ever see of that being required but this gives me no faith they will be allowed to be independent.
5676
Reposted by Tom Davies
Martin Calladine @uglygame.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Doubtless they will be queuing up to apologise to the journalists who they routinely subjected to horrendous abuse for daring to write about City's finances.
191
Reposted by Tom Davies
Martin Calladine @uglygame.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Interesting to see that even the most aggressive and high-profile of the anonymous City supporting Twitter accounts seem not to be waiting for the appeal and have thrown in the towel. No one not on the City payroll appears to be holding out hope of a reprieve.
1122
Reposted by Tom Davies
Tariq Panja @tariqpanja.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
If you’re wondering why the European Football Clubs chairman Nasser al Khelaifi came out in defence of City’s ceo Ferran Soriano last night. This might offer one clue… www.nytimes.com/2019/07/24/s...
google.com
In P.S.G. Case, Documents Show UEFA Surrendered Without a Fight (Published 2019)
Disputed facts and an investigator’s calculations raise questions about European soccer’s commitment to enforcing its financial fair-play rules.
24319
Reposted by Tom Davies
Mic Wright @brokenbottleboy.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
I just saw a post from some guy saying that traditional music is “over” because AI music will provide “infinite personalised songs”. I want music that reflects the misshapen thoughts of another human being, not the output of an algorithmic average.
4542554
Reposted by Tom Davies
The Leyton Orientear @leytonorientear.com · 30/09/2026
ICYMI - on the enduring niche appeal of #LOFC to people around the world. Change it at our peril!
leytonorientear.counterpress.media
An O From Afar: A Love Letter to Orient from a Fan in Germany • Leyton Orientear • Leyton Orient FC independent news
Os fan Tom Schmitter shares the things he loves about Orient and what it's like to follow the team from his home in Friedberg in Germany. All 'away' fans wherever they are located will relate. His pi...
173