About Olympique Lion, and official Livingston FC supporters club

In the summer of 2001 a new football team was born. After chatting about it on the internet via the LiviLions.co.uk message boards, a small number of Livi fans turned up for a kick around and to meet for the first time. In the following years it grew and matured into a brand new supporters club which today has over fifty members and really came of age when it was officially recognised by Livingston FC as one of its fully fledged supporters clubs.

During its first season, Olympique Lion was not a supporters club, it was more an informal gathering of like minded folk who wanted to take the Livi supporting experience to another level. Unlike the other supporters clubs who tend to focus on bus travel arrangements and social events, the primary focus of Olympique Lion is to actively play football and encourage involvement in sporting activity, plus of course we are not averse to organising social events either.

T he football team joined the IFA (Internet Football Association), which has over 60 teams from all over the UK as its members. All of these teams are made up of football fans who want to get involved in playing the game as well as watching it. In Scotland, Olympique Lion will play the supporters team from whoever the senior team are playing on any given match day. An example of this can be taken from playing Aberdeen. Their supporter's team is called Inter Malamb. Whenever Livi play the Dons at Pittodrie on a Saturday afternoon it means an early start to the day for Olympique Lion.

U sually, half a dozen car loads of bleary eyed OL members will meet at the Almondvale stadium for a 7am departure. Next is a two hour drive to Aberdeen to arrive and warm up in time for a 10:30am kick off on a local pitch near to Pittodrie Stadium. These games follow all the same rules as our senior counterparts with the results being recorded for the IFA league. Now for one of the key parts of a good day out, after the supporters game is finished, both sets of supporters meet up at a local pub for lunch - solid and liquid. Once everyone is rested and refreshed its time to say farewell until the next game and on to the ground to see if the senior team can match the exploits of its supporters.

Over the years we have met the fans from many of our opposition clubs and made new friends with them along the way. This is the main ethos for OL, this is what football is all about for us – enjoy the game at all levels while encouraging personal fitness and making new friendships.

The picture so far has been all sweetness and light, but this is not always the case. Over the years we have had player injuries which included a broken collar bone, a badly broken finger and a broken ankle (thankfully, not all at the same time to the same person). There have been numerous other muscle strains, chipped bones, bloody noses and sore ribs. We have witnessed tempers getting frayed and the usual 'handbags' between the players of the opposing sides. We even have internal disputes and differences like any other supporters club. Why mention this at all? Purely in the interest of giving an honest and balanced picture which demonstrates nothing is perfect. Having said that though, the positives far outweigh the negatives for me.

B y the beginning of season 2002 / 2003 we had decided it was time to implement an environment that allowed us to be better organised and recognised as an official supporters club. Between us we wrote a brand new constitution, voted in a committee to manage the club on behalf of its membership and gained recognition from Livingston Football club as one of its official supporters clubs. LFC kindly donated one of their home football strips for the supporters team use. We raised funds and applied for grants from SportScotland and other bodies. All of the money raised was then used to buy training equipment and a second strip for away games. We were shaping up into a well structured football team and supporters club.

We have made many new friends and acquaintances through our supporters club.

• We have travelled together all over Scotland and even participated in the annual IFA Worldnet tournament in Leeds over 2 days.
• We support local charity events and play friendly matches against teams who ask to play us.
• We organise social events for our club and with other clubs.
• We have our own Olympique Lion Player of the Year awards night. This season we have as many non-playing members as we have playing members.
• We have introduced free junior membership for the first time – call it our youth development policy if you like. Although children cannot play in the IFA league until they are over 16 (or over 14 with parents consent and attendance at the game), we do have the kids joining in with non-competitive events and training if they so desire.
• We have weekly training / fitness sessions that anyone can join in with, whether or not they are members.

All of the above points begin with the word 'We' and that is deliberate to demonstrate how Olympique Lion is run by its membership and not its committee.

U ltimately, we are trying to expand the game of football to be more than just turning up on a Saturday afternoon and watching other people kicking a round leather object around a patch of grass. We still have a way to go and much to learn – mostly it is good fun and an interesting journey. New members are always welcome if anyone would like to see what the journey is like.

Yours in sport – Brian Whitehead

Chairman of Olympique Lion Supporters Club - officially recognised by LFC

For more information about Olympique Lion visit our club details page here where contact and membership details can also be found.



Visit the OL Website here http://www.livilions.co.uk/OLnew/upload/