Toe Poke Football

24/11/2023

Hi There is only so much you can do via social media when you are promoting something you believe in. Toe Poke CIC has been set up to create new clothes for Scotland fans and if and when it makes profit to put money back into youth football in Dumfries and the work of supporters direct Scotland. Last week I spent four days chatting to businesses in Dumfries and Moffat and handing out 100s of fliers to Scotland fans before the Norway game in Glasgow.

My friend Claire helped in Glasgow and we had a great time, so many people were supportive and interested in toe poke. Claire is wearing the Clemence’s Day is Complete design which is a fun take on beating England in 1976 with Kenny Dalglish scoring the winning goal v England.

Toe poke hoodies or teeshirts will make great Christmas presents this year. Do adidas or Nike reinvest in Scotland? Our new world champions 1967 designs are now on the toe poke website go to
Www.toepokeScotland.com

16/10/2023

Congratulations Scotland!! It’s brilliant that our national Team has qualified for the 2024 Euros!! Here is the toe poke team waiting for ticket news lol!! But now is a good time to get kitted out in toe poke for next year, or to buy a fan or fans you love toe poke clothing for Christmas or a birthday or the Norway game in November.

14/09/2023

Well Tuesday night was sobering. But England are a fine side and four or five years ahead of us in this cycle of development. I do love Jude Bellingham he is going to be regarded as the world’s best player apart from Mbappe very soon.

Ally McCoist, what a scamp, playing to his English and Rangers audiences with his comments on the tartan army booing God Save the King. I have a lot of time for McCoist but keep following the money Ally.

There are only two ways to avoid disappointment if you’re going to a game and your team loses. Either take your children, that works for me, or wear Toe Poke clothes, which are great to wear, unique, comfortable and bring a smile to even the dullest accountants faces. Here is our new design shown off by Lindsey Barr. Www.toepokeScotland.com

07/09/2023

Toe Poke is delighted to show off our new designs created to commemorate the 150th anniversary of football’s greatest and most historic international rivalry, that of Scotland and England. Our design celebrates the sublime moment Kenny Dalglish scored v England at Hampden in 1976.

To see our full range of clothes for fans of Scottish football go to www.toepokescotland.com

Photo credit Stephen Jolly photography

Design worn by Struan Tonnar

04/08/2023

Toe Poke celebrates the positive contribute football can make to community life, and the importance of our Men’s, Women’s and Youth national teams.

04/08/2023

To football fans across Scotland I hope you enjoy the new league season that starts this evening as much as possible. There’s something special about the first few games, played on immaculate pitches. Some of us may even be optimistic about our Club’s chances!! The growth of the women’s game is a really positive trend that I hope continues. A special shout out to Arabs, we’ve sold out our 3200 allocation of tickets for tonight’s match. That’s bloody impressive!!!

Some new toe poke products will come online in early September. I’m sure they will go down well. If there is a gap in your wardrobe for some new footie clothes to wear this autumn and winter check out

Toe Poke celebrates the positive contribute football can make to community life, and the importance of our Men’s, Women’s and Youth national teams.

17/06/2023

Good luck Scotland this evening!! In Steve Clark and the players we trust.

In the wonderful football book, 'The Miracle of Castel Di Sangro', the story of the tiny football club from Italy's south that made it to Serie B in the 1990s, and were followed for a season by the renowned investigative journalist Joe McGinniss, the put upon manager would often say, 'la stagione e lungo e duro' - the season is long and hard! The team were under-resourced and there were mafia figures in the background.

The football season is long and hard, too long and bloody hard on fans and players. Huge credit to all the Scotland fans in Norway for the match this evening.

The launch of Toe Poke CIC and clothes has been very well received. There is huge goodwill for this venture, thank you. More clothes ranges will be added to the website soon, and we have some brilliant design ideas in progress for the Autumn, and to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the first Scotland v England international. The theme will be love England the country and its brilliant culture, landscapes and people (except some obnoxious politicians), but lets gub them at football. Here is one favourite slice of wonderful English culture - the Kinks and Waterloo Sunset (and might be a favourite for tartan army fans that have seen our team at Wembley)

Kinks are launching a 60th Anniversary Celebration of their illustrious musical career, confirming their vital importanc...

06/06/2023

A Unique Dumfries Based Social Enterprise Launches this week, Creating the Toe Poke Brand;

A unique Dumfries based Social Enterprise has launched this week, which celebrates Scottish Football. Toe Poke Community Interest Company will trade in football themed clothing and merchandise, to raise funds for grassroots clubs in Dumfries.

Dumfries now boasts its own clothing brand, Toe Poke, which has enormous potential to grow and develop with the support of local people. The initiative also creates Scotland’s only football fans owned brand. The first range of clothing, now available on the Toe Poke website, www.toepokescotland.com is aimed at fans of our national teams – there is very choice of clothing for Scotland supporters who want to show off their colours, but don’t want to wear replica jerseys.

Toe Poke founder Ian Barr said, “Toe Poke is Scotland’s only fans owned football brand. We have a serious social mission – to sell football themed clothes that are much loved and through their popularity help put money back into local communities. We aim to earn the respect of the people of Dumfries and football fans across Scotland. Our research shows that older supporters really want to wear smarter football clothes to games, not replica jerseys, which isn’t a great look to be honest if you’re not playing football.

“Toe Poke clothes will be stylish and made from organic materials and be really comfortable to wear. More than 60% of all our Community Interest Company profits will be returned to Dumfries youth football projects and football advocacy projects advised by Supporters Direct Scotland.”

“There is huge potential, in time, to work with local football and sports clubs to provide their merchandise and clothing to support local employment and recycle money back into the Dumfries economy.”

“The inspiration for the Toe Poke brand comes from a famous Scottish National Team goal at the 1982 Spanish World Cup. Scotland were playing Brazil in a group match and scored a brilliant goal by David Narey, that somewhat unfortunately was described as a ‘toe poke’ by the English summariser covering the match, Jimmy Hill. He meant no harm at all though had to live with this gaffe for many years. The words toe poke make people smile and it’s a great name for a new sports brand.”

Toe Poke clothing in the short term can only be purchased online, though the Company intends in time to establish retail partnerships in and around Dumfries, and to sell directly at local markets.
Alan Russell, Chief Executive of Supporters Direct Scotland said, “We're delighted to be part of the launch of Toe Poke - not only do their products feature an iconic image from one of the most memorable Scotland goals, but their commitment to support community projects locally and nationally is something we hope fans everywhere can get behind.”

The stylish clothes will be prepared and distributed by Lochmaben company Rostrum Sportwear.
For full information go to www.toepokescotland.com

24/05/2023

‘Anyone who tries something new is thought mad, until it works’ (Marcelo Bielsa)

Let’s hope Toe Poke Community Interest Company works out then!!

Toe Poke is a new clothes and football merchandise brand, with a distinctive design image. The Toe Poke brand and its clothing range will be taken forward and managed by Toe Poke Community Interest Company. This clothing range, modest to begin with, will expand in time. It is Scotland’s only fans owned clothing brand, and we trade in football themed clothes to generate funding for grassroots football development in Dumfries and to support the work of Supporters Direct Scotland.

The Toe Poke Community Interest Company’s Mission Statement is to;
Earn the respect of the people of Dumfries and football supporters across Scotland.

Our brand is inspired by a famous Scottish national team goal, and the broader sporting and cultural significance of the national team’s participation in the 1982 World Cup in Spain. The goal of course is David Narey’s strike versus Brazil, which the BBC summariser covering the match, Jimmy Hill, unfortunately described as a ‘toe poke!’ The phrase toe poke still raises a smile for many football fans in their late 40s and over, and we hope to develop our Company and sales with good humour and a dash of Scottish gallousness. It is really pleasing to launch Toe Poke when the Men’s National Team is doing so well.

Toe Poke will promote conciliatory messages linked to football and the universal experiences of playing the sport and being a fan. Toe Poke celebrates the positive contribution football can make to community life, and the importance of our Men’s, Women’s and Youth national teams.

The Toe Poke brand is owned and managed by Toe Poke Community Interest Company, which is registered in Moffat in the South of Scotland.

Check out our products at the Toe Poke website;
www.toepokescotland.com

If there is one singe source of inspiration for the creation of Toe Poke, to serve football fans across Scotland, it is the fanzine movement of the 1980s and 1990s. Fanzines were fun, irreverent and full of inspired writing and cartoons. Particular favourites of mine (Ian Barr, not from Dundee but an Arab all the same) were The Final Hurdle which was a Dundee United fanzine, Not the View, a Celtic fans magazine and The Absolute Game, which covered all of Scotland and had a large circulation. There were many great English fanzines too. As football fans we are not passive bystanders, and it’s important to have as much of a voice as possible in the running of the Clubs we support. Sadly we don’t have the German ownership rules, where it is stipulated into law that the Bundesliga Clubs must be 50% owned by their members, and they own one more voting share to safeguard the Club’s interests.

The many people who work to help regenerate Dumfries town centre are an inspiration too for Toe Poke, which in time can create employment in the area. The contribution the Stove, the Guild, Mostly Ghostly, the Usual Place make to the town is immeasurable, and they are battling against an indiscriminate economy that neglects smaller towns, and sucks money into online retail.

Toe Poke was originally conceived as a way to raise money for the Arabtrust, a Dundee United supporters trust who do superb work in Dundee. Toe Poke clothes were designed for Arabs before the Community Interest Company was created to take forward the clothes commercially and for social benefit, and in time a line of Toe Poe Dundee United merchandise will be established fully. David Narey after all was a much loved United player when he scored against Brazil in 1982, and I’m pleased to say he won the League with United in the following season!!

Ian Barr with Pauline Hyslop from Rostrum Sportswear Ltd. Rostrum are a superb family owned business who will manage all the orders received for Toe Poe products.

Toe Poke is the new football fans own brand and social enterprise for all football fans in Scotland.