Freefall

Quoted from KingstonMariner

Mate, it was meant to be a joke. Sorry. I wouldn't imagine you were a hoodie in a million years.

Quoted from Civvy at last

I know it was. I never took it otherwise. I guess that like most Town fans I’m just a bit fed up at the minute.  

And I’ve certainly never been a ‘hoodie’  😂😂

Quoted from ginnywings

So we have current and ex Trust board bigwigs appearing on the fishy contradicting each other. One saying too many are in it for self interest, and others denying that is the case. Even the Trust is a divisive topic it now seems. Just more sh1te in the GTFC soap opera. I just want to see a football team that, you know, plays football and scores goals. No wonder fans are deserting in droves,

Quoted from Mrs Doyle

Honest question to everyone.

I can see where it put a massive pressure on players and manager alike but the way things were going the board seemed to be just going through the motions without the financial input to make a difference but............

Do you think without Operation Promotion we would still have got promoted that season?

Quoted from forza ivano

Not necessarily so.2 people can see exactly the same situation yet have 2 diametrically opposed views.look at   the reactions to today's transitional brexit arrangements for an immediate example.

Anyway many thanks to Dave for coming on and explaining the situation. Glad to hear the membership / communication problems will be an immediate priority. I know my example has been ehoed by others inasmuch that my money continues to be paid over but I haven't had any communications from the trust in years, despite having sent several emails to check that they have my correct details

Quoted from Dave Roberts

I have never posted on the Fishy before because to be honest I don’t like the anonymity but feel it may be useful to give my observations and also help with some context/history.
As  you may have seen I have recently re-joined the Trust board after stepping down 18months ago having spent 5 years solid helping to get it established. When I saw that someone with Paul’s ability had resigned I felt I couldn’t just sit back without trying to help and so offered my services again. I did this because I feel passionately about the principle of fan representation and also having put so much into building the Trust I am not prepared to let all that hard work go to waste. I am certainly not doing it for any self-interest!!
So far I have had one meeting which focused on the survey results, memberships and events. I will come onto the survey results but two key issues I have observed already is that the membership system is in a mess and needs sorting and also there has been a complete lack of activity in terms of events. Both of these can be and will be addressed very quickly.
One of the last things Paul did, quite rightly, was to instigate the survey to help the Trust understand key issues and determine the direction going forward.  I am a bit confused by some of the comments I have seen because the action from the meeting was to put together an action plan based on the results. I am not aware that we have said anywhere that we are ignoring the results and not representing the fans views.
The key issue coming out of the survey was paying £30k for a board place. As someone who was party to the original agreement I am well placed to give some historical context on this. When the Trust was first re-formed the discussions we had with the club about getting involved resulted in us having to show that we had the ability to organise events and fundraise. To this end we were given the opportunity to take over the running of the bars which at the time were more of a hassle for the club and they certainly were not making much money on them. As we all know we quickly turned them around and improved the match day experience for fans with more outlets and improved facilities. When we had the chance to have a place on the board we were asked to commit to contributing £30k a year to help the budget. As we were in the conference at the time and a good proportion of the funds was being generated from the bars it seems to us entirely reasonable and fair. Let us be absolutely clear that if we were to pull away from the board the bars and it's staff will go back to being the club’s responsibility and the vast majority of the £30k currently raised each year will disappear.  I have also seen a figure of £46K mentioned, for clarity the additional money is not something new and has been in place since day one of the agreement. It is basically the rent for the seven outlets we have and covers the cost of electricity ,insurance, water, rates etc  which are costs the club pay for directly.  
   It is now entirely reasonable to re appraise this agreement and the action from the survey will be that we will be taking a proposal to the club to review the conditionality of the £30k for the board place.

Another key issue raised from the survey are around much better communication and that is something we are definitely taking on board and will be improving.

In terms of fan representation on the board there were some who thought we should step down but more who thought we should be using our place to more effect. Again something we need to take on board and probably links back into the communication issue. From my own experience working with SD in the past and networking with other club’s supporters fan representation on the board is a precious thing and something some other clubs supporters can only dream of. It is not something you can just dip in and out of as you please and so giving it up would need very careful consideration indeed. I know it doesn’t always seem that way but I can assure people from first hand experience that fans views are very strongly represented.
There were also some people who think we should front a fan owned club but nowhere near a majority.  Again to be clear on this the current Trust board have neither the desire or belief to go in that direction, and so if there was suddenly an overwhelming desire by the fans to do that, w  then some others would have to step forward to make it happen. Do we agree that regime change is needed? Yes we do, but we feel that is best served by trying to seek out like minded individuals/groups to work with. The start point is to understand what regime change entails and that work is underway. At some point things will change and we need to be part of driving that and be in place when it happens.

I don’t know what has happened in the recent past as I wasn’t involved but I know it cannot be changed and the only thing that can be influenced is the future. To be honest I don’t recognise the description of people in it for their own self interest and can only ask that people judge on the actions over the next few months which will be driven by the survey, if that is not representing the fans then I am not sure what is. Ultimately it is down to us to regain the faith of the fans and if we don’t manage that then may be it is time to pack up and go home but I for one am not going to let that happen without at least trying.

Quoted from KingstonMariner

No. It wasn't just about the money. When you think how frayed tempers got at times. There was still a togetherness that I don't think would have survived without the binding effect of OP making people feel, not just a part of but also partly responsible for, the big push.

That and the fact it did boost the budget by a significant percentage. 5% of turnover. Or 10% of match day receipts. Or 6% of employment costs. Or 85% of Employers National Insurance Contribution. Stick the in your accountancy pipe Jacob Marley.

Quoted from 1mickylyons

Dave,

Thanks for posting here and I hope you continue to drop informative posts from the heart on this forum.

I am a very disillusioned supporter of both GTFC and the Trust. I have met you several times and can`t fault your steadfast support of GTFC and your passion for the Trust and the principles of what a Trust should do etc. However and glad to see you have picked up on the fact the Trust seems to have lost it`s way and yes you do have a job on to regain the faith of the fans to me you posting here is a good first step.

Several times since the Forum debacle various posters here have asked for a Trust meeting to clear the air and seek a way forward off the field. I am sure you are aware a large build up of fans and growing in number are at present keeping a lid on things to try and give the team a chance of survival.Most of these fans will be or have been Trust members in the past and most are frustrated by the deafening silence.A lot of people on here have offered to help but heard nothing back me included. Just so we are clear Dave things won`t go on the same come May whatever division we are in because if nothing changes I promise you a massive drop in crowds.We have all had enough of seeing the same mistakes made time and again off the field leading to more of the same rubbish on offer on the field. We either change it for good in May or large numbers me included walk away.I am sick to death of being asked to be patient and lied to that things will get better and I am not prepared to put up with it again this board have failed us for 15 years.Change or Leave