GTFC as a fan-owned club?

Quoted from ginnywings

Given more responsibility for actually running the club, they may well just surprise you.

To be honest. This would be a massive decision for the club, and not one I would choose lightly given the "They may well surprise you" quote you make.

I would want 100% assurance that it could be achievable, sustainable and successful. Once i have this. I would gladly have GTFC as a Fan run Club.

It’s a no from me Clive.

Quoted from Meza

no, what i'm saying is these 3 have all the time in the world without having to work to pay for their family's needs.  The fans\trust members probably don't have the money or the time to do it full time, and can only probably give a fraction of their time.  I'm not saying I don't want a fans led club, I just don't have the confidence, there's a different BigDog

I think what people do though is think about it from their own life situation. Say, you work full time and have three kids, you'd think I'm a fan, where would I have the time to be in a position to help run a fan owned club. The question can't be related to everyone's own personal situation. That's transferring your own situation onto everyone else. Lots of people are in different stages in their life. There will be people out there that have time and far more business acumen than JF when it comes to running a football club and SM and PD aren't the only retired professionals in NE Lincs that could be willing to step up in the right circumstances.

The problem has been that JF has had such a stranglehold on the club and a history of chasing away anyone that has prepared to offer their time in the past, why would anyone want to throw their hand in in those circumstances. I know a few who have and been told their services aren't required or couldn't stomach working with such a control freak who only sees his own way.

On top of that, we've got a Trust who at present are in no fit state to offer an alternative. So where is the vehicle to sign up to if you want to help change GTFC for the better. Maybe it's symptomatic of the Grimsby area to accept their lot and be frightened of change? I don't know, but I look at the appalling record of the football club over the past fifteen years and wonder why fans are so reticent for change. Maybe they're all waiting for someone else to set up a takeover version of OP to sign up to and get behind?

Quoted from Bigdog

I think what people do though is think about it from their own life situation. Say, you work full time and have three kids, you'd think I'm a fan, where would I have the time to be in a position to help run a fan owned club. The question can't be related to everyone's own personal situation. That's transferring your own situation onto everyone else. Lots of people are in different stages in their life. There will be people out there that have time and far more business acumen than JF when it comes to running a football club and SM and PD aren't the only retired professionals in NE Lincs that could be willing to step up in the right circumstances.

The problem has been that JF has had such a stranglehold on the club and a history of chasing away anyone that has prepared to offer their time in the past, why would anyone want to throw their hand in in those circumstances. I know a few who have and been told their services aren't required or couldn't stomach working with such a control freak who only sees his own way.

On top of that, we've got a Trust who at present are in no fit state to offer an alternative. So where is the vehicle to sign up to if you want to help change GTFC for the better. Maybe it's symptomatic of the Grimsby area to accept their lot and be frightened of change? I don't know, but I look at the appalling record of the football club over the past fifteen years and wonder why fans are so reticent for change. Maybe they're all waiting for someone else to set up a takeover version of OP to sign up to and get behind?

I definately agree Bigdog, a change in leadership is needed.  Problem is we are stuck between a rock and a hard place, and i have no idea who would take the reins and how we are to pay for 2mill benign loans.

However i would quite happily pay £100 to a crowd funder and if others followed over the course of a season or two (and not a few months) we may just have enough to buy out JF.  Other than that i have no idea were we would start.

It's owned by a 'fan' at the moment and that's not working out too well

Quoted from WOZOFGRIMSBY

It's owned by a 'fan' at the moment and that's not working out too well

Maybe the question should be reworded "GTFC as a fan-trust owned club".

Ideally all of English football should be run like the Germans do it.

[url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-22625160[/url]

That's a bit out of date but I dont think things have changed too much in Germany.

The closest model in pro team sport, or certainly one of the more high profile ones, is Leicester Tigers RUFC. The most successful club of the pro rugby era (though not recently), and the best supported. The German / Leicester model doesn't mean there cannot be significant commercial interests invested in the club just that control must remain with the members Trust. Based upon Leicester the key to success will be hired in professional management competence on the Board including a Director of  Football and a really good Chief Exec. All would cost alot and maybe why it would be a struggle to be financially viable with GTFC in a town as relatively poor as Gy and Clee. Wycombe is a mega rich area by comparision and Leicester a medium sized city with a very strong rugby heritage. And Germans are just loads better at organising and running things...

It's a yes from me. Always has been. I know the current Trust Board (or at least judging by Barra's comments) are not up for it. I can't believe that there aren't people out there who have the will and the skills to take this on. Disappointing that there aren't more people who believe it is feasible. Maybe a lot more people from Grimsby are just more passive consumers of politics, business and sport than I thought.

There are solutions to all the 'problems' people have put forward. But I suppose if enough people are content to sit back and see what happens. To an extent this reflects what happened with the Keep the Mariners Afloat campaign back in the first half of the noughts when the Tax Man was circling. Lots of people saying Fenty should stump up the money because he sold Five Star Fish for a packet. Result, bar (I think) c. £20k raised by the Trust, John Fenty stepped in to shoulder the burden.

Quoted from Grimsby2012

To be honest. This would be a massive decision for the club, and not one I would choose lightly given the "They may well surprise you" quote you make.

I would want 100% assurance that it could be achievable, sustainable and successful. Once i have this. I would gladly have GTFC as a Fan run Club.

There are no assurances that can be made. Everything is a risk but the current board are not the only people in N.E.Lincs capable of running a small football club. No wonder the club is so parochial, if the fans are anything to judge by.

I personally don't favour a fans run club as such, as I think the investment needed in the modern game would rule out progressing much above league 2, leaving us in more or less as we are now, albeit presumably the club would be much better run than at present.

I think most of us agree that JF isn't really investing in the club, he is almost a safety valve in case of a downturn in financial circumstances. Therefore, unless he has a complete U turn and agrees to make wholesale and far reaching changes to the way the club is run, including clear goals and the investment needed to reach them then Mr. Fenty isn't the answer either. He is extremely unlikely to make any necessary changes nor leave the running of the club to anyone else.

My preference would be for a consortium of business people, with the necessary cash between them and preferably a love for the Mariners to take the club on having come to an agreement with Mr. Fenty to repay a percentage of his loans over an agreed time frame. Someone of the calibre of Mike Parker and his associates would be ideal. More or less how the club was run in past decades before Fenty came on the scene.

If the club is as self sustaining as we think, with a more professional approach and the fans (who have been absolutely brilliant) completely onside then surely such a consortium could make a real go of it?

Of course, all this presupposes Fenty would be reasonable as regards his loans, and such a consortium exists, but other than that it would be my preferred option!

If Mr. Fenty won't budge, or will not take drastic action to give the club the investment it needs to progress on the field and the much needed improvements to Blundell Park, then the fans will have to take direct action to try to force his hand. A co-ordinated boycott of season tickets or some such action to show that we have had enough and hurt him in the pocket.

Having said all that,if I was in Mr.Fenty's position and had the security of a considerable fortune behind me, I would get professionals in with the remit to improve all aspects of the club and increase attendances, give the manager the budget to get the best players in (say 15 quality high earning pros from a squad of 22) and to get players that within a 3 year time frame  we could sell on like Bogle - all of which would generate enough money for him to be repaid over time so he can make the decision to leave. If he continues to try to run it like he has for the past 15 years or so he will get the same results. Sadly I won't hold my breath.  

Quoted from lew chaterleys lover

I personally don't favour a fans run club as such, as I think the investment needed in the modern game would rule out progressing much above league 2, leaving us in more or less as we are now, albeit presumably the club would be much better run than at present.

I think most of us agree that JF isn't really investing in the club, he is almost a safety valve in case of a downturn in financial circumstances. Therefore, unless he has a complete U turn and agrees to make wholesale and far reaching changes to the way the club is run, including clear goals and the investment needed to reach them then Mr. Fenty isn't the answer either. He is extremely unlikely to make any necessary changes nor leave the running of the club to anyone else.

My preference would be for a consortium of business people, with the necessary cash between them and preferably a love for the Mariners to take the club on having come to an agreement with Mr. Fenty to repay a percentage of his loans over an agreed time frame. Someone of the calibre of Mike Parker and his associates would be ideal. More or less how the club was run in past decades before Fenty came on the scene.

If the club is as self sustaining as we think, with a more professional approach and the fans (who have been absolutely brilliant) completely onside then surely such a consortium could make a real go of it?

Of course, all this presupposes Fenty would be reasonable as regards his loans, and such a consortium exists, but other than that it would be my preferred option!

If Mr. Fenty won't budge, or will not take drastic action to give the club the investment it needs to progress on the field and the much needed improvements to Blundell Park, then the fans will have to take direct action to try to force his hand. A co-ordinated boycott of season tickets or some such action to show that we have had enough and hurt him in the pocket.

Having said all that,if I was in Mr.Fenty's position and had the security of a considerable fortune behind me, I would get professionals in with the remit to improve all aspects of the club and increase attendances, give the manager the budget to get the best players in (say 15 quality high earning pros from a squad of 22) and to get players that within a 3 year time frame  we could sell on like Bogle - all of which would generate enough money for him to be repaid over time so he can make the decision to leave. If he continues to try to run it like he has for the past 15 years or so he will get the same results. Sadly I won't hold my breath.  

Exactly my thoughts too..

In the event of the aforementioned business consortium not coming forward, the onus is on a fan's group of some description to go out there and get the expertise or funding, as the status quo is clearly not working..