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Posted by: promotion plaice, February 18, 2019, 7:54pm

Anyone know if the Mariners Trust open evening with John Fenty will be streamed live tomorrow ?
Posted by: LH, February 18, 2019, 7:57pm; Reply: 1
Not sure it was ever confirmed but I heard The Jeremy Kyle Show and Box Nation were both bidding for it after the last one.
Posted by: Bristol Mariner, February 18, 2019, 7:57pm; Reply: 2
It’s on Sky Horror channel 410
Posted by: TheRealJohnLewis, February 18, 2019, 8:09pm; Reply: 3
Imagine having to pay to enjoy the company of JF! Pathetic.
Posted by: promotion plaice, February 18, 2019, 8:13pm; Reply: 4
Quoted from TheRealJohnLewis
Imagine having to pay to enjoy the company of JF! Pathetic.


The first drink is free though......"a pint of whisky please"   8)

Posted by: TheRealJohnLewis, February 18, 2019, 8:21pm; Reply: 5
Quoted from promotion plaice


The first drink is free though......"a pint of whisky please"   8)



That might just make his bullpoop palatable.
Posted by: ska face, February 18, 2019, 8:28pm; Reply: 6
Quoted from TheRealJohnLewis
Imagine having to pay to enjoy the company of JF! Pathetic.


Unless you’re expecting the bar staff to work for free...

Anyhow, can’t get there tomorrow so just fired my questions over but not expecting to hear them asked.

- Can you give the profile of the average GTFC season ticket holder, and what are the club actively doing to understand or target other, untapped markets?

- Away fixtures in previous years have shown the club has a disproportionately large exiled-fanbase. With NE Lincs one of only 15 local authorities forecasting a decline in population in the next 10 years, what are the club doing to bring exiles home on a matchday?

- Around £400,000 has been used to service directors loans in the last 2 years. Do you expect repayments to continue at this rate and do you have a timeframe in mind for when directors’ loans will be eliminated?

- What do the club have in place to ensure the philosophy discussed at Michael Jolley’s appointment remains in place should he unexpectedly leave the club. i.e. will we revert to the Slades, Newells & Vernons of this world if Jolley walks under the 3F tomorrow?

- Football-related disorder has been virtually non-existent in recent years though GTFC fans are constantly subject to restrictive kick-off times and ticketing policies. Will the club, either through SLO or Safety Officer begin to use an evidenced-based approach to advocating on behalf of fans?

- A programme of stadium works is being undertaken at Blundell Park currently. Given any relocation is some years away, and taking into account developments nationally, will the club revisit the idea of introducing a safe-standing area at BP, in the interests of fan experience?
Posted by: forza ivano, February 18, 2019, 8:32pm; Reply: 7
Quoted from TheRealJohnLewis
Imagine having to pay to enjoy the company of JF! Pathetic.


Those new lightbulbs arent going to pay for themselves.....
Posted by: MuddyWaters, February 18, 2019, 8:38pm; Reply: 8
Simple question from me, “Have the board considered apologising for last year’s forum or their criticism of Operation Promotion?”
Posted by: hheh2, February 18, 2019, 8:39pm; Reply: 9
Can we get a pool table?
Posted by: Fishy_fishtails, February 18, 2019, 9:03pm; Reply: 10
Quoted from promotion plaice

Anyone know if the Mariners Trust open evening with John Fenty will be streamed live tomorrow ?


Not live streamed but will be available to view on the GTFC you tube channel from Wednesday.
Posted by: barralad, February 19, 2019, 8:47am; Reply: 11
For an event which has had a right panning on social media we have had absolutely masses of questions. It is therefore unlikely over a two hour period people asking multiple questions will get them all heard. The event is all about the future of GTFC so from a purely personal point of view as someone who will be attending I hope the focus is on what is to come-not on what has gone before.
Posted by: rancido, February 19, 2019, 10:58am; Reply: 12
Quoted from barralad
For an event which has had a right panning on social media we have had absolutely masses of questions. It is therefore unlikely over a two hour period people asking multiple questions will get them all heard. The event is all about the future of GTFC so from a purely personal point of view as someone who will be attending I hope the focus is on what is to come-not on what has gone before.



Absolutely Barra but you should know from reading this site some posters will keep going over the same ground, ad nauseum!
Posted by: chipsandgravy, February 19, 2019, 11:02am; Reply: 13
Quoted from barralad
For an event which has had a right panning on social media we have had absolutely masses of questions. It is therefore unlikely over a two hour period people asking multiple questions will get them all heard. The event is all about the future of GTFC so from a purely personal point of view as someone who will be attending I hope the focus is on what is to come-not on what has gone before.


Completly agree. Wasted energy now on what has gone.
There seems a collective will now to look forward and just as we have given the team the chance to progress and develop I hope we use the evening to give JF the time to discuss how the board are trying to move the club forward. Fingers crossed on this one!
Posted by: Grumps, February 19, 2019, 11:33am; Reply: 14
Totally agree with last 3 posters. Past is the past it can't be changed. The present and future is what really matters so we need to all pull together in the same direction. I think most of us can see that we are on the threshold of this club moving forward in a really good way. The best way to get where we need to go is by being together. The future is bright.

UTM
Posted by: LongEatonMariner, February 19, 2019, 2:11pm; Reply: 15
Quoted from barralad
For an event which has had a right panning on social media we have had absolutely masses of questions. It is therefore unlikely over a two hour period people asking multiple questions will get them all heard. The event is all about the future of GTFC so from a purely personal point of view as someone who will be attending I hope the focus is on what is to come-not on what has gone before.


Spot on.
Posted by: moosey_club, February 19, 2019, 3:41pm; Reply: 16
Quoted from barralad
For an event which has had a right panning on social media we have had absolutely masses of questions. It is therefore unlikely over a two hour period people asking multiple questions will get them all heard. The event is all about the future of GTFC so from a purely personal point of view as someone who will be attending I hope the focus is on what is to come-not on what has gone before.


Some of JF's rambling responses can go on for 15 mins so i imagine very few questions will have time to be asked.
Posted by: Limerick Mariner, February 19, 2019, 4:33pm; Reply: 17
Quoted from ska face


Unless you’re expecting the bar staff to work for free...

Anyhow, can’t get there tomorrow so just fired my questions over but not expecting to hear them asked.

- Can you give the profile of the average GTFC season ticket holder, and what are the club actively doing to understand or target other, untapped markets?

- Away fixtures in previous years have shown the club has a disproportionately large exiled-fanbase. With NE Lincs one of only 15 local authorities forecasting a decline in population in the next 10 years, what are the club doing to bring exiles home on a matchday?

- Around £400,000 has been used to service directors loans in the last 2 years. Do you expect repayments to continue at this rate and do you have a timeframe in mind for when directors’ loans will be eliminated?

- What do the club have in place to ensure the philosophy discussed at Michael Jolley’s appointment remains in place should he unexpectedly leave the club. i.e. will we revert to the Slades, Newells & Vernons of this world if Jolley walks under the 3F tomorrow?

- Football-related disorder has been virtually non-existent in recent years though GTFC fans are constantly subject to restrictive kick-off times and ticketing policies. Will the club, either through SLO or Safety Officer begin to use an evidenced-based approach to advocating on behalf of fans?

- A programme of stadium works is being undertaken at Blundell Park currently. Given any relocation is some years away, and taking into account developments nationally, will the club revisit the idea of introducing a safe-standing area at BP, in the interests of fan experience?


This should be a priority and any new stadium should include safe standing - admission price set accordingly.

Posted by: Civvy at last, February 19, 2019, 4:45pm; Reply: 18
Quoted from barralad
For an event which has had a right panning on social media we have had absolutely masses of questions. It is therefore unlikely over a two hour period people asking multiple questions will get them all heard. The event is all about the future of GTFC so from a purely personal point of view as someone who will be attending I hope the focus is on what is to come-not on what has gone before.


But surely we’ve gained 20 minutes by losing the PowerPoint presentation. 🤔
Posted by: headingly_mariner, February 19, 2019, 5:35pm; Reply: 19
Quoted from barralad
For an event which has had a right panning on social media we have had absolutely masses of questions. It is therefore unlikely over a two hour period people asking multiple questions will get them all heard. The event is all about the future of GTFC so from a purely personal point of view as someone who will be attending I hope the focus is on what is to come-not on what has gone before.


Is it that easy to look forward when so many questions from the past are left unanswered. Both the trust and the board haven’t answered the big questions asked of them in the last few years.

Last year’s Fans Forum was a horror show and lots of the same questions still remain.
Posted by: RoboCod, February 19, 2019, 5:46pm; Reply: 20
Quoted from Civvy at last


But surely we’ve gained 20 minutes by losing the PowerPoint presentation Russel Slade. 🤔


And at least 20 points (angel)
Posted by: chipsandgravy, February 19, 2019, 5:53pm; Reply: 21
Quoted from headingly_mariner


Is it that easy to look forward when so many questions from the past are left unanswered. Both the trust and the board haven’t answered the big questions asked of them in the last few years.

Last year’s Fans Forum was a horror show and lots of the same questions still remain.


It depends how much you want to look forward. I dont disagree with your sentiments at all. Last years Forum  nearly made me wash my hands with the club. All I ask is that we dont spend all the time this evening trying to get answers for the past when we could use it to dstermine our path for the with a squad and management team developing nicely and some decent soundbites about off the pitch as well. I do accept that some will still want there pound of flesh and many questions answering but to me its a waste now.
Posted by: chipsandgravy, February 19, 2019, 5:54pm; Reply: 22
*future
Posted by: Bigdog, February 19, 2019, 5:55pm; Reply: 23
Quoted from headingly_mariner


Is it that easy to look forward when so many questions from the past are left unanswered. Both the trust and the board haven’t answered the big questions asked of them in the last few years.

Last year’s Fans Forum was a horror show and lots of the same questions still remain.


It will be interesting to hear the answers from JF tonight. Bear in mind he doesn't always speak the truth and quite willing to blame others for his own shortcomings or mistakes. "Fan's fault that Hurst left" came out of his lips only a year ago, yet it wasn't the truth. Listen to what Hurst said in the link below from 40 minutes onwards..

https://soundcloud.com/ntt20pod/ntt20-pod-meets-paul-hurst

We can all be excited about how we are developing on the pitch, but that's all on Jolley's shoulders and ambitious managers get poached up to higher levels in the pyramid. If Jolley went in the summer, god forbid, what would we be left with? It's a scary thought, but our foundations are very thin and precarious.

A decent run of results and pretty pictures of a new stadium down Freemo coupled with yet again the willingness of the fanbase to offer so much goodwill to JF should not prevent JF from getting grilled regarding the future of the club off the pitch. Whatever Jolley is building, it's not going to be here forever and tonight is the chance for fans to press JF forensically about his off field vision for the club, backed up by a workable plan of action and how he's going to achieve it, and it's JF's duty to provide the fans with open and honest answers.. fingers crossed..
Posted by: 1542 (Guest), February 19, 2019, 6:35pm; Reply: 24
What’s the bets getting ‘pilloried’ will be brought up again. Why do I get the impression that tonight is about him and his desire to claim credit for the feel good factor returning!!
Posted by: lew chaterleys lover, February 19, 2019, 6:58pm; Reply: 25
Quoted from Bigdog


It will be interesting to hear the answers from JF tonight. Bear in mind he doesn't always speak the truth and quite willing to blame others for his own shortcomings or mistakes. "Fan's fault that Hurst left" came out of his lips only a year ago, yet it wasn't the truth. Listen to what Hurst said in the link below from 40 minutes onwards..

https://soundcloud.com/ntt20pod/ntt20-pod-meets-paul-hurst

We can all be excited about how we are developing on the pitch, but that's all on Jolley's shoulders and ambitious managers get poached up to higher levels in the pyramid. If Jolley went in the summer, god forbid, what would we be left with? It's a scary thought, but our foundations are very thin and precarious.

A decent run of results and pretty pictures of a new stadium down Freemo coupled with yet again the willingness of the fanbase to offer so much goodwill to JF should not prevent JF from getting grilled regarding the future of the club off the pitch. Whatever Jolley is building, it's not going to be here forever and tonight is the chance for fans to press JF forensically about his off field vision for the club, backed up by a workable plan of action and how he's going to achieve it, and it's JF's duty to provide the fans with open and honest answers.. fingers crossed..

That is an easy one to answer before the event even starts. He hasn't got a vision for the club. He has never had a vision for the club and he never will have a vision for the club.

If Jolley is poached we will back to square one.
Posted by: TheRonRaffertyFanClub, February 19, 2019, 7:25pm; Reply: 26

That is an easy one to answer before the event even starts. He hasn't got a vision for the club. He has never had a vision for the club and he never will have a vision for the club.

If Jolley is poached we will back to square one.


Probably square minus one because he will take players with him.
Posted by: KingstonMariner, February 19, 2019, 9:23pm; Reply: 27
Quoted from barralad
For an event which has had a right panning on social media we have had absolutely masses of questions. It is therefore unlikely over a two hour period people asking multiple questions will get them all heard. The event is all about the future of GTFC so from a purely personal point of view as someone who will be attending I hope the focus is on what is to come-not on what has gone before.


Judge people on their actions. The best guide to that is what they've done. Obviously if they start changing what they do then you can re-appraise them. But they've got to change first.
Posted by: promotion plaice, February 19, 2019, 9:32pm; Reply: 28

Anyone got any info on how it went tonight ?
Posted by: Fishy_fishtails, February 19, 2019, 10:06pm; Reply: 29
Quoted from promotion plaice

Anyone got any info on how it went tonight ?


Went very well. Informative and laid back. Nothing like the fans forum previously. 85 people in attendance. I believe it will be shown on the GTFC you tube channel tomorrow.
Posted by: Civvy at last, February 19, 2019, 10:27pm; Reply: 30


Probably square minus one because he will take players with him.


Square one is the same as square minus one I’m afraid.
(Move over Rachel Riley) 😉
Posted by: barralad, February 19, 2019, 10:34pm; Reply: 31
Quoted from promotion plaice

Anyone got any info on how it went tonight ?


Just back from the night. From a Trust point of view it went pretty well in that we were able to merge similar questions and therefore managed to ask just about every question we were sent (if not in the exact form that they were sent), Sadly I don't have the time to either remember exactly what was said or report back but there was some good stuff re:- the new stadium and the clubs engagement with the Council and Freemen to get a workable plan put together. JF accepted that although ideal it isn't necessary to have the training facilities close to the ground and the club are actively looking at other space around the town. He was questioned about whether there was anything the fans could do to move the decision making process on and he felt now was too early but in the future the fans would have a big role to play. The main concerns are that the development has to be right for the club in regards to the ability to increase the amount of income that can be raised for the club, and funding is an issue because there are laws to prevent the Council from building a stadium and simply giving it to the club. On budgets JF said that up until this season he believed that the budget was competitive but he is slightly uneasy that this year's might be a bit below what it should be and the board are seriously considering an upgrade for next season.
Season tickets will be on sale before this season ends although it's too early to quote prices yet as the budgetary plans are being worked on at the moment.
On the Checkatrade JF confirmed the club voted against the continuation because of the significant possibility that the EFL might shift the goalposts without coming back to the fans.
On the near future at B.P. JF outlined the improvements that have been made (toilets/showers (for players) and heating in the Main Stand. He stated categorically that the Main Stand hasn't been condemned. He also outlined the improvements to be carried out including better ladies toilets, disabled facilities and of course the floodlights which he stated wouldn't cost the oft quoted £300K to sort.
On exiles JF confirmed that they were still actively looking at packages that could recognise their considerable efforts. The club are currently working with an (unnamed) exile. They were disappointed at the lack of take up on the partial season ticket.
The meeting started with the signing (at last!) of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Trust and the club which put into writing the criteria for the relationship between club and Trust and enshrined the premise that although the Trust would continue to help raise funds for the club the Trust place on the club board was no longer dependent on the raising of £30K. A representative from Supporters Direct was present and Dave Roberts advised the meeting that we are only the fifth club in the country to formalise the relationship in such a way.
There was a fair bit more but I'm knackered and have to be up at 5.30 in the morning so I'm not going to be able to answer any supplementary questions. The You Tube filming will be live from sometime tomorrow.
Posted by: wigworld, February 19, 2019, 11:10pm; Reply: 32
Thanks, Barralad.
Posted by: moosey_club, February 19, 2019, 11:10pm; Reply: 33
Quoted from barralad


Just back from the night. From a Trust point of view it went pretty well in that we were able to merge similar questions and therefore managed to ask just about every question we were sent (if not in the exact form that they were sent), Sadly I don't have the time to either remember exactly what was said or report back but there was some good stuff re:- the new stadium and the clubs engagement with the Council and Freemen to get a workable plan put together. JF accepted that although ideal it isn't necessary to have the training facilities close to the ground and the club are actively looking at other space around the town. He was questioned about whether there was anything the fans could do to move the decision making process on and he felt now was too early but in the future the fans would have a big role to play. The main concerns are that the development has to be right for the club in regards to the ability to increase the amount of income that can be raised for the club, and funding is an issue because there are laws to prevent the Council from building a stadium and simply giving it to the club. On budgets JF said that up until this season he believed that the budget was competitive but he is slightly uneasy that this year's might be a bit below what it should be and the board are seriously considering an upgrade for next season.
Season tickets will be on sale before this season ends although it's too early to quote prices yet as the budgetary plans are being worked on at the moment.
On the Checkatrade JF confirmed the club voted against the continuation because of the significant possibility that the EFL might shift the goalposts without coming back to the fans.
On the near future at B.P. JF outlined the improvements that have been made (toilets/showers (for players) and heating in the Main Stand. He stated categorically that the Main Stand hasn't been condemned. He also outlined the improvements to be carried out including better ladies toilets, disabled facilities and of course the floodlights which he stated wouldn't cost the oft quoted £300K to sort.
On exiles JF confirmed that they were still actively looking at packages that could recognise their considerable efforts. The club are currently working with an (unnamed) exile. They were disappointed at the lack of take up on the partial season ticket.
The meeting started with the signing (at last!) of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Trust and the club which put into writing the criteria for the relationship between club and Trust and enshrined the premise that although the Trust would continue to help raise funds for the club the Trust place on the club board was no longer dependent on the raising of £30K. A representative from Supporters Direct was present and Dave Roberts advised the meeting that we are only the fifth club in the country to formalise the relationship in such a way.
There was a fair bit more but I'm knackered and have to be up at 5.30 in the morning so I'm not going to be able to answer any supplementary questions. The You Tube filming will be live from sometime tomorrow.


Thats great...but what was he wearing ??
Posted by: jamesgtfc, February 19, 2019, 11:48pm; Reply: 34
We earned £150k from the cup run but he didn't answer what that money was going to be spent on.
Posted by: KingstonMariner, February 20, 2019, 12:36am; Reply: 35
Quoted from Civvy at last


Square one is the same as square minus one I’m afraid.
(Move over Rachel Riley) 😉


Civvy sporting the 2019-20 home shirt:

https://www.google.com/search?q=rachel+riley+images&client=firefox-b-d&tbm=isch&source=iu&ictx=1&fir=ThDvgarIe4lx0M%253A%252Cw5N_qHLPYqStUM%252C_&usg=AI4_-kSauJE9u_TGNGaZhxZcqJxsNVBe-A&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiF6bbNh8ngAhVCt3EKHcAbCXAQ9QEwAXoECAcQBg#imgrc=ThDvgarIe4lx0M:

Civvy's comment on Cheltenham Town players:

https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fimg.huffingtonpost.com%2Fasset%2F5b335b24200000f202b958b1.jpeg%3Fops%3Dscalefit_630_noupscale&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.huffingtonpost.co.uk%2Fentry%2Fcountdown-penises-rachel-riley_uk_5b335a94e4b0b5e692f2d08b&docid=ypeNj-eoMgqTuM&tbnid=xAOUjLmwtFVcaM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwiaiszVh8ngAhW1URUIHfDOA5oQMwi9AShXMFc..i&w=630&h=349&client=firefox-b-d&bih=734&biw=1224&q=rachel%20riley%20images&ved=0ahUKEwiaiszVh8ngAhW1URUIHfDOA5oQMwi9AShXMFc&iact=mrc&uact=8

And what he thinks of KingstonMariner:

https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fmetrouk2.files.wordpress.com%2F2017%2F10%2Fcountdown-gobshite.jpg%3Fquality%3D90%26strip%3Dall%26zoom%3D1%26resize%3D644%252C351&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fmetro.co.uk%2F2017%2F10%2F19%2Frachel-riley-left-cringing-after-the-word-gobse-comes-up-on-countdown-7012763%2F&docid=aWLtSaKkOOEfbM&tbnid=RL6hu6RqKyZrSM%3A&vet=12ahUKEwifgr7ih8ngAhWMQxUIHRf_BE84ZBAzKC8wL3oECAEQMg..i&w=644&h=351&client=firefox-b-d&bih=734&biw=1224&q=rachel%20riley%20images&ved=2ahUKEwifgr7ih8ngAhWMQxUIHRf_BE84ZBAzKC8wL3oECAEQMg&iact=mrc&uact=8
Posted by: scott_gtfc_89, February 20, 2019, 1:28am; Reply: 36
Is Jolley getting a longer and better deal?
Posted by: pizzzza, February 20, 2019, 6:52am; Reply: 37
Quoted from scott_gtfc_89
Is Jolley getting a longer and better deal?


Think you needed to submit questions  before the event not after.
Posted by: barralad, February 20, 2019, 8:17am; Reply: 38
Quoted from pizzzza


Think you needed to submit questions  before the event not after.


To be fair the question was asked but I wasn't in the room to hear the full answer so didn't mention it.
Posted by: ska face, February 20, 2019, 8:25am; Reply: 39
Thanks for the update barra. Looking forward to watching the whole thing, but on the face of it removing the £30k annual donation is potentially a massive step forward.
Posted by: psgmariner, February 20, 2019, 8:33am; Reply: 40
Well done to all involved. Wish I had gone.

Good to see fan engagement working and most of the news seems positive.
Posted by: Jarmo.Is.God, February 20, 2019, 8:42am; Reply: 41
It went well, a lot of questions got answered, yet I still see it flying around social media etc of 'fans' trying their hardest to shoot down Fenty, when in fact, last night was very good of him IMO, he doesn't need to do these events, and for me, I thank him for last night for attending, and answering the questions people wanted answering

Also well done to the Trust for organising a well planned night
Posted by: ska face, February 20, 2019, 9:28am; Reply: 42
Quoted from Jarmo.Is.God
It went well, a lot of questions got answered, yet I still see it flying around social media etc of 'fans' trying their hardest to shoot down Fenty, when in fact, last night was very good of him IMO, he doesn't need to do these events, and for me, I thank him for last night for attending, and answering the questions people wanted answering

Also well done to the Trust for organising a well planned night


There’s a middlebground to be found between that and your overly-deferential attitude towards him.

These things should be the absolute bare minimum that he does in terms of engagement, plus actually acting on what people have asked to see.
Posted by: Jarmo.Is.God, February 20, 2019, 9:52am; Reply: 43
Quoted from ska face


There’s a middlebground to be found between that and your overly-deferential attitude towards him.

These things should be the absolute bare minimum that he does in terms of engagement, plus actually acting on what people have asked to see.


My point is, he is portrayed as being the worst owner in the EFL etc etc, when he really isn't.

I want new owners to push us on to the next level, but we haven't been sold yet for all the right reasons.

Some owners out there attend, 2-3 games a season, and don't give a toss.
Fenty is a Grimsby fan, and wants the best for the club, and whilst i don't agree with certain aspects of the way the club has been run over the past 7-8 years or whatever people see it as. He has also been the victim of abuse, some probably warranted, over recent years, yet still comes out and answers the fans questions
Posted by: MuddyWaters, February 20, 2019, 10:40am; Reply: 44
Quoted from Jarmo.Is.God


My point is, he is portrayed as being the worst owner in the EFL etc etc, when he really isn't.

I want new owners to push us on to the next level, but we haven't been sold yet for all the right reasons.

Some owners out there attend, 2-3 games a season, and don't give a toss.
Fenty is a Grimsby fan, and wants the best for the club, and whilst i don't agree with certain aspects of the way the club has been run over the past 7-8 years or whatever people see it as. He has also been the victim of abuse, some probably warranted, over recent years, yet still comes out and answers the fans questions


Whilst I applaud him taking time to do last night, you simply can’t ignore the last fans forum, the comments about Operation Promotion and the worst period in the clubs history. There’s a middle ground out there somewhere but finding it should be the boards prerogative not Michael Jolleys.
Posted by: H19P1, February 20, 2019, 10:54am; Reply: 45
Just a thought, will the trust be summarising the meeting with the key learning points?
Posted by: scott_gtfc_89, February 20, 2019, 11:13am; Reply: 46
Quoted from pizzzza


Think you needed to submit questions  before the event not after.


I knew it had already been submitted as a question so don’t be a cocky tw@t
Posted by: barralad, February 20, 2019, 11:34am; Reply: 47
Quoted from MuddyWaters


Whilst I applaud him taking time to do last night, you simply can’t ignore the last fans forum, the comments about Operation Promotion and the worst period in the clubs history. There’s a middle ground out there somewhere but finding it should be the boards prerogative not Michael Jolleys.


As someone who worked voluntarily for about 50 hours a week during and after Operation Promotion I was upset with the remarks about it...but a year on I've moved on which begs the question why can't others? I'd prefer to look to the future working with the club under the Memorandum of Understanding to the benefit hopefully of all supporters of GTFC.
Posted by: promotion plaice, February 20, 2019, 11:54am; Reply: 48

YouTube | John Fenty's Q & A........

https://www.grimsby-townfc.co.uk/news/2019/february/youtube--john-fentys-q--a/
Posted by: Jarmo.Is.God, February 20, 2019, 11:58am; Reply: 49
Quoted from barralad


As someone who worked voluntarily for about 50 hours a week during and after Operation Promotion I was upset with the remarks about it...but a year on I've moved on which begs the question why can't others? I'd prefer to look to the future working with the club under the Memorandum of Understanding to the benefit hopefully of all supporters of GTFC.


Exactly!

Stuff happen, things move on.

P.s them 50 hours a week you put in are all worth it now!
Posted by: Davec, February 20, 2019, 11:59am; Reply: 50
Quoted from barralad


As someone who worked voluntarily for about 50 hours a week during and after Operation Promotion I was upset with the remarks about it...but a year on I've moved on which begs the question why can't others? I'd prefer to look to the future working with the club under the Memorandum of Understanding to the benefit hopefully of all supporters of GTFC.


Will this Memorandum of understanding be made public so the supporters can read it?
Posted by: H19P1, February 20, 2019, 12:22pm; Reply: 51
Quoted from Davec


Will this Memorandum of understanding be made public so the supporters can read it?


If it's the November 2018 MOU then I can post the words for you?
Posted by: Ipswin, February 20, 2019, 12:22pm; Reply: 52
All great stuff but presumably the Memorandum of Understanding is between the present ownership / board and the Trust and would be invalid if the club was sold.

Does signing it last night indicate therefore that a sale is not on the horizon or will JF make acceptance of the MoU a precondition to a prospective buyer adding to any other pre-sale conditions he may have?

In fact will the Trust be guaranteed to retain it's place on a new board should the club ever be sold? I presume not
Posted by: barralad, February 20, 2019, 12:28pm; Reply: 53
Quoted from Davec


Will this Memorandum of understanding be made public so the supporters can read it?


I cannot look at the moment but I'm led to believe that it is on the Trust website, the club website and the Supporters Direct website.
Posted by: TheRonRaffertyFanClub, February 20, 2019, 12:31pm; Reply: 54
Quoted from Civvy at last


Square one is the same as square minus one I’m afraid.
(Move over Rachel Riley) 😉


Are you one of those people who sees a positive in every negative?

Then you will know that mathematics is the art of giving the same name to different things. ;D



Posted by: Bigdog, February 20, 2019, 1:43pm; Reply: 55
All in all a really good meeting. Well done to the Trust and JF for organising it. The openness displayed has been long overdue and puts to bed some of the questions that have been circulating for too long. I've always stated that the club is in a safe pair of hands on a financial level and this was underlined last night. It is also in a good pair of hands when it comes to the best interests of the club in the future.

Where I feel the present custodians fall short is in the extra bit of flair that is needed to market the club whether it's on a day to day basis or trying to attract new investment to enable the new stadium. Being fish merchants, accountants, solicitors and horse racing trainers that has to be completely understandable. I would like to see the club invest in a sports industry professional to help in taking the club to the next level. Someone who has a proven track record. He/she will cost money but should be able to at the very least pay for themselves and much more likely bring greater rewards if they perform to the best of their abilities. It's clearly needed and they would have the benefit of being backed by careful, hard working, dogmatic board members that love the club.

It was clear in one or two of JF's answers that the board reach stumbling blocks in their own abilities on the marketing side and indeed JF asked for anyone to get in touch if they had any ideas as he seemingly doesn't know any of the industry rudimentals including marketing has to be a constant, not having a go a few years back and then not backing it up. I can think of so many missed opportunities to get free exposure to attract investment myself let alone what a hardened professional could do. Well, the club is at a massive crossroads at the moment and in a position where there's everything to gain. I don't think there's a better time for the club to invest, and it might mean heavily, in someone who will fill that gap in ability to make a more rounded team to achieve the ultimate goals of attracting new owners with the right profile and necessary funds and procuring a shiny new stadium with additional income streams. The potential gains at this time would far outweigh the cost involved.

My post is not intended to be critical in any way against anyone in particular, I just think the board individually and as a whole lack marketing skills, the understanding of marketing and PR and a little bit of creative blue sky thinking to fully capitalise on the club's present position, and need to invest to unlock the club's full potential..
Posted by: 1mickylyons, February 20, 2019, 2:15pm; Reply: 56
Quoted from Bigdog
All in all a really good meeting. Well done to the Trust and JF for organising it. The openness displayed has been long overdue and puts to bed some of the questions that have been circulating for too long. I've always stated that the club is in a safe pair of hands on a financial level and this was underlined last night. It is also in a good pair of hands when it comes to the best interests of the club in the future.

Where I feel the present custodians fall short is in the extra bit of flair that is needed to market the club whether it's on a day to day basis or trying to attract new investment to enable the new stadium. Being fish merchants, accountants, solicitors and horse racing trainers that has to be completely understandable. I would like to see the club invest in a sports industry professional to help in taking the club to the next level. Someone who has a proven track record. He/she will cost money but should be able to at the very least pay for themselves and much more likely bring greater rewards if they perform to the best of their abilities. It's clearly needed and they would have the benefit of being backed by careful, hard working, dogmatic board members that love the club.

It was clear in one or two of JF's answers that the board reach stumbling blocks in their own abilities on the marketing side and indeed JF asked for anyone to get in touch if they had any ideas. Well, the club is at a massive crossroads at the moment and in a position where there's everything to gain. I don't think there's a better time for the club to invest, and it might mean heavily, in someone who will fill that gap in ability to make a more rounded team to achieve the ultimate goals of attracting new owners with the right profile and necessary funds and procuring a shiny new stadium with additional income streams. The potential gains at this time would far outweigh the cost involved.

My post is not intended to be critical in any way against anyone in particular, I just think the board individually and as a whole lack marketing skills, the understanding of marketing and PR and a little bit of creative blue sky thinking to fully capitalise on the club's present position, and need to invest to unlock the club's full potential..


There was talk several years ago of I think Adam Pearson (formerly Hull City) getting involved to a degree I think on or around the time Great Coates was the preffered site of a stadium. Somebody of his type and his experience would be a great asset for us and I am only assuming he is fairly local? John Fenty has had a lot of flak over the years for many things but he can never be accused of hiding and I genuinely hope he gets this right and gets some plaudits. You are right he does need to listen and maybe just maybe he now realises that himself?
Posted by: rancido, February 20, 2019, 2:16pm; Reply: 57
Quoted from barralad


As someone who worked voluntarily for about 50 hours a week during and after Operation Promotion I was upset with the remarks about it...but a year on I've moved on which begs the question why can't others? I'd prefer to look to the future working with the club under the Memorandum of Understanding to the benefit hopefully of all supporters of GTFC.


…….. because there are some posters on here like a " dog with a bone " and just won't let things drop.
Posted by: 1mickylyons, February 20, 2019, 2:21pm; Reply: 58
Quoted from rancido


…….. because there are some posters on here like a " dog with a bone " and just won't let things drop.


I don`t for want of a better phrase like or want to see people getting away with stuff (shut up etc) BUT how long do we rattle on? Far better to try and change things for the better by pointing out what needs addressing and offering to help if possible.
Posted by: grimsby pete, February 20, 2019, 2:22pm; Reply: 59
I have just watched the whole of the  Q+A   and was pleased with the openness of everything that was said,

John Fenty came over very well and even took the micky out of himself regarding his dress sense,

I have been one of his biggest critics in the past so I would like to say ( again ) I apologise for some of my posts in the past. As most on here know I do suffer with depression and while I am in a dark place I have come on here and go on and on about Fenty, I try to stay off here now when I feel a depression coming on.  .So  sorry  again to John and to the fishy people on here for boring you from time to time.

We are in good hands and until some Town fan with loads of money comes in and takes over John will have my full support

Micheal Jolley is special was said a few times and I agree we should enjoy him while he is here and support him the best we can like the board promise to do.

Posted by: psgmariner, February 20, 2019, 2:25pm; Reply: 60
Quoted from grimsby pete
I have just watched the whole of the


Did it send you to sleep?
Posted by: Davec, February 20, 2019, 3:15pm; Reply: 61
Just listened to it, overall John came across well I thought but I wasn't impressed by Terry Rudrum calling people who had asked questions as "Keyboard Warriors"
Posted by: chrissy, February 20, 2019, 3:22pm; Reply: 62
Quoted from Davec
Just listened to it, overall John came across well I thought but I wasn't impressed by Terry Rudrum calling people who had asked questions as "Keyboard Warriors"


The Fishy did get a few mentions though.
Posted by: forza ivano, February 20, 2019, 3:37pm; Reply: 63
a case of 'compare and contrast' if ever there was one, in respect of last years car crash. can't fault a lot of Fenty's logic and hopefully this spirit of co operation can continue.
think that bigdog's post above puts forward some interesting ideas
Posted by: Hameln Mariner, February 20, 2019, 3:55pm; Reply: 64
I can confirm that the 7 year old girl that had her goalie gloves signed at the Xmas party has indeed now started playing junior football. Just not in goal though - sorry Macca.
Posted by: promotion plaice, February 20, 2019, 4:13pm; Reply: 65

Just watched it and credit to all for a very informative and constructive evening.
Posted by: Fishy_fishtails, February 20, 2019, 4:14pm; Reply: 66
Quoted from grimsby pete
I have just watched the whole of the  Q+A   and was pleased with the openness of everything that was said,

John Fenty came over very well and even took the micky out of himself regarding his dress sense,

I have been one of his biggest critics in the past so I would like to say ( again ) I apologise for some of my posts in the past. As most on here know I do suffer with depression and while I am in a dark place I have come on here and go on and on about Fenty, I try to stay off here now when I feel a depression coming on.  .So  sorry  again to John and to the fishy people on here for boring you from time to time.

We are in good hands and until some Town fan with loads of money comes in and takes over John will have my full support

Micheal Jolley is special was said a few times and I agree we should enjoy him while he is here and support him the best we can like the board promise to do.


Takes a big man to apologise and to admit he suffers with depression etc Pete. Hats off to you for that. It's not a nice place to be in at times. UTM
Posted by: TheRonRaffertyFanClub, February 20, 2019, 4:17pm; Reply: 67
Quoted from 1mickylyons


There was talk several years ago of I think Adam Pearson (formerly Hull City) getting involved to a degree I think on or around the time Great Coates was the preffered site of a stadium. Somebody of his type and his experience would be a great asset for us and I am only assuming he is fairly local? John Fenty has had a lot of flak over the years for many things but he can never be accused of hiding and I genuinely hope he gets this right and gets some plaudits. You are right he does need to listen and maybe just maybe he now realises that himself?


It has taken him long enough to listen. I put this same point on here many years ago I think in the days of Woods, that the board needed an Adam Pearson. The amount of actual football knowledge on the board was and remains very low indeed. Equally the acquisition of investment is a specialist business. That is what Pearson did at Hull and we still need it here, a proper executive with contacts and experience. Trouble is that it costs money and the lesson JF has never learned is that you must speculate to accumulate. You cannot just sit there constantly saying that nobody suitable has approached the club. You need someone to hunt them out. Someone of Pearson’s standing working with Jolley would be a formidable combination.

On the subject of OP, I listened to the Hurst podcast as I had insomnia last night. Correct me if I’m wrong but i did not hear  mention of OP once. I objected to his attitude towards OP far more than JF’s. Hurst always seemed to regard it as the fans getting at him and a burden of expectation ..... and he was right. That was why I donated - to give him a shove into being positive. That was only partially successful with a manager who would see an unbeaten run of 6 draws as better that 3 wins and 3 losses.  But without OP and the enthusiasm it engendered we would not have got promoted.

Posted by: lew chaterleys lover, February 20, 2019, 5:21pm; Reply: 68
Nothing has changed and nothing is likely to change. The only thing that has happened recently is that the Board have stumbled upon Michael Jolley who currently has given the club some pride back on and off the field. Had it not been for that stroke of luck we would have been in the National League again.

Fenty has an appalling record in every respect, and the quicker he leaves the better.

Nothing could be more embarrassing than last years fans forum so congratulations to him for improving on that, but really if he can deflect criticisms of two decades of failure with some vague answers with no definite proposals on how to improve the clubs fortunes, then he is getting off very lightly.
Posted by: rancido, February 20, 2019, 5:31pm; Reply: 69
Nothing has changed and nothing is likely to change. The only thing that has happened recently is that the Board have stumbled upon Michael Jolley who currently has given the club some pride back on and off the field. Had it not been for that stroke of luck we would have been in the National League again.

Fenty has an appalling record in every respect, and the quicker he leaves the better.

Nothing could be more embarrassing than last years fans forum so congratulations to him for improving on that, but really if he can deflect criticisms of two decades of failure with some vague answers with no definite proposals on how to improve the clubs fortunes, then he is getting off very lightly.



…...like I said , some posters are like " a dog with a bone ". They would be ideal candidates to play Shylock in " The Merchant of Venice ".
Posted by: lew chaterleys lover, February 20, 2019, 5:42pm; Reply: 70
Quoted from rancido



…...like I said , some posters are like " a dog with a bone ". They would be ideal candidates to play Shylock in " The Merchant of Venice ".


My bone just has a different flavour to your sycophantic bone that's all. That is why it is a forum to air different views. I am basing my views on nearly 2 decades of failure. What are yours based on?
Posted by: Stockport Mariner, February 20, 2019, 5:43pm; Reply: 71
A question was asked in relation to what contingencies were in place should JF die. It caused much amusement, but in fact it was a good and very important question. As JF himself pointed out, in the event of this happening, the executors of his will would want to collect the outstanding 'benign loans', which the club would not be able to repay.

JF mentioned Key Man life insurance to cover the outstanding loans and then dismissed it as he was told that he would have to pay the premium himself and he then went on to talk about creating a new type of share class to address the issue. This is incorrect, the club would pay the premium on the Key Man policy with JF as the life assured.

The Club would be the beneficiary, which would enable them to repay his loans back to his estate and there would also be justification for having cover over and above the loan amount, which would give  the club financial stability in the aftermath.

Given JF's age, it would cost the club a few hundred pounds a month for the premium, but small change for a multi-million pound business. I'm not sure why the club has not gone down this route.
Posted by: rancido, February 20, 2019, 5:49pm; Reply: 72


My bone just has a different flavour to your sycophantic bone that's all. That is why it is a forum to air different views. I am basing my views on nearly 2 decades of failure. What are yours based on?



Nothing to do with a " sycophantic view " just the ability to move on. I think your bone has a very bitter, revengeful and unforgiving flavour. Are you the kind of person who bears a grudge about Germans after two world wars?
Posted by: RoboCod, February 20, 2019, 6:04pm; Reply: 73
Quoted from rancido



…...like I said , some posters are like " a dog with a bone ". They would be ideal candidates to play Shylock in " The Merchant of Venice ".


What rubbish. John Fenty lorded it up at that Forum, a coordinated attack on Matt Dean with the aid of his useless bald mate. He then sat back smugly as if he'd delivered some killer blow to Dean and Radio Humbs only to wake to the fact that fans were horrified by his behaviour. The man has no idea what makes the average Town fan tick, though this and the infamous car park recordings have maybe taught him albeit the harsh way.

Neither of these two things SHOULD have happened, but it's telling that they did and as a result he's backed off considerably and we've enjoyed a relatively peaceful time at board level, and if those two things brought about the current situation where he's making decent, honest and non-antagonistic  posts on here and is also part of an enjoyable and focussed fans meeting then I for one am glad that he was caught out on both those occasions for being so out of touch.
These are better times, this is something similar to what things should be like but enough of the dog/bone theory and 'letting it go', we are where we are because of his petty actions, and to forget all of that is to take your eye off the ball and let things slip back to those times.

Good on everyone for last night, I truly hope we can all keep moving on and keep our more personal outbursts and grievances to ourselves.
Posted by: Son of Cod, February 20, 2019, 6:07pm; Reply: 74
Quoted from Stockport Mariner
A question was asked in relation to what contingencies were in place should JF die. It caused much amusement, but in fact it was a good and very important question. As JF himself pointed out, in the event of this happening, the executors of his will would want to collect the outstanding 'benign loans', which the club would not be able to repay.

JF mentioned Key Man life insurance to cover the outstanding loans and then dismissed it as he was told that he would have to pay the premium himself and he then went on to talk about creating a new type of share class to address the issue. This is incorrect, the club would pay the premium on the Key Man policy with JF as the life assured.

The Club would be the beneficiary, which would enable them to repay his loans back to his estate and there would also be justification for having cover over and above the loan amount, which would give  the club financial stability in the aftermath.

Given JF's age, it would cost the club a few hundred pounds a month for the premium, but small change for a multi-million pound business. I'm not sure why the club has not gone down this route.


Yeah, I also felt that question didn't actually get as full an explanation as it deserved.

I thought the 5 minute potted history of the stadium move woes was a tad unnecessary, but once Fenty got onto talking about Freeman Street he talked fairly well. The main criticism for me of the evening was that it was divided into two sections, of questions being read out and then those in attendance being able to ask things. I could be wrong, but I'm sure at the Slade fiasco one, people were following up the responses to the read out questions. Was disappointing that nobody really asked what was next in terms trying to progress the Freeman Street idea. Were people told they couldn't speak up until invited to do so?

I didn't really understand his response to the Jolley rolling contract situation either, he batted that one away a bit too easily again. Something to do with other clubs not planning 6 months into the future and us getting the same compensation regardless of contract length?
Posted by: HertsGTFC, February 20, 2019, 6:07pm; Reply: 75
Quoted from Bigdog
All in all a really good meeting. Well done to the Trust and JF for organising it. The openness displayed has been long overdue and puts to bed some of the questions that have been circulating for too long. I've always stated that the club is in a safe pair of hands on a financial level and this was underlined last night. It is also in a good pair of hands when it comes to the best interests of the club in the future.

Where I feel the present custodians fall short is in the extra bit of flair that is needed to market the club whether it's on a day to day basis or trying to attract new investment to enable the new stadium. Being fish merchants, accountants, solicitors and horse racing trainers that has to be completely understandable. I would like to see the club invest in a sports industry professional to help in taking the club to the next level. Someone who has a proven track record. He/she will cost money but should be able to at the very least pay for themselves and much more likely bring greater rewards if they perform to the best of their abilities. It's clearly needed and they would have the benefit of being backed by careful, hard working, dogmatic board members that love the club.

It was clear in one or two of JF's answers that the board reach stumbling blocks in their own abilities on the marketing side and indeed JF asked for anyone to get in touch if they had any ideas as he seemingly doesn't know any of the industry rudimentals including marketing has to be a constant, not having a go a few years back and then not backing it up. I can think of so many missed opportunities to get free exposure to attract investment myself let alone what a hardened professional could do. Well, the club is at a massive crossroads at the moment and in a position where there's everything to gain. I don't think there's a better time for the club to invest, and it might mean heavily, in someone who will fill that gap in ability to make a more rounded team to achieve the ultimate goals of attracting new owners with the right profile and necessary funds and procuring a shiny new stadium with additional income streams. The potential gains at this time would far outweigh the cost involved.

My post is not intended to be critical in any way against anyone in particular, I just think the board individually and as a whole lack marketing skills, the understanding of marketing and PR and a little bit of creative blue sky thinking to fully capitalise on the club's present position, and need to invest to unlock the club's full potential..


Get this completely but the day to day promotion & marketing depends to what proportion of income you attach to the cost. Clearly the club has been in a position where if more goes into the marketing budget it will be at the determent of other cost lines.

I do think that there would be a benefit in working with a PR agency to define a strategy and proper execution. I guess the ideal scenario would be that similar to Marley and Day someone would join the board and bring some professional expertise in this area to add value as well as some form of a cash investment.    

Overall on reflection it feels like things are moving forward on the pitch so maybe it's time to just move on from the various debates about Hurst, Amond the Checkatade etc..and see what happens.
Posted by: lew chaterleys lover, February 20, 2019, 6:12pm; Reply: 76
Quoted from rancido



Nothing to do with a " sycophantic view " just the ability to move on. I think your bone has a very bitter, revengeful and unforgiving flavour. Are you the kind of person who bears a grudge about Germans after two world wars?


I rather think you are missing the point. We are not "moving on" as we have the identical set of circumstances that we have had for donkey's years. A non-investing major shareholder who cannot recruit outside investment, who cannot deliver the new stadium and who has a stranglehold over the club by way of benign loans. The only difference is a first-team manager who seems a decent individual and has had 4 straight wins which I am absolutely delighted about.

I have a frisson of excitement that the club could, might, may be heading in the right direction, but if you take away the current form, is it really? You may think we have turned a corner, which is fair comment, but I prefer to be rather more circumspect till things are on a firmer footing.

I will be honest though and I totally accept it would take a monumental shift in our fortunes under Fenty and the way the club is run for me to ever give him any credit; I freely admit that I am his most ardent critic so in that sense you are correct.
Posted by: TheRonRaffertyFanClub, February 20, 2019, 6:38pm; Reply: 77
Quoted from rancido



Nothing to do with a " sycophantic view " just the ability to move on. I think your bone has a very bitter, revengeful and unforgiving flavour. Are you the kind of person who bears a grudge about Germans after two world wars?


Moving on? From what to what? We are supposed to learn from history not simply repeat the same mistakes. Maybe that is why there were 2 world wars instead of one. But Don't Let's Be Beastly To The Germans and whatever you do Don't Mention The War!

"Ah bless! JF's saying nice things so let's forgive and forget ignore what has happened and just raise a glass to future prosperity eh?"

There is no proper positivity, it is incredibly naive to think so. Town has chanced on a good manager, the board are giving him the same as they have given every previous manager, their "full support" ...... which amounts to the status quo. The only differences are that this manager has different contacts and is prepared to give academy products more of a chance partly because he has had to.

As far as the board is concerned it is business as usual, hit and hope. Long term planning? Only about some possible new ground. Now is the time to take the bull by the horns and go for real off and on the field progress or else we will lose a disillusioned manager and be going backwards. I do wonder what the board's reaction would be if somehow Jolley performed a miracle and we went up to L1. Cardiac arrests all round?

Posted by: MuddyWaters, February 20, 2019, 6:47pm; Reply: 78
Quoted from rancido



…...like I said , some posters are like " a dog with a bone ". They would be ideal candidates to play Shylock in " The Merchant of Venice ".


It's really quite bewildering how one Q&A has such an effect on memories.

Like I posted earlier, well done to JF for an open & honest session last night but it's been a long time coming.
Posted by: forza ivano, February 20, 2019, 7:23pm; Reply: 79
Maybe it's just me but I couldn't fault much of fentus logic last night. The fact that the trust reps made very clear on several occasions that he was being factually correct counted in his favour. If you listen to him he was keen to give a very full explanation of what happened and why. The fact that there was a previously unrecognised humility in admitting to previous mistakes only added to a positive meeting.long may humility thrive!
Posted by: forza ivano, February 20, 2019, 7:24pm; Reply: 80
Ps Fenty is a fan whatever you say about him. He obviously realises hes stumbled upon a gem in jolley.maybe,just maybe, he desperately  doesn't want to feck up and lose him?
Posted by: arryarryarry, February 20, 2019, 7:31pm; Reply: 81
Quoted from grimsby pete
I have just watched the whole of the  Q+A   and was pleased with the openness of everything that was said,

John Fenty came over very well and even took the micky out of himself regarding his dress sense,

I have been one of his biggest critics in the past so I would like to say ( again ) I apologise for some of my posts in the past. As most on here know I do suffer with depression and while I am in a dark place I have come on here and go on and on about Fenty, I try to stay off here now when I feel a depression coming on.  .So  sorry  again to John and to the fishy people on here for boring you from time to time.

We are in good hands and until some Town fan with loads of money comes in and takes over John will have my full support

Micheal Jolley is special was said a few times and I agree we should enjoy him while he is here and support him the best we can like the board promise to do.



You should not need to apologise for anything you have said Pete.

John Fenty has deserved lots of criticism for the way he has run this club for the past 15 years or so. He has made some terrible decisions that led us finally to being relegated out of the Football League for 6 years and then after managing to get our way back in he made a huge mistake in bringing Slade back to the club that nearly led us again to falling out of the Football League.

For me he has a long way to go to make up for those disasters and only time will tell if he manages it and brings some success to the club.
Posted by: jamesgtfc, February 20, 2019, 7:45pm; Reply: 82
I was disappointed that Fenty seemed to take no blame over the debacle last year and instead blamed Matt Dean who was hosting. It could have blown up at this point but the Trust took the microphone and swiftly moved it on.
Posted by: MuddyWaters, February 20, 2019, 8:13pm; Reply: 83
Quoted from forza ivano
Maybe it's just me but I couldn't fault much of fentus logic last night. The fact that the trust reps made very clear on several occasions that he was being factually correct counted in his favour. If you listen to him he was keen to give a very full explanation of what happened and why. The fact that there was a previously unrecognised humility in admitting to previous mistakes only added to a positive meeting.long may humility thrive!


I believe it was telling that he used the phrase “my time has gone “ and admitted mistakes. Well said. We all make them and it takes balls to accept that you have.
It’s clear he feels that he can’t win the ‘keyboard warriors ‘ over. I don’t actually believe that’s true because most of us are/were only concerned about our club. What he said last night showed a side most of us had never seen. Fair play John.
Posted by: pizzzza, February 20, 2019, 9:12pm; Reply: 84
Watched it and yes, JF answered all the questions well to be fair.

But..., and its a wider point that I can level at both the club and the Trust, I couldn't help thinking throughout it all is why, in 2019, am I listening to a group consisting solely of middle aged white men?  All the talk of new ideas / fresh blood and no doubt both the club and the Trust wants to appeal to a greater demographic. Where is the diversity?
Posted by: ska face, February 20, 2019, 9:41pm; Reply: 85
Anyone know who this mysterious exile is that the club are working with? If you’re reading this, Fenty or exile, perhaps ask fans what they want before ploughing on with offers and plans.

What might be good for one person might not be good for the next. A fiver off a ticket might sway someone in Lord St, but it’s not much of a difference if you’re coming from London. A lift-sharing network, or club organised coach, might be more use than a blanket reduction in prices?

Who knows. Doesn’t hurt to ask though.
Posted by: toontown, February 20, 2019, 9:45pm; Reply: 86
Well middle aged white man would be a reasonable profile of our support in a overwhelmingly white area, with an aging population, for a sport that is significantly majority Male. So hardly surprising.
Posted by: toontown, February 20, 2019, 9:45pm; Reply: 87
Well middle aged white man would be a reasonable profile of our support in a overwhelmingly white area, with an aging population, for a sport that is significantly majority Male. So hardly surprising.
Posted by: SteffiMariner, February 20, 2019, 9:46pm; Reply: 88
Quoted from pizzzza
Watched it and yes, JF answered all the questions well to be fair.

But..., and its a wider point that I can level at both the club and the Trust, I couldn't help thinking throughout it all is why, in 2019, am I listening to a group consisting solely of middle aged white men?  All the talk of new ideas / fresh blood and no doubt both the club and the Trust wants to appeal to a greater demographic. Where is the diversity?


http://www.grimsbyinstitutegroup.co.uk/documents/diversity/NorthEastLincolnshirecommunityprofileequalities.pdf

Check out the diversity of North East Lincolnshire here - bearing in mind 96.6% are white based, I'm not sure what other diversity the club could have. Football is a predominantly male based sport and to have women attend, whilst being wonderful, isn't just a problem that GTFC has.
Posted by: moosey_club, February 20, 2019, 10:18pm; Reply: 89
Quoted from ska face
Anyone know who this mysterious exile is that the club are working with? If you’re reading this, Fenty or exile, perhaps ask fans what they want before ploughing on with offers and plans.

What might be good for one person might not be good for the next. A fiver off a ticket might sway someone in Lord St, but it’s not much of a difference if you’re coming from London. A lift-sharing network, or club organised coach, might be more use than a blanket reduction in prices?

Who knows. Doesn’t hurt to ask though.


i took it as being the exile was helping with ideas for potential exile offers....not advising on how to entice someone from the immediate area.
Posted by: promotion plaice, February 20, 2019, 10:23pm; Reply: 90

I'm not particularly a John Fenty fan but last night convinced me he is doing his best for this football club and until the right person steps up to take over he has my full backing.

We keep hearing how Micheal Jolley has bailed him out but guess who appointed Jolley !!!

Of course JF has made mistakes but who hasn't....we need to look forward now and stop banging on about the past.
Posted by: pizzzza, February 20, 2019, 10:29pm; Reply: 91
Quoted from toontown
Well middle aged white man would be a reasonable profile of our support in a overwhelmingly white area, with an aging population, for a sport that is significantly majority Male. So hardly surprising.


Yeah, thanks for proving my point.

Quoted from SteffiMariner


bearing in mind 96.6% are white based, I'm not sure what other diversity the club could have.


OK, I get that it is a white area, can't change that, but you have glossed over my other points. If you want to talk % I'm pretty sure around 50% are female, and a large chunk are not middle-aged. Don't you think that by including women and someone under maybe 50 and also putting them front and centre would have more appeal to those demographics?
Posted by: KingstonMariner, February 20, 2019, 10:49pm; Reply: 92
Quoted from rancido



Nothing to do with a " sycophantic view " just the ability to move on. I think your bone has a very bitter, revengeful and unforgiving flavour. Are you the kind of person who bears a grudge about Germans after two world wars?


The point about the Germans after WWII is that they took considerable steps to change. Conrad Adenauer was a completely different kessel of fisch.
Posted by: Son of Cod, February 20, 2019, 10:59pm; Reply: 93
Quoted from ska face
Anyone know who this mysterious exile is that the club are working with? If you’re reading this, Fenty or exile, perhaps ask fans what they want before ploughing on with offers and plans.

What might be good for one person might not be good for the next. A fiver off a ticket might sway someone in Lord St, but it’s not much of a difference if you’re coming from London. A lift-sharing network, or club organised coach, might be more use than a blanket reduction in prices?

Who knows. Doesn’t hurt to ask though.

Yeah, it's not the matchday ticket prices that keeps a lot of exiles away from BP, it's the the train prices. If I could get back without having to book weeks and weeks in advance or have to pay a ridiculous train fare then it would make the half season ticket a hell of a lot more tempting.
Posted by: Marinerz93, February 20, 2019, 11:02pm; Reply: 94
Very boring and too much of woe is me, poor john (aka yours truly) and was Marley locked in the cupboard so he didn't upset the punters again. It seems he is still bitter towards the fishy, is it because he has no power here and his sycophants can't stand it.

[img]https://i.imgur.com/ijFCySS.gif[/img]
Posted by: arryarryarry, February 21, 2019, 1:50am; Reply: 95
I might be able to give him some credit if he climbed up and put some 100w bulbs in the floodlights rather than the 40w bulbs we have now,.
Posted by: 1mickylyons, February 21, 2019, 7:40am; Reply: 96
I watched and thoroughly enjoyed the Evening last night. JF came across very well and I can`t fault him for any of his answers . The one thing that did annoy me was his interpretation of the so called bakers dozen ticket offer and how all that came about and no comment to how these were marketed and sold. The ticket offers the club eventually put out and the timing of them were not what was reccomended by those who worked on it initially and the lack of advertising and hard sell typifies what goes on when people are tasked with doing something they CBA to do. Infuriatingly the Club for reasons best known to itself work with a bloody exercise book to sell ST and Matchday tickets and keep track of what`s sold and to whom.A colour co-ordinated excel spreadsheet for the 23 games ea season telling you which seats are sold/for sale should not be difficult to set up and manage in this day and age? We ALL want GTFC to progress and sorting out a fit for purpose system for selling tickets would be a great start with very little financial outlay . The next new employee for GTFC should be an office Manager to sort out the day to day running of the Club who can bring new ideas in reference to marketing and ticket sales because clearly at the moment we are treading water. Like I say from 2 hours I can only find one minor gripe so well done John Fenty and the MT for putting the evening on.UTM
Posted by: ginnywings, February 21, 2019, 9:11am; Reply: 97
Quoted from 1mickylyons
I watched and thoroughly enjoyed the Evening last night. JF came across very well and I can`t fault him for any of his answers . The one thing that did annoy me was his interpretation of the so called bakers dozen ticket offer and how all that came about and no comment to how these were marketed and sold. The ticket offers the club eventually put out and the timing of them were not what was reccomended by those who worked on it initially and the lack of advertising and hard sell typifies what goes on when people are tasked with doing something they CBA to do. Infuriatingly the Club for reasons best known to itself work with a bloody exercise book to sell ST and Matchday tickets and keep track of what`s sold and to whom.A colour co-ordinated excel spreadsheet for the 23 games ea season telling you which seats are sold/for sale should not be difficult to set up and manage in this day and age? We ALL want GTFC to progress and sorting out a fit for purpose system for selling tickets would be a great start with very little financial outlay . The next new employee for GTFC should be an office Manager to sort out the day to day running of the Club who can bring new ideas in reference to marketing and ticket sales because clearly at the moment we are treading water. Like I say from 2 hours I can only find one minor gripe so well done John Fenty and the MT for putting the evening on.UTM


Agree with your points re the bakers dozen ticket offer. I personally think it was badly executed, and a tad overpriced compared to a full season ticket. The half season ticket ( i think from memory) was £210 for 11 games, which isn't even a bakers dozen, or half a season even, though i admit that may have been a different offer to the bakers dozen, which sort of clarifies my point, in that it was all a bit confusing. I was also surprised to hear mention of a deal at Christmas for 5 match tickets. As someone who attends most home games, and reads social media sites, i knew nothing of this deal until now. Surely that speaks as to how it wasn't advertised strongly enough. I would have bought one of those for sure had i knew of it.

As for the forum itself, JF came across well and seemed a bit more contrite and conciliatory than in the past, but it was basically another round of the status quo being repeated. The only thing that's changed is that we now have a manager who seems to know what he is doing, and that is carrying along the fans. MJ is the glue that is holding it all together for now, and if he were to leave, we could quickly sink back to the chaos of previous times. When Hurst upped sticks, it took us 2 managers, 2 caretaker managers and over 2 seasons before we got back on an even keel, and it almost cost us our league status once again. We still haven't got back to where we were in the league when Hurst left, and have totally failed to capitalise on the feel good factor of getting promoted back into the EFL.

I'm just hoping that we have now ridden out the storms and MJ and the board will go on to give us a team we can all get excited about. It's been a long wait.
Posted by: Croxton, February 21, 2019, 9:13am; Reply: 98
Quoted from 1mickylyons
I watched and thoroughly enjoyed the Evening last night. JF came across very well and I can`t fault him for any of his answers . The one thing that did annoy me was his interpretation of the so called bakers dozen ticket offer and how all that came about and no comment to how these were marketed and sold. The ticket offers the club eventually put out and the timing of them were not what was reccomended by those who worked on it initially and the lack of advertising and hard sell typifies what goes on when people are tasked with doing something they CBA to do. Infuriatingly the Club for reasons best known to itself work with a bloody exercise book to sell ST and Matchday tickets and keep track of what`s sold and to whom.A colour co-ordinated excel spreadsheet for the 23 games ea season telling you which seats are sold/for sale should not be difficult to set up and manage in this day and age? We ALL want GTFC to progress and sorting out a fit for purpose system for selling tickets would be a great start with very little financial outlay . The next new employee for GTFC should be an office Manager to sort out the day to day running of the Club who can bring new ideas in reference to marketing and ticket sales because clearly at the moment we are treading water. Like I say from 2 hours I can only find one minor gripe so well done John Fenty and the MT for putting the evening on.UTM


Yes, it was telling that JF was slightly thrown by the expression 'profile of a STH' within SKA's question. Knowledge of your customer base is key in any commercial venture. We seem to put more analysis into how much beer is sold in which bar. It does appear that  'Que sera sera' is the ticket office jingle. (nice people though!)
Posted by: NorthseaMariner, February 21, 2019, 10:20am; Reply: 99
Lack of sufficient money always seems to be the problem, even for league two. It does puzzle me why we cannot get outside investment, yet what I would consider smaller clubs are getting investment. Carrying on as we are, we’re always waiting for the next hiccup to put us into a tailspin to oblivion again. It’s a worry.
Posted by: 1mickylyons, February 21, 2019, 10:25am; Reply: 100
Quoted from Croxton


Yes, it was telling that JF was slightly thrown by the expression 'profile of a STH' within SKA's question. Knowledge of your customer base is key in any commercial venture. We seem to put more analysis into how much beer is sold in which bar. It does appear that  'Que sera sera' is the ticket office jingle. (nice people though!)


GTFC have staff who go way above and beyond the call of duty for the cause because they care. One lady (Lisa) in her own time goes on every social media site to advertside various things as best she can and to me that`s brilliant. I have always personally taken the I will do what I`m paid for attitude to work so I won`t knock others who do the same but clearly in 2019 GTFC should have and badly need (in my opinion) an employee paid to carpet bomb social media with any offers/news. Ska`s question was a good one in so much if you cast your eye around the GTFC fanbase it`s generally a lot of 40 years + even more pensioners and a small % of women,kids and under 25s. The last 3 categories all need major surgery to boost those numbers because the first 2 the power base will inevitably drop in numbers.
Posted by: 1mickylyons, February 21, 2019, 10:31am; Reply: 101
Quoted from ginnywings


Agree with your points re the bakers dozen ticket offer. I personally think it was badly executed, and a tad overpriced compared to a full season ticket. The half season ticket ( i think from memory) was £210 for 11 games, which isn't even a bakers dozen, or half a season even, though i admit that may have been a different offer to the bakers dozen, which sort of clarifies my point, in that it was all a bit confusing. I was also surprised to hear mention of a deal at Christmas for 5 match tickets. As someone who attends most home games, and reads social media sites, i knew nothing of this deal until now. Surely that speaks as to how it wasn't advertised strongly enough. I would have bought one of those for sure had i knew of it.

As for the forum itself, JF came across well and seemed a bit more contrite and conciliatory than in the past, but it was basically another round of the status quo being repeated. The only thing that's changed is that we now have a manager who seems to know what he is doing, and that is carrying along the fans. MJ is the glue that is holding it all together for now, and if he were to leave, we could quickly sink back to the chaos of previous times. When Hurst upped sticks, it took us 2 managers, 2 caretaker managers and over 2 seasons before we got back on an even keel, and it almost cost us our league status once again. We still haven't got back to where we were in the league when Hurst left, and have totally failed to capitalise on the feel good factor of getting promoted back into the EFL.

I'm just hoping that we have now ridden out the storms and MJ and the board will go on to give us a team we can all get excited about. It's been a long wait.


The thing I like most about MJ to date is his lack of aprehension when it comes to playing youngsters and clearly this suggests he listens to his coaches and must be happy to trust their judgement . The fans here will generally show patience if they can clearly see a plan and it`s taken a year but many of us are now seeing that plan. A younger flexible squad many home grown with a smattering of experience and quality loanees it`s exciting and the possibilities for medium/long term success are real.UTM
Posted by: barralad, February 21, 2019, 11:20am; Reply: 102
[quote=140221]

Yes, it was telling that JF was slightly thrown by the expression 'profile of a STH' within SKA's question. Knowledge of your customer base is key in any commercial venture. We seem to put more analysis into how much beer is sold in which bar. It does appear that  'Que sera sera' is the ticket office jingle. (nice people though!)

The question was excellent. I'm not sure how much knowledge of that level of detail many people at J.F.s level in any organisation would have BUT people are talking about it both on here and other social media platforms so it has achieved its purpose I guess.
Just a technical point. The bars analysis is done by the Trust not the club so it isn't the case that they are looking at that at the expense of more important issues. It's actually vital for us.
Posted by: ex-merseymariner, February 21, 2019, 2:48pm; Reply: 103
Good post.  I would say that though...i submitted the question.   And it was a genuine serious Question.  

You have given a better commentary than the panel did. Perhaps they could re-visit?




Quoted from Stockport Mariner
A question was asked in relation to what contingencies were in place should JF die. It caused much amusement, but in fact it was a good and very important question. As JF himself pointed out, in the event of this happening, the executors of his will would want to collect the outstanding 'benign loans', which the club would not be able to repay.

JF mentioned Key Man life insurance to cover the outstanding loans and then dismissed it as he was told that he would have to pay the premium himself and he then went on to talk about creating a new type of share class to address the issue. This is incorrect, the club would pay the premium on the Key Man policy with JF as the life assured.

The Club would be the beneficiary, which would enable them to repay his loans back to his estate and there would also be justification for having cover over and above the loan amount, which would give  the club financial stability in the aftermath.

Given JF's age, it would cost the club a few hundred pounds a month for the premium, but small change for a multi-million pound business. I'm not sure why the club has not gone down this route.


Posted by: ska face, February 21, 2019, 3:11pm; Reply: 104
Quoted from Croxton


Yes, it was telling that JF was slightly thrown by the expression 'profile of a STH' within SKA's question. Knowledge of your customer base is key in any commercial venture. We seem to put more analysis into how much beer is sold in which bar. It does appear that  'Que sera sera' is the ticket office jingle. (nice people though!)


Yeah that was pretty disappointing for me, in the fact that it took 3 attempts to spell the question out and then he just skirted over it really.

I watched something the other day with someone from MUTV, they know their average viewer is a 51-year-old white man in the UK. My workplace is a fairly small organisation with about 35,000 users/members but we’ve a fairly basic system that can tell us everything we need to know about the people engaging with us or not.

Been saying it for ages, but if you don’t know who your customers are, you don’t know who you’re missing out. This is one area where I really want to see the club kicking on, it isn’t hard and doesn’t require a massive investment.
Posted by: friskneymariner, February 21, 2019, 3:42pm; Reply: 105
Sucession planning is an essential part of any business seems as if board are burying their heads in the sand.
Posted by: KingstonMariner, February 22, 2019, 12:13am; Reply: 106
Quoted from barralad
[quote=140221]

Yes, it was telling that JF was slightly thrown by the expression 'profile of a STH' within SKA's question. Knowledge of your customer base is key in any commercial venture. We seem to put more analysis into how much beer is sold in which bar. It does appear that  'Que sera sera' is the ticket office jingle. (nice people though!)

The question was excellent. I'm not sure how much knowledge of that level of detail many people at J.F.s level in any organisation would have BUT people are talking about it both on here and other social media platforms so it has achieved its purpose I guess.
Just a technical point. The bars analysis is done by the Trust not the club so it isn't the case that they are looking at that at the expense of more important issues. It's actually vital for us.


That's a very good point about the bars. And it highlights one of the ways the club isn't doing what it should do. I think you're being too kind to JF in this respect. GTFC isn't that big a business. £3m turnover and 200 employees. I'd expect the man at the top to know the basics about his customer base.
Posted by: TheRealJohnLewis, February 22, 2019, 9:40pm; Reply: 107
Very dull and not much new information, just JF filibustering and making people think he's being honest.  The only thing I got out of it is how close the Trust are to JF and that the trust is not impartial or represent the fans.  Terry holds as much disdain for the fans as Fenty does, just because they dare share an opinion on a message board.
Posted by: KingstonMariner, February 22, 2019, 10:19pm; Reply: 108
Quoted from KingstonMariner


That's a very good point about the bars. And it highlights one of the ways the club isn't doing what it should do. I think you're being too kind to JF in this respect. GTFC isn't that big a business. £3m turnover and 200 employees. I'd expect the man at the top to know the basics about his customer base.


Any of the red crossers cre to say why they disagree?
Posted by: HertsGTFC, February 22, 2019, 11:40pm; Reply: 109
As a poster I’m a bit embarrassed. Reading the above makes me understand why The Fishy was met with sniggers and a few laughs when mentioned at this event.

Maybe just maybe people need to stop warring flares and progress into the “new romantic” age.

As someone once said “the past is for reference and not residence” !!!
Posted by: pizzzza, February 23, 2019, 7:33am; Reply: 110
Quoted from TheRealJohnLewis
Very dull and not much new information, just JF filibustering and making people think he's being honest.  The only thing I got out of it is how close the Trust are to JF and that the trust is not impartial or represent the fans.  Terry holds as much disdain for the fans as Fenty does, just because they dare share an opinion on a message board.


Hits the nail on the head. All too very cosy for me. References to "Keyboard Warriors" and "Fishy Friends" do little to endear the board or the Trust to supporters. Didn't Rudrum resign from being chairman of the Trust due to name calling of supporters? He is still doing it and he is still there.
Posted by: barralad, February 23, 2019, 8:19am; Reply: 111
Quoted from KingstonMariner


Any of the red crossers cre to say why they disagree?


I didn't red cross you but obviously disagree regarding JFs proximity to the coal face.  My experience is that we spend far more time taĺking to Ian Fleming and co about the things which affect fans. John isn't present and I'll wager unless things go wrong and are escalated to Board level through Jon Wood he doesn't get to hear about them.  That situation is I suggest repeated in football clubs across the country.
Posted by: Lincoln Mariner 56, February 23, 2019, 9:07am; Reply: 112
Quoted from barralad


I didn't red cross you but obviously disagree regarding JFs proximity to the coal face.  My experience is that we spend far more time taĺking to Ian Fleming and co about the things which affect fans. John isn't present and I'll wager unless things go wrong and are escalated to Board level through Jon Wood he doesn't get to hear about them.  That situation is I suggest repeated in football clubs across the country.


Having worked in a number of private and public organisations it is pretty normal for the CX or whatever title the person at the helm carries to be somewhat divorced from a great deal of the day to day details of that organisation. However, what the vast majority have in place is a communication process that feeds them the facts they need, or should, to be aware of. Thus I would expect Ian Fleming to summarise matters that affect the fans be it in a positive or negative way and feed this through to JF and the board.

Personally I have sent private messages and texts through to JF on a few occasions, not all of them complimentary in nature, and I believe he has responded to every one of these and always given his viewpoint on the subject in hand which I appreciate. As others have said financially the club is always in safe hands with JF at the helm but, as he appears to acknowledge himself, the time is now right for us to move forward with new investment. That said spending on the infrastructure now should include updating of the match day tickets as this remains the major source of income and the principal means in which club and most supporters make contact/communicate.

Posted by: arryarryarry, February 23, 2019, 11:23am; Reply: 113
Quoted from Lincoln Mariner 56


Having worked in a number of private and public organisations it is pretty normal for the CX or whatever title the person at the helm carries to be somewhat divorced from a great deal of the day to day details of that organisation. However, what the vast majority have in place is a communication process that feeds them the facts they need, or should, to be aware of. Thus I would expect Ian Fleming to summarise matters that affect the fans be it in a positive or negative way and feed this through to JF and the board.

Personally I have sent private messages and texts through to JF on a few occasions, not all of them complimentary in nature, and I believe he has responded to every one of these and always given his viewpoint on the subject in hand which I appreciate. As others have said financially the club is always in safe hands with JF at the helm but, as he appears to acknowledge himself, the time is now right for us to move forward with new investment. That said spending on the infrastructure now should include updating of the match day tickets as this remains the major source of income and the principal means in which club and most supporters make contact/communicate.



I cannot really agree with that. He said after the Burton game we would lose £500,000 a season in non league so there was £3,000,000 drunk up the wall which would have been enough to pay off his loans and if we hadn't managed to stay up last season we could well have been on the way to losing even more, so just because he is funding the club through loans his decisions have cost the club much more.
Posted by: Lincoln Mariner 56, February 23, 2019, 11:59am; Reply: 114
Quoted from arryarryarry


I cannot really agree with that. He said after the Burton game we would lose £500,000 a season in non league so there was £3,000,000 drunk up the wall which would have been enough to pay off his loans and if we hadn't managed to stay up last season we could well have been on the way to losing even more, so just because he is funding the club through loans his decisions have cost the club much more.


Take your point I was probably viewing this from the negative viewpoint that the club will not get into financial difficulties under JF. I also accept that speculating to accumulate is a risky strategy however, clearing the decks last January of our better and I guess more expensive players is not an approach I would want repeated!!
Posted by: TownSNAFU5, February 23, 2019, 2:16pm; Reply: 115
Yes JF has kept the club going. We should acknowledge that.  Just look what has happened to Bolton, Coventry and Blackpool etc.  Clubs where owners have been far worse and done long-term damage.

On the other hand there could have been more investment in players to prevent our fall into NL - and which was nearly repeated last season.  NL costs us more than just money and prestige.

Apart from Jolley, and to some extent Hurst,  an arguably bigger sin has been JF/The Board appointing a number of managers that were not right for GTFC.  These managerial appointments have lead to relegation and poor league positions.

Getting these managers right (or most of them) would have most likely avoided many of the problems that we have had over the last 10 years or so.
Posted by: grimsby pete, February 23, 2019, 2:39pm; Reply: 116
Quoted from TownSNAFU5
Yes JF has kept the club going. We should acknowledge that.  Just look what has happened to Bolton, Coventry and Blackpool etc.  Clubs where owners have been far worse and done long-term damage.

On the other hand there could have been more investment in players to prevent our fall into NL - and which was nearly repeated last season.  NL costs us more than just money and prestige.

Apart from Jolley, and to some extent Hurst,  an arguably bigger sin has been JF/The Board appointing a number of managers that were not right for GTFC.  These managerial appointments have lead to relegation and poor league positions.

Getting these managers right (or most of them) would have most likely avoided many of the problems that we have had over the last 10 years or so.


Fenty said Jolley is special so I hope he does all he can to keep him as long as possible.

Put the shackles on him and he will be gone as soon as a higher club with ambitions come calling,

Back him and with the new stadium in sight and he might stay a lot longer.

I would think Michael would love to take the club into the new stadium as a championship club.
Posted by: jamesgtfc, February 23, 2019, 2:44pm; Reply: 117
Just thinking about how Fenty stated that for the first time, he feels that he hasn't given a manager enough financial backing and we will be looking to increase this next season.  I asked the question about how much of a risk Jolley was at the time and I wonder if he's held back considerable funds this season in case it all went a bit wrong.

If the floodlights get replaced it will no doubt be completed after the end of this financial year so I think we will turn a profit this season.

Back to budgets, he stated that all managers have been given a top half budget with the exception of Jolley so for the first time in a long while, we are punching above our weight.
Posted by: rancido, February 23, 2019, 6:45pm; Reply: 118
Quoted from jamesgtfc
Just thinking about how Fenty stated that for the first time, he feels that he hasn't given a manager enough financial backing and we will be looking to increase this next season.  I asked the question about how much of a risk Jolley was at the time and I wonder if he's held back considerable funds this season in case it all went a bit wrong.

If the floodlights get replaced it will no doubt be completed after the end of this financial year so I think we will turn a profit this season.

Back to budgets, he stated that all managers have been given a top half budget with the exception of Jolley so for the first time in a long while, we are punching above our weight.




Only if we finish the season above halfway ;)
Posted by: HertsGTFC, February 23, 2019, 6:57pm; Reply: 119
Quoted from grimsby pete


Fenty said Jolley is special so I hope he does all he can to keep him as long as possible.

Put the shackles on him and he will be gone as soon as a higher club with ambitions come calling,

Back him and with the new stadium in sight and he might stay a lot longer.

I would think Michael would love to take the club into the new stadium as a championship club.


Get it but in reality where managers are concerned contracts are not worth the paper ther written on as compensation usually makes them disappear.
Posted by: Davec, February 24, 2019, 9:53am; Reply: 120
Quoted from pizzzza


Hits the nail on the head. All too very cosy for me. References to "Keyboard Warriors" and "Fishy Friends" do little to endear the board or the Trust to supporters. Didn't Rudrum resign from being chairman of the Trust due to name calling of supporters? He is still doing it and he is still there.


That's another reason why I won't become a member of the trust.

They do not hold much sway in the boardroom which is evidenced when the board backed Russell Slade and the trust released a statement saying by the time Jon Wood could voice his opinion the decision had already been made so his views were ignored

The chair of the trust is Alan Rutter who before coming chairman of the trust went to the forums and told everybody how succesful we have been with John Fenty at the helm, him and Fenty go back a long way so Rutter is naturally going to side a lot for Fenty. Terry Rudrum still a key member of the trust despite the fact he was rude and abusive to a fan when they sent the Mariners Trust a question and guess what? He used to be employed by the club and him and Fenty go back a long way... we all saw Terry Rudrum's attitude to fans who challenge the club when he called them "Keyboard warriors".
Posted by: KingstonMariner, February 24, 2019, 10:23am; Reply: 121
Quoted from Davec


That's another reason why I won't become a member of the trust.

They do not hold much sway in the boardroom which is evidenced when the board backed Russell Slade and the trust released a statement saying by the time Jon Wood could voice his opinion the decision had already been made so his views were ignored

The chair of the trust is Alan Rutter who before coming chairman of the trust went to the forums and told everybody how succesful we have been with John Fenty at the helm, him and Fenty go back a long way so Rutter is naturally going to side a lot for Fenty. Terry Rudrum still a key member of the trust despite the fact he was rude and abusive to a fan when they sent the Mariners Trust a question and guess what? He used to be employed by the club and him and Fenty go back a long way... we all saw Terry Rudrum's attitude to fans who challenge the club when he called them "Keyboard warriors".


All the more reason to join Aaron and vote these people out (assuming others stand for office). We get the trust we deserve. Stand on the sidelines whinging and nothing changes.
Posted by: Helgy, February 24, 2019, 11:25am; Reply: 122
You have to get involved to change things,  I have joined Lincolns trust board and that's been a massive step for me.
They also  used to sit there moaning about messageboard comments and that just alienated themselves from the fans.
Just get involved change it to what it should be.
Posted by: MuddyWaters, February 24, 2019, 12:35pm; Reply: 123
Quoted from Davec


That's another reason why I won't become a member of the trust.

They do not hold much sway in the boardroom which is evidenced when the board backed Russell Slade and the trust released a statement saying by the time Jon Wood could voice his opinion the decision had already been made so his views were ignored

The chair of the trust is Alan Rutter who before coming chairman of the trust went to the forums and told everybody how succesful we have been with John Fenty at the helm, him and Fenty go back a long way so Rutter is naturally going to side a lot for Fenty. Terry Rudrum still a key member of the trust despite the fact he was rude and abusive to a fan when they sent the Mariners Trust a question and guess what? He used to be employed by the club and him and Fenty go back a long way... we all saw Terry Rudrum's attitude to fans who challenge the club when he called them "Keyboard warriors".


I think you've either got to get involved to effect change or rise above it.

If some have got a dinosaur mentality to forums and social media, then you will struggle to change it. The Fishy allows many fans the opportunity to air their opinions on all things GTFC, we are no different to other fans who don't use social media - we're all Town aren't we?
Posted by: barralad, February 24, 2019, 1:24pm; Reply: 124
Quoted from Davec


That's another reason why I won't become a member of the trust.

They do not hold much sway in the boardroom which is evidenced when the board backed Russell Slade and the trust released a statement saying by the time Jon Wood could voice his opinion the decision had already been made so his views were ignored

The chair of the trust is Alan Rutter who before coming chairman of the trust went to the forums and told everybody how succesful we have been with John Fenty at the helm, him and Fenty go back a long way so Rutter is naturally going to side a lot for Fenty. Terry Rudrum still a key member of the trust despite the fact he was rude and abusive to a fan when they sent the Mariners Trust a question and guess what? He used to be employed by the club and him and Fenty go back a long way... we all saw Terry Rudrum's attitude to fans who challenge the club when he called them "Keyboard warriors".


I'll probably regret this but here goes...
The events leading up to Russell Slade's eventual departure were in my personal opinion a watershed in the relationship between the club and the Trust. Out of it came the survey with those who completed it sending a very clear message to the Trust about the future direction of the relationship. This gave the Trust extra support in going back to the club seeking to strengthen the place of the Trust in the life of GTFC . Out of these discussions came the recently agreed M.O.U. which puts The Mariners Trust in a great position to move forward- a position lots of Trusts in this country are envious of. Yes the discussions were more protracted than hoped for but instrumental in those discussions in addition to Jon Wood and Dave Roberts were the two people mentioned above. Call me old-fashioned  but I fail totally to understand how the Trust using the skills of people who have previously worked for or with the football club is necessarily a bad thing. Terry has an insight into the workings of GTFC that makes him invaluable in discussions relating to the match day experience and most Town fans must be aware of Alan's previous role!
Every one has the capacity to make mistakes (yes even you Aaron). Terry resigned from his role as Chair in recognition of his. Alan has not to my knowledge made any such mistakes but appears to be damned by a mythical closeness to J.F. and the Board which I 've yet to see any proof of its detriment to the role of the Trust in representing its members.
For me there is a clear choice for people:- to either support the efforts being made to move the club/Trust relationship forward or carry on dwelling in the past (horrible though that may have been) and moaning about it on here from the outside.....
Posted by: KingstonMariner, February 24, 2019, 1:31pm; Reply: 125
Quoted from barralad


I'll probably regret this but here goes...
The events leading up to Russell Slade's eventual departure were in my personal opinion a watershed in the relationship between the club and the Trust. Out of it came the survey with those who completed it sending a very clear message to the Trust about the future direction of the relationship. This gave the Trust extra support in going back to the club seeking to strengthen the place of the Trust in the life of GTFC . Out of these discussions came the recently agreed M.O.U. which puts The Mariners Trust in a great position to move forward- a position lots of Trusts in this country are envious of. Yes the discussions were more protracted than hoped for but instrumental in those discussions in addition to Jon Wood and Dave Roberts were the two people mentioned above. Call me old-fashioned  but I fail totally to understand how the Trust using the skills of people who have previously worked for or with the football club is necessarily a bad thing. Terry has an insight into the workings of GTFC that makes him invaluable in discussions relating to the match day experience and most Town fans must be aware of Alan's previous role!
Every one has the capacity to make mistakes (yes even you Aaron). Terry resigned from his role as Chair in recognition of his. Alan has not to my knowledge made any such mistakes but appears to be damned by a mythical closeness to J.F. and the Board which I 've yet to see any proof of its detriment to the role of the Trust in representing its members.
For me there is a clear choice for people:- to either support the efforts being made to move the club/Trust relationship forward or carry on dwelling in the past (horrible though that may have been) and moaning about it on here from the outside.....


Don't see why you would regret that at all Barra.

You're engaging with disaffected fans wherethey are. Much better than bemoaning 'keyboard warriors'. Don't always see eye to eye with you but you are always willing to discuss things.
Posted by: MarinerDevil, February 24, 2019, 1:35pm; Reply: 126
Quoted from KingstonMariner


All the more reason to join Aaron and vote these people out (assuming others stand for office). We get the trust we deserve. Stand on the sidelines whinging and nothing changes.


So when do the Trust board members stand for re-election?  Is there anyone willing to stand on a platform of reduced cooperation?  
Posted by: KingstonMariner, February 24, 2019, 1:39pm; Reply: 127
Quoted from MarinerDevil


So when do the Trust board members stand for re-election?  Is there anyone willing to stand on a platform of reduced cooperation?  


Not sure how frequent it is but there are elections. Look it up on the Trust website. Why not stand yourself.
Posted by: MuddyWaters, February 24, 2019, 1:46pm; Reply: 128
Quoted from barralad



Every one has the capacity to make mistakes (yes even you Aaron). Terry resigned from his role as Chair in recognition of his. Alan has not to my knowledge made any such mistakes but appears to be damned by a mythical closeness to J.F. and the Board which I 've yet to see any proof of its detriment to the role of the Trust in representing its members.
For me there is a clear choice for people:- to either support the efforts being made to move the club/Trust relationship forward or carry on dwelling in the past (horrible though that may have been) and moaning about it on here from the outside.....


Not wanting to dwell in the past but if you'll allow me to go back as far as Tuesday night, the disparaging use of the term 'keyboard warriors' from at least one member of the Trust board is hardly encouraging us to join is it?
Posted by: MarinerDevil, February 24, 2019, 1:50pm; Reply: 129
Quoted from KingstonMariner


Not sure how frequent it is but there are elections. Look it up on the Trust website. Why not stand yourself.


There isn't much info about scheduled elections, just an invitation to enquire about joining.  It's quite obvious that many people don't know how appointments are made to the board so I was hoping someone with that knowledge could share it.  I'd love to get involved with the club one day but as I'm only in my early 20s I'm not sure that I could offer much experience.  Plus I couldn't hope to find the free time to be useful.  Would be happy to help with fundraising though.
Posted by: barralad, February 24, 2019, 2:03pm; Reply: 130
The elections are held every year at the AGM where normally a third of the board are up for re-election each year. I'm not sure if we have a full 12 person complement at the moment but anyone who is interested in helping can attend a Trust Board meeting to see if they fancy it. We need workers.
Posted by: barralad, February 24, 2019, 2:07pm; Reply: 131
Quoted from MarinerDevil


There isn't much info about scheduled elections, just an invitation to enquire about joining.  It's quite obvious that many people don't know how appointments are made to the board so I was hoping someone with that knowledge could share it.  I'd love to get involved with the club one day but as I'm only in my early 20s I'm not sure that I could offer much experience.  Plus I couldn't hope to find the free time to be useful.  Would be happy to help with fundraising though.

Age is no bar. I bet you understand what your peers want from their relationship with GTFC far better than I do at 61 years of age!!
Posted by: barralad, February 24, 2019, 2:08pm; Reply: 132
Quoted from MuddyWaters


Not wanting to dwell in the past but if you'll allow me to go back as far as Tuesday night, the disparaging use of the term 'keyboard warriors' from at least one member of the Trust board is hardly encouraging us to join is it?


Yeah I get that..the Man Utd Trust weren't happy either...
Posted by: KingstonMariner, February 24, 2019, 3:28pm; Reply: 133
Quoted from MuddyWaters


Not wanting to dwell in the past but if you'll allow me to go back as far as Tuesday night, the disparaging use of the term 'keyboard warriors' from at least one member of the Trust board is hardly encouraging us to join is it?


All the more reason to join OC.  Make your voice heard in a more effective way. As a non-member you don't have a say in it.
Posted by: rancido, February 24, 2019, 5:05pm; Reply: 134
Quoted from barralad


I'll probably regret this but here goes...
The events leading up to Russell Slade's eventual departure were in my personal opinion a watershed in the relationship between the club and the Trust. Out of it came the survey with those who completed it sending a very clear message to the Trust about the future direction of the relationship. This gave the Trust extra support in going back to the club seeking to strengthen the place of the Trust in the life of GTFC . Out of these discussions came the recently agreed M.O.U. which puts The Mariners Trust in a great position to move forward- a position lots of Trusts in this country are envious of. Yes the discussions were more protracted than hoped for but instrumental in those discussions in addition to Jon Wood and Dave Roberts were the two people mentioned above. Call me old-fashioned  but I fail totally to understand how the Trust using the skills of people who have previously worked for or with the football club is necessarily a bad thing. Terry has an insight into the workings of GTFC that makes him invaluable in discussions relating to the match day experience and most Town fans must be aware of Alan's previous role!
Every one has the capacity to make mistakes (yes even you Aaron). Terry resigned from his role as Chair in recognition of his. Alan has not to my knowledge made any such mistakes but appears to be damned by a mythical closeness to J.F. and the Board which I 've yet to see any proof of its detriment to the role of the Trust in representing its members.
For me there is a clear choice for people:- to either support the efforts being made to move the club/Trust relationship forward or carry on dwelling in the past (horrible though that may have been) and moaning about it on here from the outside.....



There is a saying that ex poachers make the best gamekeepers! At least if you are part of something you can effect change. If you are not part then you have no meaningful say in the outcome. It's like the right to vote , if you don't use it then you are in no position to question the outcome.
Posted by: Ipswin, February 24, 2019, 5:45pm; Reply: 135
Quoted from rancido


. It's like the right to vote , if you don't use it then you are in no position to question the outcome.


The exception being the Brexit referendum where if you voted remain you cannot question the outcome
Posted by: barralad, February 24, 2019, 8:29pm; Reply: 136
Quoted from barralad


Yeah I get that..the Man Utd Trust weren't happy either...


It appears Terry's joke about Man U fans was edited out of the video...sorry!
Posted by: pizzzza, February 24, 2019, 8:58pm; Reply: 137
Quoted from barralad


It appears Terry's joke about Man U fans was edited out of the video...sorry!


Good to hear that he doesn't only make smug jokes about Town supporters...
Posted by: KingstonMariner, February 24, 2019, 10:27pm; Reply: 138
Quoted from barralad


I didn't red cross you but obviously disagree regarding JFs proximity to the coal face.  My experience is that we spend far more time taĺking to Ian Fleming and co about the things which affect fans. John isn't present and I'll wager unless things go wrong and are escalated to Board level through Jon Wood he doesn't get to hear about them.  That situation is I suggest repeated in football clubs across the country.


I'd still expect JF to be able to answer the question raised positively. He owns a third of the business. If it's repeated in clubs across the country, it's not surprising so many of them are in debt. Understanding your customer base isn't the same as changing the light bulbs.
Posted by: 1mickylyons, February 25, 2019, 10:37am; Reply: 139
In my experience the Trust people are decent honest people who give up there own time to try and make things between club and fans better for both parties. However the criticsm that`s come there way in regards to how slow they are to react is I feel in part justified though I am sure what will come back is they have to wait a while to get all the bodies around a table . In addition barralad  highlighted the lack of MT bodies willing to work on their behalf which again is a factor. The perception that the MT top table all being yes men from some quarters I have mixed feelings about but fully understand why it`s levelled . The MT don`t want confrontation and clearly that`s in the best interests of all parties concerned with GTFC but they are a voice that can and should be heard and if ever a time arises where confrontation is required I hope they will take up the cudgels on our behalf. One of 5 Clubs in the Country to have this signed agreement suggests they are doing a better job than most. Things don`t move as fast as I would like which I have highlighted but I believe them when they say they share that frustration.
Posted by: The_Laughing_Mariner, February 25, 2019, 4:20pm; Reply: 140
The trouble with most volunteer/ charity organisations is the 95% of the work is done by 5% of the people.
People in general are very good at say this that or the other should be done, but disappear when it's time to do it.
Posted by: ska face, February 25, 2019, 6:10pm; Reply: 141
Posted by Supporters’ Direct immediately after the event, the text of the Memorandum Of Understanding can be viewed here - https://supporters-direct.org/assets/media/articleFiles/file-lWtUWZ81IJnf.pdf


There’ll no doubt be those who go through this with a fine-toothed comb and analyse the lengths and limits of individual words or particular phrases, I’d usually do the same, but I still think it’s good to finally have something in black & white about the working relationship between the Trust and the Club. This has been a grey area for too long which has caused problems when trying to hold the club to account - how do we do that effectively when we’ve never known what has been officially expected? A good starting point to build from.

I still think removing the £30k charge for a seat on the board is a massive atep forward and has been overlooked a bit in the last week. That was always the biggest problem I had with the relationship as a matter of basic principal. I think removing a £30k millstone from around the neck of a small,volunteer-led organisation should give a bit more breathing space and allow a bit of a shift in focus.
Posted by: KingstonMariner, February 25, 2019, 9:35pm; Reply: 142
Quoted from ska face
Posted by Supporters’ Direct immediately after the event, the text of the Memorandum Of Understanding can be viewed here - https://supporters-direct.org/assets/media/articleFiles/file-lWtUWZ81IJnf.pdf


There’ll no doubt be those who go through this with a fine-toothed comb and analyse the lengths and limits of individual words or particular phrases, I’d usually do the same, but I still think it’s good to finally have something in black & white about the working relationship between the Trust and the Club. This has been a grey area for too long which has caused problems when trying to hold the club to account - how do we do that effectively when we’ve never known what has been officially expected? A good starting point to build from.

I still think removing the £30k charge for a seat on the board is a massive atep forward and has been overlooked a bit in the last week. That was always the biggest problem I had with the relationship as a matter of basic principal. I think removing a £30k millstone from around the neck of a small,volunteer-led organisation should give a bit more breathing space and allow a bit of a shift in focus.


Thanks Ska.

4 significant things the Club is undertaking IMO:

OK the whole thing isn't legally binding but it's a step in the right direction, so well done to JF, other Club directors, the Trust and Supporters Direct for getting this negotiated.
Posted by: Biccys, February 25, 2019, 10:23pm; Reply: 143
From my experience of Mr F, he has nothing but disdain or contempt for the trust. During our lengthy conversation he didn't ever express any appreciation or any degree of sense of achievement of the trust whatsoever. This continued throughout our conversation and hasn't abated in the press since. He's never given any kind of acknowledgement of how much the trust have achieved. Which is both a massive disappointment and a huge miss on his part. Embracing the supporters is something he finds difficult, that much is patently obvious. He had the chance to when the trust had the shares dilemma. He failed. I'm grateful that he's propped up the club in the way of a guarantor would a loan to a high risk borrower, but he's never given any credit to the supporters which is tragic.
Posted by: ska face, February 25, 2019, 10:49pm; Reply: 144
Yeah I think it’s important to be frank on Fenty’s relationship with the Trust and, by extension, the fans. He’s an appalling gobshite and I’ll never, ever, give him any credit for anything. He’s consistently slagged the Trust off, treated them with contempt and ignored even the most basic requests like a request for him to stop coming on The Fishy to antagonise fans. I think we all know the stories about his involvement with the B-Team Boycott match organised by fans and supported by the Trust (I think MT paid for some first aiders to be present or some floodlights?), and he spoke quite openly about the Trust when he didn’t realise he was being recorded in that taxi.

The removal of the £30k and M.O.U means that the Trust can start to realise it’s own strength. Although the aim is obviously to work cooperatively and positively, there is little to stop the Trust being a bit stronger and more demanding of Fenty and the board.
Posted by: pizzzza, February 26, 2019, 8:33am; Reply: 145
Quoted from ska face


The removal of the £30k and M.O.U means that the Trust can start to realise it’s own strength.  


If only the Trust had held on to all those shares eh? Then it really would be in a position of strength.
Posted by: ska face, February 26, 2019, 8:55am; Reply: 146
That’s democracy for you...
Posted by: Civvy at last, February 26, 2019, 9:51am; Reply: 147
Quoted from ska face
That’s democracy for you...


Oh good.  Does that mean that those that didn't want the shares to go to JF can whinge and moan and stamp their feet and ask for another vote.  I believe that's the modern democracy isn't it ?  ;)
Posted by: 1mickylyons, February 26, 2019, 11:28am; Reply: 148
Quoted from Civvy at last


Oh good.  Does that mean that those that didn't want the shares to go to JF can whinge and moan and stamp their feet and ask for another vote.  I believe that's the modern democracy isn't it ?  ;)


If only eh? If John reads this what a magnificent goodwill gesture it would be from him to give them back now in keeping with the current positivity between Club and fans.
Posted by: arryarryarry, February 26, 2019, 2:27pm; Reply: 149
Quoted from 1mickylyons


If only eh? If John reads this what a magnificent goodwill gesture it would be from him to give them back now in keeping with the current positivity between Club and fans.


I know it's not football related but I have just seen a huge flock of pigs flying past my office window.
Posted by: barralad, February 26, 2019, 3:02pm; Reply: 150
Quoted from pizzzza


If only the Trust had held on to all those shares eh? Then it really would be in a position of strength.


Bloody members exercising their right to vote! If only all those who go on about it (still) had joined and voted there might have been a different outcome..
Posted by: Civvy at last, February 26, 2019, 3:32pm; Reply: 151
Quoted from arryarryarry


I know it's not football related but I have just seen a huge flock of pigs flying past my office window.


Which is strange. I’m sure I read recently that the Humberside Police Helicopter hardly responds to Grimsby call outs 😉😉
Posted by: KingstonMariner, February 26, 2019, 5:37pm; Reply: 152
Quoted from barralad


Bloody members exercising their right to vote! If only all those who go on about it (still) had joined and voted there might have been a different outcome..


Does that mean I CAN go on about it because I've been a member since the year dot  ;D
Posted by: MuddyWaters, February 26, 2019, 5:37pm; Reply: 153
Quoted from arryarryarry


I know it's not football related but I have just seen a huge flock of pigs flying past my office window.


Mmmm bacon  ;)
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