oldskyblue58
CCFC Finance Director
There have been a series of events that have been pretty sobering for any CCFC fan.
Firstly, because it has been the most talked about, the King saga. This has been done to death so wont try to bore with a lengthy discussion. King did himself no favours and he and his agent caused a whole lot of un-necessary bad feeling. There was despite their assertions no rush, simply a faith in a relationship by the board that was ultimately not there. He could have said, I gave my word to look at the full written contract and owe it to the club and fans to do so because of their support over the last 10 months, then say that the terms were not good enough. We would have understood that better, we know we are cash strapped, he could have said then I think it right to listen to other offers. Wouldnt have liked it but it I would have seen honesty in him. Instead I see a selfish man with no honour or loyalty .... just a low life mercenary much like his agent. By his actions he took much of the developing feel good factor from the fans & club
The new board cannot do right for doing wrong. It seems they lurch from one cock up to the next. Appointments that clearly are not there, delays in financial information, PR gaffs, too eager to be open the list goes on. I dont doubt that it is all for the best of intentions, and lets be honest it cannot be easy to market a valueless club in the vain hope of finance yet at the same time keep the average fan happy by investing in the team.
I do think this cant do right for doing wrong attitude applies to Mr Brody and his twitters. I admire the intent but in all honesty anything useful is drowned out by the abuse he receives there if something goes pear shaped. I think as an american he does not yet understand the fan dynamic here but he is learning and it isnt an all together positive experience. You have to say they have tried hard to connect with the fans they have made some building bricks (low season ticket prices,ticket tours, emails, coffee meetings etc) what they need is a large dollop of cement to bind them together in the form of good news (new investment, some good signings, additional sponsorship etc). What the King saga has done is bought them some goodwill from many of the supporters but they need to build on that quickly to develop momentum
The finances. Well we have all seen the figures they have been displayed on the forum this week. They dont make good reading but the rate of decline hasnt accelerated. The 2011 figures will again show big operating losses that will not be softened by any significant player sales – expect losses of £7m or more. We still dont have a pot to pee in but there are assurances from the owners that they will continue to support for the next 12 months. This is absolutely vital because without it we are out of business now. Forget the purchase of the stadium, it isnt going to happen under these owners for a couple of years at least, simply we cannot afford it.
There is however the further conundrum of the new league rules on affordability coming in. That will limit the wages a club can pay to a percentage of their income. Currently CCFC pay out 110% of turnover (per 2010 accounts) the league will look at 60 to 70% in money terms it means reducing our wage bill by £3.5m+ on current levels of turnover. Rules won’t come in for a couple of seasons but think what that does to the player budget, the quality of player etc..... unless our turnover goes up £4m per annum just to stay the same in terms of wages.
The CT, well hardly a publication that covers itself in glory. Very often I wonder whose side they are on. They would argue that they were being objective in their reporting, well yes they would be if they consistently got their facts right and in a timely manner. Surely it is in their interest and that of the club to get it right, timely and at least sometimes positive about CCFC, but I guess sensationalist poorly researched headlines sell chip paper dont they. Used to be a decent read wouldnt touch it now
AT, well I think it will be a tough year for him and I wish him well and a lot of luck. Stick to your guns as to how football should be played and lets have some entertainment. He has a tough task made harder by the departure of King and Westwood. It will be hard to attract players, potential targets will see the financial turmoil, the bigger stars leaving, the lack of success and wonder should they join up. Yes we can always get players but it is the right players we want there is a difference. I hope AT can gel the team and push on from the start, that first few games will be vital to give the team confidence to plasy his brand of football. I think he knows there are players simply not up to the task but right now it is a numbers game just to have a viable squad, plus you couldnt give some players away!
Expectations. This will seem a bit harsh to some but to be honest as it stands, regardless of blind faith in AT the prospects are not that good. We do not have the depth of quality we need for a season in the Championship. There are easily 8 to 10 teams with better strength, financial backing and overall quality. We do not have prospects of being able to invest much or anything in the summer or January. Our back up squad depth is young and inexperienced. The support is fairly solid amongst the fans but lacks numbers and this feeds into the finances which feeds into the team - it becomes a vicious circle. Our track record over the years has been poor, even under AT look the points total and apply to the season, yes would be ok but wouldnt get us to the playoffs.
Yet we hear people say AT will get us to the playoffs like it is that easy. I am sorry to say this but the harsh reality is we are not a strong Championship team, we are not a big team in the league, no one looks at us and says thats a tough team to play, star players look and think they can do better elsewhere, we dont have the financial pull of others, we have a poor league record to date and have relied largely on others being worse to stay in the division. Looking at it coldly I do not see how there will be significant changes to that in the coming months. Do not place unrealistic expectations on AT please!!
Yet despite all this I could support no other team. I wear the colours proudly and hope for better days to come. Battered and bruised by one crisis or event at the club after another I will still be cheering them on, how could I do other! Its in my blood!
PUSB
Firstly, because it has been the most talked about, the King saga. This has been done to death so wont try to bore with a lengthy discussion. King did himself no favours and he and his agent caused a whole lot of un-necessary bad feeling. There was despite their assertions no rush, simply a faith in a relationship by the board that was ultimately not there. He could have said, I gave my word to look at the full written contract and owe it to the club and fans to do so because of their support over the last 10 months, then say that the terms were not good enough. We would have understood that better, we know we are cash strapped, he could have said then I think it right to listen to other offers. Wouldnt have liked it but it I would have seen honesty in him. Instead I see a selfish man with no honour or loyalty .... just a low life mercenary much like his agent. By his actions he took much of the developing feel good factor from the fans & club
The new board cannot do right for doing wrong. It seems they lurch from one cock up to the next. Appointments that clearly are not there, delays in financial information, PR gaffs, too eager to be open the list goes on. I dont doubt that it is all for the best of intentions, and lets be honest it cannot be easy to market a valueless club in the vain hope of finance yet at the same time keep the average fan happy by investing in the team.
I do think this cant do right for doing wrong attitude applies to Mr Brody and his twitters. I admire the intent but in all honesty anything useful is drowned out by the abuse he receives there if something goes pear shaped. I think as an american he does not yet understand the fan dynamic here but he is learning and it isnt an all together positive experience. You have to say they have tried hard to connect with the fans they have made some building bricks (low season ticket prices,ticket tours, emails, coffee meetings etc) what they need is a large dollop of cement to bind them together in the form of good news (new investment, some good signings, additional sponsorship etc). What the King saga has done is bought them some goodwill from many of the supporters but they need to build on that quickly to develop momentum
The finances. Well we have all seen the figures they have been displayed on the forum this week. They dont make good reading but the rate of decline hasnt accelerated. The 2011 figures will again show big operating losses that will not be softened by any significant player sales – expect losses of £7m or more. We still dont have a pot to pee in but there are assurances from the owners that they will continue to support for the next 12 months. This is absolutely vital because without it we are out of business now. Forget the purchase of the stadium, it isnt going to happen under these owners for a couple of years at least, simply we cannot afford it.
There is however the further conundrum of the new league rules on affordability coming in. That will limit the wages a club can pay to a percentage of their income. Currently CCFC pay out 110% of turnover (per 2010 accounts) the league will look at 60 to 70% in money terms it means reducing our wage bill by £3.5m+ on current levels of turnover. Rules won’t come in for a couple of seasons but think what that does to the player budget, the quality of player etc..... unless our turnover goes up £4m per annum just to stay the same in terms of wages.
The CT, well hardly a publication that covers itself in glory. Very often I wonder whose side they are on. They would argue that they were being objective in their reporting, well yes they would be if they consistently got their facts right and in a timely manner. Surely it is in their interest and that of the club to get it right, timely and at least sometimes positive about CCFC, but I guess sensationalist poorly researched headlines sell chip paper dont they. Used to be a decent read wouldnt touch it now
AT, well I think it will be a tough year for him and I wish him well and a lot of luck. Stick to your guns as to how football should be played and lets have some entertainment. He has a tough task made harder by the departure of King and Westwood. It will be hard to attract players, potential targets will see the financial turmoil, the bigger stars leaving, the lack of success and wonder should they join up. Yes we can always get players but it is the right players we want there is a difference. I hope AT can gel the team and push on from the start, that first few games will be vital to give the team confidence to plasy his brand of football. I think he knows there are players simply not up to the task but right now it is a numbers game just to have a viable squad, plus you couldnt give some players away!
Expectations. This will seem a bit harsh to some but to be honest as it stands, regardless of blind faith in AT the prospects are not that good. We do not have the depth of quality we need for a season in the Championship. There are easily 8 to 10 teams with better strength, financial backing and overall quality. We do not have prospects of being able to invest much or anything in the summer or January. Our back up squad depth is young and inexperienced. The support is fairly solid amongst the fans but lacks numbers and this feeds into the finances which feeds into the team - it becomes a vicious circle. Our track record over the years has been poor, even under AT look the points total and apply to the season, yes would be ok but wouldnt get us to the playoffs.
Yet we hear people say AT will get us to the playoffs like it is that easy. I am sorry to say this but the harsh reality is we are not a strong Championship team, we are not a big team in the league, no one looks at us and says thats a tough team to play, star players look and think they can do better elsewhere, we dont have the financial pull of others, we have a poor league record to date and have relied largely on others being worse to stay in the division. Looking at it coldly I do not see how there will be significant changes to that in the coming months. Do not place unrealistic expectations on AT please!!
Yet despite all this I could support no other team. I wear the colours proudly and hope for better days to come. Battered and bruised by one crisis or event at the club after another I will still be cheering them on, how could I do other! Its in my blood!
PUSB
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