Viking Supporters Co-operative

Viking Chat => Off Topic => Topic started by: tyke1962 on October 13, 2021, 08:07:35 pm

Title: The Situation At My Club
Post by: tyke1962 on October 13, 2021, 08:07:35 pm
Shut the old West Stand down despite it having a safety certificate signed off only last month .

A thousand ST holders were offered a partial refund or offered seats in the South and East Stand .

Many of these seats are the front row near the corner flag type if you want two , three or four seats together .

Anything decent is on a single seat basis .

The away capacity was reduced to 2k due to a lack of stewards so far this season .

Because the West Stand is now closed its suddenly increased to 4100 .

Seemingly because the stewards are no longer required in the West Stand .

The majority of the ST holders in the West Stand are elderly , poor on their feet and none too great at walking or climbing stairs in the East Stand .

Many of whom have had a ST for decades .

The dispute between the consortium and previous owners the Cryne family remain unsolved .

The consortium still owe £2.75m for the purchase of the club .

It was agreed the balance of the purchase for the club would be in instalments set at £250k per quarter .

They have paid three instalments which total £750k still leaving a balance of £2.75m .

The consortium have taken £750k out of the club presumably to cover the instalments they've made good on .

Everyone behind the scenes is leaving .

Fitness , sports scientists , analysts , groundsman , CEO , finance guy , you name it .

The team is a shambles but that seems to be the least of our worries .

You are a club who have had an owner who very nearly finished you .

Should we be worried ?

Title: Re: The Situation At My Club
Post by: River Don on October 13, 2021, 08:31:44 pm
I think we REALLY started to worry when he hired an ex SAS man to burn down the main stand...

You're some way off that.
Title: Re: The Situation At My Club
Post by: River Don on October 13, 2021, 08:45:46 pm
So far I think it's looking like the club is in the hands of someone who can't afford the high standards the club is accustomed to.

As yet they aren't showing signs of wanting to make money from the business other than football.

So long as they are commited to running a football club that is the minimum you can expect. When that is in doubt, it's time to start protesting.

For now communication is needed. What are their ambitions for the club?
Title: Re: The Situation At My Club
Post by: tyke1962 on October 13, 2021, 08:47:01 pm
I think we REALLY started to worry when he hired an ex SAS man to burn down the main stand...

You're some way off that.

That's a fair point RD but yours was an extreme case to be fair .

I guess what I'm saying here is that are the consortium at my club acting in its best interests ?

To take £750k out of the club to cover their commitments they've paid so far seems extraordinary when they have a combined wealth of £9bn .

7th wealthiest in the entire football pyramid in this country .

Kicking a thousand ST holders out of a if old but none the less safe stand seems extraordinary so as to increase the capacity in the away section .

The next home game is against Sheffield United and we are charging them £36 .

Before catastrophes there are generally warnings .

This could go seriously tyts  up in my opinion .

Relegation to league one is par for the course .

The whole club in serious jeopardy ?

Well that's another thing altogether .
Title: Re: The Situation At My Club
Post by: River Don on October 13, 2021, 08:59:09 pm
Ooof there is plenty of money behind them.

If their ambition might not be football, what could it be?
Title: Re: The Situation At My Club
Post by: tyke1962 on October 13, 2021, 09:19:24 pm
Ooof there is plenty of money behind them.

If their ambition might not be football, what could it be?

I'll paint a picture here as to try and show what we are dealing with .

They have previous .

They bought the French club OGC Nice for €60m in 2016 .

Nice had qualified for the Champions League just before they took over .

They sold all their top players and then placed a £60m loan on the club with an interest rate of 9% .

Presumably to cover the initial outlay to first purchase the club .

Nice slipped from competing for the Champions  and Europe League as a consequence .

Luckily for the fans of Nice South of France resident Jim Ratcliffe offered them €90m for the club .

They walked away with a handsome profit with little cost to themselves .

This is what we have owning us .

Title: Re: The Situation At My Club
Post by: River Don on October 13, 2021, 09:33:46 pm
Oh dear Tyke,

To me they look like asset strippers.
Title: Re: The Situation At My Club
Post by: River Don on October 13, 2021, 10:01:49 pm
Hmmm,

On reflection it may not be so bad. This bloke has a stratergy and maybe trying to impose a new way of doing things. He might be trying to profit from the business., but through moneyball management.

It maybe that he wants Barnsely to succeed before he flogs it. His strategy seems to be buy underperforming clubs and sell them when they improve.

For the time being, wait and see.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chien_Lee
Title: Re: The Situation At My Club
Post by: Campsall rover on October 14, 2021, 10:51:58 am
Well you don’t paint a very positive picture Tyke.

So yes i would be very concerned.  Not good is it.
Just reinforces what good owners we have and the stability we have at the club.

Just need stability with the Managers position now and we will be on the right Road imo.

When Bramall decides to call it a day which will happen at some point then we will have to pray what is happening at your club is not replicated at ours.
Title: Re: The Situation At My Club
Post by: DRCraig on October 14, 2021, 11:23:29 am
A handful of clubs are in a worse position. Cannot trust many owners.
Title: Re: The Situation At My Club
Post by: Metalmicky on October 14, 2021, 11:36:48 am
Seems like the new CEO is making his impact....
Title: Re: The Situation At My Club
Post by: tyke1962 on October 15, 2021, 05:41:11 pm
Open Letter to Barnsley FC and the Owners of Oakwell from the club's Supporters Trust today .

Formed in 1887, Barnsley FC have enjoyed 134 years experiencing the trials and tribulations of being a football club and a cornerstone of the town and the community. Each one of those years has been played at Oakwell in front of an adoring and loyal Barnsley faithful.

These multiple generations of supporters, that have experienced an ever-developing Oakwell over the decades, are the lifeblood of the football club. Without them and their support the football club is nothing.

Players, managers, captains, and owners of the past, have spoken with passion and positivity about what being associated with Barnsley Football Club has meant to them and how the football club epitomises the values of the town: hard work, honesty, respect, and integrity.

Unfortunately, with the recent announcement of the closure of the West Stand, the values of honesty, respect and integrity appear to have been forgotten.

How have we found ourselves in a position where 1,000 season ticket holders are faced with the difficult decision of choosing between an inferior seat that will likely diminish their Oakwell experience, or ending their association with a football club they’ve supported for years, decades or a lifetime?

How, when Barnsley supporters have backed the club in its hour of need during a pandemic that threatened its future, are these same loyal supporters being disregarded so easily?

How have we managed, as it appears on the outside looking in, such an alarming fall from grace in less than six months regarding club and supporter relations?

6,000 supporters bought season tickets knowing that seeing any live football at Oakwell was unlikely in that season. We then had 10,000+ supporters buy season tickets for this season, despite the uncertainty around when capacity crowds would return to Oakwell. This was the Barnsley FC community showing support for the players and coaching staff who pulled off the unthinkable away at Brentford, went one better by coming close to achieving the impossible last season, but also to support the amazing staff behind the scenes that work tirelessly for the club on our behalf.

With this in mind we urge and plea with the different ownership groups involved with Barnsley FC and Oakwell to consider the below points:

Supporters were initially told the West Stand was closed for safety reasons, but this was later changed to operational concerns. Could this be clarified in a full and transparent public update?
For the Sheffield United fixture on 24th October the North Stand will accommodate its largest away following of the season at over 4,100 supporters. Can it be confirmed or denied that the closure of the West Stand was commercially motivated to increase match day revenue? If the motivation isn’t a commercial one, can you explain the sudden increase in the away team allocation for this particular game?
Can we have complete transparency on what the issues with the West Stand are, what the plan is to rectify these issues, and when we can expect to see the stand re-open?
Contradicting statements from different parties benefit nobody. Even if the Supporters’ Trust must act as a mediator, can ongoing communications be aligned, collaborative, and in the best interests of supporters from all those concerned?
Whether one supporter or 100 supporters have decided to end their season ticket association with the football club, can we see a clear strategy to appease these people? Also, considering that many supporters will be moving seats under duress, and non-West Stand supporters are equally upset about how this has been communicated and managed, what do we plan to do as a football club to rectify this and bring the community feeling back to Oakwell?
We encourage all parties to regularly consult with BFCST on matters that will directly impact on supporters. We’re here to be a support function for advice and supporter consideration prior to decisions and announcements being made. We appreciate difficult decisions are sometimes inevitable, even more so during a pandemic, but our means for existence is solely to ensure supporters feel heard in times like these. At present, they don’t.
We welcome and praise the plan for the various fan and media engagement forums over the coming weeks as a really positive step that shouldn’t be downplayed. However, these will be almost a month after the initial West Stand announcement, and as a result we feel that immediate action is needed to bring clarity to such an emotional and disruptive issue, at a time when all energy needs to be focused on improving performances on the pitch.

Barnsley FC Supporters’ Trust has always had an excellent relationship with Barnsley FC, working in the interest of supporters with various owners since 8th October 1994. We’ve achieved many positive results in collaboration with the club to improve the matchday experience, optimise existing plans and announcements for the greater good, improvements for disabled supporters, and supporting the recruitment of the younger generation through various schemes and initiatives.

We firmly believe this relationship can continue in a positive manner if all parties work as one and look forward to a change in stance that brings everyone together to focus on one thing: the supporter.

Title: Re: The Situation At My Club
Post by: Campsall rover on October 15, 2021, 06:56:25 pm
I hope you get the answers that you and your fellow Barnsley supporters are asking.
Good luck. It certainly seems those 1,000 Main Stand season ticket holders have been treated very shabbily.
Title: Re: The Situation At My Club
Post by: tyke1962 on October 15, 2021, 07:37:57 pm
I hope you get the answers that you and your fellow Barnsley supporters are asking.
Good luck. It certainly seems those 1,000 Main Stand season ticket holders have been treated very shabbily.

Thanks very much Campsall for your kind words of support .

I fear a line has been crossed by the consortium and it's caused the trust in these people to completely break down .

Once the trust goes then I'm afraid it's over for these people .

I fear we are set for some grim times as the battle for the heart and soul of my club gets played out .