Meet The Owners Event Summary - 4th February 2015

Meet The Owners Event Summary - 4th February 2015



Paul Dickov opening the meeting talking about our current league form. He was disappointed to lose 2 points at Chesterfield, but is delighted with the back four and excited to have Uche Ikpeazu on board, who he thinks has great potential. He thinks once Curtis Main gets his next goal they will come flooding in, and although he understands the frustration among the fans, he is confident he will come good. He said he thinks we have a fantastic mix of youth and experience and the team are a close knit group. He said there is a real togetherness at the club, from the fans, all the staff and the players.

There were many questions from season ticket holders questioning the clubs decision to make the whole South Stand (SS) unreserved for 2015/16. The first question was, "I am baffled by decision to make SS unreserved. Why has this decision been made?" The majority of the complaints came from people who currently sit in the SS, and the main concern was the lack of communication on the issue, as many didn't learn of the decision until was made until it was made public on Doncaster Rovers Official Website. Gavin Baldwin responded by saying he has spoken to many clubs on how they have increased the atmosphere at other stadiums, and the most popular answer was making behind the goal unreserved.  He accepted communication has been poor on this issue, but re-iterated the number of SS season tickets has increased 4x since the announcement to make the stand unreserved next season. He also said any SS season ticket holders affected can move to any free seat in East or West stand for no extra cost, if they wish.  Season ticket sales overall are 2x higher than 12 months ago, and all stands look like they will be fuller next season than this season.

A similar question was asked about the Family Stand, with a fan suggesting he had heard non-families will be asked to move seats. The club confirmed fans who currently sit in the family stand but don't bring children with them will be asked if they want to move seats for next season, but they won't be forced.

There was a question on the change in queuing system used in the concourses, from the multiple straight lines to one "snake" line system. The fan asking the question believed it isn't as good. Gavin responded by saying that was the first complaint he'd had on the new system, and after speaking to many fans he believes the new system is much improved.

Gavin Baldwin made a general comment that he feels fan engagement is stronger than ever at Doncaster Rovers, and they already have many examples to show that.
With regards to early bird prizes, the club will discuss how the prizes were organised with fans at a later date, and look to improve, if possible, next season.

Gavin was asked about shirts, and why we produce 2 new shirts every season. His reply was that Doncaster Rovers are currently contracted to produce new home and away shirts each season. The club are examining the options as we renegotiate our kit supplier contract and we will share our findings with fans. He commented not changing our kits every year would hurt us by a 6 figure sum, which equates to a good player for Paul Dickov.

Paul Dickov was asked if McKay and Mandeville will get a chance in the 1st team this season, to which Paul said they definitely deserve their chance but he has got to be careful with both. They train with both the first team and development squad, but they also play for both the development squad and youth team. He said he believes our younger players have a big, big future, but we want to continue to manage them right.

There was a comment on the improvement seen in Paul Keegan on the pitch, to which there was a general applause of acknowledgement from the room.

Paul was asked how long do the club pursue Abdul Razak's international clearance. He said the delay is with the FA and FIFA. Abdul is very fit, although not obviously match fit.
He also commented he has made two very competitive bids for strikers but competition is fierce for good strikers, and although they were prepared to go outside the budget, it still wasn't enough for the quality we are looking for.

Paul also commented on Rob Jones. He said he has played 55 minutes against Mansfield and is back in full training. He'll be available for selection in a few weeks after playing a couple more games for the development team.

Gavin was asked when Dean Saunders left, he said there was a compensation package; is this true and how much was it for? Gavin commented it was true, and the club felt the deal at the time was very good for Doncaster Rovers, but he wouldn't discuss figures.

Dick Watson was asked if he can guarantee there will be no takeover attempt entertained at the start of next season; he said yes, he can guarantee that.

He finished the meeting by praising Gavin and Paul for the work they've done since the summer. He said the club is being very well run and he thinks Gavin is the best CEO in the Football League. All aspects of DRFC are moving forward; the Keepmoat is currently making a huge profit that is being put straight back in to the club. He said the fans know who owns this club, and we [the owners] are committed to DRFC.


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