Kmcalpin

From the information provided, and thanks to those who have done this, I don't think it's a wild take at all. That's not to say it would happen though. My understanding is that the club and the Society have sufficient funds to cover last season's loss of £1.6m. So no immediate threat. However am I right in thinking that there is a projected loss again this year? That being the case we would be struggling, but would probably get by. However, the SPFL will require a guarantee by October, that we can meet any potential debts for 2024-25 and that's where the problem lies. A wildcard of course, is the potential sale of Lennon Miller. Is all that a correct assumption?

I don't know that they would have been. It's not a die in the ditch issue per se but had we known about this at the time, it would have prevented a lot of time being wasted on posts and hot air being expended unnecessarily. Those aren't huge issues for the club admittedly. Let's just hope the club has learnt its lesson. Time to move on.

More likely suspended.

I think that whatever Comms staff we do have should keep an eye on social media. Its common practice in most organisations. Now by that I don't mean responding to every comment. Only those which are factually wrong and creating unnecessary discussion or anger for example. It would take what - perhaps 10 minutes a day. If a fan owned club wants to relate to the fans then it should keep its finger on the pulse. Social media is a two way thing. If the Club wants to use social media effectively for output then it should be aware of what the fans are saying, in the form of input. This particular issue has been chewed over for months, taken up hundreds, maybe thousands, of posts, and I'm just surprised that no-one at the club was aware of it. My second point is that this is a fan owned club and we should be kept informed. Now again, that comes with a caveat. We don't need to know every minute detail of the Club's business. However, the length of the manager's contract is a very basic issue, which we should have known about. I just wonder what would have happened if SK's contract hadn't been raised at the AGM. We would have arrived at late May, having finished anywhere between say 11th and 7th. There would have been discussion about SK's position with nothing being announced. That would have rumbled on into the summer with fans wondering if he was working without a contract. Just not good enough. Big changes are coming our way, whether you or I like them or not, and fan engagement will be crucial to their success. The fans have to be kept on board.

You're rght Grizzly. Of course, SK knew his contract had been extended. It was probably part of his original contract and was results based. However he probably felt, rightly, that it wasn't his job to make a public announcement about it. As you say just poor communication. If nothing else, you'd have thoughtthat someone at the club would monitor SO and P & B to pick up on any avoidable complaints/discussion centred on his contract ending this coming May.

Maybe the option is on the club's side. I suspect it might be.

Thanks for this useful update Derek. I think it is important though that the Society emails all members with a short summary of what it is proposing to do. I appreciate though that facts are scant and that details might be confidential. Not everyone follows this site or P&B. Other things being equal, a Society initiative is my preferred option. The club has told its shareholders about the Society's proposal and its now time for the Society to do the same with its members. I appreciate that the 2 groups are not mutually exclusive. There does seem a lot of work for the Society to get through, according to your summary, and I just hope its achievable by October. I'll email Sally to suggest a communication be sent out to members.

I think this debate has run its course, although I do agree with you. If you are a Society member then email your comments to it.

I think the club already has such shares; there was an issue some years ago. They're called preference shares.

Just read St Andrews7's update. That is concerning, and underlines that time is of the essence. An interesting option from the Well Society, and I'd like to hear more about that. If fans want to go down that route, they have to take more individual responsibility ie its not my responsibility its the Society's.

One matter that does concern me though is that of the CEO vacancy. Apparently, the selection process is quite far advanced, which is encouraging, but would any candidate want to put pen to paper whilst the ownership/investment issue is hoveriong over the club? A real concern for me.

Firstly, thanks StAndrew7 for the excellent summary. Some very good discussion across on P & B. The issue of club ownership/investment is huge and I don't know if everyone has fully grasped the enormity of that yet. If they haven't they soon will do. As far as I'm concerned, I'm not against a new/owner or partial owner. For me, the devil will be in the detail. We have to guard against a ruthless rogue owner whio would be in it for purely selfish reasons. That said, any new investor owner would want to have a substanital say in the running of the club, or even control. Thats perfectly understandable. Every member of the Society will be entitled to a say and vote on the situation, if it gets that far. So, think about that. I just wonder about the position of the other 2 or 3 groups who haven't progressed their interest quite so far? I think change is inevitable, but it has to be on our terms. To those who advocate no change at all, I'd say "If we get relegated, and it might happen anyway, how would the fanbase react if we were to be stuck in the Championship for a good few years?" Jay sets out the situation in a fair and democratic way on P & B. There is a wide range of possible views and none is right and none is wrong. They reflect our own lives and characters. On a scale of 0 to 10 with 0 being no change and 10 being an open arms welcome to any new investor, I'd place myself at about a 6 or 7. I'm open to new investment but not at any cost. The bottom line though is doing nothing, Asquith style, is not an option. The world is changing; football is changing and there's no time or room for ostrich impersonations.

What's going on with these secret contract extensions? It isn't what was originally communicated.

Some truth in that to be fair. Our loan dealings could have been worse but have not been great and hopefully the club will learn from that. This latest failure, may not send out positive messages to potential employers of Buyabu - who knows? The term "personal reasons" could mean almost anything and may be a euphemism. As I wrote before the club's statement was very terse; some might even say rude. The absence of a simple thank you is striking.

Notable that the club's statement was rather terse. No "thank you" at all.

Firstly, thanks for posting on here Jay. Its always good to have more /better communication not only with members but also with the wider fanbase. In terms of what the Society has achieved, some don't fully understand. Without its presence the club would not have paid off its debts and would have gone onto administration. Thats a huge achievement in my book. As with many things in life, stakeholders do not see what you have prevented, stopped or avoided. Thats life. Has it been run perfectly - no. Could things be improved - yes. However, I took heart from the recent elections. We needed a blend of continuity and fresh blood and we got that. I now hope we can on to a higher level, through fan ownership. Compared to fans of other clubs, I think we tend to have more more modest expectations and thats a good thing up to a point, providing it doesn't stifle ambition. I'm very wary of private investment, although thats not necessarily a bad thing, providing our club is safeguarded. I believe that at least one individual was/is interested in putting money into the club under the present model. I've no idea though, how successful the "Geez money" video was in attracting genuine interest. Clubs like the Dundee twins, St Johnstone and Hibs are playing with fire for short/medium term gain. Dunfermline did something similar a few years ago, and whilst they succeeded, up to a point, yes up to a point in the short term, they've paid heavily for it ever since. I'm fully behind fan ownership but our model can't be fossilised. It had to grow and adapt.. Tonight's club AGM will hopefully give us an update on several crucial matters eg a new CEO and Chairman. Good news on that front will be a fillip for everyone.

Unfortunatley not, but other posters will be.

Club AGM tonight. Should be interesting.

Good post. When Sevco when in the lower leagues, an issue in itself, there was a vote to change the distribution of prize money but one club, which expected to finish 2nd, voted against change. In the event they were pipped to the runners up spot with seconds of the season to go. 🤣

To St Johnstone fans and those of a simliar persuasion, be careful what you wish for. What happens when the new investor tires and wants their money back? The more clubs who go down this route the harder it will be for clubs like St Johnstone to finish above 6th or even 8th or 9th.

Whilst footballing ability and money inevitably influence results to a huge degree, mentaility does play a part. For us to beat, or even draw with the gruesome twosome we need them to have injury absentees on the day, be below par, have bad luck, and a fair referee. If that isn't enough, we need to be on the top of our game. Its not just players' ability that counts but their character and thats where we fall short just now, and have done so for some years. In short, we've shown them far too much repsect and a lack on field leadership. We need the Willlie McVie, Stewart McLaren and Peter Millar mentaility. Players who'd die in a ditch to prevent them from getting anywhere near our penalty box, let alone our keeper. Guys who would class it as a disaster if a green or blue shirt managed to fire off a shot that hit Row Z. Football isn't just about getting in the right type of player or skillful individuals, its about having a winner's character.

Normally, in these games, I'd say go for it but not this time. I say that for 2 reasons: our league position relative to Livingston, Ross County and St Johnstone; and secondly our defence and defensive midfield are a shambles just now and likely to concede very easily. As you say Gazzy, damage limitation. Livi is our cup final.

Yes, I would want him at Fir Park.

Yes, credit to him for not criticising players publicly, but he's been unable to fix our defensive frailties and he's in charge. Thats not all down to him of course, he can only do so much with the players, who must also take responsibility.

Rest any player who isn't 100% fit. We have bigger fish to fry later. The strategy of many a previous manager.