Community Ownership

[TheLip69]

Once again that article opens up more questions than it gives answers.

The main one being who does his ironing?

[mfc]

its early days but ive got my doubts this community ownership scheme will work

 

 

[Amber_nectar]

I think the board have to be honest with themselves. We are going to need in the region of 2500 motherwell fans with a spare £300 to invest in the club. Leeann Dempster, Derek Weir, Andrew Wilson and Jim McMahon are going to have to do one hell of a selling job on this.

The focus must not only be towards getting even more money out of the regulars but also the people that can't make it to Fir Park week in week out. Personally this is where the plan falls short. I really can't see the fans that can't attend at Fir Park on a regular basis spending £300. £150 maybe.

As I have been attending Fir Park for 30 years I can see myself coughing up the £300 pounds. How many more will do this?

Having the fans having a say in their club is a wonderfull concept but stick 10 fans of the same club in a room for one hour and there is 100% chance punches will be thrown.

Hopefully more details come out over the next month and we can start to get behind this scheme. But until this happens all we can do is sit and wait.

[Catweazles ring piece]

[StipeIsGod]

Amber_Nectar, I see where you're coming from. I also know two people who have been Well fans for 40 and 20 seasons respectively, and when possible have been season ticket holders. For work related reasons, both have missed more season tickets than they have had, but both have expressed that they would be delighted to be able to feel as if they were taking part in, and helping, the club.

 

So it may be possible that more people feel the same way. And with people like you adding more money, there may be enough to make this work. I don't know, but maybe.

[fatcalf]

Watching Dispatches tonight should prove to any doubters this is they correct way to go, I look forward to hearing the proposals no matter how long they take to finalise it. Taking away the possibility of some shyster buying us over for his own benefits is a good enough reason to get fully behind it.

[StipeIsGod]

Watching Dispatches tonight should prove to any doubters this is they correct way to go, I look forward to hearing the proposals no matter how long they take to finalise it. Taking away the possibility of some shyster buying us over for his own benefits is a good enough reason to get fully behind it.

 

Mate, I am fully behind it. I can't physically afford to support it.

 

I hope the proposals work. I am just extremely worried that we can't raise the capital in hard cash to do well, despite the level of goodwill.

[mfc]

i know its mentioned any fan who signs up for this gets the right to a vote but realisticly what things would we likely to be voting on

[Spiderpig]

i know its mentioned any fan who signs up for this gets the right to a vote but realisticly what things would we likely to be voting on

 

 

After the state of the seats in the POD last saturday i hope the first vote is to buy a mop and bucket and get one of the staff trained to use it to clean the place.

[Catweazles ring piece]

The current board are stuck between a rock and a hard place.

With J.B's wallet strings having been cut, what other alternatives are open to them?

 

The major problem with this initiative, is, economically, everyone's in the financial shitter and no real amount can realistically be generated.

Good idea, but, the necessity of having to be implemented at the wrong economic time I suppose.

I do hope though, that it is successful and can be developed over the coming years.

But like Fatcalf, the alternatives shown on TV last night are far worse than our current predicament.

[marcC]

Community Ownership, I tried to find out what exactly it means but I couldn´t. Can anyone explain it to me?

[Steve Diggle]

I think community ownership would need to be defined by the club at the time of launch.

 

It will be a major minefield for them cconsidering folk already think their due a seat on the board when they buy a season ticket.

 

I think they need to define how the club will 'consult' with 'members' on the major issues. So they'll need to set up a framework where views, opinions or votes can be gathered probably on major strategic decisions.

 

I'd imagine the board will still have overall control and would be able to take decisions in the same way that they currently do. (although going against popular opinion might put paid to a few subscriptions). day to day running of the club and the way that the sleeves hang on the new home shirt will still be just taken by management on a day to day basis I imagine

[johnstone]

Just to throw my two cents in.

 

I would have absolutley nothing to do with this at all. I will buy my season ticket and probably take the wee man to the Motherwell kids football training if he is into it, but thats my only connections with the club.

 

I can't see how in this current financial climate that anyone would want to invest in a football club playing in a terrible SPL league where the actual product year on year is getting worse.

[Steve Diggle]

I see where you're coming from Johnstone - very valid points indeed.

 

Something needs to break the mould / arrest the decline etc etc and initiatives like this might be a positive way forward.

 

However, it would be good to see some chinks of light at club or SPL level whereby those in control are actually serious about acting on the paying spectators concerns befor anybody ever parts with a brown penny.

 

So if for instance moves were taken to stop fucking about with kick off times, pandering to TV schedules, looking at admission prices and easing off on killjoy stewarding then folk might be a bit more positive about where this whole mess is going.

[Welldaft Mk1]

I guess the most important question - is how much will this initiative raise in terms of money for the club.

 

What they are effectively saying is that John Boyle has gone and we can no longer rely on him giving us loans to cover poor seasons where we have not got the money in that we have budgeted for. So they are looking for the fans to pick up the slack and contribute and why not.

 

3-3500 season ticket holders is the amount mentioned. I would like to know if in fact that many have taken up season tickets this year.

 

They talk about a sum of £600-750k being raised. For that to happen you would need at least 2000 paying the lower tier of £300. That is a lot to ask at this time or any time for that matter. There will of course be wealthier individuals that will put in more £5000+ which should help balance those who do not take out the minimum £300.

 

I will do my bit when the time comes, but I suspect the figure raised would be nearer half the amount being sought. But that is just my humble opinion.

[Spiderpig]

I see where you're coming from Johnstone - very valid points indeed.

 

Something needs to break the mould / arrest the decline etc etc and initiatives like this might be a positive way forward.

 

However, it would be good to see some chinks of light at club or SPL level whereby those in control are actually serious about acting on the paying spectators concerns befor anybody ever parts with a brown penny.

 

So if for instance moves were taken to stop fucking about with kick off times, pandering to TV schedules, looking at admission prices and easing off on killjoy stewarding then folk might be a bit more positive about where this whole mess is going.

 

 

Good points but as football is so dependant on the TV cash, the broadcasters will continue to dictate the kick off times to suit their schedules. There may be some scope to look at addmission costs but in reallity would reducing the cost bring in enough extra fans on a regular basis to outweigh the cost of the reduction ?

The stewarding issue is one where input from fans / shareholders / members etc could make a real difference, we all want to be safe at matches but some common sense and tolerance is required, which seems to be sadly lacking in the current bunch of stewards.

[johnstone]

Thats the problem though. We can sing from the rooftops about community ownership, but it works at clubs like Barcelona, Norwich because they are in leagues with lots of money and also (and more importantly) the chance of success. As this is the thing that brings in crowds. Norwich have increased their season tickets figures from 4000 to 20000 and funnily enough that has coincided with them rises up the leagues and into the premiership. All SPL clubs currently stagnate in our league and getting 6th place is a cause for celebration!

 

The SPL is a two horse race every year. It is ruled by a very poor TV deal and also most of the money is given to the ugly sisters.

 

If we want to improve our own club then we must improve the product it is competing in. Until thats done then you will probably get a fair few folk like me that will give it a miss.

 

Also the self serving owners, chairman of all the SPL clubs need to stop thinking about themselves and do something for wider good of the game.

[steelboy]

 

 

I can't see how in this current financial climate that anyone would want to invest in a football club playing in a terrible SPL league where the actual product year on year is getting worse.

 

the motivation would surely be to attempt to ensure that the club stays on a level footing and hopefully moves forward in years to come. i don't agree that the standard is gettting worse, compared to 5 or 10 years ago i'm much happier with the way things are now.

[Andy_P]

I guess the most important question - is how much will this initiative raise in terms of money for the club.

 

I think it will be but thinking back to the AGM earlier in the year and what they were aiming for wasn't solely about making money.

 

Fully understandable that the focus has been on the operating fund they hope to build, since there hasn't been anything much else in the way of statements of intent and strategies to be followed thus far, but they talked was to grow the club throughout the community.

 

If it was just about trying to rustle up a rainy day fund then a bog standard share issue would probably have been the way they might have gone but supporters' involvement I got the impression was just one tier of ownership/partnership alongside other investors, sponsors, private companies and local government bodies.

 

It's seems a hugely ambitious plan and whether we have the means to pull it off to the level the club hope remains to be seen but I don't think its just going to begin and end with making up the rainy day fund that most speak of.

[Steve Diggle]

I think we are a few steps away from this to be honest.

 

I think Mr Weir and the other dude(in my very humble opinion) have some serious work to do.

 

In fronting such a campaign these guys need to come forward and give us a bit more of who they are and what they are about. Up til now we know that Weir was on the committee that recommended a 10 team league, yesterday he was elected onto the SPL board and his financial credentials will ensure that McCall will need about 50 signatures to get anything above a te4nner out of the petty cash.

 

Someone like Boyle fronting this - making noises about being the 3rd force, tackling all of scottish footballs ills etc - I believe would have folk rolling forward with more enthusiasm.

 

What I think I'm saying is that we need the new encumbment to start engaging with the supporters a bit more - maybe with the same enthusiasm that they are tackling climbing the SPL office bearer tree.

 

I for one think that this is an opportunity and I'm probably / possibly in a position to sign up if it's a decent initiative.

 

All I'm saying is that although it's early doors our new board look more Fred Goodwin than Johnny Boyle and that might not rally the troops.

 

Time for these guys to do a proper introduction and generate a bit of a relationship with the support.

[mjw]

I think we are a few steps away from this to be honest.

 

I think Mr Weir and the other dude(in my very humble opinion) have some serious work to do.

 

In fronting such a campaign these guys need to come forward and give us a bit more of who they are and what they are about. Up til now we know that Weir was on the committee that recommended a 10 team league, yesterday he was elected onto the SPL board and his financial credentials will ensure that McCall will need about 50 signatures to get anything above a te4nner out of the petty cash.

 

Someone like Boyle fronting this - making noises about being the 3rd force, tackling all of scottish footballs ills etc - I believe would have folk rolling forward with more enthusiasm.

 

What I think I'm saying is that we need the new encumbment to start engaging with the supporters a bit more - maybe with the same enthusiasm that they are tackling climbing the SPL office bearer tree.

 

I for one think that this is an opportunity and I'm probably / possibly in a position to sign up if it's a decent initiative.

 

All I'm saying is that although it's early doors our new board look more Fred Goodwin than Johnny Boyle and that might not rally the troops.

Time for these guys to do a proper introduction and generate a bit of a relationship with the support.

 

Do you mean something like this..?

 

Motherwell FC and Motherwell Supporters Trust hosted an Open forum at Fir Park on Monday evening. Vice Chairman Derek Weir and Chief Executive Leeann Dempster were the focus of an informative question and answer session that informed the audience of the club’s position regarding SPL reconstruction as well as domestic issues concerning the club.

 

Derek, part of the SPL Strategic Review Group, gave some insights into the work of the group and Motherwell’s views on the various proposals. The club has still to be convinced of the merits of the all the ideas surrounding a 10 team league and awaits the SPL revised proposals. The club expects to have more consultation with fans before a final decision is made.

 

In response to questions from the floor Leeann explained how a change the season’s timetable and the introduction of playoffs might generate more TV income and suggested that lots of options were being considered. Discussions followed about implications of 14 and 16 team divisions.

 

Discussion moved on to issues at Fir Park. The new pitch is holding up well and the regular preventative maintenance schedule should ensure that it is in good condition by the season’s end.

 

More players are expected before the end of the winter window but the manager’s busy time in the market would be in the summer months.

 

The commitment to turn the club as a centre for the community continues to grow and an outline of more initiatives was shared.

 

The atmosphere throughout the discussions was friendly and supportive and

[TheLip69]

There's no use getting all het up about it because the fact is we haven't been given enough info to form an opinion.

Lets wait until we've got the full details before we start wringing our hands in anguish, or singing it's praises.

Frankly, I wish the club would just shut the f**k up about this until they have a concrete proposal to put before us. Then maybe we'd get some sensible posts on the subject.

[Casagolda]

Reading some stuff in the Ins and Outs thread but I thought I should give this a bump.

 

"It is expected that two out of five or six board members would be elected by their votes and that is a measure of how fundamental will be supporters' input." - Leann Dempster

 

Source (page 2)

 

The plan now doesn't seem like one member, one vote but rather one member, one vote for a small part of the board. I thought we were going to elect the full board of directors through the membership and have control of the club through democratic means, that doesn't look likely now.

 

If Boyle is gifting his share, worth 75%, to the fans then the fans should elect 75% of the board. This looks like democracy lite and not what John Boyle led most people to believe and definitely not as palatable. You are essentially parting with your hard earned cash to be part of a group that have no power to run the club, what's the point?

[fatcalf]

There's no use getting all het up about it because the fact is we haven't been given enough info to form an opinion.

Lets wait until we've got the full details before we start wringing our hands in anguish, or singing it's praises.

Frankly, I wish the club would just shut the f**k up about this until they have a concrete proposal to put before us. Then maybe we'd get some sensible posts on the subject.

 

 

Tell ye what, why don't we all shut the fuck up about it until the club release concrete details, then we can have an 'informed' debate about it. Oh no it's a message board where fans can talk shite for days on end. Leave the kids alone, they're happy.

[dosser1886]

Tell ye what, why don't we all shut the fuck up about it until the club release concrete details, then we can have an 'informed' debate about it. Oh no it's a message board where fans can talk shite for days on end. Leave the kids alone, they're happy.