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Red or Dead? Meeting - Wednesday January 11th 2006 -
Summary
This meeting was convened in order to gauge the responses of
current RoD pledgers to proposals outlined by the management of
Exeter City Football Club.
The meeting its self was split into 4 sections, each being chaired
by a different speaker, these including: Mike Cooper (chief executive
of the ECFC Supporters Trust), Julian Tagg (Vice Chairman of ECFC),
Dacre Holloway (stadium Manager) and Alex Inglethorpe (ECFC manager).
1. Mike Cooper (Chief Executive)
It was emphasised by Mike Cooper that this meeting was not set
up to elicit a definitive decision as to how the RoD monies would
be spent. The meeting was initiated to give the RoD pledgers the
opportunity to hear more details of proposals already outlined.
It was further emphasised that individual pledgers have the right
to outline specifically where their pledge monies go.
• It was suggested that the best way for this to move forward
would be to propose that individual RoD pledgers allocate a percentage
of their individual RoD pledge to a single, or a number of projects
(X% for project Y and Z% for project A etc).
It was outlined that at present the financial situation of the
RoD bank account is thus:
BANKED = £125,000
Total Pledged = £205,000
It was further stressed that the reason for the timing of the
meeting was in order to push this forward as soon as possible.
It was intimated that all RoD pledgers were sent letters, and
delays in receiving letters may have been due to problems with
the postal services.
2. Julian Tagg (Vice Chairman of ECFC)
Julian Tagg firstly stated that the directors of Exeter City
Football club have no official view, as to where they would like
the capital raised from RoD to go. Projects suggested were:
Youth Funding:
Prior to Exeter City Football Club being relegated from the Football
League, the club received £128,000 per annum for its youth
system. This funding has now been cut to just £63,000 per
annum (with further cuts likely).
It was muted that in order to maintain the highest quality of
youth progression in Exeter, certain investments were required.
These investments could benefit both the youth system and club,
e.g. pitch maintenance, facilities upgrades and improvements in
ground staff machinery.
It was pointed out that a number of different projects may be
mutually beneficial to both the first team players and the youths.
Neutralising the current operational shortfall:
It was suggested by a member of the audience, that if the football
club was still in a situation where it operated at a trading deficit,
then a percentage of this money should be allocated to equalising
this deficit.
• It was pointed out by Mr Tagg, that the current budgeting
situation with the club meant that it was difficult to ascertain
whether the club was trading in the black or red (it is currently
believed to be in the red).
• A statement was also released, that the club is currently
undergoing a massive internal review, and is looking at cost cutting
measures in order to streamline its operation.
Capital Reserve:
Further suggestions were put forward by another member of the
audience, that the club held a sizeable percentage of this money
back as a capital reserve (quoted as “rainy day money”
by Mr Tagg). This would lessen the financial burden on ECFC Supporters
Trust when the club found themselves in a cash poor situation
in some months.
• A point was made my Mr Tagg, that following the cessation
of the CVA, the club now pays full rates to the council (£6000
per month). This was highlighted in order to put into perspective
the current outgoings of the club.
3. Dacre Holloway (Stadium Manager ECFC)
Stadium manager Dacre Holloway highlighted the difficulties of
his job, by outlining the massive costs associated with certain
“grandeur” projects. For example:
• Reclad the Old Grandstand = £126,000
• Re-level and move the pitch = £145,000
• Complete changing rooms under Doble stand = £125,000
The size of these projecs meant that full completion was difficult.
It was also pointed out that owing to the clubs position with
regards to ongoing negotiations with Exeter Chiefs RFC, regarding
potential future groundsharing at Sandy Gate, any ground investments
would have to be done in advance of any future talks.
• It was explained that September 2006 is a time when ECFC
and Exeter Chiefs RFC can begin official talks.
• IT WAS ALSO MADE CLEAR THAT NO DECISION HAS YET BEEN
MADE, AND NO DECISION WILL BE MADE WITHOUT FULL CONSULTATION WITH
THE CLUB FANS/SHAREHOLDERS REGARDING THIS ISSUE.
In order that monies may not be potentially wasted on such ground
improvement developments it was suggested to “hold fire”
on such investments, until such a time as the club has a broader
picture as to what its position will be.
A number of projects were put forward as possible investment
opportunities, and would benefit the club greatly. For example:
A hard disk for storing video surveillance CCTV data.
Currently CCTV is operated on match days, and video tapes only
last a short time. There is no current protection afforded to
the grounds on non match days, as there are insufficient tapes
to cover the whole area all of the time. Break-ins often occur,
and cost the club massively.
New emergency exit for the Cliff Bastin Stand.
Currently the emergency exit runs along the side of the old “centre
Spot”. The original plans were for the emergency exit at
the rear of the Cliff Bastin Stand to run adjacent to the stand
its self. If this could be completed, it would allow for a larger
car parking space to be developed at the rear of the stand. This
could then act as a potential revenue source (quoted at about
£300-£400 per week). This may also encourage more
stewards to be retained.
Car Park.
As stated, this would represent a revenue stream to the club.
Currently work has been done to level the area behind the stand.
A contracting firm has dumped rouble and the area needs now to
be levelled. A cost for tar mac would equate to approx £5000.
However, it was pointed out that some of this cost may be negotiated
down significantly, and possibly totally.
Upgrading Players Facilities.
The cost of moving the players changing rooms are currently put
at £145,000. Some of this work may be negated by current
negotiations that are ongoing, relating to the club and a third
party, who plan to build a shop under the stand (occupying a %
of this space) free of charge to the club!
Grounds man’s Facilities.
There is currently a £9000 “wish list” for
machinery and tools that the current ground-staff require for
future improvements to the Cat & Fiddle and St James Park
pitches. Investment would be most welcomed in these areas.
• It was also highlighted that if pitch maintenance was
improved (by the use of better and more suitable machinery/tools)
costs of training would be reduced (i.e. rental of suitable playing
surfaces at Exeter University/Lympstone indoor facilities).
Boreholes at the Cat & Fiddle and St James Park.
Investigations have shown there to be water underneath St James
Park and the Cat & Fiddle. Extraction costs from the construction
of boreholes would be variable:
Cat & Fiddle = £3500 to £4500 depending on the
geology of the area.
St James Park = £5000 approximately depending on distribution
methods.
It was also stated that the clubs annual water bill is in excess
of £16,000. The cost of borehole water extraction would
be £350 per annum.
4. Alex Inglethorpe (ECFC Manager)
Alex Inglethorpe outlined the importance of ensuring that the
club is run effectively as a business, and stated that although
he would like to take the RoD monies for his own transfer funds,
such a move could prove to be unwise.
Potential project that could be possible with joint funding from
external sources, may be:
A rubber crumb pitch at the Cat & Fiddle:
Investment to the tune of £50,000 to £100,000 (depending
on funding) on a new state of the art all weather pitch, would
allow the youths, first team and outside parties, to train in
all weathers. This would improve training for the players, and
reduce the costs of pitch hire elsewhere (Exeter University rubber
crumb pitches etc), when the Cat & Fiddle pitches are unplayable.
With such an investment, it was also suggested that the club could
rent out this facility, and therefore this could act as a revenue
stream.
Players wages for the next 2 years:
It was suggested that a percentage of the RoD monies be given
to Alex Inglethorpe, in order that he may assemble a team capable
of reaching our goals. This investment would be offered to the
manager over a 2 year period, allowing him to bring in “the
right player” should such an individual come along. Alex
Inglethorpe also pointed out that should such a player not come
around, the money could be ring-fenced until such a time as it
is needed.
Upgrades to facilities at the Cat & Fiddle:
Improvements to the training facilities would be desired, as
these would allow for improvements in training methods that may
help improve the playing staff. These could be as varied as; improving
the changing rooms, improving ground staff tools/machinery so
that the pitches are better maintained etc.
5. General Notices.
Mike Cooper stated that there would be regular notices posted
in the media and on the official websites of the club & trust,
regarding what percentages of individuals RoD pledges, have gone
to each project. It was also suggested that directors and employees
of the club outline areas of immediate need.
Updates are available from both club and trust websites
If there are any further problems with regards to the RoD or
Trust/Club issues please feel free to contact ECFC or a member
of the ECFC BoS directly.
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