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Post by o2o2bo2ba on Apr 4, 2020 6:27:30 GMT
Bristol Rovers President’s Club Statement by David Thomas | Apr 3, 2020 | News Football has, not surprisingly, taken a back seat of late though these are difficult times for many of the nation’s football clubs, not least the club we all support, Bristol Rovers. News that Supporters Club Director Ken Masters resigned his position this week because he was, in effect, ostracised by the club’s owner came on the back of news that the club was some £25m in debt. Over the course of the last 12 months The Bristol Rovers President’s Club and the Bristol Rovers Supporters Club have worked closely on a number of projects and Ken’s input has been most valid and very welcome. And now that link, between Boardroom and Support groups, has disappeared with no logic or explanation. The club can no longer claim to have a reputation for being a family one and we view Ken’s departure with dismay. Issued earlier today. It is sad to have to take sides on what appears to be a chasm developing between supporters and owner and we fear for the very future of our club. However, we fully support Ken and Bristol Rovers Supporters Club moving forward and hope for a satisfactory conclusion to these troubled times. While we all hope and pray that the coronavirus will be beaten sooner rather than later and that we all come through unscathed, it may seem trivial to worry about sport and football in particular, but we felt we could not let two significant issues in our club’s recent history pass without comment. We hope that you are all staying safe and well. John Harding Chairman Much love, Staffie.. But there's two words to say on that statement. The first one's, Tw@t. The second one's, Tw@t..
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vaughan
Joined: June 2014
Posts: 1,237
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Post by vaughan on Apr 4, 2020 10:29:04 GMT
Very wise words from John M.
Please read them carefully and the conclusions reached.
I look forward to hearing the interview on Radio Bristol. I hope that it is not too chummy and some tough questions are asked. Trust me, he does go on and off at tangents. A modern day verbal James Joyce.
At the end of the day, he is yesterday's man and confined to the footnotes of BRFC history. The trouble with the likes of Masters is that they need to look up at the night sky and get a sense of perspective. It might result in some humility.
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Post by a more piratey game on Apr 4, 2020 10:52:01 GMT
I look forward to hearing the interview on Radio Bristol. I hope that it is not too chummy and some tough questions are asked. Trust me, he does go on and off at tangents. A modern day verbal James Joyce. I think 20p's generally very good at asking the questions that we want answered But he must let the man talk - that's how he will reveal himself, as well as any facts
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knowall
Joined: August 2019
Posts: 162
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Post by knowall on Apr 4, 2020 10:59:32 GMT
Thanks PP. So do you know if the present undertaking would include covering losses accrued in the present trading period? The wording give or take is Mr H Al Qadi has agreed to support the club for a period of at least 12 months from the signing of the accounts. So technically 20/2/2020 until 19/2/2021 Not 'give or take' the actual wording is: "Mr H Al Qadi has confirmed his intention to maintain support for a period of at least twelve months from the signing of these accounts" So, it rests on whether you consider an 'intention' the same as a guarantee?? for instance "I intend to go to the pub this afternoon" but then again I might not!
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Post by a more piratey game on Apr 4, 2020 11:03:17 GMT
The wording give or take is Mr H Al Qadi has agreed to support the club for a period of at least 12 months from the signing of the accounts. So technically 20/2/2020 until 19/2/2021 Not 'give or take' the actual wording is: "Mr H Al Qadi has confirmed his intention to maintain support for a period of at least twelve months from the signing of these accounts" So, it rests on whether you consider an 'intention' the same as a guarantee?? for instance "I intend to go to the pub this afternoon" but then again I might not! that's bog standard wording, as you no doubt know from your ownership of companies in several countries
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knowall
Joined: August 2019
Posts: 162
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Post by knowall on Apr 4, 2020 11:09:03 GMT
Not 'give or take' the actual wording is: "Mr H Al Qadi has confirmed his intention to maintain support for a period of at least twelve months from the signing of these accounts" So, it rests on whether you consider an 'intention' the same as a guarantee?? for instance "I intend to go to the pub this afternoon" but then again I might not! that's bog standard wording, as you no doubt know from your ownership of companies in several countries Sorry to disagree but that is not the case - do not make things up.
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Post by a more piratey game on Apr 4, 2020 11:11:54 GMT
that's bog standard wording, as you no doubt know from your ownership of companies in several countries Sorry to disagree but that is not the case - do not make things up. the voice of instruction! same old fanny manners, unfortunately
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Deleted
Joined: January 1970
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Apr 4, 2020 11:28:09 GMT
The wording give or take is Mr H Al Qadi has agreed to support the club for a period of at least 12 months from the signing of the accounts. So technically 20/2/2020 until 19/2/2021 Not 'give or take' the actual wording is: "Mr H Al Qadi has confirmed his intention to maintain support for a period of at least twelve months from the signing of these accounts" So, it rests on whether you consider an 'intention' the same as a guarantee?? for instance "I intend to go to the pub this afternoon" but then again I might not! The point is, that 'intention' was good enough for Masters, until he got chucked out of the Boardroom and banned from half of the ground. I'm sure you will want to join the ranks of people on here in condemning Masters for the way he's acted and apparent double standards?
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Post by a more piratey game on Apr 4, 2020 11:32:05 GMT
Not 'give or take' the actual wording is: "Mr H Al Qadi has confirmed his intention to maintain support for a period of at least twelve months from the signing of these accounts" So, it rests on whether you consider an 'intention' the same as a guarantee?? for instance "I intend to go to the pub this afternoon" but then again I might not! The point is, that 'intention' was good enough for Masters, until he got chucked out of the Boardroom and banned from half of the ground. I'm sure you will want to join the ranks of people on here in condemning Masters for the way he's acted and apparent double standards? same as last year and the year before and the year before that....
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Post by a more piratey game on Apr 4, 2020 11:34:08 GMT
one thing I have learnt a lot about in the last few days is the sense of self-importance of some of the people in non-employment roles at the club
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Post by o2o2bo2ba on Apr 4, 2020 12:10:14 GMT
one thing I have learnt a lot about in the last few days is the sense of self-importance of some of the people in non-employment roles at the club Without trying to be too psycho-analyical (is that a word or terminology?!) but spot on due to the ego and deep insecurities of some! Meanwhile, the humble paying, anonymous fan is missed more than ever without having to raise his/her voice.
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Post by manchestergas on Apr 4, 2020 13:21:31 GMT
The point is, that 'intention' was good enough for Masters, until he got chucked out of the Boardroom and banned from half of the ground. I'm sure you will want to join the ranks of people on here in condemning Masters for the way he's acted and apparent double standards? same as last year and the year before and the year before that.... So knowall what has changed from this when KM was on the board: gaschat.co.uk/thread/9667/brfc-accounts-2015-16?page=6you seem to be an expert on the wording of accounts. I am happy to be enlightened.
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Peter Parker
Global Moderator
Richard Walker
You have been sentenced to DELETION!
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 4,920
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Post by Peter Parker on Apr 4, 2020 13:22:08 GMT
The wording give or take is Mr H Al Qadi has agreed to support the club for a period of at least 12 months from the signing of the accounts. So technically 20/2/2020 until 19/2/2021 Not 'give or take' the actual wording is: "Mr H Al Qadi has confirmed his intention to maintain support for a period of at least twelve months from the signing of these accounts" So, it rests on whether you consider an 'intention' the same as a guarantee?? for instance "I intend to go to the pub this afternoon" but then again I might not! Just checking something a second....... Oh, club is still operating right now even if it said gaurantee, its no gaurantee 100% Pick whatever wording you like, the auditors must beleive it to be true, otherwise they are failing in their job.
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Post by droitwichgas on Apr 4, 2020 13:32:50 GMT
And therein lies the issue.
From the narrative of the clique that is around the Supporters Club and Presidents Club the Nick Higgs era was a kind of golden period of fan engagement because they had unprecedented access provided they towed the party line and drank the Kool Aid that everything was going to be alright in the end. Backing Nick Higgs was representing Supporters as far as they were concerned because the sun shone out of his behind. Therefore everything that has subsequently happened has been terrible for fans representation because these people now find themselves on the outside looking in - all I can say is welcome to the club, thanks to your failure to effectively represent or even give voice to fans concerns over the years that's how the rest of us have felt for 15 years!
This only has credibility as an internal logic between those who accept these ridiculous assumptions and never engage with people outside that limited bubble. For the vast majority of Gasheads I know the Nick Higgs era was a total and complete catastrophe and a total betrayal of the fanbase with a permanent stench of paranoia and incompetency. Yet the SC never once intervened, never once represented the concerns of Rovers fans and went along as happy cheerleaders for the board as we spiralled into total incompetence that peaked with non-league status.
I couldn't be happier if every single one of the people who acquiesed in that farce were cleaned out. In fact clearing house would be one of the few things I'd give the AQ's any credit for. I wouldn't want to have anything to do with the blundering incompetence and paranoid cronyism of that era either. There is absolutely nothing positive to come out of that period at all rather than the decay of the club and total delusion among those cheerleaders for Higgs. Even the AQ's are Nick Higgs baby - he doesn't escape responsibility for selling to them here. It completes his failure.
To now try and desperately re-position themselves as the supporters champions fighting against a malevolent ownership doesn't just lack credibility, it's comical in its level of hypocrisy. They've had their chance to represent the fans to the board and they didn't do it - instead they represented the board to the fans for Donkeys years. To which the standard response is - who is going to represent the fans if they don't? Well I imagine a lack of effective fan representation on the board will look exactly the same as it has done for the last 15 years to most of us.
Brilliant, just brilliant, a superb summary of the situation. I found the campaign around the stadium project very difficult because I felt that much of it was driven by the then local MP and people fell for it hook, line and sinker. I think they (the old guard of the SC) never thought that they would get into a situation where they would fall out with the Football Club. The seeds of their current predicament were sown in 2006, they were no doubt glad to see the back of those of us who had tried to haul the SC into the 21st century. They were quite happy to have two representatives on the Board who would be subservient and "non-political", they then assisted the then Board in holing the Share Scheme beneath the waterline making it's objectives totally un-achievable. Back to pre-2002 everything was fine and hunky-dory, we will carry on as we were...... However, there was always going to come a point where they would have a disagreement with the Board (whatever their composition) and as has been clearly seen they were hopelessly ill prepared for it. I watched Masters very carefully at last year's FC AGM and it was quite clear then that all was not well. He said barely a word of any note. I simply do not understand how he could sit there as "SC representative" and not say that something was wrong (I don't mean at the meeting). I am afraid that he simply failed as a director representing the supporters. His work for the community department is admirable, BUT THAT IS NOT WHAT HE WAS ELECTED TO DO (yes caps are deliberate). He came from no-where when he first stood, he had shown no interest in the SC whatsoever, nobody knew him. Why would anyone with no previous interest in the SC all of a sudden want to become a director representing that organisation? His standing when Jane Browne was elected had a direct influence on that result because there were people in the room who wanted to stop Roger Cooper from winning but didn't want to vote for the former. That was a disaster because eventually another election had to take place to replace Browne. Masters stood again, this time against David Brain because Kim Stuckey had been elevated to full director. David Brain won. I was in the chair that night and as I walked out of the Clubhouse with the losing candidate he was very animated about his desire to have a position, I've never forgotten those moments, I couldn't really understand his motivation. Later I was to understand that, and it came as no surprise to me after my departure that he involved himself so heavily in the community department. But I repeat that wasn't what he was elected to do. I have seen and talked with him in the bars and I have to say that there were moments when I contacted him about certain issues and he did assist, but I do feel that it was partly because of the position that I had held (he always showed me the upmost respect even if he didn't agree with me). However this does not excuse his lack of engagement with the wider fan base and his inability to address issues that have now come to light. His reports tended to concentrate on matters that were not directly related to his position as Supporters Club director. If we'd wanted a SC representative in the Community Trust then that could have been done, their work is a credit to them Adam Tutton is second to none, but there seems to be a narrative developing that Masters was the driving force ignoring the people that make it happen. We had a situation last year where a long-standing (and now deceased) supporter accused him of attempting to get him to leak information. Neither party came out of it well and I made that point at the AGM when the issue was raised. It didn't look good. Somewhere along the line the SC really forgot the purpose of having representatives on the Board, as long as everything was fine and everyone was in agreement, what the directors did, really didn't seem to matter. But it did and if the Director representing the supporters felt there was a problem then he should have been saying so last year, or even the year before. If he felt so strongly (as he appears to now) he should have said it publicly. That may have meant that he had to fall on his sword (see Kim Stuckey), but he didn't, why not? It is hard not to conclude that staying on the Board of a Football Club was more important, or was there another motive which "textgate" appears to suggest may have been the case? The lack of political judgement is inexcusable. The Supporters Club lies in tatters and the honourable thing is now, sadly I believe to fold the organisation. They should have seen the takeover of the club as an opportunity to review its purpose, but they didn't. They had the deep embarrassment of the £50k going out of the bank account, if it had happened on my watch I would have been hammered but would have taken responsibility. This is a very sad day for the Supporters Club, it breaks my heart to see it in this position, but it was always coming. Regards John Malyckyj Brilliant post, perhaps Fanatical could respond to this post rather than worrying about one word in the club's annual accounts? Incidentally didn't the whole £150K go missing from the SC's bank account not just £50K?
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knowall
Joined: August 2019
Posts: 162
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Post by knowall on Apr 4, 2020 13:57:24 GMT
Not 'give or take' the actual wording is: "Mr H Al Qadi has confirmed his intention to maintain support for a period of at least twelve months from the signing of these accounts" So, it rests on whether you consider an 'intention' the same as a guarantee?? for instance "I intend to go to the pub this afternoon" but then again I might not! The point is, that 'intention' was good enough for Masters, until he got chucked out of the Boardroom and banned from half of the ground. I'm sure you will want to join the ranks of people on here in condemning Masters for the way he's acted and apparent double standards? Nothing to do with support of Masters or otherwise - just to correct a statement by a poster because of what might yet come.
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Post by a more piratey game on Apr 4, 2020 13:58:36 GMT
The point is, that 'intention' was good enough for Masters, until he got chucked out of the Boardroom and banned from half of the ground. I'm sure you will want to join the ranks of people on here in condemning Masters for the way he's acted and apparent double standards? Nothing to do with support of Masters or otherwise - just to correct a statement by a poster because of what might yet come. in what sense was it a 'correction' fanny?
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Post by a more piratey game on Apr 4, 2020 13:59:03 GMT
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Post by a more piratey game on Apr 4, 2020 14:02:35 GMT
said he has resigned, after being excluded since March 2019 and subsequently suspended. The reason for the delay is 'confidential'
he doesn't know why SH was asked to leave the board either
'hand on heart' doesn't know of anything he's done to warrant suspension
got lawyers involved not with a view to taking court action, but with a view to understanding why he has been suspended
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Post by a more piratey game on Apr 4, 2020 14:05:53 GMT
banging on about history. I've heard some of that before
wouldn't have done anything differently with the benefit of hindsight
not introduced to the new auditor. Didn't state that he wanted to meet them though. Would have liked to speak with them
blahing on about liability of a director. No demonstration of understanding though - very much the level of conversation you might have with a stranger at a bus stop, I would say
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Post by a more piratey game on Apr 4, 2020 14:07:15 GMT
didn't add up to a row of beans I'm afraid
club statement at the end - also very bland. Says they are expecting a 'newly-appointed board director' from the SC though
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