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Supporters Charter Meeting - 22 September 2022


therams69

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10 minutes ago, Ghost of Clough said:

No one has mentioned 'Bristol City model'. They did mention a Bristol City style fan park though.

Is that what this paragraph is about then I must have miss understood it.

There is a change in culture in the club, and DC wants to be open and transparent within the limits of running a business.
It was commented the club is losing money due to lack of staff at concessions. The club has longer term plans, but acknowledges short term improvements can be made. The Bristol City model was mentioned as an example.

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4 minutes ago, Gritstone Ram said:

Is that what this paragraph is about then I must have miss understood it.

There is a change in culture in the club, and DC wants to be open and transparent within the limits of running a business.
It was commented the club is losing money due to lack of staff at concessions. The club has longer term plans, but acknowledges short term improvements can be made. The Bristol City model was mentioned as an example.

Bristol City hosts lots of non- football events to raise money. I’m assuming we will be doing likewise 

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On 23/09/2022 at 09:46, therams69 said:

Morning all..

In the absence of a DCFC fans representative at the meetings I thought it would be helpful to upload the minutes to here. My personal thoughts are below.

Many of you know my issue with Stephen Pearce. I have been very vocal on that for various reasons. However, Charlton away we had a catch up and with Dave. A line has been drawn between us which Dave very much initiated. He is as much responsible as Dave for saving our club and I think we need to recognise that. 

Last night Stephen came across a very different man. Confident. Comfortable. Relaxed. Clear to see the shackles of Mel have been removed and he can be his own person. Mixed in with the ethos and culture that Dave has I fully trust SP to take us forward. He knows that he has points to prove and is up for that challenge. He has my backing.

A few other points i would like to add. Safe Standing, you know I have been campaigning for 15 odd years!!! Looking like some kind of movement with this and going forward expect there to be some news over the next few months.

South Stand - raised about bar wait times and requested that the bottle bars return particularly for half time. This is lost revenue. Left with SP to sort. I have also raised, as i have done for years, that we should be aiming to replicate a Bristol City / Lincoln kind of area. This was always the idea with the Fan Park but somewhat slipped to the side. Would be great to have a culture where fans can turn up early, have a few drinks and enjoy it. Same after the game as well, get the Yard and South Stand concourse open for an hour. 

Really positive meeting and refreshing that we are discussing issues and points that the charter group was setup for! Big thanks to the guys at BAWT for drafting up the minutes.

Minutes of SCG Meeting 22nd September, 2022


Present: DCFC - David Clowes, Stephen Pearce, Punjabi Rams, DCFC Disabled Supporters Club, RamsTrust, DCFC Supporters Club, Black and White Together, Derby County Collection, Nick Webster, RamsActive


The club has been reviewing and assessing the managerial position since DC took over and Liam Rosenior has been fantastic. They have a great relationship. The club has a duty of care towards Liam's career as someone taking his first steps in managing and what might happen to Liam if it didnt work out played a part in the decision.


Paul Warne brings experience and now is his time for a big job at a big club. Other clubs were after him, both those with and those without a manager currently. 


DC liked how he treats players, journalists, encouraging everyone to get the best out of themselves.


There is nothing to read into the title of Head Coach – there is no plan for Technical Director/Director of Football – it is just commensurate with Head of Recruitment, Head of Academy, which they will move their focus to now. They see these three roles working as a team. 


Paul Warne spoke to the players on Wednesday evening and will do press next Tuesday.


With regards to the players we signed and his style, Paul is adaptable, but he was after some of our players in summer. His teams are running teams and he is happy with players he has. 


DC will speak to Liam and other coaching staff on Monday when they return from a short break, but they were aware of the situation before DCFC approached Rotherham to speak to Paul Warne.


The club is well within the business plan agreed with the EFL, so there is a buffer. They sent the EFL the recruitment strategy, by player and position, and all was signed off, no problem. It is a two-year plan, with a review after 12 months, but we can’t currently spend transfer fees or loan fees.


The plan was done on a worst case scenario., so season ticket sales coming in over the figure in the business plan really helped. 


The club is now debt free.


Two sell-on clauses were sold for short term cash during administration,  but others remain.


The first accounting year will end on 30th June, 2023, so filed by March 2024.


The club will look into a non-Away member Season Ticket holder category after away members and before general sale for away tickets.


They will look at Roadriders again, but once the cost of hiring a bus, putting a steward on them and some covid restrictions still are factored in, it is likely to still be prohibitive.


They will also look at the possibility of beambacks for sold out away games.


The club now has a very good relationship with the EFL and other clubs, including Wycombe, Middlesbrough, and Rotherham.


The Yard is now open again on matchdays. They are looking at projects for the Back Yard in the close season.


Stephen Pearce has a point to prove. If everything he was accused of was true, the administrators or the due diligence of bidders would have found something. He wants to take club forwards.


The board will expand in the next 12-18 months, but a new chair will be appointed soon.


David Clowes said he is categorically not looking to flip the club. 


The club is researching a Shadow Board. They have spoken to Joe Blott, of Spirit of Shankly, the only one in place currently. The club eill circulate details, but the idea is the responsibility of the club to a Shadow Board would be written into the Articles of Association.


There is a change in culture in the club, and DC wants to be open and transparent within the limits of running a business.
It was commented the club is losing money due to lack of staff at concessions. The club has longer term plans, but acknowledges short term improvements can be made. The Bristol City model was mentioned as an example.


Re safe standing- the club met with the safety advisory group and the Sports Ground Safety Authority. The rake is a concern, but are pricing up potential phased equivalent of safe standing. Not railed seating but barriers. The top 9-10 rows in south stand and away area are the difficult areas, but the club wants to be an early adopter.


The club wants the sponsorship to match the new culture, keen not to have betting or crypto on the front of shirts. If not, they could have had it done weeks ago. But they also don't want to devalue the shirt for next or future seasons, so better to go no sponsor, if so. But the club has decided to go with a national charity to protect the value of the brand. However, it could be that the club asks for funds raised to be used locally.
They are also discussing the logistics of having the option to buy a sponsorship logo for replica shirts, like a number or players name, with possibility of part going to the charity. 


With regards to the stadium, there is a long CapEx list, which the club will be working through in order of  priority over next 18 months.
DCCT and DCFC Women separate board of Trustees, but the club is trying to bring them closer. DCFC Women have been training on Tuesday and Thursday nights at Moor Farm, but changing rooms are difficult. But now th3 club is making a dedicated women's hub for sole use, branded etc. Good for board meeting, analysis and with dedicated changing facility too. It will be finished in a couple of weeks. They will continue to play at Mickleover.

 

 

Any idea what "CapEx" on the stadium might mean? A new roof? The Plaza? 

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It's refreshing to see that DC has preempted what he believes are the important questions the supporters would have and come out with the answers before the issues are brought to him and a reply is then needed to be extracted or not forthcoming unlike the previous regime.

It's also pleasing to see that he's publically supporting his own staff and isn't insulated enough not to be aware of the bad press made against them (probably reads this forum too).

No mention of a breakfast club either which is outstanding.

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3 minutes ago, PistoldPete said:

That's not capital expenditure in my book. And the pressure washers were out pre season I saw, soon after DC took over.  

Yes the cleaning of the stadium would legitimately fall under capital expenditure.

Whether it is that or not which DC is alluding to is another conversation.

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On 23/09/2022 at 12:27, ramsbottom said:

Still no mention of sausages!!!  We demand answers!!!

Seriously though, all seems really positive.  And I'm glad we're finally sorting a sponsor for the shirts, as they look 20 times better when folk have mocked some up.  Knowing our look it'll probably be for an Erectile Disfunction charity 

fan promo GIF by Justin Gammon

image.png.11055ec6f5d83e1aff5dbb09c776e454.png

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17 hours ago, Gritstone Ram said:

It’s open to interpretation 

These meetings will be held on the 3rd Thursday of every month.

The speaker will open with explaining the "action of explaining the meaning of something" by explaining and the meaning of a Dictionary  

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3 hours ago, PistoldPete said:

Any idea what "CapEx" on the stadium might mean? A new roof? The Plaza? 

I didn't know what CapEx was till I looked it up later but one of the examples given was re-securing seats in some areas of the ground to prevent water encroachment. 

I got the impression it is more about necessary remedial work at this stage rather than big new projects. The stadium is 25 years old now and showing signs of wear and tear.

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3 hours ago, angieram said:

I didn't know what CapEx was till I looked it up later but one of the examples given was re-securing seats in some areas of the ground to prevent water encroachment. 

I got the impression it is more about necessary remedial work at this stage rather than big new projects. The stadium is 25 years old now and showing signs of wear and tear.

Well a new roof would stop water encroachment. 

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