CFU Meeting

Don't understand why the emails tell us not to share with non-CFU members - if people like (or don't like!) what they see then surely they'll be inclined to join? We are an inclusive, community club after all.

Not working for me for some reason.

Very, very worrying financial talk.

Let's hope the Sam Hughes gamble pays off as it sounds as if he's going to single-handedly keep us solvent.

Well if hadn't spunked our cash in the pub league, paying some players per game, we might be a bit better off financially.

Gates are alarmingly low, we're being run at a loss but hey ho at least we're getting a new website with Chester FC TV Live! It sounds like without a cup run there'll be nothing on it, mind.

Did anybody else get the impression that there is no plan for the future sustainability other than the board thinking Bob Gray actually had the right idea? Sorry for the negativity but this is worrying. Lawrence Kirby gave us the figures but nobody else has discussed what we are doing to sort it out. Straight on to websites and Facebook Lives.

It doesn't help with effing STUPID questions from the audience considering what we have just heard. The first question was about turning the music down and led to a mass debate about the speakers and getting the council involved. Priorities eh?

Over 5minutes spent debating the fucking music.

Fucking idiots

I'm stuck at home watching this debacle online.

A great service and fascinating listen as usual. Looks like we'll make a loss this season which will see us dip into the first £20K and potentially a bit into the £100K reserve. However, the sale of Sam would ensure that this doesn't happen. But, even with the sale of Sam, we won't see any great increase in player budget and people need to understand this. For our model to work we really need to be bringing players through and moving them on, on a fairly regular basis. With that in mind I think that it's good that we have set a precedent this time with regards the Barnsley offer.

I doubt it, did we need players like Trundle?

No there was no questions from the floor about the attendances or cfu membership.

Absolute joke

So the same "cup run" idea to generate money for the club that Bob Gray got vilified for back in the Vaughan days is now one of two ways we plan to raise our coffers and balance the books?

What the hell is going on???

What was worrying earlier this season was when we went on that long unbeaten run without conceding, the gates didn't really change much.

I'm at a loss to explain why all those fans stopped coming and weren't tempted back with a very good run of form. Though it is concerning, I can see why the board are all at sea with it too.

From CFU website Feb 10


CFU board want more board members

The City Fans United board are looking for CFU members to send in their CVs as we search for more directors.

Currently there are seven board members - three down from the ten we aim for - and the board is hoping to co-opt fans who might be able to offer something different to the current board.

To help in the growth of key areas, we are specifically looking for somebody to oversee the growth of the CFU membership and also somebody else experienced in fundraising, who can bring new ideas to help grow funds.

We will, of course, consider anyone who feels they would be able to add something to the board even if they do not have experience in either of these areas.

Before you consider joining the board, please be aware that it is a commitment, but one that is worth it to help our football club move forward. Anybody who shows an interest, or would like any further information, then please contact CFU secretary Marion Needham on marion.needham@chesterfc.com

As a co-opted Director, the role will last until the next set of elections, where individuals will have the chance to then also stand for election. - Please note, to be considered for the board, all candidates must be a current CFU member.

If you are interested in the role but aren't sure about what it entails then please contact Marion and we can arrange a time for a director to speak to you. The board will also be available for members to speak to at the next CFU meeting on February 16th.

All,

I respect everybody's right to have an opinion, I hope you all allow me the right to reply.

As a board, we take pride in our transparency and openness to the membership; we are the only club that provides online streaming too. Laurence laid out the reality of the situation in a clear and concise manner that some may have glossed over, that is the approach we wish to take.

Now, if I had the answer right this moment as to why our gates were down, we would have 5,000 people in every week. So, in the last two months as Chair I have engaged in every way possible to try and open up our football club to everybody. Despite opinion, the feedback from the young teams who attended on Saturday was incredibly positive. From that, we can see that key to these youngsters enjoying a visit to the game is how we make it memorable, so hopefully the inclusion of the Foot Golf and Streetwise Soccer activities helped.

As has been alluded too, we have publicly advertised for two new members to be co-opted to the board; the two roles specifically mentioned are membership and fundraising. This was also clearly mentioned tonight and on Monday the board are all attending a strategic meeting as to how we start actioning these and getting the process moving.

As for the questions tonight, I can only answer what I am asked. The live stream allows ALL members to send in their questions via email or Twitter; this is managed live by Neil Bellis. I asked a few times if we had any questions from those watching online. Guess how many we got? 0. Earlier this month, Mark Maguire and I sat down for a live Twitter Q&A, which was open to ALL supporters, CFU members or otherwise. Guess how many questions we had? 10.

The board are not blind to the challenges ahead, but by being open about it, we hope to engage supporters more and more. I post on here, I have my email address and Twitter handle in my signature and all other board members' details can be found on the CFU website. We also have the fans@ address and I am open to meeting anybody face-to-face to address their concerns or questions. The point I am trying to make is that we can't do it all ourselves. There is a collective effort needed from everybody to help us grow our message. Sure, we can make the decisions and we can implement the ideas, but everybody can play their part.

For years, the website has been lambasted and criticism aimed at Blues Live for just being an opportunity to drain more money out of supporters. We have listened to this, and as Jonny Hughes presented tonight, we will be providing so many FREE services next season. Surely, these are new and exciting opportunities for us to engage with new, current and non-supporters. Is this organic way of growing our supporter base worthy of some positivity? 

We are where are, and it's been no different since day one, as the figures show, but what we need is all supporters, owners and non-owners to get behind us and support what we are trying to do. We are all passionate individuals who all bleed blue and white. We get no financial gain from doing this; instead we get to give up time with our families to do the best we can to make sure we have a football club. If there is anybody who believes that they can have a positive input on the board, then I implore you to email Marion Needham on marion.needham@chesterfc.com with your interest for co-option.

On another point, I actually stuck up for Deva Chat tonight, but that was about 10 minutes before I saw some the comments written down on this very thread. I will continue to give everything for this football club, and I don't mind being criticised for doing something wrong, hell, I would come out personally and put my hands up to it, but I not do at the cost of having my integrity and passion for this amazing football club questioned.

Many thanks,

Alan