A Grievous Blow (Dec 08)
February 2, 2010 by admin
Filed under AFCB - News Archive 07-09
- 17th Dec 08
Last night’s loss against Blyth inflicted a deep wound.
In the first instance, there will be no argument from anyone that the club really needed the money that would have been provided from winning the tie and a televised third round game against Premiership opposition.
Losing the match and the cash was bad enough on its own, but the manner in which it was lost will deeply upset all fans, and if you believe the various forum postings, then many fans will not be going to the home match against Bury this Saturday, which puts even greater pressure on the club’s finances.
Financial stability and vulnerability
With the club’s expenditure exceeding its income, financial stability can only be achieved by Paul Baker subsidising it personally. As things stand, the moment he does not or cannot continue to dig into his personal wealth is the moment the club slips back into crisis. Of course, subsidisation is not remotely unusual in football – it occurs at every level of the game. The problem for AFCB is that Paul Baker is not an Abramovich, it does not have any meaningful assets and it sits on what is almost (save Luton), the very bottom rung of the Football League, so there is more vulnerability than stability.
What needs to change?
Ask that question in the wake of the FA Cup exit and the likely response from most will probably be ‘everything – new players, new manager, new owners.’ But we all know that it is not that simple. The idea of forming a broad based and substantial collective made up of people with skills, resources and experience has gathered momentum over the last few days and a club statement indicated that the current owners would welcome assistance. The make up of such a collective and the immediate objectives are still being formed, but local businessmen, previous sponsors, representatives of supporters groups and previous executives have all stated that they would like to get involved. There has also been contact from people that have previously declared an interest in investing in the club.
It has to be said that not all of them have seen eye to eye in the past, but have said that they are prepared to set aside differences to focus on the fortunes of the club. In terms of objectives, it will have to be one step at a time, but doing everything possible to remove the key vulnerability of the current exposure to ongoing losses and personal subsidisation is obviously a priority. Some of this may be achieved via gathering greater support and by helping to change aspects of the underlying business.
Crucial details
It is also possible, even likely that cash investment will be needed. That too is achievable, but there is no doubt that for that to happen, the investors will require a legal and substantial say in the running of the club – that much is clear from even the very first conversations that have taken place. If dialogue takes place between the collective and the current owners, then the possibility of Paul Baker not having to continue to subsidise the club exists – as does the removal of the vulnerability.
Next steps – openness required
Prior to the Bury game on Saturday, people interested in participating in the collective are invited to declare their interest by giving their comments and their contact details on forms that will be provided in the Inn Off The Bar. This has been suggested as an alternative to ‘closed meetings’ – an opportunity to see who is getting involved and to discuss how it is progressed from there, including the infrastructure and gaining a genuine remit from stakeholders to move forward. One suggestion that has been made already is to create an initial set up similar to the Wolves Fans Parliament, so that is as good a place as any to start. If the collective formed then becomes an investment vehicle then it will become a new legal entity, with the current desire that it retains its broad cross section and an elective process included.
If you can’t make it to the club on Saturday, then email your interest in participating to afcbbuzz@googlemail.com
Buzz involvement
For personal reasons, Buzz will shortly withdraw for the foreseeable future from involvement with AFCB. We hope that we will have been able to play a small part in securing a better future for the club. In the relatively short time we have been involved, it has been a privilege to correspond with so many dedicated fans. We hope that their dedication will not falter in these very challenging times and that it is aptly rewarded in the not too distant future.
Up the Cherries!
