PLEASE READ (all of you!)

[Gusboll]

I'm a newly adopted Fleet fan and member of the MFC setup. I joined and paid my £35 a few months ago and for the following reasons:

 

I was intrigued by what appeared to be an innovative idea.

 

I thought that it would be a chance to improve (or even save) an important local football club.

 

Without having any notion of whether it would be a success or not, I felt that in this age of money, agents, lack of loyalty etc, it was a chance to give football back to the fans.

 

I considered (as I'm sure most hardcore members did) how I would feel as a fan if it were my team (Derby County) who were the club in question - after the nonsense we've been through over the years anything was a goer!

 

What if it didn't work out for the club concerned? - Well surely some good would come out of it - if only lessons learned, but this whole thing surely shouts out to the world of football that without the fans, their loyalty and their hard-earned cash, the sport is nothing.

 

I'm proud to be involved and I'm looking forward to meeting all those staunch Fleet supporters who care so passionately about their club.

 

Gusboll.

[Hirsty]

"of course you will need to ignore some of the latest posts where people are making a variety of suggestions purely out of excitement)."

 

We don't want that sort of talk Wilson !!!

[Hirsty]

"What if it didn't work out for the club concerned? - Well surely some good would come out of it - if only lessons learned, "

 

My guess is that all the MyFC members would p*ss off leaving us others to watch as Mr Brown adds San Stonebridge ( or the mythical new stadium !) to his target list of brownfield sites ( the grass would have long died since !) and yet another block of flats, sorry, apartments, would be erected !! Concrete for all !!

 

 

[Grunthos]

Quote:

Given the situation, I feel the best thing the traditional support can do is sign up to MyFC, and organise a block vote. Always back the managers decisions and demand as much of the funding as possible isn't wasted but instead goes into stadium improvements, youth team development and keeping tickets reasonably priced.

I think you will find that such a block will frequently be voting "side-by-side" with a strong majority of MyFC participants.

And I would second the idea that opening the MyFC forums would do a world of good (for everybody except Hirsty, who has chosen to remain closed to information that might challenge preconceptions). Local Fleet fans would be able to see, as an example, the thread started by thegaffer/TheOwner over there, which racked up 10+ pages of replies, none of which supported his views.

[Gusboll]

Let's hope your powers of prediction are as bad as Mr Brown's charisma.

 

[Mr England]

Originally Posted By: Grunthos

Quote:

Given the situation, I feel the best thing the traditional support can do is sign up to MyFC, and organise a block vote. Always back the managers decisions and demand as much of the funding as possible isn't wasted but instead goes into stadium improvements, youth team development and keeping tickets reasonably priced.

I think you will find that such a block will frequently be voting "side-by-side" with a strong majority of MyFC participants.

And I would second the idea that opening the MyFC forums would do a world of good (for everybody except Hirsty, who has chosen to remain closed to information that might challenge preconceptions). Local Fleet fans would be able to see, as an example, the thread started by thegaffer/TheOwner over there, which racked up 10+ pages of replies, none of which supported his views.

it was actually 21 pages each containing 30 posts

[Grunthos]

I stand corrected.

[American FLEET FAN No1]

With you on that Hirsty!

 

Lets Play a hypothetical game.

Scenario:Once Upon a Time ,somebody(or somebodies) persuade a large number(if they are ALL real?)of mugspunters to part with some money to play Football Owners/ Managers.

They play at their game for a while, then find they are not real owners, they aren't real managers,and they aren't really making the team changes they thought they were, they really have no say in anything! All the decisions are made by voting on a computer, where they are told......Sorry, your decisions were in the minority, so they don't count. After a while these mugs puntersrealise they were mugs all along, they can't get their money back, so they don't subscribe the next year. The large amount of cash the mugs put into the scheme, and was going to the club, dries up! In their short ownership, the debt the club had when they took over, hasn't been paid, nor has the interest!

The club goes bancrupt and is sold for peanuts, to a Benevolent Saviour,or Saviours, or Company who may,or may not, have been members of the ownwership scheme, . They buy the club for pennies on the pound, the money goes to charity, The new owners declare insolvancy, or what ever they call it, and close the club and right it off as a tax loss, for their company!

 

But this is all Hypothetical! Otherwise somebody would have made it into a video game!

[Gusboll]

Blimey, I never thought of that - I'm a millionaire!

[EUFC FAN]

Why we are at it. Lets continue playing:

 

After two or so years some other .com wiz kid sees that this footy web thing is a good idea and starts his own company and ISP/trust whatever. Each member pays 30 quid with 29 quid going to the club of their choice. They then buy a share in a league club perhaps. How many MyFC members would defect I wonder?

[Mr England]

scenario: once upon a time there was a group of football fans that bought into an idea to make a difference to a club, Ebbesfleet United, overnight Ebbesfleet United (The Club) went from a little known club in Kent to a club that has been on the news in numerous countries, to a club that had 20,000 plus people, no fans, with a interest in the club, 99.99% of them wanting and willing them to be a force to be reckoned with not only in the BSP but in the footballing community, 12 months down the line some of the current membership have not renewed, but during the last 12 months more and more people have seen what has been accomplished by a few fans/mug/internet geeks and thought you know what that a good idea, a couple of years down the line the club, your club our club has become a name that is easily recognised as the club that shook the world of football and turned it on its head.

 

or

 

12 months later after over £700,000 worth of investment and world news coverage MyFC have pulled out of Ebbesfleet United the club have been bought out by "Whoever" the club statement "We were inovative enough to try something different it never worked but the club is still alive and kicking"

 

i for one will always look for two teams results every week - My Football Club* and Aston Villa

 

Please excuse this Budweiser fuelled rant if it causes pffence or embaressement to anyone

 

*that should've read My Football Club/Our Football Club

[Newark Colin (BAFC)]

At least spell the club's name right.

[Gusboll]

Villa? Budweiser? It was all a bad idea after all!!

 

[doheochai]

Originally Posted By: EUFC FAN

Why we are at it. Lets continue playing:

After two or so years some other .com wiz kid sees that this footy web thing is a good idea and starts his own company and ISP/trust whatever. Each member pays 30 quid with 29 quid going to the club of their choice. They then buy a share in a league club perhaps. How many MyFC members would defect I wonder?

I have been of the opinion from the day I joined MyFC that this is a one off. It is the type of thing that works (or doesn't work) the first time around.

For MyFC (and consequently the club) the biggest risk will come with next year's renewals. Any MyFC member with a level head realises this. And in all likelihood the volume of renewals will depend on the success of the club. If the club is going well numbers could increase - if there is a bit of a struggle it could go the opposite way. If the membership collapses then I think the club would escape relatively unharmed. There is no way the money will be spent and this will allow the club to stabilise if anything goes wrong.

I hope that we can maintain the current level of MyFC membership this would indicate a stable situation - we would lose some members and gain some members - but there would be a sizable solid core to build from.

In the process I hope we can help Ebbsfleet progress, involve the ST and the existing fans in a more active involvement in the club (if they wish) and strike a blow for the little guy in football.

[KShep]

Originally Posted By: American FLEET FAN No1

With you on that Hirsty!

Lets Play a hypothetical game.
Scenario:Once Upon a Time ,somebody(or somebodies) persuade a large number(if they are ALL real?)of mugspunters to part with some money to play Football Owners/ Managers.
They play at their game for a while, then find they are not real owners, they aren't real managers,and they aren't really making the team changes they thought they were, they really have no say in anything! All the decisions are made by voting on a computer, where they are told......Sorry, your decisions were in the minority, so they don't count. After a while these mugs puntersrealise they were mugs all along, they can't get their money back, so they don't subscribe the next year. The large amount of cash the mugs put into the scheme, and was going to the club, dries up! In their short ownership, the debt the club had when they took over, hasn't been paid, nor has the interest!
The club goes bancrupt and is sold for peanuts, to a Benevolent Saviour,or Saviours, or Company who may,or may not, have been members of the ownwership scheme, . They buy the club for pennies on the pound, the money goes to charity, The new owners declare insolvancy, or what ever they call it, and close the club and right it off as a tax loss, for their company!

But this is all Hypothetical! Otherwise somebody would have made it into a video game!

Hypothetical Situation #2-

A football team in the BSP sees its average crowd slip around 15% since it entered the League five years ago, despite steady progress and prosperous times ahead. Despite the club's potential, the apathy of the town sees gates fall further and further- 788 turn out to watch a game of professional football on a Saturday afternoon in late summer.

The club's directors, who also happen to be fans, who have tried to improve the club's financial situation at a loss to their wallets, realise they cannot sustain the dream of Conference, full-time football, a dream we have chased for years, on current attendances and level of income. They realise that if we continue to attract hundreds and not thousands to Stonebridge Road, we will find ourselves back where we started ten years ago, at the start of an amazing journey we have undergone.

They decide to approach an organisation who have a sizeable amount of money to spend, and whose approach seems long-term, well-suported and stable- if the initial interest dies out and whittles down, the club will still find itself pocketing more every year than it could perhaps hope to recieve from a sponsorship deal, if only half the members renew, or more join the scheme. Not only will this clear the club's debt and cover the finances, it will rouse interest nationwide, having been headline news worldwide. Attendances may even move up, what with the media interest AND active members of MyFC, as well as revenue from sponsorship and merchandise sales increasing.

At the cost of a little pride, you have saved what was a financial timebomb, and transformed it into an exciting, novel and promising organisation.

The idea is questionable, but as I said, I would sacrifice the orthodox approach and a slight bit of pride for the financial benefits we will reap, and above all, the extra security and reassurance that EUFC/GNFC will exist in ten years' time, at a high level. I will stick with this club no matter what, but would prefer to stick with them in League 1 than Isthmian Premier.

As for the pride, I'll feel the same pride singing on Saturday as I did against Exeter, and the same pride I felt singing against Dagenham on 28th April 2007, when we were G & N.

[Gusboll]

A good post doheochai, and you've sort of posed the whole question of what is the motivation behind all the individual MyFC members entering into this, given that:

 

There is only financial loss;

They are a small voice amongst many more;

The team will lose frequently,

There will be tears;

The team will perform,

There will be hope.

 

It's football, that's why.

[Mr England]

Originally Posted By: Newark Colin (BAFC)

At least spell the club's name right.

Please accept my apologies no offence was meant

Originally Posted By: Gusboll

Villa? Budweiser? It was all a bad idea after all!!

whats wrong with Bud?? lol

[Burnham Lad]

Originally Posted By: toddybad

I am so pleased that people are starting to see the benefits now the initial reaction has died down.

I can't promise success, I can't promise we'll get every decision right, but I can guarantee we'll do our damndest for you guys.

What's all this "you guys" - shouldn't it be "we guys" now?

[Gusboll]

Sorry Mr E but would Peter Withe be seen drinking that sort of stuff?!!

[Mackster]

Originally Posted By: Gusboll

Sorry Mr E but would Peter Withe be seen drinking that sort of stuff?!!

One of the club's motto's at Ebbsfleet that everyone has to adhere to is "Sh*t on the Villa"

You still sticking around?