Trust meeting with Fulham CEO, March, 2015
On March 3rd four of the Trust Board (Gerry Claydon, Dan Crawford, Mike Gregg and Neil Springate) met with Alistair Mackintosh (AM, Chief Executive Officer), Sarah Brookes (SB, Communications and Marketing Director), Huw Jennings (HJ, Academy Director) and Weronika Abramowicz (WA, Sponsorship & Corporate Sales Director) from Fulham FC at the Club’s headquarters, Motspur Park.
1) Under-18s and under-21s teams
It had been noted that the Twitter feeds for the commentaries on some matches for the under-18 and under-21 teams had not been in ‘real time’. SB said that this was not acceptable for our fans and would be remedied.
HJ was asked when do FFC anticipate appointing a new U18 manager? HJ said that Vic Bettinelli had done well and would continue in post until the end of the current season. The set-up within the Academy would be re-assessed in time for the 2015-2016 season.
2) Season ticket pricing for 2015-2016
The Trust believed that the prices should stay more or less the same, assuming that the Club remained in the Championship. Any increase of more than 5-10%, which would be considerably more than the rate of inflation for the previous 12 months, would prompt a negative reaction from the fans. A season ticket price reduction, along the lines of the previous season’s ‘Early Bird’ deal would be welcome, as would better pricing options against teams who would be considered ‘unattractive opposition’.
3) Riverside Stand re-development
The granting of a 2nd River Works Licence relating to construction methods and use of the river during the construction phase to the Club by the Port of London Authority was issued in early February 2015. This could still be subject to review which would be unwelcome.
4) Mike Rigg’s employment and the definition of his role
AM said that Mike Rigg had started work at the Club. His role would be as stated previously by the Chairman, Shahid Khan, in his on-line piece and programme notes of December, 2014, to act as a head of all football activities, reporting directly to the Chairman, and to collaborate with existing staff on aspects such as sports science, scouting, the short, mid and long-term product on the pitch, academy development and recruitment.
5) Financial Fair Play
The Trust had noted that the constraints of Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules were a cause for concern among our fans and, again, urged the Club to make a formal statement on its website. AM said that the Club had reservations about the content of any statement with regard to its business plan, but that they would ask the Football League (FL) if they had a document on FFP available and would circulate it.
6) Club accreditation as a living wage employer
AM said that this was being investigated, but formal accreditation had yet to be requested.
7) Visibility of plasma screens at Craven Cottage
The trust enquired whether it would be possible to install say four plasma screens under the eaves of the JH roof so that the facility to see replays is extended to Rows J and above. AM thought this unlikely, due to the internal construction of the roof and whether it could support sufficiently large screens in order that they would be visible.
8) Future design of playing kit
The Trust asked whether there would be the possibility of input from the fans on the design of next season’s kit? SB said that the kits for the forthcoming season had been decided upon.
9) Arrival of spectators at Craven Cottage
Following the Trust’s survey in January indicating that the majority of spectators arrived at Craven Cottage within 15 minutes of the kick off, SB said that no further decisions had been taken with regard to measures to induce earlier attendance, although this would be reviewed.
All members will have received a longer version covering the points above.
