TheFarPost

It was just an indicative straw poll, but it matches all the (considerable) feedback we've had. The questions were: * From what you have heard so far, do you currently have confidence in the plans to relocate DFC? (Nobody said 'aye). * Do you support the Sonstrust in seeking to ensure that plans are really credible before you can have any confidence in them? (Almost everybody said 'aye. Around 150 present.) We deliberately didn't ask "for or against", because at the moment it still isn't clear what we'd be for or against -- for that we need proper business plans for staying or relocating. Ones which set out the costs, liabilities, risks and required income streams on both options, such that a reasonable comparison can be made. Plus, of course, we need to know that the relocation can be financed, and what ongoing costs it would involve. I'll do a summary of what I said for the trust website shortly, and we'll do a mailing round. Meanwhile. thanks for the incredible support. We had a stack of trust sign-ups. As of right now we need just one more to break our all-time record (357) and then motor on to over 400. Any volunteers?! Pls PM me here! Cheers, Simon

LATEST: "Dumbarton Football Club fans demand answers on new stadium plans" http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/local-news/dumbarton-football-club-fans-demand-10219859 The Lennox picks up our response to Ian Wilson. There should be a small bit in the Reporter, too. OK, energy now focussed on Saturday. Two important results we need (1) More members for the trust, (2) beating the Pars! 'Aye, Simon

Tell you what - I'll get you your draw and match ticket for Tannadice; you let me have your holiday in Majorca. Then you don't have to be gutted. Problem solved! PS. Don't fret, I can still do the usual match summary from the beach...

Correct. Getting that verified by a senior tax accountant. Simon

In an entirely unrelated piece of news, I have just had to explain to my wife what a "cockwomble" is. (Thankfully, she didn't look at me and then take a wild guess...)

I'm afraid I'm tempted to suggest that there's a pretty simple answer to those perfectly valid and reasonable observations and questions. In shorthand, "the Murdoch press". (Did I say that? Of course not...) Anyway, we've tweeted our response to the journalist concerned, and I'm talking to people I know close to (but not part of) the paper concerned to see if there's background on this piece which is worth knowing. I wouldn't have thought that the Scottish Sun will be doing any further digging behind the rhetoric themselves, but we'll see. It's worth remembering that other nationals have already covered DFC's offshore ownership, and indeed that is where the renewed interest from the Reporter came from -- we've simply been responding appropriately as a trust. So while one paper has run what is effectively a "puff piece" (https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/puff_piece), there are plenty of others that retain an interest and won't be wasting their breath on puffing as the story develops. Which it will. As to what the comments in this piece are supposed to be achieving for their protagonist... well, your guess is as good as mine. (As has been said many times by many wise people in the past: "the facts are out there." And while there are people who care enough* to make sure that the right influencers / decision makers attend to the facts, they won't go away...) Simon *That's us fans, by the way.

Thanks for this. Couldn't find it when the trust's response was posted earlier today. We'll link it. I notice that it's open for comments at present.

Here's a couple of screenshots from the Scottish Sun article. Bit too late for a 'trigger warning', I'm afraid.... ;)

We're happy to be level-headed and respectful, because that's what we are. If it's not reciprocated, that's a telling comment about those not doing the reciprocating. As to the remarks we're responding to. Er, they're not exactly a masterclass in "how to win friends and influence people", are they? Nor do they immediately seem to evidence the balanced judgement you'd hope for from someone heading up a major development involving a significant community facility... (Well, that's what someone said to me this morning. I couldn't possibly comment.) Simon

A straight Red for anyone who comes up with the "he'll probably let them slip through his fingers" line...

Here is the other article on DFC ownership in the Reporter this week: http://www.dumbartonreporter.co.uk/news/15188738.Key_Dumbarton_FC_investor_avoids_Bankruptcy_Court_date_after_paying_out_of_court_settlement_to_HMRC/?ref=ar And the Lennox Herald on the identity of our owners (with a large quote from the trust on this again): http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/local-news/sons-fans-say-investors-should-10115477

We're already talking. But if DFC held an AGM it would offer all shareholders (not just the trust) further reassurance and an opportunity to put questions to the owners, and also improve the club's standing with supporters and the community. We see this as a benefit all round.

Just to say that as a trust (that is, an organisation for and of the fans) we've done *much* more than "get Wilson to finally (sort of) engage with the fans". We've got a public promise of ending the offshore relationship; we've held two meetings in public about the issues involved; we've been pushing the voice of fans and the need for verifiable plans and transparency in the local press every week for the past two months (and we've been in the nationals too); we've been liaising with all parties constantly (and behind the scenes for the last three years, not just recently, by the way). And there is more coming... We are on this. And we are not letting go until we get the right outcome: a verifiably sustainable future for the club and a proper stake for fans in that. In particular, on the secrecy of some Brabco directors, the identity and interest of those who own DFC (and every football club) should be publicly known. Without that there can be no 'due diligence' and no 'ft and proper persons' scrutiny.

Latest from the Reporter this week on questions to Ian Wilson and Brabco. There has subsequently been a statement from them and a response from us, linked in my post above. Simon

There is a further statement from Ian Wilson about stadium relocation plans, questions from the Dumbarton Reporter, and the challenge from Jackie Baillie MSP here: https://www.dumbartonfootballclub.com/news/?mode=view&id=2930 My response on behalf of the Sonstrust, pressing further on all these issues, is here: https://sonstrust.wordpress.com/2017/03/22/trust-response-to-dfc-owners-update/ Simon

Thanks for that support; appreciated -- and thanks for your thoughtful ideas and comments, and those of others around here here. If we work together as supporters and as a trust I believe we can ensure the sustainability of the club, a greater stakeholding for fans, and a viable future. What we need now are grounded plans for the future of DFC, not flights of fancy. There will be no relenting from the Sonstrust until that happens. And, as I've said before, I know the chairman, our trust director (who works bloody hard!) and the vice-chairman want the best for DFC too. So we have the same aims.

Absolutely. The combination of anxiety and depression which seem to be at play here, reading between the lines, can be crippling - especially in a sport which is pretty macho and can be unforgiving towards vulnerability in its competitive culture. Hope Stevo finds peace and happiness again.

Correct. That's what we are working on getting. Without it, there can be no confidence in the development from our POV, and indeed a failure of transparency could also bring out more unfavourable information and imperil the project - something which the developers still don't seem fully aware of at the moment. On the other hand, if they have (or can demonstrate the capacity to develop) a plan based on a solid business case and evidence, and are prepared to allow us and the non-Brabco DFC directors in on it in a reasonable and sensible way, then things could look very different.

As a trust we are pressing for comparable business plans for DFC both relocating and staying. The issue is what is in the best interests of the club moving forward: what will make for sustainability and the best chance of success in the future? That has to be judged in solid business terms, involving in-depth local knowledge, and we want to be able to see what is going on and contribute ideas and possibilities -- including what gets discussed here. I'm not necessary going to get involved in discussing even detail on PnB (I haven't got time, and I'm not always the best person to comment!).... But what you say *is* noticed. I also know that, while we may not see eye-to-eye on absolutely everything, the club chairman and other non-Brabco directors are committed to the flourishing of DFC, as we are. Regarding Brabco, now on the threshold of ending their offshore arrangement we are told, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. They want a return on their investment. No problem with that -- provided that it happens in a way that supports rather than undermines the club moving forward. How will we know if that is the case? By getting to see the business modelling in detail, on reasonable terms of commercial confidentiality (but no gagging of the Sonstrust and the fans). That's what we're talking about at the moment...

The Sonstrust (which is, or can be YOU) has the clear aim of buying into the club long term. We are willing to work in genuine partnership with the current owners or any other potential investors on the right terms. That is, terms that secure the safety and flourishing of DFC as a viable, community club. We're not yet in a position yet to contemplate full fan ownership, and that may or may not be the right model for us, but we *are* moving into a position to significantly increase our stakeholding and influence, building on what has already been achieved recently (not least the success is persuading Brabco to bring their operations onshore - the fulfilment of which promise we will monitor very carefully). We are talking informally to potential investors who might be prepared to join us in that, of course. Anne Budge at Hearts has shown how private investors who really care about a team can work with fans to the long term good of those who really love their clubs and want them run to benefit supporters and the community. That's the kind of partnership model that, wearing my hat as the chair of the Scottish Football Supporters Association (http://scottishfsa.org/reclaimthegame/), as well as being an officer of the Sonstrust and our negotiator with the DFC owners, I'm really wanting to help build. In other words, the days of fans looking for "magical investors", who will somehow take over the from a current lot we don't like and put it all right, should be put firmly into the past. That's one of the things that's repeatedly gone wrong in football. The answer to the question of 'what next?' should be *us*, working with whoever can help our club be truly sustainable and grow its base of commitment and support. Football clubs at our level are small businesses which *can* be run sustainably and well, involving fans and other investors of competence and goodwill. They're not, and never should be, cash-cows that will make someone rich. People who think they can make a mint out of a small football club are dangerous.

The success of our pressure to get Brabco to come onshore has been noted by the nationals - this from the Herald: http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/15163429.Tax_haven_owners_of_Dumbarton_FC_vow_to_bring_shareholding_back_onshore/

Here's the 'stadium latest' from the Lennox Herald: http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/local-news/sons-set-date-stadium-plan-10033101#ICID=sharebar_twitter (This is the fourth date we've been given for the submission of a formal planning application over the past two+ years, by the way.)

This from the Sport pages of this week's Reporter. It's important to know that the Sonstrust and Dumbarton fans have wide and deep support as we engage with the DFC owners to make sure that anything that happens is demonstrably in the interests of the club we love. (That includes media and political support, as well as within the game.) Some of you may not know that I co-founded the Scottish Football Supporters Association with Paul Goodwin (formerly of SD) around 18 months ago, and am chair at the moment. Indeed, some of you may still not have heard of SFSA - Scotland's first autonomous national fans' body! Well, you do now! Joining is FREE. http://scottishfsa.org/reclaimthegame/ We have 66,000+ individual and affiliate members now, and we're aiming at 100k by the end of the year. We've been lobbying the football authorities on a range of issues fans care about, we are developing a 'rate your club' system to press for improvements in fan experience, we have community projects on the go, a manifesto ('Transforming Scottish Football') and more. Really importantly, aside from the cut-throat competition on the field (!), we can coordinate fan pressure to support one another in ensuring that the game is better run etc. from top to bottom. Anyway, forgive the self-plug, but as what's going on at DFC illustrates, there are real gains from standing together. Cheers, Simon

OK, here's the full page from the Reporter news section -- including a comment from the trust, of course. Getting Brabco to come onshore is a major 'win' for us as an organised, effective supporters' group. But it hasn't happened yet. We will be on top of this every step of the way. And we plan to get even bigger, even better organised and event more effective. For which we need your membership, support and involvement. The trust and the fans will do everything in our power to secure a good future for this club. So will the club chairman, the trust DFC director, and the other non-Brabco directors, I know. It's now up to Brabco, and especially Ian Wilson, to demonstrate their good faith and their capacity to deliver in a way that's credible and sustainable for the club and fans, as well as remunerative for them as developers. Simon

Wanting a full-time team, being able to pay for it, and making it self-sustaining long term are three different things, in short. And if you don't pay for it, you don't really want it. (That's leaving aside all the legitimate questions about what it would actually mean for a club like DFC, of course.)