The Falkirk FC Thread

[StuartA]

I’m going to be a gloomster and say that I worry that the ST sales, and excellent as they are, might create an unrealistic expectation of what we can spend. We know that money is still tight and that our opponents will start with a bigger pot of SPFL cash, especially Livi but even the other play off positioned clubs are several hundred grand ahead. And then there’s the sugar daddies. Granted, Falkirk fans collectively are our club’s sugar daddy but you get the point. A good season in the Championship and maintaining/improving gates will see us much stronger in a year though. 

[PedroMoutinho]

2 minutes ago, StuartA said:

I’m going to be a gloomster and say that I worry that the ST sales, and excellent as they are, might create an unrealistic expectation of what we can spend. We know that money is still tight and that our opponents will start with a bigger pot of SPFL cash, especially Livi but even the other play off positioned clubs are several hundred grand ahead. And then there’s the sugar daddies. Granted, Falkirk fans collectively are our club’s sugar daddy but you get the point. A good season in the Championship and maintaining/improving gates will see us much stronger in a year though. 

Don’t disagree but there is also a relationship between what we spend on the football budget and the money that comes back into the club via ticket sales, hospitality, sponsorship etc.

Of course we shouldn’t be throwing millions at a title push. But I think the opposite approach of budgeting for 8th and finishing 8th would also result in much less coming in via PATG and other income streams as we wouldn’t be winning many games.

[roman_bairn]

13 minutes ago, StuartA said:

I’m going to be a gloomster and say that I worry that the ST sales, and excellent as they are, might create an unrealistic expectation of what we can spend. We know that money is still tight and that our opponents will start with a bigger pot of SPFL cash, especially Livi but even the other play off positioned clubs are several hundred grand ahead. And then there’s the sugar daddies. Granted, Falkirk fans collectively are our club’s sugar daddy but you get the point. A good season in the Championship and maintaining/improving gates will see us much stronger in a year though. 

Totally agree with this. I also think we need to start thinking about having a small pot of cash reserves set aside for events such as a poor cup run or silly issues like ripping up plastic surfaces. 
 

We don’t have any definitive options if things go wrong for us in future, so whilst it would be fantastic to bring in more players, I think given the quality that we now have, we probably need to be thinking more in financial terms than quality terms for a while unfortunately. If we are in a position to challenge at Xmas then we can think about trying to bring in quality to get over the line, whether that’s the play offs or automatic promotion….

Edited May 30 by roman_bairn

[StuartA]

2 minutes ago, PedroMoutinho said:

Don’t disagree but there is also a relationship between what we spend on the football budget and the money that comes back into the club via ticket sales, hospitality, sponsorship etc.

Of course we shouldn’t be throwing millions at a title push. But I think the opposite approach of budgeting for 8th and finishing 8th would also result in much less coming in via PATG and other income streams as we wouldn’t be winning many games.

Yeah, that’s probably the toughest choice for the board. The higher we budget to finish (in terms of prize money) the greater the risk. And the lack of a cash buffer increases the impact of not meeting targets. Not easy at all. 

[StuartA]

9 minutes ago, roman_bairn said:

Totally agree with this. I also think we need to start thinking about having a small pot of cash reserves set aside for events such as a poor cup run or silly issues like ripping up plastic surfaces. 
 

 

That’s a massive cloud hanging over us. Hundreds of thousands not currently budgeted for, if we get near promotion. You can bet your bottom dollar they wouldn’t show any sympathy or flexibility either 

[FFC 1876]

Using Raith as a comparison as they will have had one of the bigger budgets in the league last season. They finished last season with a squad of 23 senior players(5 of which were loans)

[Bigbrbairn]

What would happen if we got 4500 season ticket sales? It would not leave a lot for PATG

[Blame Me]

As the board are aware, if budgets dictated success then clubs needn't kick a ball. 

I agree with @StuartA that we ought to be careful with the ongoing message around funding the football budget.

Inexpensively assembled squads can achieve as much as those with deep pockets and reasonably, when monied clubs underachieve fans do tend to ask either:

A) What it's spent on

B) The value of players deemed underperforming relative to their cost

Yes we must try and compete against the sugar daddies and gamblers but for me, the main message as @roman_bairn points out is we need to maintain our existence against all those factors to be able to continually do that.

[PedroMoutinho]

47 minutes ago, Blame Me said:

As the board are aware, if budgets dictated success then clubs needn't kick a ball. 

I agree with @StuartA that we ought to be careful with the ongoing message around funding the football budget.

Inexpensively assembled squads can achieve as much as those with deep pockets and reasonably, when monied clubs underachieve fans do tend to ask either:

A) What it's spent on

B) The value of players deemed underperforming relative to their cost

Yes we must try and compete against the sugar daddies and gamblers but for me, the main message as @roman_bairn points out is we need to maintain our existence against all those factors to be able to continually do that.

That’s true but there is usually a clear relationship between budgets and league finishes.

There will be teams with more funds next season, but equally there will be no Rangers, Hearts, Hibs or Dundee United able to throw millions at their squad. I think it’s right that we try and maximise the first team budget, as there is no reason we should not be able to compete well in next season’s championship.

I also think there is quite a strong financial incentive- PATG, hospitality and commercial income will benefit from competing at the top end of the league. There is also a big difference in prize money between say 2nd and 8th. Our fans have been very loyal but I can’t see us selling 3500+ STs next season if we aren’t competitive this year.

Edited May 30 by PedroMoutinho

[GunnerBairn]

1 hour ago, StuartA said:

I’m going to be a gloomster and say that I worry that the ST sales, and excellent as they are, might create an unrealistic expectation of what we can spend. We know that money is still tight and that our opponents will start with a bigger pot of SPFL cash, especially Livi but even the other play off positioned clubs are several hundred grand ahead. And then there’s the sugar daddies. Granted, Falkirk fans collectively are our club’s sugar daddy but you get the point. A good season in the Championship and maintaining/improving gates will see us much stronger in a year though. 

In money terms we could be behind. What about the non-money intangibles: squad strength, team motivation, managerial organisation, club ethos, club/fan togetherness, will to win and succeed, upward momentum. Granted that most Championship clubs also tick these boxes, but I would wager that our own levels are considerably higher at this moment in time. These intangibles could make all the difference, albeit for the lack of money. #doingittogether as saying goes.

[StuartA]

4 minutes ago, GunnerBairn said:

In money terms we could be behind. What about the non-money intangibles: squad strength, team motivation, managerial organisation, club ethos, club/fan togetherness, will to win and succeed, upward momentum. Granted that most Championship clubs also tick these boxes, but I would wager that our own levels are considerably higher at this moment in time. These intangibles could make all the difference, albeit for the lack of money. #doingittogether as saying goes.

Yeah that’s all true and I agree. My “gloomster” comment was limited to expectations related to finance.  But you’re completely correct on all other counts. The club hasn’t been as well-run or happy for as long as I can remember. 

[Harry Kinnear]

Just had an email from the club offering me the option to switch my ST from KM to the Main Stand and it confirms there will be no PATG in the KM next season.

I wondered if they would have kept some tickets back for PATG but you can’t blame them for taking the ST cash.

Edited May 30 by Harry Kinnear

[HopeStreetWalker]

5 minutes ago, GunnerBairn said:

In money terms we could be behind. What about the non-money intangibles: squad strength, team motivation, managerial organisation, club ethos, club/fan togetherness, will to win and succeed, upward momentum. Granted that most Championship clubs also tick these boxes, but I would wager that our own levels are considerably higher at this moment in time. These intangibles could make all the difference, albeit for the lack of money. #doingittogether as saying goes.

The club has to be financially prudent and not put its existence at risk. Put the best team we can on the pitch and see where it takes us. Predicting league positions and expectations is only realistic once all the teams in the league have completed the season's signings.

After first quarter of the games are played we will have a better idea where we stand.

[Springfield]

There’s no doubt we will set a record for ST sales. I aIso agree with the majority of posts that we need caution, after 5 years of miserable/mediocre shite.

However this shouldn’t be a deterrent for aiming high. I’ve seen a lot of championship games and there’s only few players that would warrant a straight walk in slot to our starting eleven. That said it doesn’t mean that we will be sitting in the top three most of the season, however I genuinely think that with a Tait resign and a couple of gems we wouldn’t be that far away. Next season will be a cracker and my only worry is Livi go daft and sign players that have are just above most of the calibre of most players in this league.

[StuartA]

I’m as susceptible as anyone of a sugar rush here. Imagine if we decide to budget for first place and all the money that brings?  We could chuck another 3-400k at the squad now, thats 4/5 high quality players. We’d skoosh it, right? 

But if it doesn’t work and we finish 8th in that utterly mental league, we’d find ourselves half a mil minimum in the hole in 12 months, which would likely have to come from the following season’s budget, making us even less competitive and likely stick-on relly favourites. It’s a genuine dilemma and there has to be an element of risk. But that has to be measured. 

[bairn88]

IMO there’ll need to be a facility next season whereby non st holders can purchase unused season tickets in the KM. 

Therell be at least 100 seats free most weeks (holidays, parties, work, cold) etc. Would be a shame for those to go empty. Hope the board are looking into it. Not sure if current online platform/APP facilitates it. 

[Bairn to Believe]

4 hours ago, Springfield said:

Incredible numbers, just hope the FSS numbers get a good number joining. Anyone got the latest membership numbers?

949 (latest count) 

[Harry Kinnear]

23 minutes ago, bairn88 said:

IMO there’ll need to be a facility next season whereby non st holders can purchase unused season tickets in the KM. 

Therell be at least 100 seats free most weeks (holidays, parties, work, cold) etc. Would be a shame for those to go empty. Hope the board are looking into it. Not sure if current online platform/APP facilitates it. 

I think this is a good idea. We usually go to hospitality 2/3 times a season and apart from the last game of the season, no one wanted our tickets. I’ve also got holidays booked end of Oct/Nov when our tickets will be available. I would be happy for the club to sell our seats if we’re not using them and make extra cash for the club.

As you say it might be something they have to look at.

[Shodwall cat]

2 minutes ago, Harry Kinnear said:

I think this is a good idea. We usually go to hospitality 2/3 times a season and apart from the last game of the season, no one wanted our tickets. I’ve also got holidays booked end of Oct/Nov when our tickets will be available. I would be happy for the club to sell our seats if we’re not using them and make extra cash for the club.

As you say it might be something they have to look at.

Yeah some kind of ticket exchange where the club can resell the ticket or even give tickets out to those who can't afford it perhaps is a must for me. 

[Super Simon]

Nobody with a brain cell in their head - and certainly no-one who has the vaguest recollection of the end of the Fulston era or Hughes exobirtant spending in his final summer as manager - would be advocating some kind of reckless cash splurge on the playing squad which, in any case., is not required. But there's a perfectly reasonable middle ground in sensible investment in improving on-field resources with the aim of, at the very least, getting a proper foothold in a league we have not been in for five years (too long). Because this "very even league, no outstanding favourite" mantra, whilst very true, cuts two ways. There is - admittedly at this still very early stage of the close-season - no team that screams "obvious relegation candidates" either, albeit you could probably make a case of sorts for two or three clubs if pushed (but I won't mention them by name as their Falkirk-obsessed fanbases will come running on here and that's the last thing needed) The equilibrium stretches, to a fairly high degree, top to bottom and that means that some clubs are going to have to struggle and at least one drop out altogether.

There is an upward momentum and feelgood factor about the club. The backing from the supporters is, as always, utterly ridiculous, unparalleled anywhere else in the country. We have a manager whose main strengths lie more in the recruitment and man management side. If now is not the time to show some ambition of the non-reckless type, it never, ever will be.