Sons' sorrow

[FifeSons]

Wasn't there a bizarre thing last season where the club didn't actually mention the word 'relegation' for ages??

[FifeSons]

Remember, guys, its all about the continuity. Montrose and Arbroath did it, so that means it'll work for us, too! 

[Bring Back Paddy Flannery]

@FifeSons brought up the Trust Rep in the match thread and I think it’s a fair thing to bring up. How often do we actually hear from her? I’m assuming she spoke/gave some sort of update at the recent AGM but communication is minimal. I actually forget at times that she’s there to represent supporters, she almost just blends into the background like the rest of them, she certainly doesn’t come across as being in her current position for the fans benefit. I fully appreciate there are things she can’t disclose but surely a basic update or some communication from her is the least we should expect? Our previous rep was fantastic, done a shit load of work and we always seemed to be in the loop. They were also heavily involved with footballing decisions that were made so I’d assume she’s had plenty of input on things like retaining our failure of a manager and then extending his contract. 

How long will she stay in her position? Do other members of the Trust get a chance to assume such a position if the Trust feel the current arrangement isn’t working? 

[O'Kelly Isley III]

2 minutes ago, Bring Back Paddy Flannery said:

@FifeSons brought up the Trust Rep in the match thread and I think it’s a fair thing to bring up. How often do we actually hear from her? I’m assuming she spoke/gave some sort of update at the recent AGM but communication is minimal. I actually forget at times that she’s there to represent supporters, she almost just blends into the background like the rest of them, she certainly doesn’t come across as being in her current position for the fans benefit. I fully appreciate there are things she can’t disclose but surely a basic update or some communication from her is the least we should expect? Our previous rep was fantastic, done a shit load of work and we always seemed to be in the loop. They were also heavily involved with footballing decisions that were made so I’d assume she’s had plenty of input on things like retaining our failure of a manager and then extending his contract. 

How long will she stay in her position? Do other members of the Trust get a chance to assume such a position if the Trust feel the current arrangement isn’t working? 

There is due to be an election of the Trust Director this year.  As a member of the Trust Board I'm not going to get into any performance reviews here but I absolutely acknowledge the points you are making, and for the record there was no update from our Director at the recent AGM.

Any member of the Trust can put themselves forward for election as Trust rep on the club Board, and whilst I agree with your opinion of the very considerable efforts and achievements of our previous Director the fact that they felt obliged to step down is an indicator of how difficult and demanding a role this is to fulfill.

[Bring Back Paddy Flannery]

9 minutes ago, O'Kelly Isley III said:

and for the record there was no update from our Director at the recent AGM.

Jeez louise, I’d have thought that was one the absolute basic requirements of a board member who has been put in said position to represent the Trust. 

[O'Kelly Isley III]

8 minutes ago, Bring Back Paddy Flannery said:

Jeez louise, I’d have thought that was one the absolute basic requirements of a board member who has been put in said position to represent the Trust. 

That was the Trust Director's personal call, and the Trust Chairman and myself addressed the AGM with input from the Treasurer and others.

[Greenmachine]

43 minutes ago, Bring Back Paddy Flannery said:

Jeez louise, I’d have thought that was one the absolute basic requirements of a board member who has been put in said position to represent the Trust. 

If what is happening at Dumbarton was happening to a local league club in England the local MP would be all over it.

 

[O'Kelly Isley III]

24 minutes ago, Greenmachine said:

If what is happening at Dumbarton was happening to a local league club in England the local MP would be all over it.

 

When you say 'what is happening at Dumbarton' what exactly do you mean, as there is a huge distinction between the club's purchase and subsequent ownership by a company which currently has no Directors and the internal workings of the Supporters Trust which is what was being discussed.

[Greenmachine]

18 minutes ago, O'Kelly Isley III said:

When you say 'what is happening at Dumbarton' what exactly do you mean, as there is a huge distinction between the club's purchase and subsequent ownership by a company which currently has no Directors and the internal workings of the Supporters Trust which is what was being discussed.

I mean with the ownership.

Edited May 10, 2023 by Greenmachine

[O'Kelly Isley III]

6 minutes ago, Greenmachine said:

I mean with the ownership.

In that case I agree !

[Greenmachine]

2 minutes ago, O'Kelly Isley III said:

In that case I agree !

Is there any possibility of getting local politicians involved?

[The Moonster]

21 minutes ago, Greenmachine said:

Is there any possibility of getting local politicians involved?

Jackie will roll herself out to the paper when things go south saying its terrible and something should be done. Saving DFC isn't a vote winner for these folk. 

[Boghead ranter]

Stevie's loyal servants are starting to appear on the fans Facebook group.

[Jordo1872]

2 minutes ago, Boghead ranter said:

Stevie's loyal servants are starting to appear on the fans Facebook group.

The first one isn’t wrong to be fair. Cognitive Capital are a company with no directors, headed by a banned director and all round crook in Andy Hosie, who are currently in breach of the Companies Act. They (He) are, by every measure, the root of all issues currently facing the club.

None of which distracts from the fact that the manager needs to go. The bigger picture however is that until we oust the current owner we are on a rudderless ship being blown towards the rocks.

[Boghead ranter]

5 minutes ago, Jordo1872 said:

The first one isn’t wrong to be fair. Cognitive Capital are a company with no directors, headed by a banned director and all round crook in Andy Hosie, who are currently in breach of the Companies Act. They (He) are, by every measure, the root of all issues currently facing the club.

None of which distracts from the fact that the manager needs to go. The bigger picture however is that until we oust the current owner we are on a rudderless ship being blown towards the rocks.

Yeah, but in the ENTIRE post, there is nothing mentioned that Farrell may have ANYTHING to do with the way the team has performed.

Owner's fault? Aye. Board's fault? Aye. Players' fault? Aye.

Manager's fault? No. And he didn't get us to fail deliberately (which I agree with).

Edited May 10, 2023 by Boghead ranter

[FifeSons]

1 hour ago, The Moonster said:

Jackie will roll herself out to the paper when things go south saying its terrible and something should be done. Saving DFC isn't a vote winner for these folk. 

Didn't the politicians come out the woodwork when we made the Challenge Cup final? I'm sure I remember one of them getting called out on it on Twitter.

[Thommo90]

as much as the off field carry on is a concern, we need to stop blaming it for the performance on the pitch

 

[Thommo90]

Why is the fan of the year blaming the budget for our performance on the pitch?

[O'Kelly Isley III]

3 hours ago, The Moonster said:

Jackie will roll herself out to the paper when things go south saying its terrible and something should be done. Saving DFC isn't a vote winner for these folk. 

You might be surprised Moonster.  Putting any politics aside Jackie Baillie has been extremely supportive of the Trust and all those who want the best for DFC - that includes phone calls, personal meetings and Zoom calls on a number of related issues.  We've also had good support from a couple of local councillors on matters I won't go into here.

I said at the Trust AGM that a lot of what we are involved in flies below the radar, it's how it has to be.  It's a tiring time-consuming grind and at times I wish we had never left Boghead.

But we did, and the fight goes on.  

[BallochSonsFan]

2 hours ago, Boghead ranter said:

Stevie's loyal servants are starting to appear on the fans Facebook group.

 

The top right part of your multi image post is correct:

- Farrell didnt avoid promotion. His team weren't good enough to secure promotion and he had a massive part in that as the manager.

- There are some legitimate questions that can be asked of some players. Not just based on last night's performance.

- The owner is a huge part of the problem. We can't raise capital in a way that will dilute Cognitive's shareholding (not that we'd be likely to do so right now). Cognitive have previously made it difficult to appoint board members. We saw 3 very committed individuals walk away because they simply couldn't deal with Cognitive.

- An Andy Hosie linked company welched on £35k of sponsorship cash. Thats a fair bit of money at our level. Thats an indication of how little Cognitive bring to the table in terms of funding/supporting the club.

We do need a strong supporters trust. There may well come a point in time when we need to take action to save the club from oblivion. A strong supporters trust can call on the talents of the fanbase, and we do have some very talented fans with a range of professional skills and experience. A strong supporters trust can organise and mobilise the fans. We might not be at that point yet, but there may well come a time when it's needed and the stronger the trust is then the more effective it can be. The club faces a threat from an unscrupulous owner. It faces a threat from a chairman who looks out of his depth. The last thing we need is for the club to face a threat from supporter apathy. Thats not a call for fans to stump up money - it's a personal choice regarding season tickets and at this point in time I'm not going to Saturday's farce of a fixture. But a huge risk is that fans feel that they've been bitten once too often and simply shrug the club out of existence.

Push comes to shove and I suspect that fans would focus if we ever did have to press the nuclear button, but we need a strong supporters trust before we ever get to the nuclear stage.