Can it really be a full year since I took over the reins at the Supporters Club? It has certainly been a busy year with many challenges to face and I am delighted to present to our membership my first Chairmans’ Report.
Looking back a year we were at a very low point and seemingly in open revolt with the Football Club with much of this being done publicly. I gave a firm commitment at the last AGM that this would not be repeated under my leadership and I am glad to report that this pledge has been kept. Our relationship with the Football Club has improved no end and we are in constant dialogue with them on a wide range of issues. It was particularly pleasing to receive an offer of free coach travel to the games at Scunthorpe United and Leyton Orient which many supporters took up and I can confirm that we are in talks over this offer being repeated to an away fixture this season.
It is even more pleasing to be able to announce an increase in membership of 25% during the 2021/22 season and a further increase of 20% (to date) during this season, and I thank each new or returning member very much.
One of the most pressing tasks when I took over was getting directors to the Football Club appointed again as we had spent far too long without a presence in the boardroom. Both Helen Wigmore and Steven Lamble have taken on this demanding role. It is very pleasing that they have been received very well and play a full part at board level. I am extremely grateful to both of them for taking this role on and I look forward to our relationship with the Football Club going from strength to strength in the future.
Our most ambitious project in the last year was our Caps Initiative. This has led to us purchasing a Cap for every player who has represented Bristol Rovers in a league game and is the brainchild of Keith Brookman. To date we have presented the first 26 caps and we are grateful to the Former Players Association for allowing us to present Caps at their recent Annual Dinner. Keep an eye on our website for full details of future presentations. Supporters are able to sponsor the Cap of their favourite player.
Upon hearing of the health problems experienced by Nick Anderton we took the decision to offer sponsorship of his Cap to all supporters irrespective of how much they felt able to give, and all the money raised will be passed to Nick. Everyone connected to the Supporters Club is extremely grateful for every single donation
By far our biggest challenge this year turned out to be our membership renewals. This exercise uncovered a multitude of problems with our database, now thankfully resolved but it did lead to some membership cards posting being delayed and I apologise to anyone affected by this. My thanks go to Steven Lamble for the enormous job of work he did in resolving this.
I made reference to our Away Travel operations above and I am pleased to be able to report that we continue to offer coach travel to every first team away fixture (excluding Papa John’s Trophy games). Exorbitant increases in fuel prices have been a challenge and we have worked with Eagle Coaches to keep costs down. My thanks go to our Away Travel Rep Leanne Hawkins for the brilliant job she does; there is a lot more to the role than is visible to coach travellers I can assure you.
The Club’s move to a Cashless Stadium has also been a challenge especially to our loyal band of programme and 50/50 sellers who have had to embrace the new technology and I am glad to say that we appear to be over the teething problems we faced at first. My thanks go to our sellers who stand out there in all weathers at every game; each one of them is a real hero. We always need new sellers to complement our existing ones and to enable us to cover more areas of the stadium. If you fancy having a go please make yourself known at our matchday cabin. You won’t be turned away I promise you.
Jamie Howarth is our matchday organiser and I would like to pay tribute to the outstanding job he does in organising us. Our matchday operations have gone from strength to strength under Jamie. It is not just getting the programmes and 50/50 tickets to our sellers but there is a retail operation and friendly welcome from both Jamie and Janet in our cabin too.
While I am recognising the roles of others it would be wrong of me not to thank the Executive Committee for their support. Each one of them has a specific role and The Supporters Clubs’ work would be incomplete without any of them. I am particularly indebted to our Officers,Helen Wigmore and Keith Brookman whose wise counsel and sheer hard work makes my role so much easier.
On the social side we want to promote events that bring supporters together. Our first Skittles evening was a success and will be repeated and our Quiz Nights will resume once we find a cost effective venue.
Our sponsorship of the Gas Girls continues (to the tune of £8,000 again this year) and is now into its fourth season. It has been extremely rewarding to see the project grow – not just in the results on the pitch but their work in the community too through our Community Trust. Our sponsorship money actually goes towards free football sessions for girls at Lockleaze Sports Centre who may otherwise have no access to football. We were delighted to be able to treat the girls with free coach travel to Old Traffotd to watch the Lionesses’ opening game of the recent Euros. If you haven’t yet seen them play I can recommend you having a look – you won’t be disappointed by the standard of football I can assure you.
We continue to provide support to the Football Club and have recently made a significant financial contribution to repairing the wall that runs behind our Matchday cabin. If you have any ideas that you think might benefit the Supporters Club or, indeed, the Football Club, please get in touch and if you feel you have something to offer our committee by way of practical help then we are always welcome to discuss matters with us. We are continually looking at ways of generating revenue and thank the retail sub committee for their work so far.
Thank you for your support.
David Thomas
Chair
Bristol Rovers Supporters Club