Pat's backing builds momentum

Terry Casey

Having Pat Gallagher supporting and endorsing the building of the new stadium has given the whole project more than just money, it has given it the credibility and momentum that will ultimately result in Maidstone United FC at last playing its matches in Maidstone.

Pat is renowned locally as an immensely successful businessman and captain of industry and this latest gesture is just another example of Pat Gallagher's overwhelming generosity towards the people of the town.

Pat has already given a great of time and thought to the construction of the new stadium and he has pledged his continuing support and expertise.

We are now taking significant strides forward and are looking at a fund that has now reached £1,000,000. We are still a long way short but with your help buying seats and bricks I am now, for the first time, convinced that we will make the target and build the stadium.

KCC Highways have agreed to sell the club the land bank that adjoins our site in Whatman Way, which gives our design engineers more space for the east stand to be situated. It's good news like that which makes up for the problems encountered with the MOD securing the freehold. Being involved in Maidstone United is a bit like being on a roller coaster.

As the fund for the stadium build is entirely separate from the day to day running of the football club, proceeds from the lottery will enable the club to trade solvently for the 2011/2012 season. Please try to persuade just five of your friends and family to join the lottery as this will mean that the football club can pay its way for the first time in many years.

Andy Ford and Steve Butler should have been the “dream ticket” for Maidstone United FC. Not only were they highly experienced they also worked tirelessly in trying to get the team out of the relegation places. If effort and commitment were the only qualities required then Andy and Steve would have seen us to safety but sadly it seems that there are many factors that govern success in football management. I want to thank Andy and Steve for the time, loyalty and effort that they gave to the club while they were in charge.

I know it is clearly early days but Bill and I have been very impressed with the conduct of Jay Saunders and whilst any decision about next season won’t be taken for some time Jay has already demonstrated many qualities that suggest he understands how to get the best out of fellow professionals.

Bourne again

Terry Casey

The move back to Sittingbourne in some ways might seem like a backward step but there were numerous factors behind the decision.

We have not been able to be too detailed about the move up until now because the Ryman League only met last week to ratify the proposal and we did not want to pre-judge their decision.

Whilst the move to Ashford was one that I initially agreed with it soon became obvious to me that the distance and the location of Homelands meant that playing on the outskirts of Ashford could never work. The facilities at Ashford were an improvement on Bourne Park but its location, so far away from the town, has asked too much of the club and its loyal supporters. Whatever happens in the future another season at Homelands would have meant that the attendances would have dropped even further.

We looked at Chatham and Sittingbourne and would have liked to re-locate to Chatham but the ground would require a great deal of money spent on it to bring it up to the grading required for Ryman Premier. I have been assuming that Maidstone United will not get relegated as it is certainly not part of my business plan!

We then went back to Andy Spice at Sittingbourne and he was prepare to offer a very competetive rent as he was keen to get the Stones supporters back to his club house. The hoped income from bar and food sales at Ashford never materialised so to let our landlords at Sittingbourne have these takings is no loss to us. I also feel that because of the much closer proximity of Bourne Park we might, if we start to win some matches, add 50/100 to the gate.

Bill and I have completed our presentations to local businesses and the next couple of weeks will determine whether this route will enable us raise the funding for the stadium. We are looking at all options regarding the fundraising and whilst a number of the responses are positive it has become clear that, in the current economic climate, raising £1.6m will be a lot to ask.

The weather is snow joke

Oliver Ash

It looks like we’re already into the ‘match postponed’ season and we’re still in November.

This is bad news for everybody: we lose receipts from matches when cash-flow is tight, the fans get frustrated and travelling to and from matches is tough. I’m planning to come over from France for Saturday’s game against Tonbridge but with the weather warnings this may not be possible. Our commercial strategy meeting may have to be postponed too which is also bad news as we need to start raising commercial revenues as soon as possible.

Of course it’s tempting to dream that if we had an artificial pitch it would all be different, that despite the snow we’d be the only show in town, playing in front of huge crowds of football-starved spectators, generating much needed regular revenues….but the case is still unproven on that one.

However plans for the new ground are progressing and we’re nearly at the stage where we can put a precise cost to the plan. When that happens we will be able to go to investors with a precise proposal for them to join the party. So hopefully we’ll know where we stand on all that by Christmas time. We will of course keep you posted.

In the meantime please remember we depend totally on your support. Just think that in a month of snow-disrupted matches we still have to pay the running costs which amount to about £15,000!

That’s why every £10 on match day, every bit of merchandise, every drink consumed at Homelands, all help the bottom line and show us that enough of you care about keeping the show on the road.

The deficits should disappear when we get the ground built, that’s still the number one priority and, less than two months after the takeover, we’re still on schedule.

Grounds for optimism

Oliver Ash

I did enjoy the game on Saturday although the result was not as good as we had all hoped it would be.

There was a good atmosphere about Homelands in the sunshine and it was tempting to dream of picking up the marvellous main stand and dropping it onto Whatman Way.

As for the team - well you could see the effort was there and that was reassuring; we were unlucky although we didn’t take our chances, particularly in the first half. As for the referee the less said the better……

Thank you to all of you supporters who came forward with their best wishes for Terry, Bill and me. Your support is what we need right now because we are going into the heart of the season with a tremendous amount of work to do on and off the field.

Please come to Ashford and support the team every time you can and bring along as many friends and family as possible. Let’s keep up the positive atmosphere, it’s good for all concerned.

Meanwhile we’re starting to work on the future. The various plans you’ve been hearing about are going to take shape over the next few weeks. Nothing is really set in stone yet, we’ll be taking our time to decide exactly how to: 1. Raise further funds for the ground building, 2. Get you, the supporters, involved more fully in the club through an issue of shares.

Don’t worry if things aren’t clear yet or readymade, please be patient.  We’re doing our utmost to achieve our aims as soon as possible and we’ll try and keep you informed as to decisions.

Thanks again for your support!