Getting the right result - on and off the pitch

Oliver Ash

I have been physically absent from the club these past few weeks but thanks to internet and other wonders of modern life like the telephone I still feel totally connected. Meanwhile I am happy to allow Terry and Bill to deal with the hard grind of managing our business.

On the field there has been a late surge of quality and passion which has given us the hope we can stay up. All we should worry about is winning on Saturday and hoping Hastings slip up. But even if they do, it will be no good to us if we haven't beaten Hornchurch, so we have to focus solely on that. I hope it's a good omen that my rugby team Brive has managed to escape relegation after a very stressful battle.

Chris Bechervaise asked me for comments on off-field activities for the live radio show on Saturday but instead I'll update you here (hope you don't mind Chris).

Wwe are indeed making good progress with the stadium project in that we have identified various sources for the additional funds to be raised (Football Foundation grant, other third party loan, loan from synthetic pitch company, etc.).

We are optimistic enough on all these possibilities to push ahead with working on revisions to planning permission, ecology studies, preparing to put in electricity to the site, purchasing the freehold of the site and the land bank above it, etc.

We are in constant discussions with our engineers, building companies and turf companies to get a clearer picture of costings and timings. We should be in a position to make an announcement in more detail in the next few weeks.

And of course, last but not least, we are still counting on a significant contribution (£100.000 target) from the supporters because: 1. We do need this additional piece of the total funding jigsaw; 2. It will be a good symbol if the supporters contribution 'builds' the clubhouse, which they will use and enjoy; 3. It will show us that the supporters are also making a very significant effort and we're not on our own doing something crazy that others don't care enough about. So please go for it and make this push for the club.

Good luck to Jay and the boys for Saturday.

Powering our homecoming

Terry Casey

Over the last two weeks we have taken some significant strides to the building of a new stadium. We have commissioned an ecological study at a cost of 20k and we are proceeding with the installation of an electricity sub-station at a cost of 68k.

Because our target is to play our first match on the Whatman Way site in August 2012 these two elements of the construction had to be in place so that ground works can begin in September or October this year.

Oliver, Bill and I are constantly looking at ways that will enable us to reach the target of £1.5 million.  We are feeling more confident now that we have taken the plunge to take these early steps into the construction of the stadium. Another deciding factor was a conversation I had with Barry Fry who said he would give us a pre-season friendly in August 2012 and bring the Peterborough first team to Maidstone. I am reluctant to let this opportunity slip.

We were further encouraged by the news that we have agreed terms for securing the freehold to the land at Whatman Way, which was causing us some concern as the MOD solicitors were putting a number of restrictions on the use of the site which we could not agree to. The purchase of the freehold, the ecological study and the sub-station will require an investment of more than 100k, which demonstrates that we are absolutely serious about our intentions to build the stadium.

It has not been all positive however as we have received a bill from HMRC for 23k of unpaid VAT which we have inherited from previous years of mismanagement. We will have to deal problem promptly or face some serious consequences. 

We also have a problem for the 2011/2012 season as we are forecasting another loss which will, unless we get some help, bite into the money that Oliver and I can invest into the building of the stadium. Please help us with this short term problem by joining the club lottery which will be our main method of raising money. If each person reading this can sell just two monthly lottery tickets the club can make enough money so that the management of the team can attract a squad that we can be proud of. Bill Williams and I have a target of 20 tickets each and we have almost reached our target after just a couple of weeks. Please do your best as it will help us through the next 12 months.

We are putting together a number of packages that we are hoping to attract local businesses to help with both the short term requirements of the club and also the longer term needs of the building of the stadium. These will be advertising and sponsorship packages and there will be something for all local businessmen looking to raise their profile. A significant factor for anybody advertising through Maidstone United Football Club is the immense support that we are getting from The Kent Messenger who will be covering every single stage of the building of the stadium. Any local businesses who sponsor the return of the team to Maidstone will get enormous press and media coverage.

The selling of the bricks and the seats are going to be crucial to the BTSH fund as we have set them a daunting target of 100k which will enable us to build a clubhouse on the Whatman Way site. Please continue to send in your money as the fund still has a long way to go.

I am told we have the support of the Mayor and the local council. We have the support of our local MP, Helen Grant, and we even have the support of the Minister for Sport, Hugh Robertson. There has not been one person who has said what we are trying to achieve will do anything but good for the community of Maidstone. If that support could be translated into practical or financial support then our path to the completion of the stadium will be made easier. The fact is that whoever gets involved will benefit a town that is desperate to watch semi-professional football in its home town and a community of hundreds of children and people with disabilities who simply want to play the game that they love in the town that live in.  

  

While we are now on a roll there are going to be a number of setbacks and challenges but they can be overcome with the support of the supporters of the club and the businesses and politicians of Maidstone.

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.

The ups and downs of football

Bill Williams

For the past three or four seasons our club has had a “relegation” tag firmly attached to our shirts and over that time it has been necessary to change our club management in an attempt to save the club from relegation.

The bottom line has always been the same that we have had managers who have not been able to address the goal spread across the team. When a team is assembled it has to have the ability collectively to score at least 45 goals to keep you in any league. The more goal spread you can get around the side obviously the higher up the league you go. This statement isn’t as simple as it sounds and the recipe for success obviously has more ingredients, tight defensively, good players, tactical awareness, team spirit – it goes on.

When Terry, Oliver and I made the decision to appoint Andy Ford and Steve Butler we all believed that this was the correct decision for all the right reasons. We never imagined for a moment that we would have to be reviewing what other managerial options were available to us again so soon.

We are disappointed that the appointment did not work out and are still mystified as to why it didn’t work as we thought their experience and knowledge would be enough to assemble a team to keep us in this division.

Decisions of this importance are never taken lightly and are always made in what we believe are the best interests of the football club. Unfortunately you don’t always get them right.

Our next permanent manager must be the right choice as it is paramount to the future development of this club that this downward spiral is corrected.

We have decided that in this interim period to put Jay Saunders in charge as a caretaker manager and work along with him with a view to offering him a permanent position.

There will be those who will say that Jay is far too inexperienced and that we need a vastly experienced manager with a proven track record. We have just been down that road recently and it may still become an option.

Jay Saunders wants to become a manager; he has great rapport with the players and years of experience playing at this level. We will find out if he has the tactical awareness and knowledge of identifying a talented player in the weeks ahead.

My first bit of advice to him would be to select a very good assistant as playing and managing is certainly not an easy job. So let’s get behind this decision and give Jay every opportunity as it will allow us to have a look at each other, see what ability he has and give the Board the added opportunity to have some time to deliberate before we make an important decision.

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.

Don't be defeated

Oliver Ash

One thing I have learnt from being involved in professional football and rugby clubs is how much it hurts losing. It’s simply gut-wrenchingly awful.

For at least 24 hours after a defeat I am totally unbearable to be with and that’s saying something. My poor family has a hard time of it. At least with Maidstone I’m not watching it on TV, as is the case occasionally with Brive. During the broadcasts I transform into some sort of demon out of a Harry Potter film, a screaming, venomous monster clearly not from this planet, spraying forth forbidden words that the children produce over breakfast the next morning to my shame.

A few days ago at home in front of the TV, those same children sitting excitedly on the sofa next to me, I watched the Brive team lose to Bayonne in a relegation scrap as depressing as some of our own recent performances. At one stage I found myself yelling at the referee loudly enough for him to have heard the advice 400kms away. I looked around to see my littlest boy crying: “Daddy I get scared when you’re shouting”. I didn’t want to admit to him that I scare myself with such moronic behavior. It’s just that suffering defeats when your heart, soul (and wallet) are intimately tied up with the team you are watching is anguish itself. It was so much more satisfying playing and not just watching, I could get rid of my frustrations by kicking the ball or an opponent, or, on one occasion, a spectator…

Last Tuesday’s defeat to Tonbridge was more of the same. It felt like the whole crowd (apart from the singing Tonbridge supporters that is) was subdued and fed up. It is a dreadful losing spiral we’re in and it’s hard to change things around. It can still be done, there are some encouraging things to latch onto, we have some excellent players on board now but something needs to click very fast or we shall run out of time. After three years’ struggle at this level we are all in need of a good long winning run again. I hope it starts on Saturday.

This Saturday there is an important meeting with supporters. My apologies for not being able to make it. I have other commitments across the Channel. I’m sorry to miss a chance to debate all the issues concerning the new stadium with everybody.

We have only just started talking seriously to a few interested parties about the capital raising scheme. Nobody has yet ended a meeting by slipping a big bag of cash across the floor towards us (or if they did Terry has been keeping it rather quiet) but it is early days.

However we know it is not going to be easy to find investors, who accept our arguments and conditions and with whom we are also comfortable as partners. Whatever the outcome of this process over the next few weeks we are going to do our damnedest to find a way of financing the new stadium.

It is therefore important for us to see that the supporters are still right behind the stadium project and prepared to dig deep into their pockets to fight for it. By this I don’t just mean the faithful few hundred, who deserve medals ( or even better a stadium in town) for all their efforts, sticking with the club after so long in exile, but other ‘occasional’ supporters, the ones who all reappeared when we played Folkestone in a key game a couple of seasons ago.

We will be asking you all to make another mega fund-raising effort in order to give us the impetus to push on because then Terry and I will have no doubt how important this project is to every one of you.

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NEWS: Maidstone United Football Club has announced the KM Group as new shirt sponsors. Read more

Investing in our future

Terry Casey

Bill and I have had meetings with a number of local investors and they have all confirmed that they want to become involved in helping to build a football stadium in Maidstone.

Our detailed business plan itemises the cost of building the stadium at £1.6 million and explains how, with further capital from Oliver and myself and a football foundation grant, we have already got £400k in the stadium fund. We are presenting a plan that is based on running a successful business on the synthetic 3g pitch which has already been well received by the businessmen that we have approached.

Although the early reactions we have had are very positive the fact is that £1.2million is an awful lot of money and we are going to have to work very hard to raise this amount.

I am aware of the frustrations that the supporters are feeling over the result at Canvey it was a game that I thought we could have won but I am learning that football doesn’t seem to follow a script.

The fact is that we have appointed, in Andy Ford, a man who has a successful record in football management and he shares the frustration that is felt by all of us when the team perform badly. The amount of work and effort he has put in since he took over in late October suggests to me that he will get things right before the end of the season. It is encouraging that we have also been able to re-sign quality players like Jay and Nathan, which is evidence of the determination of us all of us to avoid relegation.

It is difficult to imagine how important that a successful Maidstone United team is to many of the people of the town. I bumped into someone recently who reminded me of the passion that could be generated. He told me that his father, Adrian, was so thrilled at the Stones getting to the third round of the FA Cup in the 1978/9 season that he had christened him as follows; Glen, Richard, Christopher, William, Kenneth, Neil, Brian, Norman, Allan, John, Barry Clark.

Glen was chosen by his dad because it was the name of the goal scoring legend Glen Coupland. 

I am convinced that when we bring Maidstone United back to the town we will bring the crowds back and the whole community will benefit from our efforts and endeavours.