Torquay United Fans Forum

fredisley wrote:
It is time to give TUST the chance to run the club.

Absolutely.

Punk football - read it - believe in it!

As I have posted before, the folly of Dave Phillips and the board is that while they are looking for sources of new investment, there is one sitting under their noses - TUST.

TUST may only have 400 or so members but I know plenty of fans who are not members that would invest in the club given the chance. I think a sizeable amount and enough to move the club forward and be financially stable would be raised. There are Gulls fans all over the country - in fact the world -(Brazil even!) - that would invest.

I have wondered why Dave Phillips and the board are so reluctant to allow TUST to invest in the club and have a role in its running. I can only think that it is because they believe that supporter directors would put off other investors/consortiums. However, supporter directors on the board would be the acid test for any new investors. If they were not prepared to work with the supporter directors it would indicate that they do not have the clubs best interests in mind.

So, Dave Phillips, please don't wait until there is a financial crisis and TUST has to be the buyer of last resort from the administrators. Give TUST the chance to invest in a viable and healthy club now.

Gullscorer wrote:Looks good, and I wish you the best of luck with it. Unfortunately I don't do Facebook, nor Twitter..

Me neither

PhilGull wrote:
I've thought for a while that buses like these would be a good idea. They needn't even make a profit themselves, with sposorship they could be run at cost. The benefit would come from encouraging more people to come to Plainmoor.

Also, a bus load of supporters dressed in yellow going along one of the busiest routes in the Bay would raise the profile of the club. Fans could book a seat (and maybe even pay) online so that the size of the bus needed would be known beforehand.

Just because it was part of the Roberts plan doesn't necessarily mean it's a bad idea
( although I still think a new stadium is pie in the sky).

The comments about transport are key. Being able to get to the match by bus or train would greatly reduce the amount of parking needed and probably increase takings at the new incarnation of Boots & Laces.

And talking about transport, why not run a bus on match days from Brixham through Paignton to arrive at Plainmoor half an hour before kick off? Also run another from Newton Abbott or Teignmouth? If run by the club it could also be a source of revenue.

Join TUST. Dream in yellow.

I would like to ask Dave Phillips, while looking for sources of new investment, the board will not allow TUST to invest in the club?

As I posted on another thread, the players fund shows how deep Gulls fans are prepared to put their hands in their pockets without getting a stake in the club or a say in its running in return. It is not be necessary for TUST to own 100% or even 50+1% of the club. Why not 20% or 30% depending on how much is raised? For their investment the fans would have one or two supporter directors on the board. Think of the wealth of ideas that this would allow the board to tap into!

I'm sure you must read these forums, so come on Dave Phillips. There are fans just like you who have money to invest in the club, just not as much. Give us the chance to collectively invest in the club.

Plainmoor78 wrote:I'm afraid your not wrong. Whilst the club desperately needs to find new revenue sources I think the current board lack the know how of how to do this. The GI scenario being an example, yes a new ground might help, but GI weren't the type of people to bring it about and the board should have cottoned on to this. Other attempts to raise funds such as the yellowfest debacle are laughable. In fact the board instead of being able to finance the club properly, which is their responsibility, instead rely on the generosity of the supporters via the player fund. In fact this club is run like a bloody charity.

You're right about the club being run as a charity. But the players fund demonstrates how deep Gulls fans are prepared to put their hands in their pockets for the club yet receive nothing in return. How much then would fans invest in the club if it gave them a share in the club and a say in its running?

The folly of the present board is that while they are looking for sources of new investment they can't see that there is one right under their noses.

Join TUST. Dream in yellow.

PhilGull wrote: Eh?
Obviously the first team performances on the pitch have to be number one priority but there is much work that can be done regarding the ground and possible relocation that could have massive benefits for the club in the future.

I couldn't agree with you more that first team performances on the pitch are the number one priority. My point is that when prospective new owners are property developers with a history of telling porkies when it comes to promises of new grounds (and from the posts by those in the greyhound racing community this would seem to be the case with GI) they couldn't give a monkeys about first team performances or the future of the club - all they are interested in is lining their own pockets - whatever they may say in public.
A new all singing and dancing stadium at Nightingale Park with a 3G pitch and a station within walking distance would be fantastic but I would want to see it built and the club moved in before I believed the club was safe. But don't be surprised if the new ground is on the Heathfield Industrial Estate.
Like you I am a TUST member. When TUST are telling me that they have a plan to relocate the ground I will believe it is for the benefit of and in the interests of TUFC and the fans.

The litmus test for any person or organisation interested in the club is the ground.

If they are interested in developing the ground in any way shape or form (apart from improving the playing or watching of matches) they do not have the clubs best interests at heart. This applies to Clarke Osborne and Peter Masters. (Or should that be "especially Peter Masters.")The board should walk away from the GI deal - or at least be glad when the 'Memorandum of Understanding' expires on the 31 July.

The only way to secure the future of the club and create a sustainable future is through fan ownership. Only the fans have the club's best interests at heart.

tomogull wrote: Yes, that's exactly what I thought. I thought the Cary Estate covenant for the land to be used for recreational purposes only was still in place. I hadn't read that Cary Estate were prepared to sell the land for housing. Now you've got me really worried, P'moor78 !

Torbay Council will pick and choose which covenants they will adhere to and which they will run roughshod over. The Italian Garden on the sea front on which the balloon was sited had a covenant on it and was land that had been granted to the people by the Cary estate. The Cary estate did not have the funds to fight the Council who destroyed the garden and put the balloon there - and the rest is history.

Shouldn't someone be giving this gift horse a good long hard look in the mouth?

The recent history of Torbay is littered with self promoting entrepreneurs who have turned up offering pie in the sky schemes while paying themselves shed loads of other people's money, only to disappear later leaving broken promises and with a fat wallet.

If something looks too good to be true, it usually is!

Near the start of the game the popside were chanting "you fat b.....d" at Parkin, who turned round to Ben Gerrin standing next to him and said "they are singing about you !". Ben chuckled and went on to do a good job marking the experienced Parkin.[/quote]

I thought that Ben's brave low level flying header that poleaxed Parkin was one of the moments of the match! And what a match!

KN has taken some stick over the last few weeks for his Facebook posting and the TSW interview but what seemed to be lost in all the controversy was that he was supporting and sticking up for his players. Yesterday they repaid him by playing as a team, playing their socks off and playing for him. Well done Nico.

I hope now his doubters will now get behind him and the team.

Should be a good source of revenue as long as they are paying rent and not paying the club based on gate receipts!