The Trust met with the directors of the Football Club on Monday evening, minutes after the news of John Coleman’s dismissal came through, and despite obvious more pressing matters, they were happy to meet with the Trust as arranged.
A number of concerns were passed on to the club from supporters about the level of catering at the club in home games, particularly the Rotherham game on New Year’s Eve. Further concerns were raised about the reduction of kiosks in the Pearl Street Stand. The club acknowledged that there were issues at the Rotherham game mainly down to the number of supporters at the game and the early deadline for ordering. They were happy to look again at the situation in the Pearl Street Stand.
The pricing of Junior Tickets was raised with concerns that 8 year olds paid the same matchday entry as 21 year olds, mainly due to the young person’s ticket admission rate and that we were the most expensive club in the division at many age levels. The club pointed out that season ticket prices worked at just £3 per game for those twelve and under and just £5 per game for those sixteen and under. Furthermore, the family tickets offered further opportunities for young people to gain cheap admission to Spotland. The Trust suggested that the club adopt a cheap matchday admission for under sixteens on the basis that the Dale supporting habit often kicks in when those in the junior admission bracket attend week in week out with their friends, and current admission rates make it expensive for that to happen. The cheap season tickets are to be applauded but do little to encourage new supporters.
Online ticketing was brought up. The club admitted that they had looked into its introduction, but given the lack of all ticket games this season and the current costs required to introduced the scheme, it is currently on the back burner though it would be looked at again in the future.
The quality of the Dale Player service was discussed with other clubs such as Bradford having significantly longer highlights packages available to them. The club agreed to look into this, and it was suggested that current / former subscribers be contacted to discuss what sort of service they would like from their subscription.
Following extensive work from the Trust, the club would look to relaunch Junior Dale in time for the 2013-14 season. There’s an appreciation of the importance to invest in the future generations, as indicated by the number of free tickets given out at various schools. A package would be put together after consultation with the Football in the Community department.
Recent and future Trust activities were discussed at length, with a number of past and future events discussed. The idea was touted of an annual Trust charity which was agreed by those present. The Trust and the club would be working together for the End of Season’s Awards Evening, and there would be a new element to the evening where some form of Lifetime Achievement award would be introduced to the evening. The club were happy for the Trust to take on responsibility for the club calendar for 2014. The Trust reiterated to the board that their offer for board representation with an increase of help to the club remained very much on the table.
Supporter Questions:
We received questions from Trust members and here are the responses:
– It was asked if the club are making full use of the rooms and the ground? The club are constantly looking at ways to maximise the facilities at their disposal. This includes the recent initiatives in Dale Bar and holding events in there.
– Is the catering up to standard as pies had been served cold? Any issues regarding food not being to the required standard should be addressed immediately and then contact the club if it’s not resolved giving specific details.
– What is done about the disciplinary problems at the club? The club has a discipline system in place that has been implemented throughout this and previous seasons. They were very conscious of the disciplinary problems this season and will strive to improve this using the system in place.
– What is the board looking to do to bring back the sense there is a ‘Team Rochdale’? The club would hope that Team Rochdale does still exist and fans can feel part of this again in the coming months. They are looking at possible initiatives between now and he end of the season to improve crowds, and then to carry that over into the summer with season tickets.
– It was asked if there were future incentives for exiled supporters? Country season tickets along with other prices are reviewed each year. This will happen again for the coming season.
– What are the club’s plans for developing and selling players? The board are committed to the strategy of developing players and maximising their potential in respect to sales. They pointed to the successes at youth level and hope to continue with this strategy in the future.
– How much have we lost through relegation and where does that place our budget now? Relegation cost the club a lot of money: around £500-600k. The budget has been adjusted accordingly and use is made of the money from previous campaigns. Whilst there hasn’t been a lot spent on transfer fees, the money has been put into the wage bill.
– A question was asked about the club’s scouting strategy. There is a chief scout in place and a scouting network beneath that.
– Could the club be more pro-active in term of press releases and news? This has improved recently and the club agreed that the media team could benefit from attending a Trust meeting and working alongside fans.
Thanks to the Trust members who submitted questions, and to the board for meeting with us. I have to say that whilst the news beforehand had obviously changed the mood, it was an extremely positive meeting on all sides, with what seemed to be a genuine desire on all fronts to continue to work together, and to improve where necessary.