They have a "Trust" now.
"AGM's are not always the most interesting of events but anyone who attended the PST one in September would have been lucky enough to witness a fascinating talk by Dr John Beech, a leading researcher specialising in Sport Management, and in particular football finances . Dr Beech is a great advocate of Supporter Trusts, what they can achieve by way of bringing football clubs closer to their supporters and the communities in which they reside. The Pompey Supporters Trust was born at a time when our beloved club was on its knees and there was real concern as to whether it would continue to exist, we now find ourselves in more stable time but there is still much that can be achieved by having an active Trust.
One of the main aims of any Trust should be supporter representation, in the long term this could mean having a supporter on the PFC board, potentially also owning shares in the club. There are many people who remain cynical that this could ever be achieved but there are plenty of examples to prove otherwise. We now have our first Premiership club partially owned by a Trust, the Swansea Trust own 19% of their club and have one executive and one-non executive representative on the board. Even without the shares or the seats at the board room table it is important to have groups who can campaign on behalf of the fans, and the PST has been working hard to do this since its inception. A single group can never represent all fans, there will always be dissenting voices, however the board of the PST will be working harder to liaise with other supporter organisations, website admins and of course its own members to form collective views on key topics. Too much time can be lost on bickering, when together Pompey fans offer a powerful voice that the management at PFC would be foolish not to listen to.
Another area that will be key for the PST this year is the concept of "Community Pompey", an initiative where we hope the PST will play an active part in helping to rebuild some of the broken bridges between club and fans, engaging more with both active and inactive fans as well as the community as a whole. Many of you may already be aware of the great work carried out by Pompey Sports & Education Foundation (PSEF), and with the intention of building closer links the PST & PSEF we invited PSEF Director Clare Martin to join our board and we are delighted she has accepted.
One item close to the heart of every Pompey fan is the debate around a new ground or redeveloped Fratton Park, undoubtedly the biggest project PFC will undertake in the next few years and it is critical that supporters have a say in the direction that is taken. This is why we have appointed Mike Saunders, a qualified architect and PST board member to look specifically at all ground related issues and build a plan that ensures our views are taken into account. On the Continent it is not uncommon for supporters to own stakes in their stadiums giving them a tangible grip on not just the history but also the future of their club, and Mike is already working with others to see if such a thing could ever work here.
I recognise that as a board there are areas where we need to improve, at the top of our list we need to do better with communications, We now have individuals looking specifically at how we communicate with not just our existing members, but also non-members, public bodies and local business. I believe that a lot can be achieved with a Pompey Trust but we do need your support, the more members we have the stronger voice we command and for less than the price of a couple of pints you can join up. You have an enthusiastic and resourceful PST board and I'll be asking each of them to report on their activities over the coming weeks so that you are not only aware of what your Trust is doing but also learn more about the individuals who are giving up their time to do it!
Play Up P****y
Ashley Brown"
Lovin' the bit about plans for a new ground. Already the Russians have said there are no plans for a new ground.
Seems like "Trusts" everywhere attract a certain kind of ****wit.
