Boddy's Programme Column (1 Viewer)

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Nick

Nick

Administrator
After each matchday programme, we will be publishing the 'From the Boardroom' article on our website. For Tuesday's match against Forest Green Rovers, Coventry City Chief Executive Dave Boddy wrote the column and his article is published below:

Good evening and a warm welcome to the Ricoh, especially to our visitors Forest Green Rovers who are making their first ever visit here tonight. Forest Green were finally promoted to the EFL in the summer, winning the Vanarama National League play-offs at Wembley, after several near misses.

In one of my previous programme notes I spoke about my desire to engage with as many different groups of supporters and stakeholders in the club as possible. I recently met with the Sky Blue Trust & also the new Leamington & Warwick CCFC Supporters Club.

Since those meetings I have managed to organise for the Sky Blue Trust for a Q & A evening with Mark Robins in November, which they will be announcing shortly. I’ve also arranged for myself and a couple of players to attend the next meeting of the Leamington & Warwick Supporters Club branch later this month, with the Checkatrade Trophy as well.

I have also met with Jonathan Strange, the last chair of the Supporters Consultative Group, to discuss further ways to engage with supporters groups and we plan to meet again with Tim Fisher to formulise a structure approach for organised engagement.

All this means that though the Supporters Consultative Group and its monthly meetings do not take place currently, this does not mean that the club and its staff do not meet with its supporters and representative groups on a regular basis. We will keep supporters up to date with the structured approach for engagement once it is confirmed, while continuing to meet with these groups I’ve mentioned and others too to build these relationships now and for the future.

After the last home game, there was a debate in local media and on the internet about ticket prices. Our advance ticket prices are £22, and the league average is around £23. There is a matchday price increase here at the Ricoh Arena, which is commonplace for many League Two teams.

We do have a range of options for fans who wish to reduce the price of match tickets. Our 6 and 12 Match Package options have again proved very popular, and give a great saving to fans who purchase these packages - the packages work out at around £18 per game.

Meanwhile fans who have purchased a CCFC Membership, which is £25 for the season, can get the advance price even when they purchase on matchday – along with other benefits such as priority on away and cup tickets.

This is as well as our Junior Sky Blues Membership, which gives members under 13 a free ticket to any home league game, while members 13 and over get big discounts on their tickets. There is also other benefits to this, including an invite to the JSB Party – planning for which is well underway.

Of course, these prices do not compare to the value of a Season Ticket and this will always be the best value way to watch the team through the campaign. We are committed to this being the case, and adding more value to being a Season Ticket holder – whether it is the ‘bring a friend’ offer we have done for tonight’s game, discounts on events like the Evening with Mark Robins or the free birthday meal in hospitality we have started this season.

I would like to publicly thank Billie Marshall, who recently left his role as Press Officer at the club to move to an exciting role at the EFL. Billie joined the Sky Blues at the start of last season, and his contribution to the club has been greatly valued during his time with us. It is testament to Billie and his professionalism that even after handing in his notice, he was as enthusiastic and committed to his work as ever.

We had some excellent applicants for the job and we have appointed a successor to Billie, who will be joining us at the end of this month.

Dave Boddy
Chief Executive
Coventry City Football Club
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PUSB: 'From the Boardroom' versus Forest Green Rovers
 
Captain Dart

Captain Dart

Well-Known Member
I have also met with Jonathan Strange, the last chair of the Supporters Consultative Group, to discuss further ways to engage with supporters groups and we plan to meet again with Tim Fisher to formulise a structure approach for organised engagement.
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Strange is part of the problem a divisive individual, he absolutely should not be involved in the solution.
 
skyblueinBaku

skyblueinBaku

Well-Known Member
Captain Dart said:
Strange is part of the problem a divisive individual, he absolutely should not be involved in the solution.
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I thought it strange (excuse the pun) for him to have had a meeting with Boddy and to be getting a meeting with Fisher. Since the useless SCG is now defunct, J Strange is just another supporter.
 
chiefdave

chiefdave

Well-Known Member
Anything that's setup to replace the SCG needs to be genuine supporter representation. Identify what areas you want to cover and get people who want to represent a particular group to put themselves forward. Then have a vote.

Then have a set term after which there's another election so if they aren't properly representing the fans they're out.
 
CJ_covblaze

CJ_covblaze

Well-Known Member
chiefdave said:
Anything that's setup to replace the SCG needs to be genuine supporter representation. Identify what areas you want to cover and get people who want to represent a particular group to put themselves forward. Then have a vote.

Then have a set term after which there's another election so if they aren't properly representing the fans they're out.
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Bang on the money. It was meant to be a very useful tool. What it became was a sham.
 
Hobo

Hobo

Well-Known Member
What is strange is fans are demanding the club speak to all groups and listen to all supporters views, then when the club speak to a range of fan groups, they moan because someone has been included.

It doesn't matter whether he represents a group or just himself, he can still have an opinion. The club will never be able to satisfy everyone's needs or desires. So he isn't necessarily going to drive or monopolize a situation.

The important part of this process is the dialogue from the club. So they can fully explain policies and decisions to the fans so they can better understand them. It also means the club has a platform to promote some of the commercial deals in place for the fans. Within this process the fans get a chance to put forward their own ideas for the club to consider.

For the club to move forward the fan base need to feel included and valued. It is good to see the club trying to make progress in these areas.
 
oldskyblue58

oldskyblue58

CCFC Finance Director
Can't help thinking that the most divisive member of the SCG, in my opinion, should not be involved in any prime consultation about a new consultative body. His statements, and tirades helped devalue the SCG which ultimately ended up as a body of ridicule. He never did seem to represent anyone other than himself so why repeat the mistakes that helped create the mess in the first place. I fear that any new set up could end up as useless as the SCG if it is simply a matter of reintroducing the same unrepresentative people.

Strange seemed to forget as chairman what the role of such an appointment is - it isn't to make independent statements dressed up as SCG policy, it is a facilitator of open discussion.

Mr Strange it seems to me represents no one other than himself and as such is just a single ordinary fan. He is entitled to an opinion but it is no more important than any other single fan. I can only think his involvement comes from Fisher - which perhaps demonstrates certain concerns some have about his involvement.

Any new body set up needs to ensure it is far more representative. Members need to demonstrate how they represent and communicate with the groups they claim to be from. It also needs to be more than a nodding shop where nothing is challenged and it is led in a set direction by one or two dominant characters. It needs to work with the club but be independent of it. The new body has to have clear and defined terms of reference - and stick to them.

It should also be pointed out that the club under FA/EFL rules has to establish proper lines of communication with its fan base.

Boddy and co might be also find it useful to talk to other clubs to see how they do it. The original idea for the SCG was put together years ago by the Trust so I would think they might have a lot to say about its constitution and direction.
 
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clint van damme

clint van damme

Well-Known Member
saw on Twitter that Boddy will be attending the next meeting of the Leamington and Warwickshire supporters.
Fair play to him for that and fair play to them, they seem to be attracting some interesting speakers.
 
NorthernWisdom

NorthernWisdom

Well-Known Member
Hobo said:
What is strange is fans are demanding the club speak to all groups and listen to all supporters views, then when the club speak to a range of fan groups, they moan because someone has been included.

It doesn't matter whether he represents a group or just himself, he can still have an opinion. The club will never be able to satisfy everyone's needs or desires. So he isn't necessarily going to drive or monopolize a situation.

The important part of this process is the dialogue from the club. So they can fully explain policies and decisions to the fans so they can better understand them. It also means the club has a platform to promote some of the commercial deals in place for the fans. Within this process the fans get a chance to put forward their own ideas for the club to consider.

For the club to move forward the fan base need to feel included and valued. It is good to see the club trying to make progress in these areas.
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I'd kind of agree with you if it was a focus group situation where they've just plucked fans at random, or to represent a demographic.

I may be wrong about him tbf, but they do seem to have asked to consult someone who's rather subjective, rather than objective, about the whole thing. As the person to kick it off, I'm not sure that's entirely wise.
 
Terry Gibson's perm

Terry Gibson's perm

Well-Known Member
Hobo said:
What is strange is fans are demanding the club speak to all groups and listen to all supporters views, then when the club speak to a range of fan groups, they moan because someone has been included.

It doesn't matter whether he represents a group or just himself, he can still have an opinion. The club will never be able to satisfy everyone's needs or desires. So he isn't necessarily going to drive or monopolize a situation.

The important part of this process is the dialogue from the club. So they can fully explain policies and decisions to the fans so they can better understand them. It also means the club has a platform to promote some of the commercial deals in place for the fans. Within this process the fans get a chance to put forward their own ideas for the club to consider.

For the club to move forward the fan base need to feel included and valued. It is good to see the club trying to make progress in these areas.
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But they haven’t spoken to a range of people they have spoken to one man and a man who is part of the problem not the solution.
 
Captain Dart

Captain Dart

Well-Known Member
clint van damme said:
saw on Twitter that Boddy will be attending the next meeting of the Leamington and Warwickshire supporters.
Fair play to him for that and fair play to them, they seem to be attracting some interesting speakers.
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Isn't Juggy Chima involved in that, even if I don't always agree with him he has the club at heart.
 
R

rupert_bear

Well-Known Member
Boddy can organise and meet who he likes but the problems at our club stem from our owners and how they see it being run until they go any fan group no matter how well intentioned will be little more than a tea and biscuit brigade. Still no news on where we will be playing our home games next season, Acadamy still in limbo and the first team slowly sinking down the division. As said nothing will significantly change until Ms Sepalla and her cohorts are gone. I suggest as a start either Mr Boddy or toxic Tim tell us their intentions as to where we are to play our home games next season.
 
Captain Dart

Captain Dart

Well-Known Member
rupert_bear said:
Boddy can organise and meet who he likes but the problems at our club stem from our owners and how they see it being run until they go any fan group no matter how well intentioned will be little more than a tea and biscuit brigade. Still no news on where we will be playing our home games next season, Acadamy still in limbo and the first team slowly sinking down the division. As said nothing will significantly change until Ms Sepalla and her cohorts are gone. I suggest as a start either Mr Boddy or toxic Tim tell us their intentions as to where we are to play our home games next season.
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You missed the word evil before cohorts. :emoji_blush:
 
Hobo

Hobo

Well-Known Member
Terry Gibson's perm said:
But they haven’t spoken to a range of people they have spoken to one man and a man who is part of the problem not the solution.
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No they haven't spoke to just one man.

It also seems to be the start of a new process rather than a process that has been concluded.
 
Terry Gibson's perm

Terry Gibson's perm

Well-Known Member
Hobo said:
No they haven't spoke to just one man.

It also seems to be the start of a new process rather than a process that has been concluded.
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Having read it sgain he says he has met other groups but the way it is worded is that the discussions regarding fan relations were with strange a man who has no relationship with the majority of fans and is a former joke head of a pointless little group.

I am fairly cynical and believe we have heard this all before and he should be concentrating on trying to get more people in the ground and extra sponsors as I don't want to hear in January there is no money to invest.
 
NorthernWisdom

NorthernWisdom

Well-Known Member
Hobo said:
It also seems to be the start of a new process rather than a process that has been concluded.
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He seems a little bit of an odd choice to consult first off on how to (re)start a process though, doesn't he?

Even assuming he's an expert on such matters, it's not like he doesn't come without baggage, and not like whatever group's set up will be tainted before it begins in the eyes of some. That's enough reason to choose someone else to consult first, surely?
 
Terry Gibson's perm

Terry Gibson's perm

Well-Known Member
I'd speak to him take it all in and do the total opposite as the way he went failed
 
Hobo

Hobo

Well-Known Member
Terry Gibson's perm said:
Having read it sgain he says he has met other groups but the way it is worded is that the discussions regarding fan relations were with strange a man who has no relationship with the majority of fans and is a former joke head of a pointless little group.

I am fairly cynical and believe we have heard this all before and he should be concentrating on trying to get more people in the ground and extra sponsors as I don't want to hear in January there is no money to invest.
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To be honest they have been so poor at fan customer relations any step forward, however small is welcome. It is hinted at that more effort is being made to meet fans and groups of fans.
 
Nick

Nick

Administrator
Is it any wonder the Trust get looked at like silly buggers by the club?

Boddy is saying he has met with them, it was positive, arranging a Q and A session. Trust have mentioned none of that, not said anything about the meetings but just write snidey statements with digs back. That sort of thing is hardly going to work is it? Why moan about the SCG being petty (which it was) and then start with the usual petty statements? Maybe they can all get together and sit in a room and have a "im not that bothered about watching us any more, the love is gone" off with each other in between selfies with blackpool and shaking hands for pictures with orient fans.

As for Strange, he can get to fuck as well. If there is a new "SCG", their position / attendance should be justified with a case of why. He has no right to be a standard fixture there, fair enough if Boddy was asking him about how it worked and what happened as Boddy wasn't here.

Fuck them all off from anyway from the new SCG and start it completely from scratch.

Work out "sectors" of fans who can all have a rep.

Young Fans
JSBs
Block 15's
OAPS
Disabled
Corporate
SBITC
International etc

Make sure that every fan knows who their rep is, how they can contact them with any issues to be raised etc. Also taking decent, constructive questions from social media too. That's not saying take all of the "we love you ccfc" questions, just not the "why havent we signed a multi million pound striker" or "wheres my pin badge" type nonsense either.

I know in the past Italia has said he would be happy to liase with disabled fans about issues, if for example somebody in a wheelchair is having loads of shit buying a match ticket, getting to their seat etc then it is raised. Every fan should be able to look up who their "rep" is and be able to give them feedback to take to the meetings.

It's not about being "yes men", it's just being able to go and be constructive about being absolute twats about it. "I represent thousands of city fans", "I am friends with fisher and I have scg chairman on my business card". Fuck all that right off, no time for the ego willy waving shit, fighting over a spinny chair in the board room. None of those represent me in the slightest.

The only people on the SCG who have ever really represented me there are Pat Raybould from JSBS and Kingharvest who used to come on here and ask for questions to take in with him.

If Boddy seems to be doing the exact opposite to what Fisher did in terms of constructive fan engagement then surely that's a positive so far?
 
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christonabike

christonabike

Well-Known Member
As mentioned whats the point in these groups? The owners dont give a flying fook thats obvious, they will continue to do as they please and a group of fans at a meeting clapping like seals isnt going to make them change course or suddenly put the football club first. Its just polishing a turd and if you ask any real questions you will be told its confidential blah blah.
The club winning games of football is what we want and is the only thing to bring in more supporters but will the money be put to improve the team? I doubt it.
Fair play to Boddy but what will it achieve other than fans asking the same questions over and over that have been asked before when fishface used to do them.
 
C

CCFC54321

Well-Known Member
Strange is a yes man a SISU puppet and is being used like Sandra garlick. He has an ego as big as his head and represents nobody but himself. Totally divisive character and believes he represents the fans. HE DOES NOT and if I see him I’ll tell him to his face.
 
christonabike

christonabike

Well-Known Member
CCFC54321 said:
Strange is a yes man a SISU puppet and is being used like Sandra garlick. He has an ego as big as his head and represents nobody but himself. Totally divisive character and believes he represents the fans. HE DOES NOT and if I see him I’ll tell him to his face.
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I get a feeling you dont like him very much.:woot:
 
oldskyblue58

oldskyblue58

CCFC Finance Director
The Trust response - make of it what you will

"During 2016, the English Football League agreed new rules requiring Clubs to meet requirements for supporter engagement. Before those rules were agreed, Coventry City FC had a Supporters Consultative Group (SCG) which, in recent years, had become unrepresentative of Sky Blue fans generally and seriously dysfunctional in the way it operated. The Club’s response to the new EFL rules was to abolish the SCG and put nothing in its place.

"We read that the Club CEO, Dave Boddy, is now working on plans for a replacement to the disbanded SCG. We welcome Mr Boddy’s good intentions regarding communication with supporters. The Sky Blue Trust have offered to assist with that but have had no response to that offer. We will be interested to see how Mr Boddy proposes to ensure that any new group complies with the EFL Regulations, which require supporter representatives to "be elected, selected or invited in line with basic democratic principles.” An approach to supporter engagement, which to date appears to involve discussion with no-one but the former SCG chair, does not instil confidence that the process will demonstrate the required application of “basic democratic principles”.

there is also the latest situation on the letter campaign regarding club homelessness on the website
Sky Blue Trust - Home
 
Nick

Nick

Administrator
oldskyblue58 said:
The Trust response - make of it what you will

"During 2016, the English Football League agreed new rules requiring Clubs to meet requirements for supporter engagement. Before those rules were agreed, Coventry City FC had a Supporters Consultative Group (SCG) which, in recent years, had become unrepresentative of Sky Blue fans generally and seriously dysfunctional in the way it operated. The Club’s response to the new EFL rules was to abolish the SCG and put nothing in its place.

"We read that the Club CEO, Dave Boddy, is now working on plans for a replacement to the disbanded SCG. We welcome Mr Boddy’s good intentions regarding communication with supporters. The Sky Blue Trust have offered to assist with that but have had no response to that offer. We will be interested to see how Mr Boddy proposes to ensure that any new group complies with the EFL Regulations, which require supporter representatives to "be elected, selected or invited in line with basic democratic principles.” An approach to supporter engagement, which to date appears to involve discussion with no-one but the former SCG chair, does not instil confidence that the process will demonstrate the required application of “basic democratic principles”.

there is also the latest situation on the letter campaign regarding club homelessness on the website
Sky Blue Trust - Home
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Yeah it's petty, exactly the sort of shit that used to go on in the SCG.

If the trust are having meetings with Boddy and have contact with him, why not discuss it with him?

It's snidey, the type of thing Fisher would come out with. Hardly the thing to do when you have Boddy who is actually doing a 180 from Fisher. The fact they put "Fan Engagement", when he has said he has met with them and it went well and they will be arranging an event together clearly shows there is an improvement on Fan Engagement.

Have the trust done a statement about their meeting with him, or is it better to just ignore that and write open letters and and whinge in between bragging about who is less bothered about watching CCFC now?

He is clearly offering that well needed olive branch to sort some of the stuff from Fisher's approach.
 
CJ_covblaze

CJ_covblaze

Well-Known Member
Nick said:
Yeah it's petty, exactly the sort of shit that used to go on in the SCG.

If the trust are having meetings with Boddy and have contact with him, why not discuss it with him?

It's snidey, the type of thing Fisher would come out with. Hardly the thing to do when you have Boddy who is actually doing a 180 from Fisher. The fact they put "Fan Engagement", when he has said he has met with them and it went well and they will be arranging an event together clearly shows there is an improvement on Fan Engagement.

Have the trust done a statement about their meeting with him, or is it better to just ignore that and write open letters and and whinge in between bragging about who is less bothered about watching CCFC now?

He is clearly offering that well needed olive branch to sort some of the stuff from Fisher's approach.
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Dave requested that we kept the meeting confidential and that it was best we didn’t announce we had met him for now.

Edit: He also said that he was more than willing to attend an open meeting with Trust members in the future.

For the record he seems more approachable than the vast majority of his predecessors and he does seem to want to talk to the fans. With regards to the fan engagement criteria for the rules we need an SCG type committee where the members are elected democratically.
 
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