New Trust Statement (4 Viewers)

I was eleven in 87

Well-Known Member
Sixfieldsstadium.JPG
The mood among many Coventry supporters is not Sky Blue but black – a threadbare squad, no league wins, a humiliation in the EFL cup, an impasse on the future of the clubs vital Academy, no progress on talks about staying at the Ricoh, the seeming dead-end of the proposed move to the Butts, yet another hollow statement about an alternative stadium site, is it any wonder that fans are voicing their frustrations by direct action?

This once proud club has under SISU’s ownership slipped down the leagues and currently lies in the relegation zone of the Third Division. Tuesday’s cup humiliation against Norwich’s reserve team show just how far we have fallen and emphasised the gulf between similar sized clubs. One has owners who care and invest and one has owners who are dispassionate and selfish. Young players have been developed, only to be sold, allegedly for millions, yet there are little or no signs of any real investment on the pitch. Supporters are constantly being told that we have a competitive budget yet the evidence on the field and of the lack of quality and depth in the current squad seems to point at something different.

A litany of broken promises, empty rhetoric and abject failure both on and off the pitch is SISU’s legacy. A legacy that has led to the loss of any possibility of ownership of the Ricoh, the very real prospect of having no Academy and a team that is struggling to be competitive against teams such as Fleetwood and Bury in the third tier of English football.

The emergence in recent weeks of various protest groups demanding that our owners either do more or leave are totally understandable and even laudable and, if peaceful, a good way of releasing some of the pent up frustration many feel. However protests like this are ultimately futile because for them to have any effect our owners would actually have to have some positive feelings about the club and its loyal fans. There is precious little evidence of this. It appears that to SISU Coventry City are just an irritating red entry on a spreadsheet. They appear to be more interested in paying lawyers than players. More ongoing, costly, antagonistic legal proceedings against the very people that they should be forming alliances with, not fighting futile battles with, may in some unfathomable way be good for SISU but is hurting the club badly. All those who have the power to positively affect the future of the club are alienated and at loggerheads with the club or simply refusing to get involved.

The news from the club that they were willing to start round the table discussions with Coventry Sports Foundation and Wasps about keeping the bulk of the Academy at the Higgs Centre is one small glimmer of hope but actions will speak louder than words and we still await any positive movement on that front.

The involvement of local MP’s in trying to break the impasse on the stadium situation is welcome as anything that helps put pressure on all sides to get a long term solution on this key issue can only be a good thing. The pathetic, hand washing attitude of the Football League is no surprise. They were completely impotent during the lamentable moving of the club to Northampton and their attitude now is a worrying mirror of those days.

The constant current rhetoric from the club about being “forced” out of the City is untrue, unwarranted and unsettling. It appears as if they are building up a case for moving the club out of Coventry again and the over aggressive attitude of the council is playing right into SISU’s lawyer’s hands. Superficially the “evidence” that would be presented to show that the club is being forced out is compelling and would include:

  • number of sites already considered, with FL involvement but nothing suitable
  • CCC blocking proposed partnership at new site in city that FL liked
  • Current landlord not willing to engage in talks
  • CCC policy favouring Rugby and swimming
  • CCC not dealing with club because of legal matters going on that are not the clubs
  • unable to negotiate longer Academy deal because of council connected management company
  • a perceived conspiracy against the club
Whilst it wouldn’t take much work to pick apart these alarmist headlines and expose the truth we know from bitter experience that the Football League are ineffective and will take everything the club tell them at face value. They will not dig down to find the reality behind these statements and show them up to be hollow and baseless. All they care about is getting fixtures fulfilled and certainly wouldn’t want to risk upsetting SISU’s lawyers. To the Football League not caring about fans is standard practice but costly legal cases are another matter entirely.

If this is the case then the future of the club is grim – the fans showed three years ago they would not support such a move and there is no reason to expect a different attitude today. No fans, no income, inevitable bankruptcy, closure of club, then SISU suing the council for loss of business. The legals would go on interminably while our club becomes a footnote in football history.

Again our football club is being used in a power struggle between our owners and our council. The collateral damage could well be terminal as neither side appears to actually give a damn about the club or its supporters. Whilst they threaten each other, posture and play their pathetic legal games our club is dying a slow yet increasingly inevitable death.

The Trust once again calls upon SISU to drop all the pointless, fruitless and expensive legal actions. We call upon SISU to either start proper investment in the club or put it up for sale at a price that reflects the club’s assets and without the encumbrance of the debt their inept stewardship has created. The Trust would be willing to work with SISU to develop a supporter ownership model if it would hasten their exit from our club.

We call upon the council and Wasps to commit to work with the club, whoever the owners are, once all legal actions cease and a realistic plan for the future of the club is published. The council must realise the value of a successful football club to the local economy and we would urge them to be prepared to work with the club for the good of the fans and the city.

The supporters have had their beloved club battered, abused and exploited by too many factions and the very visible current frustrations will only build unless some positive actions start happening immediately.
 

Nick

Administrator
How are those points untrue?

Why does it go from a good statement to a weird one?
 

Nick

Administrator
A bit baffled by some of that, they will wonder why the club won't talk to them.
 

Nick

Administrator
What do they know..... How come this up rising has started all of a sudden wasn't like this at Oldham in May!
Probably another haskell situation, somebody has mentioned fan ownership again.

It's certainly trying to get the blame diverted away from people before anything has happened.

Id put money on somebody being in their ear again.

A joke really.

They have listed the evidence but trying to make out it is the council falling victim to lawyers...

Still no bad word against wasps
 
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Hobo

Well-Known Member
Well Joy has never said Let's be avin you!

Norwich have done well, we haven't. Too many fans (and it was a few) trooped off to Northampton and bragged about it. Too few gave sustained support when we came back.

I can't help but feel the fans were destined to lose whatever they did? Becoming fixated and bitter towards Wasps just confuses the situation more and will set us back further.

It is going to be a long crawl back. I just support the badge now.
 

Grendel

Well-Known Member
Well Joy has never said Let's be avin you!

Norwich have done well, we haven't. Too many fans (and it was a few) trooped off to Northampton and bragged about it. Too few gave sustained support when we came back.

I can't help but feel the fans were destined to lose whatever they did? Becoming fixated and bitter towards Wasps just confuses the situation more and will set us back further.

It is going to be a long crawl back. I just support the badge now.

I know a Norwich fan at work. He hates the owners say they signed only one player last season, have no ambition and just want to trouser the money.
 

I was eleven in 87

Well-Known Member
Now this is probably not the best scenario to compare it to but what I find utterly incredible is the following.

How could the leaders and all interested parties involved in the Good Friday agreement sort out their differences and resolve to make things better for all the people from the UK and the deeply divided people from Northern and Southern Ireland.
They set out to do this against the back drop of religiously bigoted hatred that resulted in serious assaults, maiming and murder.

Yet all the interested parties involved in our problem can't sit down together in order to basically make sure a football club plays some football in a ground and the kids of that football can also get to do some training!!!!

Fuckin infuriating!!!!
 

Nick

Administrator
Is it just a co incidence it is in line with mp statements?

I don't think it could get more obvious, are supporters direct working with the council pr people again?
 

clint van damme

Well-Known Member
there's some good stuff in there but some of it i don't understand.
  • CC policy favouring Rugby and swimming
  • CCC not dealing with club because of legal matters going on that are not the clubs

So those points aren't true?
 

Grendel

Well-Known Member
Oh dear - someone whispering sweet nothings into their ears again? Coup number two?

Who wrote that? The swimming poll city of rugby are huge threats to the club.

Very random.
 

The Reverend Skyblue

Well-Known Member
Living very close to Norwich I know lots of Norwich fans and they feel that with proper investment they should have been a mainstay in the Prem. Two promotions and yet they bought mainly rubbish, including that Dutch striker for 8 million ish who played about ten games and couldn't hit a barn door with a banjo. He was virtually given away in the end
In came very average cast offs from other lower end Prem clubs and the owners did very little to buy quality to stop the inevitable relegations.
So they are very frustrated with Delia and co and the money that club has brought in over the last five years has gone on to buy very few if any quality players.
So yes they wonder where all the money has gone, but God I wish we were in their boat and that is all we had to moan about
 

Hobo

Well-Known Member
I know a Norwich fan at work. He hates the owners say they signed only one player last season, have no ambition and just want to trouser the money.

I would gladly swap with them. I would rather be trying to rebuild from their position than ours.

I am sure you have demanded he provides evidence of the owners trousering the money? When you have the evidence in the accounts, please post them on here.

I don't want your standards to slip.
 

Nick

Administrator
there's some good stuff in there but some of it i don't understand.
  • CC policy favouring Rugby and swimming
  • CCC not dealing with club because of legal matters going on that are not the clubs

So those points aren't true?
And the others.....
 

Grendel

Well-Known Member
Lots of frenzied activity of late. You'd almost think a ground arrangement elsewhere had been agreed.
 

Covstu

Well-Known Member
I think for me it's actually the first time they have taken a strong stance on the future of the club. The previous statements have been completely gutless and sitting on the fence, to be fair it's an emotional statement which captures the feelings of a lot of fans.
We have had enough and need a response not the usual bullshit
 

Ian1779

Well-Known Member
The last statement they released was good.
This is like the ramblings of a madman.
It does sound like someone's been bringing up the 'fan owned club' line again.
 

Earlsdon_Skyblue1

Well-Known Member
For fuck sake.

Instead of sitting behind keyboards and ripping stuff like this apart, get behind the trust and unite as fans.

All parties hold some blame, all parties are c-units. We know that.

The only way this club has a future is if we stick together, and whilst not every point in that statement will be aggreable to everyone, we're not going to get rid of the owners/attract new owners/get the council on side and progress unless there is some momentum and driving force in numbers.

The trust are right about one thing, the future of the club is grim unless we do something.
 

Lord_Nampil

Well-Known Member
Probably another haskell situation, somebody has mentioned fan ownership again.

It's certainly trying to get the blame diverted away from people before anything has happened.

Id put money on somebody being in their ear again.

A joke really.

They have listed the evidence but trying to make out it is the council falling victim to lawyers...

Still no bad word against wasps

Think it's the same again, but this time the person is already in the building, well that's what it looks like!
 

Covstu

Well-Known Member
I think it's a statement to try and get a reaction from the club and let's hope it does. It fires bullets everywhere albeit a wee bit blindly. Seeing the team this year I fear the worse coupled with the shit off the field we can see the end in the next few years. Personally don't want to sit and wait until that happens
 

Nick

Administrator
For fuck sake.

Instead of sitting behind keyboards and ripping stuff like this apart, get behind the trust and unite as fans.

All parties hold some blame, all parties are c-units. We know that.

The only way this club has a future is if we stick together, and whilst not every point in that statement will be aggreable to everyone, we're not going to get rid of the owners/attract new owners/get the council on side and progress unless there is some momentum and driving force in numbers.

The trust are right about one thing, the future of the club is grim unless we do something.
I'll be happy to when blame is sent on every direction...

All that is doing is trying to tell people that something that actually happened didn't happen.
 

Nick

Administrator
I think it's a statement to try and get a reaction from the club and let's hope it does. It fires bullets everywhere albeit a wee bit blindly. Seeing the team this year I fear the worse coupled with the shit off the field we can see the end in the next few years. Personally don't want to sit and wait until that happens
It doesn't really fire them everywhere does it?
 

Nick

Administrator
I will never get behind the trust until they strongly condemn Wasps being here. Its a complete red line to me.
Maybe they won't if it's them trying to step in...

Something about wasps is meaning they must not be upset

Promise of seats in the board? Why so scared of them?
 
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Ian1779

Well-Known Member
I really do not see anything wrong with that statement. I agree with it for the most part.

The Trust want the club to negotiate with parties to secure future of academy and stadium - sensible suggestion. But in the same breath they won't align themselves with the club which surely is the most obvious of things to do. It comes across as contradictory.
 

rupert_bear

Well-Known Member
We have to stick together if we want change, if you don't and are happy with our lot say so. There will be differences and anyone can pick holes in letters. When the trust release correspondence you can name the dessenters and almost get the right order they come on.
 

Otis

Well-Known Member
Been saying this for ages... It should be a given.

I will never get behind the trust until they strongly condemn Wasps being here. Its a complete red line to me.
They should have done so when Wasps first came here, but it's a bit of a the horse has bolted situation now and Wasps won't be going anywhere unless this Coventry project of theirs fails. Best way for that is for no-one to go and watch them.

I do think though, the Trust now coming out and starting to condemn Wasps for coming here, at this stage in the game, is all a little too late.

The Trust should have been against them coming, but we are now 2 years down the line and I do think the emphasis now has to be on getting all sides sat round a table talking again.
 

ccfctommy

Well-Known Member
The Trust want the club to negotiate with parties to secure future of academy and stadium - sensible suggestion. But in the same breath they won't align themselves with the club which surely is the most obvious of things to do. It comes across as contradictory.
But they should also hold owners to account.

If the worst happens it just may be them left to pick up the pieces.
 

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