Cork City "BOARD"

[rebel yell]

We're complete pish as I have been saying even before the season. Murph hasn't got a clue. The fans need to organise
a red card protest to show the board and the team that we
won't be mugs and pour our money down the drain. So what's needed is as follows.
1) Murphy needs to be let known the strength of feeling against him and be red carded.
2) The board need to take a good look in the mirror. There is a huge fan base for Cork Soccer which is untapped. What are they doing about this? If not much then they too need to go.
3)The club is 17 years old but has not progressed. It doesn't own
it's own ground (or training facilities if I'm right?). The board need to address this or go.
4) Facilities need to improve. Look at Longford's Flancare and
show me why Cork haven't , nor look likely to, build a similar
stadium. No Excuses!
5) Finally get the right players on the pitch. This is the least priority only because we're such a disaster off the pitch!

[a.n.other]

Totally right brother, the potential to develope the club , the only semi pro live football outlet for circa 250.000 people, is vast and to a person with average business acumen would appear to be a great opportunity for making money. Yet the club in it's present state does nothing to attract in perspective fans of which there are hordes. Does nothing to promote......it's all been said before........city depresses me, thats sad.

[Neil]

Here, here...

[Gerry Desmond]

Some good points raised there. Better off in a different thread, maybe, as the emphasis has shifted from fans to board?

Gerry

[Snatch]

Gerry is right, this should be on the "Fans" thread.

The fans must first be more organised. Does any body even know the techicalities of 'sacking the board'. I certainly don't.

Who has the authority to sack the board?

Do they have unlimited control of the club as if it were any other private company, i.e. Do the board own the club and we as fans have absolutly no say in its running?

Can the board only be 'sacked' if some other people buy out their financial interests in our club?

Are the board officially obliged to listen to the concerns of the C.C.F.C. supporters club?

Are these kind of questions raised at Supporters' Club meetings or are they just a boozing session?

This is what I mean about the fans being organised!!!!

P.S. Will a clear message come from a red card protest.

[joe]

Originally posted by Snatch
Gerry is right, this should be on the "Fans" thread.
I can't win can I? :(

Are these kind of questions raised at Supporters' Club meetings or are they just a boozing session?

Don't take this the wrong way but if you were ever at a meeting you'ld know the answer to that one.

[Snatch]

Unforetunitly I've been out of Cork for a couple of years.
Thanks Joe for that most informative answer.;)

[joe]

sorry, but it just seems to me that whenever people have a grevience out comes the line 'what are the supporters club doing about it?', usually from people who have never made an effort to get involved with the sc (for whatever reason).

[Snatch]

I'm not giving out about the supporters' club, I was just wondering about their role in affairs of the club. Maybe more people would join if they knew that the S.C. had a genuine imput in the running of the club.
What does happen at S.C. meetings?

[joe]

Originally posted by Snatch
I'm not giving out about the supporters' club, I was just wondering about their role in affairs of the club. Maybe more people would join if they knew that the S.C. had a genuine imput in the running of the club.
What does happen at S.C. meetings?

There'll be a few members at the pats match this evening, including the secretary, so if you're there seek them out. Otherwise I'll post more later when I get a chance.

[Gerry Desmond]

Originally posted by joe


There'll be a few members at the pats match this evening, including the secretary, so if you're there seek them out. Otherwise I'll post more later when I get a chance.

Shock, horror, exposé:
SC member fails to answer direct question about the SC! :D

Programme article there, I'd say!

I can see it now...

Gerry

[rebel yell]

Getting rid of this board would be as easy as falling off a log. The only worry is that u'd get done for assisting a suicide. The club
is dying on its feet.
I don't blame the supporters because love is blind and a hardcore
will come, come what may. The fans love the club but we must
realise there comes a time when u know ur being taken for a mug.
Running a monopoly is a cash cow and that is effectively what Cork City FC is. The board have sold Carey and Delaney for
large sums without any return in investment.
The facilities! Would u go to see a Hollywood Blockbuster at the cinema and when u get there sit on a plastic seat if ur lucky
with a hole in the roof and rain pouring in?
We're a laughing stock now. Who ever heard of a board meeting
at half-time to sack a manager? Talk about the old cliche about
not coming out for the second half.
But it really is time for the cork footballing family to rally. Organise
a red card protest to let the board and the team know our feelings. Otherwise we really are heading for Div 1 at a million miles an hour and I bet not many of the junket loving board
will be around. Murphy and the Board Red carded NOW!!!

[SÓC]

Since when did we sell Alan Carey?

Thats great Sack the Board......no problem, that will do alot. Think about what you are saying, you want to sack a new board because results on the pitch have not been great at the start of the season. I personally think the board have show alot of interest in the club so far this year, making a decent few preseason signings and also investing in the ground ( if one is to read the program you will find that City are actually inveswting i the ground).

The real problem lies with the fickle Cork Fans, the club should not have to market to those "life long" fans who packed the ground 3/4 years ago. Therein lies our problem

[a.n.other]

"the board have sold carey and delaney for large sums"

rebel we've been ( the whole league) selling people for pittance since the dawn of time , look at norway and countries like such, delaney goes from city to the leicester first team and how much did we get? , any f**king norwegian or finn finds his way to england and they get a far better return...if we are going to sell people on continuously we must at least attempt to get something in return that we can use to develope the club structure, I'm all for fellas being given a chance to go accross water but what about add in clauses for appearances and sell on's, we've got to be meaner and have more respect for the work that produces these players.

[rebel yell]

I was referring to Bryan Carey not Alan Carey- showing my age I guess. The Norwegian clubs should in fact be our models- that is
something IMO that the EL clubs have got right Look at Rosenberg, they're in the CL every year. Yes, I do say sack the board because they are not taking us forward, more like backward. We need a board that will take on the MSA and do something finally with the cross. I wouldn't even call them amateurs as most amateur clubs seem to have better facilities
than we do.

[niamh]

The fanzine is one outlet to show the board what we think. The other would be a protest but do the fans actually have any real power to sack the board. Weren't the fans trying to get rid of Sugar from Spurs for years to no avail. Something needs to be said and done but what could we actually do?

[rebel yell]

Niamh there is loads that can be done, it's just a question of organisation. We're crying for leadership on the pitch and at board level to stop our drift. Any protest should be reasonable
but should reflect the depth of anger of the supporters. I'm not sure if the chairman ever goes to the meetings of the supporters club but he should be 'summoned' to the next meeting to give
staisfactory explanations of where the club are going and what time frame he envisages. He should be then accountable for his
plans.
Another option is for the chairman to address the supporters concerns in the programme where in print he can affirm the direction we are heading in and any time scale. The supporters
club can be given equal prominence in the programme and 'progress' can be reviewed in say 6 months.
If the board are unwilling to acquiesce to these reasonable demands, then the fans could do Red Card protests where everyone holds up Red Cards before, at half-time and full-time
to show their feeelings which has the benefit of not affecting the team or support. Supporters could wear their City shirts inside
out too to make it a fun protest with a serious side and publicise
why we're doing it. What does anyone else think?
GuntherRed Card NOW!!

[dahamsta]

Getting rid of this board would be as easy as falling off a log.

How do you "sack" the people who own the club exactly? Do they sack themselves and immediately rehire themselves perhaps? Or maybe they hire someone to sack them? I'm confused.

adam

[rebel yell]

It's all rather simple Adam. It's just a matter of creating conditions
or invoking a situation where the 'owners'- I myself consider them caretakers or trustees- either have to bow to the will of us consumers or patrons, or fly in the face of what is often common-sense and ignore the life-blood of the clubs- we the fans. Given the power- hungry, often super-egotistical nature of these board members, this is never a straightforward matter of course. But unless they've got very deep pockets, they would be very unwise
to ignore the paying customer. Similarly the board is not creating the conditions for the customers to come to the X due to- IMO- its
'shamateurism'.
He who pays the piper calls the tune as you know and rite now all I'm hearing is some busted up lyrics from the X.

[dahamsta]

I can understand your idealistic wishes rebel yell, and I sypathise with them, but even with your conditions, it's not as simple as that. In fact it's not simple it all, and I would go so far as to say it's next to impossible. IMHO, no matter how bad it gets - and that includes relegation - the board will never "give up" their hobbyhorse, and the fans will never create enough noise to oust them.

I mean, think about it - how many times have there been calls for the heads of the board, and calls for supporters not to go to matches? What has it achieved? And I mean no offense, but "red cards" and "shirts worn inside out"? Don't make me laugh. If you "tabled that motion" at one of the Foot.ie "management meetings" you'd be laughed from the room. Do you honestly think the board members would honestly give a flying eff at the moon if you hold up a red card at a match? They probably wouldn't even see you, and if they did, do you know what they'd do? They'd laugh at you too.

There's only two ways to make City successful, a buyout or a bankruptcy, and the only viable option of those two is the latter. The club needs to go bust and be bought out by someone with vision. Until that happens, nothing is going to change. I'd bet the farm on it. I mean, look at them now for gods sake, they're in reverse!!! They're back to organising everything themselves, which is never successful in an organisation of that size.

You want to oust the board of Cork City FC? Don't go in the gate. Stand outside with a placard and hand out leaflets encouraging others not to go in. Get your friends and those people you convince to do the same.

Next Week: How to make Cork City succeed as a soccer club. :)

adam

[Snatch]

Lots of interesting statements here.
To be fair to the board most of us don't actually know what level of interest each of them have in the welfare of our club. I presume that when they rescued the club from liquidation that they had benevolent intentions for the future of the club.
However I do firmly believe that they should come before the supporters' club regularly both to listen to the concerns of the fans and to inform us of their short and long term intentions for the club.
Such events would ensure that fans don't feel agrieved and also give the Board a chance to express their opinions.

I also think that a regular article by the board in the programme addressing serious club issues would be most beneficial.

[rebel yell]

Adam I agree it would take strong character to stand up to any football board. They might laugh but if the protesters are reflecting the fans discontent, it is actually the board who will end up the laughing stock. There are a couple of points to be considered. Firstly this board is already driving away supporters, just look at the attendance at the X this season. What will they do if the hardcore turn against them? They'll only have themselves to laugh at. Secondly could they afford the bad publicity demonstrations would bring? Thirdly look at Strachan at
Coventry- fan power got him ousted even though their directors had backed him financially. Fourthly. You can't treat your customers with contempt. Look at Gerald Ratner who called his jewellery in his shops crap which reflected on his customers who
deserted a century old name. The club are treating the fans with disdain, where is our Flancare? Finally I have only suggested a few methods although highly visible ones. The supporters could
even organise a petition on this site and e-mail Gerry Desmond
who seems a fair-minded person to pass our concerns onto the club. If these are ignored well then their respect for us fans will be
highlighted for what it is. And finally no-one seems to be arguing
about the diagnosis only the treatment. The club is sick at heart
and no amount of an ostrich mentality will make that go away.
We could all bury our heads in the sands and hope things are better when we get our heads out, but it will be no thanks to us.
Think about it- our Roll Of Shame in Cork. Cork Hibs , Cork Celtic
Cork Alberts, Cork Utd all driven into the ground because those who supported them up to a point let those in charge get away with murder. Are we seeing history revisited?

[Snatch]

Point well made by rebel yell. It is indeed the role of every good supporter to voice their concerns when we feel the club is being run poorly. But first things first, we must find out the true state of affairs regarding the board. A questions and answers meeting between the board and concerned supporters should be organised for the benefit of both parties and the Club itself.

A special artical on the event should then be published in the programme and on relevant web-sites

[pete]

Whatever happens a clear distinction should be made between City on & off the pitch!

Any protest or whatever is going to be seen as supporters moaning about the position in the league table to which the Board shall see the solution as a couple of wins & move up the table = end of protests.......

[Leonard]

If we have filters to cut out bad language, why can't we have filters to cut out **** like that written by SÓCcfc. What an idiot. The board have invested nothing in this club. All this club is at the moment is a few jerseys and a couple of contracts. The club has no permanent home, no shop, not even a reliable contact address (anyone who has had the misfortune of dealing with Noel O'Mahoney will know what I mean).
As for Cork fans being "fickle" - easy mistake to make - if you're an idiot. The patience of City fans has been stretched to the limit the past few seasons. It's hard not to be fickle when you can't even find out where the pre-season friendlies are being held. Much as I hate the GAA, at least they know how to market themselves and keep their fans. Instead, we are ignored and OUR money that WE pay at the gate disappears down some tax loophole and into someone's back pocket in dirty fivers.
We are being conned. Don't know about the retarded goldfish on this site, but I don't particularly like being conned and shat on by crooks.
Time to sort it out.

[SÓC]

Thus proving my poit about fickle Cork football fans, you turn o one of yourow who expresses an opinion that is not your just as quick as you turn on the team.
Read the program, Board are investing in the Stadium.
I take execption to your childish antics, no wonder we cant get fans in the door when we have cynical fans like yourself, cant handle a view different you your own, shame that.

[rebel yell]

STCFC. Can I correct u on one point at least? I and others on this site IMO are not disgruntled just because the results are poor. In fact if you read back thru the posts you'll see the criticism began even before the season. A 3-1 win over Pats is a good result but
City's problems go much deeper. Shels will probably expose this I feel but it still isn't about one or two matches. We're p1sh and unless we get Gerry Mccabe in, we're doomed. But as i have oft
repeated IMO it's off the pitch where our problems lie.
Gunther Red Card NOW!!!!!

[pete]

Read the program, Board are investing in the Stadium.

I believe almost all the monies for this are grants of some form or other + profits from the club lotto?

The question really should be what happened to the money when the club average 5000 a game a couple of seasons ago? We appear to be able to survive on 1000-1500 gates now just about & i doubr the costs are much less now than the great 'nearly ' season?

[Leonard]

I take exception to your views on Cork City FC Soccfc. I really do find it hard to believe that some fans still can't see what this board have done to the club over the past few seasons (unless you're someone lower down than a fan at City, such as a board member).
You are right on one point - I have difficulty in people having different points of view to mine, especially when that person is some snotty kid who still believes in the tooth fairy, so stop wasting everyone's time and go to school or something.

[JC_GUFC]

Jesus this thread is so like all the debates going on at Galway United at the minute it's scary.

I think everyone's in agreement that all fans want is a bit of respect. Last season some fans worked tirelessly selling lotto tickets and the like only to be told that they should be selling more.

Clubs need to realise that it's not fans' duty to do these things and anyone who is prepared to help the club should be thanked.

I went to ask our chairman for a ticket to Ireland v Holland, he said no so I asked whether it would be right to expect that tickets given to Galway United should be given to people who travelled to support the club in Gortakeegan against Monaghan United (no directors turned up for that game) so he then asked me "Who are you that I have to answer to you?"

We've set up a Supporters' Trust in Galway United but now it seems that they're not going to co-operate with us unless people (ie me and another guy) stop posting messages about them on the internet.

So in other words they just want it as it was last year when the Supporters Club did all the work for them and they take our money.

The good thing about the Trust is that they need us more than we need them - if they don't get involved we can raise funds and then spend it our own way, eg by buying a plot of land which could be handed over to the club if they agree to our demands.

CU
JC

P.S. I should also add that the club has not produced accounts for the last 5 years.

[pete]

Galwaay JC,

Does the Trust have a piece so to speak of Galway like say an owner of the club?

What exactely is the Trusts role thats any different from a supporters club?

Seems like Longford (Bulgarian travel arrangements excepted) are maybe the only well run club at the moment?

[JC_GUFC]

at the moment no.

The Trust has listed 5 main aims which is wishes to achieve.

1. To ensure the longterm future of Galway United.

2. To get meaningful representation for the fans on the board of Galway United.

3. To make the club fully accountable to its supporters.

4. To ensure the club reaches the highest levels of business management.

5. To develop youth & community relations within Galway City & County.

The Trust will not hand over any money to Galway United football club until we are satisfied that these 5 aims can and will be achieved.

Previously our Supporters Club just handed over money to the directors without knowing how it was being spent - indeed last season Galway United received 2 grants totalling about £60,000 but no-one knows where the money went.

The Supporters Club also did have a member on the board of directors but given that he didn't hear anything about Don O'Riordan's sacking until Don himself told him indicates that it was not meaningful!

CU
JC

[rebel yell]

Wise words there JC. U also seem to have a vision and a purpose
which makes u unfit for membership of our respective boards.
U epitomise what is sadly lacking in our clubs. No wonder u are
villified! Galway Utd have suffered from the same sort of shorttermism as has plagued us for years.

Every revolution was first a thought in one man's mind and when that thought occurs in another man, it is the key to that era.
Emerson 1841

[Éanna]

To be honest, i know i've been a massive critic of the board in previous times, but i think things are on the up. The attitude and behaviour of certain members of the board has illustrated a willingness to listen to and interact with supporters that has been sadly lacking. I don't think the current board will ever be the visionarys many of us would want them to be, but they have shown- in recent months- a more approachable attitude.
I can't see anyone wanting to buythe club right now, i mean we must be regarded as the most ungrateful and grumpy lot of fans in the country! I would love to buy the club in the morning, but i cant! Many others feel the same. I think it's a case of working with what you've got. Rather than antagonise the board by abusing them, attempt to accomodate them and get the best from them. Some of them are willing to talk to fans and be reasonable- others aren't certainly- but we have to deal with reality rather than wishing for things that are extremely unlikely.
That said, thing have a long way to go.