TUFC Fans Forum - 7pm Monday 5th August @ Plainmoor

[sandowngull]

Good Evening all. We are just in the process of sending out a communication to all TUST members to further publicise this event and to clarify the principal purpose / objective for the night.

Here is the transcript of what is being sent out as we speak:

Torquay United Fans Forum – 7pm on Monday 5th August 2024 at The Cove (formerly No. 10’s) inside Plainmoor.

Further to the communication posted on the club website this afternoon, TUST would like to take the opportunity to highlight this evening to our members and all TUFC supporters.

This is a ticketed event (but free to attend) in view of the capacity in The Cove and hence will be limited to 100 people, so please book your tickets soon via the link on the club website https://torquayunited.com/fans-forum-monday/ .The event will also be streamed online for those who are unable to attend in person. Further details of the livestreaming will follow in due course.

The event is very much aimed to sit alongside the “Meet the Manager” evening organised recently, but will focus on the vision of the Bryn Consortium and their Business Plan for the club.

As promised, the Bryn Consortium are keen to honour their commitment to transparency and the night will be aimed at providing a real insight into how they see the future of Torquay United.

Essential to this future are of course you “the fans”. A panel including co-chairmen Michael Westcott, Mark Bowes-Cavanagh and CEO Joe Lovell will share their thoughts and plans with you and at the same time will articulate the role they believe TUST will have within the club moving forward. Other Board Members are likely to also join the panel in person or remotely.

This will lead nicely into the rationale for the investment into the club from the TUST Forever Yellow Fund and the forthcoming Community Share Issue (CSI) to raise funds for further investment. TUST will be represented by Chairman, Nick Brodrick and Board Member, Matt Gorman who will be on hand to answer questions in relation to the CSI.

Please note, the event will not be attended by Paul Wotton or Neil Warnock as this is not aimed at being a forum regarding “on the pitch matters”. Instead, it is very much about showing a pathway for how our club is likely to be run moving forward and the hopes and aspirations of the Consortium alongside TUST.

After the turmoil of last season, it feels very much like football has “come back home” to Plainmoor and we would encourage all those supporters interested in the long term sustainability of our football club to either attend in person or to log on to watch the session which will be livestreamed.

It is sure to be an informative evening.

Matt

[sandowngull]

Hi all

The livestream link for the forum tonight for those of you who can’t attend is now available on the club website:

https://torquayunited.com/fans-forum-monday

Thanks

Matt

[westbaygull]

For anyone who's not aware, this is currently being streamed on YT.

[Southampton Gull]

https://www.youtube.com/live/F5DNv4jmf4 ... aVHL6nMCbc

[UnitedinDevon]

skip ahead a few minutes, the audio vastly improves - it never quite lines up with the video but that doesnt really matter

Really open and honest

[numpte]

Thought it was a really good transparent insight into the financials and running of the club from the Bryn group before the share issue info.

The wage bill last year and staff bill slashed and expected income this year higher to hopefully break even. AS youd expect, an empahsis on the matchday experience and eeking out extra £'s from those attending. To be fair to the Bryn group (or Micheal) i think it was not about squeezing every last £ out of everyone attending but offering a longer duration experience that makes everyone come back but you certainly did see the limitations of the stadium crop up in them attempting to do so. Not sure anyone asked about moving to a new stadium!!

At the end of the day though, its what goes on on the pitch that will draw punters in. No point having a great after match band in Boots if youve just got thumped 3-0 and no one ever goes to a match to see what the half time entertainment is. If i understood correctly almost £1M on playing budget last year compared to £500k this year and no doubt (whatever the results) more value for money this season even if only on the effort front.

As for the share issue, I will do it but interested to see the prospectus and how you can invest (basically give it away). Im interested in the £1k option but not up front so hope theyve thought about that. Otherwise itll be half that.

[CornishGull]

At the end of the day though, its what goes on on the pitch that will draw punters in. No point having a great after match band in Boots if youve just got thumped 3-0 and no one ever goes to a match to see what the half time entertainment is. If i understood correctly almost £1M on playing budget last year compared to £500k this year and no doubt (whatever the results) more value for money this season even if only on the effort front.

Agree with this totally. It's a crying shame and to absolutely nobody's credit that the club blew £1 million last season. on what was the worst assembled squad in our entire history.

[Midlandgull]

I'd like to understand more about the share issue and why it's shares with TUST and not TUFC itself?

It would be also interesting to know what the £100k would be used for.

[westbaygull]

I'd like to understand more about the share issue and why it's shares with TUST and not TUFC itself?

It would be also interesting to know what the £100k would be used for.

There will no doubt be full details in the release, sure they said it will be next week? Also, the chap at the end of the table, sorry don't remember his name, is providing his email/mobile number so that any questions may be answered.

Not wishing to state the obvious, but what a brilliant 3 hours viewing. So full of hope for the Club going forward now.

[Taelee73]

Last seasons wage was a million pounds?!

If so, we can safely say one individual was on a hefty chunk of that, scandalous really. One of the most expensive squads and management and one of the worst sides in our history. Wonder what his brother was on.

Thank goodness we’ve had a total clearance of all that deadwood from the very top to bottom, they should be embarrassed to have been on those salaries in NLS.

[Owlgull]

Last seasons wage was a million pounds?!

If so, we can safely say one individual was on a hefty chunk of that, scandalous really. One of the most expensive squads and management and one of the worst sides in our history. Wonder what his brother was on.

Thank goodness we’ve had a total clearance of all that deadwood from the very top to bottom, they should be embarrassed to have been on those salaries in NLS.

The playing bill of almost one million pounds, didn’t include GJ’s wage……

[numpte]

I think that (GJ's) was in the football costs of £700k versus this year football costs of 600k.

Out in interest i googled Exeter City staffing costs (all wages so presumably playing budget and manager etc) and that was just under £5M.

Long way to go!

[Taelee73]

Wow, playing budget of just under a million for that division. Guess we can understand why so many players decided to stay on then. Foolish of the club and Johnson to push for those salaries in NLS, even if it was meant to be one season. I think I read our budget now is still one of the top ones, So makes last seasons efforts even more shocking.

Glad we’re rid of the lot of them.

Exeter’s total budget of 5 million is impressive, wonder how they’d fair if relegated.

[happytorq]

I'd like to understand more about the share issue and why it's shares with TUST and not TUFC itself?

It would be also interesting to know what the £100k would be used for.

Preface this with "This is what the prospectus is for" but to me it seems fairly obvious. The £100k is being used to buy another seat on the board. So that means that trust will have two seats, and therefore more of a say in the running of the club at boardroom level. It's called a community share issue in part because the community is buying a share; they (we) will pool money in order to have enough to pay what the Bryn Consortium are asking for.

You are probably able to buy shares in the club itself, directly from (or through) the Bryn Consortium; they have the ability to sell some of their holding to individuals - they've alluded to it in the past as the trust spokesman on Monday said the same (in that if you have fifty grand to put towards the club you're better off speaking to Michael W and the crew.

Somebody else (don't remember who and it's hard to see on my phone) asked if there will be the option to pay half now and half later. I'm not involved in this at all (beyond being a trust member) but I strongly suspect that the answer to this will be No, as they need to get the readies in so that they're able to give it to the owners. As reasonable as the consortium has been so far, I cant imagine they'll take it on trust (ah-hah) that well give them £X later on. It's possible, I suppose, that the trust might attempt another issue in the future, and that could be where your other £500 could be directed, hit as far as I know TUST have not said anything about future fundraising attempt. I hope there's something in the prospectus about this because it'd be a bad look if they get 100k now and then try to get another 200k in a year's time of they don't mention it beforehand.

[thebigp1]

Really goes to show what a disasterous job GJ and co did with assembling that squad over the past few seasons. Must have been far in excess of most teams in this league. How he lasted so long is beyond me. Anyway so fortunate we have been able to start again and rebuild the club properly.