Has it been that long?

Wow - Just realised how long it has been since I last posted... That fact alone will tell you everything you need to know about the play-offs. The defeat at AFC Totton was disappointing, but not disastrous; going into the break 2-0 down, when we pulled it back to 2-2 I was convinced there would be only one winner, but a defensive error cost us dear and despite creating more chances, we lost the match 3-2.

So, that was the end of the football, but certainly not the end of the drama.

I may be wrong here, but I think a couple of people, more experienced than myself, have been hit by a huge dose of reality of what is involved in running a club like Chesham United and actually it is much more about what goes on behind the scenes than it is about the bit we all love - the football on it. Fortunately that reality seems to have been accepted now, embraced and we can look forward to a promising future for the club; albeit you will never keep everyone happy.

The first official board meeting (a month ago now - we have another one tonight!) of the close season was, shall we say, interesting. A new recruit to the Board came along and asked some digging questions and made some very good suggestions and brought some great ideas to the table. Better than that, the suggestions came with an element of "and I'm prepared to do that myself" which has always been our problem. Ideas? I've got hundreds of them. Time and resources to put them into action? Er, well, no, not actually. And most of us are faced with the same issue.

So, despite being wound up on may occasions during the meeting (none less so than by some of the lack of attention to detail, particularly on finances...one comment will stick with me forever, but not for public consumption); I was actually quite optimistic that we had brought in the new brush that we needed - Just reading back through this blog, I've been under no illusions that we very desperately need new blood, new energy and new resources. Of course there were always going to be moments of resentment on comments made, but once you learn to live with that, all was really quite positive.

Unfortunately, since the meeting, the club managed to go on a huge own goal scoring exercise on the eve of the Youth team tournament that had returned to the club after a year or two's absence. Winning back the support of the younger sections has been an ongoing exercise, improving with every month that passed... So dispensing with the services of the bar manager on the eve of the tournament was not a good move, and then - despite doing some excellent work cleaning the place up - not opening the bar in time for the start of people arriving on the Friday night for the tournament?

That particular weekend will go down as one of the most badly managed in the club's history. As well as the Youth team tournament we had the end of season presentation evening on the Saturday night, played out in a somewhat uncomfortable atmosphere. Despite this wanting to be an open and honest blog, there are things I'd rather just steer clear of because it was just such a disastrous mess....

Of course there are issues that need addressing with the bar, as there are with many aspects of the club, but going in with the sledgehammer (as you might in a larger PLC company) really doesn't work at a non-league football club. It is almost a cliché to say that a football club is like no other business...but it really is like no other business.

Anyway, the upshot is that we no longer have the new Director that had been introduced to us all at the previously mentioned board meeting; which means many of the ideas and efforts that looked to be forthcoming are no longer in the immediate pipeline. The sledgehammer has been locked in the cupboard for now, but it does mean that many of the issues, little things, that need addressing still exist, and may continue to. We have the advantage now of the financial safety net that Roger Payne provides, but the little things that flawed my time as Chairman have not gone away.

It's funny mentioning "little things". I remember going away on a weekend jolly with a friend, Rob King, what must be nearly 20 years ago. We were staying in Margate, but took in some Conference football at Dover Athletic, watching them play against Stalybridge Celtic. Post-match we had a few drinks with a couple of Dover fans we had met the previous season when Chesham had beaten them in the FA Trophy; as the drinks slipped away we started discussing the differences between Dover Athletic and Chesham United, our conclusion was that it was all the "little things" that built up to make really quite a big difference.

Of course whilst all this was going on there was a distraction from what was happening on the pitch. Yes, all the football has finished, but it is still a crucial time for football clubs and their players, particularly non-league sides where the majority of players are not on contracts. All doubt needs to be removed, the manager needs to be clear about what to expect next season, what is expected of him and, let's not beat about the bush here, how much money he is going to have to do that. I've been fortunate enough to have been a Director around Andy Leese for five years, Chairman to him for nearly two of them, and I know exactly how he works; and I know exactly what rattles him and will lead us down the path of toys flying out of the pram...

...We were heading down that path.

I had missed the meeting on the Thursday before the Youth Tournament when Andy & Jon met with the Board (and the Board also met Colin), unfortunately I could not re-arrange child care to get away (!) that night, but I knew Andy's concerns going into the meeting, I knew what questions he wanted answered and I knew what he hoped for deep down...Despite the initial feedback I got, when I spoke with Andy the next morning it was apparent that all was not as well as it might be.

It was very clear that the very important off the field issues were distracting from dealing with the football manager. I spoke at length with Brian McCarthy about the issues, what my opinion was and why I thought it was important we resolved them... It's funny, I can have a real ding-dong relationship with Brian; he is the person I have had heated debates with more than anyone at the club, but when we dig beneath the service we are both actually singing from totally the same hymn sheet and the fact that we are both happy to express an opinion makes, in my opinion, for a healthy relationship.

The upshot is that we concluded that rather than brushing aside the requests and concerns of our manager, we really should be looking to protect our interests and remove any uncertainty about the future. That afternoon we drafted a new contract proposal, a footballing budget and a covering letter that covered plans for some of the other issues raised (training facilities, kit, reserve team manager, budget, away travel...it was a comprehensive list!); Brian managed to get copies in the post to Andy and Jon Meakes that night.

Twenty-four hours later we had moved from this fractious relationship between club and management, to a totally united team looking to work together for the good of the club.

OK, so one letter does not resolve everything, the actions need to be followed up, but since that has happened there has been vastly improved communication and a much happier camp. Of course, we are still not without issues - it would not be Chesham United if we were not. When I say we were working as a united team - rightly or wrongly - the decisions and negotiations regarding the new contract did not involve the entire Board; in my mind the speed in which we were able to act re-iterates my feeling that "too many cooks can spoilt the broth" and what we really need is people prepared and capable of making the right decisions, and taking the responsibility for those actions.

I actually think board meetings are really quite tedious, all the work should go on around the meetings, and the meetings themselves about reporting, minuting and confirming - perhaps just discussing the really tough, or contentious, issues... The reality is they can often become a talking shop chatting about the things that are more interesting, rather than the things that need dealing with. Perhaps I have been around too long, perhaps I take things for granted too much, it should be a privilege to be at board meetings and I know many football fans would love to be involved in their boardroom discussions (that said, it really is not in the slightest bit glamorous!).

Anyway, the upshot is that we have managed to secure new and extended contracts for Andy Leese and Jon Meakes. No doubt that will not please everyone because, probably like every club, I hear the complaints and the moans from some areas of the terraces as we all become mangers from the touchline, but the reality is, I stand by my belief that we have one of the best management partnerships we have had at the club in my lifetime, if not the very best. Of course I hear the comments on the terraces about certain decisions, selections or substitutions; and quite often I agree. I, like you, may not always know the facts behind the decision, so I cannot always say who is right, but it would not be football if we did not have opinions.

However, I still strongly believe in Andy and Jon. I may be wrong here, and it may take years to prove or disprove this, but, to quote the great (?) Gerald Aplin - Chesham supporters are being spoiled. I really think there is a danger that we are taking for granted the football we are seeing, and the fact that for each of the past five seasons we have been competing at the top end of the table, keeping alive the hunt  for promotion. You hear all different stories about playing budgets at clubs in this league, many you have to take with a pinch of salt, some I know are totally genuine. I believe we are getting value for money and, when we do end up on the look out for a new manager, I think we will find it incredibly hard to mirror the success we are enjoying, for the money we are spending.

I may be proved wrong. But I didn't want us to run that risk.

The other thing when it comes to discussing managers is the reality of doing that as a fan enjoying a pint or shouting from the touchlines, as opposed to being someone who can ultimately make that decision. It is a huge difference, and you need to be prepared to look at the much bigger picture and not let yourself get influenced by what you see and hear, or take any silly knee-jerk reactions. That is not as easy as it sounds... it is something I learned from Charles Manchester, very often with me being the one wanting the knee to spring into action!

The good news is that we are back on track on the field, we still have the "silly season" to come when clubs will start making promises to players that they have no hope of fulfilling, or sustaining, but it turns the heads and can unsettle sides. This period will go on practically until the first ball is kicked at the start of the new season in August, hopefully we can benefit from the continuity of the past five years and the stability of having the manager signed up for another two years.

Talking of the new season, it looks like we will be having Kettering Town in our league next season. As always I have total sympathy for the supporters and understand all the problems, but, even with a ten point deduction, with the sort of wage bill they are talking about for next season, they will become genuine title contenders which could mean that a club that has been trying to work its way up through the leagues doing things the right way, is going to have its chances of promotion halved. Is that fair?

It reminds me of last season when the issue of Rushden & Diamonds was raised and discussed, inconclusively, at the League AGM in Torquay. Unfortunately I will not be going to Torquay this year to represent Chesham United...Well, when I say unfortunately, it is quite a huge relief - what on earth are we doing having to travel something like 226 miles to go to our League AGM?

Last year, after the event, I entered into communication with the league offering some hospitality suggestions and also offering my services in looking for an alternative hotel that could host the weekend, but might be geographically better for the majority of clubs. Unfortunately (and I mean that word this time), despite - clearly begrudgingly - accepting my offer in the first instance, my follow up request for some basic facts that would be needed (like how many people, rooms, etc) was acknowledged and I was informed that the information would be forthcoming, I chased it once or twice (even discussing it in a room at Wembley whilst awaiting the outcome of the Redditch appeal)...some ten months on, I have given up on waiting and am just left with a slightly sour taste in my mouth.

Once again the AGM weekend clashes with Father's Day. As Chairman I made that sacrifice, but not this year...it's not worth the grief at home.

So that, in a very brief nutshell, is an outline of where we are at over the last month, though another board meeting tonight - hopefully it will be about taking actions rather than just discussing what needs doing, a downfall of many a board or committee, in any industry, in any part of the country.