In Supporters We Trust

Many a time in recent months I have compared my relationship with Chesham United to a marriage that is on the rocks. We still very much love each other; but we're not getting on that well at the moment. As a result I'm making a conscious effort to try and go back to doing the things we used to do together, when we first fell in love. I won't lie, I'm guilty of allowing a third party into the relationship to complicate matters as well...can the Trust save things?



It might be a bit over-dramatising it to say that my love for Chesham United is wavering (or at least I'm fighting that feeling, convincing myself it is not so), but if there was ever a time to take a step back, take that metaphorical trip in the helicopter, looking down below and putting a bit of a perspective on what lies beneath...The time is now.

Let's kick off with clearing up the current status with regards to club ownership, shares and all the other gubbins that has been going on for the past twenty or so months since I stood down as Chairman. With what is going on with the likes of Hereford and Salisbury at the moment, it seems appropriate to get some clarification and reassurances about our own situation.

As a club run by supporters we struggled financially, we borrowed some money to help cashflow, but never really got into serious debt. It was scary, but never life threatening to the club. I might lose sleep over £1,000 owed whilst others would not even shudder at the thought of owing over £100,000 - I think we should always worry, but accept that football really is like no other business.

Our biggest problems were always cashflow. We borrowed money in the short term, but we paid back. Without a doubt, Roger Payne was a massive supporter and sponsor - He was paying for coach travel costs to all away games, and helping out in other areas.

Maybe as a club we should have accepted what we were capable of and dropped down a couple of leagues to enable us to sustain the club we had, working towards a true community feel. There is a very strong argument that says we should have done that, there are others who believe we ought to look to be competitive on the field and strive to be a recognised force within the football pyramid. Personally I hoped we could achieve both, I never once felt that we were all working our hardest to achieve the best possible outcome for Chesham United, and when we reach that situation we get divides; things slip, people slip away, and it becomes a fairly lonely situation to be in.

By Christmas 2011 it became very apparent that the organisation structure was not working, change was needed, new ownership and investment was needed - it became all about planning an exit strategy that will enable the good bits we had introduced to carry on, without going back to the days of mis-management and questionable decision making. I wanted (needed) out.

Over the festive period 2011 going into 2012, things felt anything but festive. There were some serious meetings going on. Mike Warrick and myself went a long way down an alternative path to the one we ultimately chose, looking at a longer term strategy with the involvement of other local business people that would have given the club a real shake-up. Every expenditure was being scrutinised, some brutal decisions were going to have to be made, but the end goal (the vision), potentially, was really quite exciting. We were looking at community shares and a heavily volunteer driven future.

The proposal put forward to us was a huge temptation, though from the fans used to seeing us competing at the top of end of the Southern League, I don't think we would have got a lot of thanks. There would have been a period of austerity that may well have lost us many casual supporters...

Honestly? There was another factor that put me off hugely. Part of the deal would have been that I had to commit to being Chairman for another three years...I wasn't ready for that. There was no signs back then that the loving relationship with the club was on the rocks, but I was not ready for that level of commitment. I was looking for a way out. For the sake of the family. For the sake of the ones I really love.

Fittingly, around Valentines Day 2012, at a Board Meeting, it was agreed that I sign an agreement with Roger Payne that basically agreed that an additional loan of £15,000 would be converted into equity, ultimately leading to a controlling share of the club. How that would happen was to be finalised, but the principle was that we would either re-pay the £15,000 or take up an offer of further investment in the club and help to take it forward with Roger taking control of the shares.

It was not an easy decision, and not one taken quickly - many. many hours of consultation with local business and community people, previous owners and current shareholders preceded, and advice was sort in every direction before it was concluded that this was the best option on the table.

At the time, on paper, without fully appreciating the level of commitment involved, it all seems a bit of a bargain - £15,000 for a controlling share in the club? The fact that since then Roger has invested something closer to ten times that amount, it kind of takes away some of the guilt and feeling of "underselling".

Without getting into great detail (though I will more than happily talk through the details with anyone interested/concerned) the least complicated way of re-organising the shares was for the Trust to pass Shares over to Roger Payne with certain conditions that enabled supporters to maintain an interest in the running of the club and protect it from any unscrupulous dealings that may leave us in the kind of nightmare that the likes of Hereford and Salisbury City find themselves in today.

The Supporters' Trust board of the time did an excellent job of explaining the scenario to Members and getting the backing of the majority needed to satisfy the constitution of the Trust that had been stringently adjusted to avoid any forced or fraudulent attempts to obtain the shares.

At this point, a mere mortal like myself, having witnessed the Charles Manchester take over from within,  expected the "Purchaser" of the club to embark on due diligence, getting all the paperwork sorted and pushing the takeover forward.

It never happened.

In fact we were sat in this period of limbo where everyone seemed to be awaiting the arrival of the magic fairies to complete all the necessary legal work to make everything official.

During that time negotiations on the terms of the handover to Roger seemed to go quiet with the odd random comment being potentially misconstrued leaving uncertainty and a, understandable, lack of desire to proceed from the Supporter' Trust. With no pushing to get things sorted by the "Purchaser" there was no desire on the supporters part to change things from where we were...

...Fast forward two years (yes really, TWO YEARS), and the whole situation was getting ridiculous - Still no transfer of shares, no communication over the stumbling blocks, and no sign of activity - Just the classic Chesham United scenario where lots of people go moaning to lots of other people about what is going on (or not going on as the case might be), but the two sets of people moaning never actually get to talking to each other and sorting out what needs sorting.

Over the past twelve months Andy Leese and myself did a lot of work trying to sort out what needs to be done, calling upon advise from solicitor contacts we had made and looking for a way to lift that uncertainty that existed - With the intentions of the club set out, any failure to carry out the intention, on the back of the massive investment made by Roger Payne over the two years since the principle was agreed, could have led to a very, very,  messy situation. Two words. Salisbury. Hereford.

So this summer an effort was made to get things sorted and the club called upon the services of a retired Solicitor contact to pull everything together and try to get us in a more stable position going into the coming season. This involved completely re-drafting share transfer agreements between the Trust and the club, agreements from other shareholders and generally getting the approval of all parties involved.

By now, the Supporters' Trust, that legally held such a strong position, had descended into almost nothing over the past season - Even a simple request such as a membership list seems too much to ask. Still nobody can say for certain who was a Supporters' Trust member last season? That is not a criticism of anyone involved, I know what it is like, but it somehow felt hugely uncomfortable knowing that a body that existed in name only, still basically held the future of our club in the palm of its hand.

At the end of the day, it remained crucial that any agreement with regards to the share transfer stuck to the principle of the original agreement voted for by Trust members two years ago. The first draft that has existed in principle between the parties was laughed at by the legal bodies, but the key points remained important, and when the lawyer got involved I can assure you that Charles Manchester ruffled a few feathers in ensuring that the club, and the supporters, signed up to the best possible deal for the future.

The most important thing was to enable supporters to continue to have a say in the running of the club, get to see the accounts on a regular basis and ensure that the shares they give-up never end up in the wrong hands (Hereford or Salisbury anyone?). The original intention was to draft in a clause that says if Roger Payne no longer wants the shares, or passes away, then they go straight back to the Trust - Just like that. At the time, two years ago, on the back of a £15k investment, that was not an overly unreasonable demand, perhaps. Two years of dillying and dallying later, and now an investment of nearer £150k, suddenly the reasoning behind that demand becomes increasingly unjustified.

At least now it was being discussed, heads were out of the sand and progress was being made. There was a lot of negotiation on the detail, more than anyone would have wanted on the lawyers bill, but it was important to get it right.

Now, I have been advised by the lawyer that the details of any arrangement might not want to be in the public domain, but I think it is important that everyone is clear on where we stand, particularly if we have any hope of resuscitating the Trust.

The upshot is that the Trust is legally entitled to full board representation, full view of the accounts at all times and if any new shares are made available, or existing shares no longer wanted from Roger Payne, the Trust gets a chance to purchase them back at an agreed price, and if that price cannot be agreed between all parties it goes to a legal independent adjudicator. Admittedly, at first glance, not the exact same deal as we talked about two years. The shares will not automatically be given back to the Trust. Or dumped back on the Trust as it might feel in reality.

Now I have been involved around the boardroom for twelves years, and probably sticking my (unwelcome) nose into its affairs for another 5 or 6 years prior to that, and I have never known shares in the club to be anything more than a financial burden on the owner. The old cliche's about clubs being sold for £1 is down to the commitment that comes with taking it on and the cost that is likely to come with it - An independent assessment of the value of the shares in the club is unlikely to come down favourably on the shares' owner.

If the club turns around over the coming months into a business whereby the shares are of some real value, then at that point we may have to tilt our hats and say "well done, you deserve some money for those shares"...because it is so unlikely to happen. Salisbury. Hereford.

There is one other fundamental change to the original plan. Originally the Articles of Association of Chesham United AFC were going to be changed to allow Roger Payne to own 51% (an option prevented in the original Articles of Association), but after much discussion it was agreed that the best way forward would be for Roger to actually only own 49%, with the other 2% going to another person - the obvious candidate being Brian McCarthy.

At first glance a "done deal" if Roger and Brian get together, a bit like the Charles Manchester and Mike Dickson arrangement...or is it? Somehow I cannot see Brian, the Chairman, adding his 2% to a decision that could harm the club - Not when he is also wearing a Southern League and FA hat, positions of responsibility and integrity...wouldn't look good if he did the dirty under some strange circumstances, would it? Southern League Director getting the same sort of negative publicity as owners at Hereford and Salisbury? I don't think so.

When you think about it, we may possibly have the most secure position we could have hoped for. (At this point I must emphasise that I in no way fear that Roger will do wrong by the club, but we are talking club security and hypothetical circumstances that need to be considered. No one person at our club can sell a majority shareholding to another on their own as things still stand - That is a good thing).

With regards to the Trust, in an attempt to recover the love affair, I have gone back to a conversation I had with Nobby a year ago on one of our annual going to watch a Fish (ex-Marillion singer) gig whilst standing at the bar supping a conveyer belt of lager, putting the world to right...well if not the world, Chesham United.

We talked about how we visualised the Trust, and the club. What we could do if we focused our attention on the Trust, bringing back the good times...getting supporters enjoying themselves again, wanting to be a part of the club. I told Nobby that if he was prepared to have a bash at chairing the Trust, I would give some serious consideration to resigning from the Board and supporting him...

...It hasn't quite reached that point of resignation yet as a fresh face or two at Board level have persuaded me that I can still help the Trust and be on the Board, I think (hope) that is so, and we can fall in love again (but there's still the other "woman"?) - At the moment I have provisionally taken on a position on the Trust Board and the Club Board, and told fellow Directors that Supporters' Trust Representation is the position I want to hold...I am no longer going to stress myself over all the other bullshit that goes with being a Director (and there is no way I will end up in the dressing room again, addressing the players over the way we handle our finances).

So with this in mind, I attended a couple of Trust meetings, got all carried away, and came up with a draft "manifesto" (still don't like the word, but that is what it is!) of how we see the Trust going forward, what we want to be next season...and what we will not be. Supporters, the Trust, need an identity again, and we want to make that happen.

Believe me, I realise that my era as Chairman coincided with the journey towards the dire state the Trust finds itself in today. Maybe it was me, maybe it was the overall weight of responsibility, we were just not fully ready for it, but the facts are not lost on me. I planted the seed for Chesham United Supporters' Trust. Of course it was not a one man mission, but with the prompting of a local journalist, it wasn't far off. A decade or so ago, the formation of the Trust brought an end to supporter divisions, rival groups. I was proud of that.

I'm not so proud today when I look at what it has become. And I want to repair that.

Unfortunately, in all the excitement of putting a new engine in the Supporters' Trust machine, I overlooked the fragile track that had been laid over the past two years. The transition of responsibility for the club had not run smoothly, the handling of it from some quarters was diabolical beyond words. Toes were not so much trodden on, they were stamped upon and then jumped up and down on until all feeling was lost. Massive mistakes. Great gossip for many at the time, a life changing poison injection for others.

So when we throw a jolly old newsletter out telling supporters how rosy the garden is and how excited we are now that the ownership is sorted and we are looking to the future...We, I, overlooked the reality of what had gone before. Not an excuse by any means, but so used to the loneliness and lack of interest in the bigger picture, the outcome of the Trust agreement with regards to the shares was possibly treated far too flippantly, and may have caused offence in some quarters. Apologies if that is the case, though I have absolutely zero regrets at the outcome, and I hope we now face a genuinely brighter future.

There was a telling moment in the history of Chesham United that will leave a bitter taste with me forever, I am sure I have covered it in the unpublished 85,000 word epic I typed out in the 6 months after my 40th birthday and I don't want to go back over it now, but for a body that is so invisible at the moment, the Trust still holds incredible influence over feelings and emotions, this year is about making those feelings positive.


Next Time: The third party in the relationship