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Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2017 12:44 pm
by OUFC4eva
I thought this deserved its own topic.

Today's Oxford Mail extract does not reveal the full story - just the extent
of Darryl's financial input and continued investment into our great club and the
tie up and plans for Oxford City's Court Place farm.
His investment in OUFC has topped a cool GBP 8M (wow!) and he wants to use his personal
funds to acquire the freehold of the stadium too.

The really interesting bit for me was the categoric sentence that the club
would not be financially sustainable if promotion were achieved to the
Championship without the completion of the stadium acquisition.

This is pivotal. He has effectively said "HELP - I can't keep doing this".
The stadium has to happen now. The club loses GBP 1M per year
and additional revenue streams the stadium would bring are
critical.

Darryl also commentated on the air of negativity with some in the fan base
and those that have queried his commitment.

The guy has done a terrific job in my view but this stadium situation
is going to play out over the next few months.

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2017 2:07 pm
by Kernow Yellow
Is there anywhere we can see the full text? I assumed the Mail extract wasn't the whole story.

Have many people really been questioning his commitment? I think he's generally viewed extremely positively, and understandably so. But football fans in general (and OUFC fans in particular) have learned over many, many years not to be too blindly led by any chairman, even one who seems to be doing all the right things.

Is DE just sounding off about things in general, or does he need to develop a slightly thicker skin? There's always going to be some kind of disconnect between the boardroom and the wider fanbase, but at the moment I'd say that gap is as narrow as I've ever known it. Steward/flag-gate has caused some ructions, but for the most part I'm surprised if DE is upset about fans attitudes towards him.

The stadium issue is another thing entirely of course...

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2017 2:23 pm
by slappy
http://www.oufc.co.uk/news/article/2016 ... 13205.aspx

Full article ( I assume) here.

It reads more positively than the extracts I think. Bu reiterates the implications of not owning the ground if we were to get promoted.

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2017 2:43 pm
by tomoufc
At the risk of sounding 'negative' (but actually trying to establish the facts), am I right in thinking that the bulk of this 'investment' (which appears to be more running costs than capital expenditure) is in the form of interest-free loans from DE to OUFC, loans which he could recall at any time if he so wished?

On the subject of the ground - it's already known that the club needs to own the ground (or some not-for-profit owner) if the club is to be in any way sustainable. So why raise it now? What does he want me as a fan to do about it?

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2017 2:58 pm
by Kernow Yellow
Cheers Slappy. Couldn't see them earlier. It sounds like DE spends too much time reading forums and twitter!

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2017 12:15 am
by tomoufc
Actually, having a look at the latest accounts, which cover the period up to June 2015, 'we' owe far much more to Ian Lenagan (£5.3m) than to Daryl Eales (£3.2m). I wonder if that's still the case since Lenagan's resignation as Director last summer?

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2017 9:41 am
by recordmeister
I think there is one fan who feels he's always the brid(l)e and never the bridegroom.

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2017 10:58 am
by ty cobb
I'll copy my notes over from the other thread

More interesting programme notes from DE - although choosing a match where no one will buy the thing seems a bit odd!

If he wants to buy the stadium, why have OxVox put in a rival bid - with one show in town surely he would be in a stronger position? Is Kassam using the OxVox bid as a distraction to hold onto the stadium for as long as possible, he could now argue that of course he won't sell it to DE as he wants to give something back by letting the fans take charge so this is where he will devote his energy.

If he wants to do this and OxVox have the means to buy, whats the hold up and what is the realistic timescale?


The figures are interesting, if we assume he paid IL for his debt (5.3m) and that was the price of buying the club, add in the £1.3 profit on players brings us to £6.6 which means in his time he has leant an additional £1.4m in his nearly two years at the club. Given that we have gone up a division and have assets as players (and a manager) now the club is arguably worth this much more so if he were to sell he would probably reasonably expect to get his money back - albeit at a very low rate of interest.

There is no doubt he has turned the club around and is running it far better than it has ever been run and all fans should be grateful he is sticking money into improving the team. Slightly worrying that even when we're having a good couple of seasons we're still going to lose a million pounds this year. Tricky to know what he can do about this though given the wages aren't in the top quartile, which means we're probably about where we should be in the league. Maybe this is the point of the article, to show look I've taken it as far as a I reasonably can - with a above median budget for league one, together with player sales we're still going to lose a million this year. The stadium situation is crucial in terms of moving the club forward so OxVox/Firoz please get on with having a shit, or get off and let me get on with it.

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2017 3:14 pm
by tomoufc
ty cobb wrote:
If he wants to do this and OxVox have the means to buy, whats the hold up and what is the realistic timescale?[/i]
What makes people think that OxVOx, a voluntary organisation with funds derived from a couple of hundred mostly working class fans paying subscriptions, has more means to buy a stadium than a multimillionaire financial investor? Am I missing something here?

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2017 7:26 am
by OUFC4eva
http://www.oufc.co.uk/news/article/2016 ... 21239.aspx

The club release a statement this morning or more pertinently a blistering attack
on the perceived lack of progress and delay.

Not good.

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2017 7:38 am
by OUFC4eva
" DISUNITED " is the powerful headline on today's Oxford Mail front page:

http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/150249 ... reed_soon/

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2017 8:06 am
by Kairdiff Exile
OUFC4eva wrote:http://www.oufc.co.uk/news/article/2016 ... 21239.aspx

The club release a statement this morning or more pertinently a blistering attack
on the perceived lack of progress and delay.

Not good.
When I read it, I thought it was an unnecessary and rather petulant statement. I don't see what Darryl is hoping to achieve with it. We've waited a decade to sort out the stadium ownership issue - if OxVox think they can do it by the end of the season, then they deserve five months to do it. After that, no-one would blame Darryl for then saying they had their shot but now it was his turn. Instead, he seems to be picking a fight with the Supporters' Trust, which doesn't make him look good.

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2017 10:42 am
by YF Dan
Oh for Snake right now, who always seemed to know what was really going on.

I'd suggest it's not so much Eales patience running out, but more likely his money.

Worrying times.

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2017 11:21 am
by Kernow Yellow
Kairdiff Exile wrote:
OUFC4eva wrote:http://www.oufc.co.uk/news/article/2016 ... 21239.aspx

The club release a statement this morning or more pertinently a blistering attack
on the perceived lack of progress and delay.

Not good.
When I read it, I thought it was an unnecessary and rather petulant statement. I don't see what Darryl is hoping to achieve with it. We've waited a decade to sort out the stadium ownership issue - if OxVox think they can do it by the end of the season, then they deserve five months to do it. After that, no-one would blame Darryl for then saying they had their shot but now it was his turn. Instead, he seems to be picking a fight with the Supporters' Trust, which doesn't make him look good.
I think the problem is that OxVox say they hope to achieve a 'Heads of Terms' agreement by the end of the season, which is only really the starting point for a deal. And they only 'hope' to do so. They don't say they're confident of it. Even if that first stage were achieved the whole thing could still drag on for years. Surely IF the finance is (at least broadly) in place, and IF FK is happy to do a deal, then there is no reason why progress shouldn't be swifter. It is surely likely that at least one of those two conditions are not being met. Which would mean that a deal is unlikely at any timescale. Hence DE seeing it as a massive stumbling block to progress. Let's face it, three months ago talks were already underway, with no news of any note surfacing since.

Darryl Eales is at least setting his stall out. The silence from a certain Firoz Kassam is deafening. And OxVox are caught in the middle, in a now very unenviable position for a Supporters Trust. I wonder which way they'll go now, as they surely have to respond to this latest outburst...

Re: Chairman's Programme Notes v Scunthorpe

Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2017 11:58 am
by Radley Rambler
Kernow Yellow wrote:
Kairdiff Exile wrote:
OUFC4eva wrote:http://www.oufc.co.uk/news/article/2016 ... 21239.aspx

The club release a statement this morning or more pertinently a blistering attack
on the perceived lack of progress and delay.

Not good.
When I read it, I thought it was an unnecessary and rather petulant statement. I don't see what Darryl is hoping to achieve with it. We've waited a decade to sort out the stadium ownership issue - if OxVox think they can do it by the end of the season, then they deserve five months to do it. After that, no-one would blame Darryl for then saying they had their shot but now it was his turn. Instead, he seems to be picking a fight with the Supporters' Trust, which doesn't make him look good.
I think the problem is that OxVox say they hope to achieve a 'Heads of Terms' agreement by the end of the season, which is only really the starting point for a deal. And they only 'hope' to do so. They don't say they're confident of it. Even if that first stage were achieved the whole thing could still drag on for years. Surely IF the finance is (at least broadly) in place, and IF FK is happy to do a deal, then there is no reason why progress shouldn't be swifter. It is surely likely that at least one of those two conditions are not being met. Which would mean that a deal is unlikely at any timescale. Hence DE seeing it as a massive stumbling block to progress. Let's face it, three months ago talks were already underway, with no news of any note surfacing since.

Darryl Eales is at least setting his stall out. The silence from a certain Firoz Kassam is deafening. And OxVox are caught in the middle, in a now very unenviable position for a Supporters Trust. I wonder which way they'll go now, as they surely have to respond to this latest outburst...
My thoughts exactly. When Oxvox made the joint announcement in October(?) that they were in negotiations with Firoz, I was torn. Part of me thought it was good news that there was some activity but the other part thought this would be a Kassam smokescreen. I therefore, set my own deadline for concrete progress (no pun intended) of March which is when the next Oxvox meeting is scheduled for on the basis that I could ask some reasonable but searching questions at that session. The 'hope' to reach a Heads of Terms (which are very likely to be non-binding and more an 'agreement to agree') by the end of the season is very worrying indeed and fills me with little confidence that Oxvox are going to pull this off.

I'm pleased that the Board - not just Daryl - have released this statement because it basically says 'put up or shut up' which is the right thing to do. Also for the first time that I can recall it makes reference to finding an alternative venue.

The good news in all of this is that the stadium issue is firmly on the table and the centre of attention.