Getting back re Ryan’s original post - I’m a fairly regular reader of these forums but don’t and can’t spend all day every day in front of it so only answer things put to me directly on the public forum as best I can and when I can.
When I do post on public forums I invariably do it as a fan – NOT as an official of the Football Club so I do need to be careful that my own personal opinions are not confused as “official statements†from the Sea Eagles? (As per above people may think that I have a seat on the Eagles board and have direct influence on the hiring of the CEO or day to day running of the privately owned franchise which of course I don’t?)
That said, I am of course privy to information from time to time that is not more widely available and occasionally that may include information that is commercial in confidence or not appropriate to be posted in the public arena (Which hopefully you will understand?) so I have to be mindful of that as part of my obligations as an office holder so can’t always “tell all†for obvious reasons.
So rather than challenge me to make public statements I’m more than happy that people initially PM me or call or email me at
[email protected] with specific questions rather than in a public forum (Mind you I do prefer that you have committed to being a Football Club or Sea Eagles member which I think is only fair?) and I’ll do what I can to answer any questions as best I can within those restrictions– If there are things I don’t know then I’ll try to find out (Haven’t forgotten you Mata, have been interstate and in mid house move so flat chat)
I agree with the point above that to see people be critical of the CEO for not announcing sponsorship deals who will not be taking up a membership themselves would be disappointing – 10,000 fans that individually “sponsor†our team is the goal so please have a look at mwse.com.au for details and if you can, sign up?
To see people be critical of the running of the comp by News Ltd (Such as game scheduling etc) but then quite happy to spend their hard earned on a Foxtel subscription rather than a club membership is always confusing to me.
One point I’d like to make is that the Football Club (on behalf of it’s membership) has had an influence on significantly reduced prices of season 2011 memberships, made them more flexible for out of town fans and included a reduced “upsell†price for people to join the Football Club – This is just one example of why we need a strong Football Club (member run entity) so that we as fans can have a voice at board level of the Sea Eagles.
Revenue for the club is made up of many income streams including money from the NRL, gate receipts, memberships, merchandise, sponsorships, events and TV rights – we can all help.
This is not a “True Supporter†message or intended to kick off that tired old thread – it’s more about stating the bleeding obvious – the more members we have the more successful out club will be and the more likely we will be able to attract and retain players and have the support infrastructure needed.
Rest assured that Graham Lowe and his management team are doing (and have done) everything in their power to attract and secure sponsorship deals and to surmise or rank him/them on that performance thus far would be premature until we have a new season close by and still no announcement made?
We are far from broke (as should have deduced recently when the Sharks, Titans and Knights had to apply to the NRL for a cash bail out in July (we didn’t))
I have supported the current administration (whilst I’ve not always agreed with everything that has been done or how) and from what I’ve seen and what I’ve heard from a range of reliable sources I will continue to do so - but rest assured Ryan I will be pushing to the front of the line to throw rocks should the situation change and will encourage others to do the same.
Cheers
Vid
Ps By the way Ryan – Integrated appear to be sponsoring the coach and Sanyo Solar appear to be “campaign†sponsors (whatever that may mean) for GWS rather than $million plus shirt sponsors so may be a bit misleading to compare them to a Quantum or similar?
PPS to compare us to the Broncos who are a “one team town†and play at one of the best appointed grounds in the country is also a bit apples/oranges?