Fans Panel Meeting
Wednesday 23rd November 2016
Attendees: Gary Fox, Barry Brown, Phil Buxton, Stewart Thompson, Carol Green,
Keeley Thompson, Neil Barron
Carl Hall, John Scarrow, Gary Thornton, Gavin Baldwin, Mark Hughesman, Jon Warburton, Ray Green.
John Scarrow welcomed everyone to the meeting and thanked them for attending.
It is now only 60 days until our first Friendly game.
Gary Thornton gave an update
27 players have been signed. Gary is happy with all the signings which shows flexibility in positions and the majority of last season squad have been re-signed. Matt Nicholson and Mike Kelly are included in the 27 although they will not be available for selection until May/June next year but it was felt it was important to include these two players in the squad.
Pre-season started last Saturday with the new Conditioning Coach, Rhys Lovegrove, being in place. 2 sessions have been delivered and it is looking very positive – the Players respect Rhys and he is working hard with them. The Players did come back in a good condition and we have a 14 week plan in place to take us up to the first friendly which is against Sheffield on the 22nd January.
David Foggin-Johnson didn’t take up our offer as it wasn’t for him and now the offer has lapsed. Brad Nicholson has signed for Keighley and George Milton has signed for Hull KR. Jack Walton has signed for Hunslet and Matty Welham has been released.
The Squad is a lot different to last year and the new signings will address the balance that was missing from last season. The average age of players is 26
Feka is a massive signing for us, Jamie Thackery has experience and Russ Spiers is a tough player also Connor Scott had a good first season for us.
We aim to proceed further in the Cup competitions and play-offs and the game against Toronto will be great experience for the players. The team that finishes first in the 8’s will get promotion then the second team from the playoffs.
We are overall pleased with the new signings and it shows we mean business next season.
Questions:
Why are some players being offered 1 year contracts and other 2 year?
CH: It is harder than ever to sign players with the competition and players being more demanding, we believe that the players we have signed are good for the Championship and if we get promotion they are here to play at that level. We are building the squad year on year. We have a good band of players here and getting players on 2 years deals gives us continuity as well.
Will there be a Meet the Players Night this Year?
CH: We are looking at a Season Launch Dinner to take place on the 10th February, which will be after the friendlies but before the season starts with the iPro Cup. We are hoping to get Robbie Paul as MC and Adrian Morley as Guest Speaker to attend and it will be a chance for all the players, families and supporters to meet and bond. This event will be promoted as soon as possible.
Will new season shirts be available to buy before Xmas ?
CH: Yes, we are hoping the merchandise will be available in the Club Shop from the 16th December. There will also be tracksuits, polos to follow There will be Junior sizes available and it would be a very good idea if people went to the shop and looked at the Rovers kit as the same sizes will apply for the Dons merchandise, starting we are told from size 6.
Why is it that the players play well for 60 minutes and then they go to sleep?
GT: Every game has its own momentum and is different. There is no particular pattern for every game. Looking back I don’t see that and I don’t agree but was disappointed with performance at some games. Stats don’t tell us this as well.
We need to get to a level of support as we have had in the past.
We have an older fan base and we need to look at attracting younger fans
MH: We did the Junior Takeover Day last season which was a great success and we know that a couple of participants are now Dons followers. We will be repeating this event this year.
Can Match day experience be made better e.g. Junior tournaments?
CH: Yes this is something we will look to improve on.
Can the Vila mascot be changed. Although older fans know the relevance the younger supporters don’t know who he is?
Perhaps a competition can be held to suggest a new mascot. Costs will have to be looked at.
Can a package for mascots to lead players out be introduced?
MH: Last season we held ‘Moments of Magic’ where a junior supporter was picked out from the crowd to lead the team onto the pitch but we can look at packages.
Is Dual Registration with Hull FC still in place?
GT: We have a strong squad in place but the agreement is still in place for both Clubs. We have no dependency but if a player comes along we will look at the situation. Also we have less pressure as Hull run an under 23’s so this works in our favour as well so that any players not getting into the team can have some game time in the 23’s.
Jon Warburton, Commercial Manager, was introduced to the Group.
CH: The Commercial and Marketing departments put forward a presentation to me with plans they have fin terms of support off the field. Their support is phenomenal and amazing, the best I’ve known.
JW: It is clear to me the passion of the people here have for the Dons and on the pitch they want to see them as high as possible in the league. The improvements that can be made commercially will reflect what Gary and the team do on the pitch, so I would like fans to take away this thought and think of potential ideas on what we can do with regard to sponsoring matches, players and hospitality and what supporters would like to see. Ultimately whatever we bring in commercially, whether it be £10, £50 or £10,000 it all goes to the Dons.
Something we are looking at is offering a Hospitality box for £200 for 10 people so fans can get together and will cost £20 each. What we don’t want to do is create packages that fans don’t want.
Sponsorship packages can be found on the website.
When will the season tickets be ready?
MH: These will be available middle of December ready for Christmas.
Mark Hughesman asked that all supporters check that their current email address is registered with the Box Office.
In summary John Scarrow thanked everyone for their attendance and stated that Club Doncaster was essential to the Dons for its sustainability and support resulting in a stronger squad next season. Looking at other Clubs in difficulty we can go forward with optimism.
Thank you to everyone who attended.
The next meeting will be organised for after the Friendlies in around 70 days time.
