Newsletters Season 2010/11
March 2011
I
am delighted to be writing to you once again to invite you to attend
our annual end of season dinner and player of the year awards.
Whilst
on the field success has not matched that enjoyed last season this is
still the time for fans to recognize the efforts of those who they feel
have contributed most in their efforts to bring success to this season’s
campaign.
There will be two awards on the evening
Supporters Club player of the year - A voting slip is enclosed – Return by 16th April.
Away travel player of the season - voted for after every game by fans travelling with SAS travel coaches.
Dinner
- Enclosed is an application form to attend the dinner with your
choice of menu. The cost has been held at £20 per head and this is
always an enjoyable evening, in the company of management and players
from the club.
Please ensure any form is returned by 16th April, the date of the Milton Keynes home match.
Until then it is business as usual for the Supporters Club as we continue our fund raising.
We
are taking the opportunity of enclosing some raffle tickets for members
over the age of 16 and resident in the UK to sell on our behalf, ahead
of the mega draw we hold at the last home game of the season. The
additional tickets that members sell for that game, really do help boost
the prize fund for the day, as well as making a very useful
contribution to the Supporters Club helping us to fund our objectives.
Please
return all draw counterfoils and payment to Supporters club, Swindon
Town F C, County Ground , Swindon SN1 2ED or pass them to any 50/50
seller on any match day to arrive no later than kick off at the Oldham
match, but earlier the better. Should you wish to sell additional
tickets do please ring Roger on 01865 820499.
Last
season saw us make donations to the football club of £28914 used
towards improving of facilities for fan, the infrastructure at the
football club and of course youth development,. We once again with some
help generated from the Wembley trip by the SAS Travel organisation,
covered the cost of £10000 to fund the Centre of Excellence trip to
Northern Ireland.
A
life changing experience for the youngsters, who even if they don’t
progress through to the professional ranks, will have an experience they
will never forget
It is
our intention this year to again fund the trip. The importance this
tournament has, in terms of the Coaching staff learning about players
development and also their readiness to take the next step towards a
full professional contract, cannot be understated.
This
season we have also already supported the football club in sponsorships
alone, of over £4000 for kit and match sponsorships.
This
sponsorship has enabled the following members to enjoy a special day
out at the County Ground in the hospitality area. Each being selected
through a lucky but entirely free draw
Colchester; C Holtom, K. Bunce, R. Tilling, G. Thompson, R. Millard, F. Eley,P. Millard, E. Young, D. Allin, & E. Edwards.
Notts County; D. Newman, A. Corfield, D. Bedford, E. Bates, B. Holloway, M. Murphy, R. Fisher, S. Hollister, T. Cox, N. Tones,
We also had two free competitions for members with the Christmas newsletters and the winners were
Mascot
competition were M. Castle, M. Knight, M. Dew, & C. Hayward and
they will all supply a youngster as a mascot for the Notts County game.
Thanks to the players wives who made the draw on our behalf
Duncan Shearer autobiography – C. Kirkland.
A winner has yet to be found for the ongoing “bingoal” competition, where the prize is £100
Although
we now hold our AGM in the morning of a match, we do appreciate that
members may still find it difficult to attend. As the meeting involves
adoption of our accounts, for those who could not attend here is a brief
summary of financial highlights.
2009/10 amounts and Totals from last 8 Seasons
LAST PREVIOUS 8
Income £39396 £262,927
Expenditure £50045 £240,233
Donations to STFC £28914 £108,735
Prizes for fans in draws etc £17145 £113,633
Although
we paid out more than we received last season, there was a good surplus
built up in previous seasons to pay this from. We still hold
significant reserves moving forward and appreciate and value the
contributions of each one of our members. Thank you
Roger Bunce Chairman
Please
note the application form for the dinner referred to above can be
obtained by non members who wish to attend by emailing enquiries@swindontownsupportersclub.com
End of season dinner and awards evening
Tuesday May 3rd 2011 at the County Ground 7.00pm for 7.30 start.
Cost £20 per head
Please then indicate the total number of selections for each member of your party below. Each attendee should choose one from each course. Hand form to committee member or send to supporters club at the CountyGround by Saturday 16th April latest. ( Milton Keynes match )
Starter Number required
Leek & Potato Soup ( or ) ----------
Pate ----------
Main – served unless otherwise stated withPotatoes and seasonal vegetables
Steak and Ale pie ( or )
Mushroom stroganoff with rice -----
Chicken breast (with peppercorn sauce)
(without peppercorn sauce)
Sweet
Strawberry cheesecake (or)
Chocolate Pot (or)
Cheese and biscuits (or) ----------
Followed by
Coffee or Tea and Mint
I enclose a cheque for £ payable to SwindonTown Supporters Club in full payment
Name and contact number ……………………………………………………………
December Newsletter and competition
Dear Member (s),
The
season so far has been somewhat disappointing to us all, with good
results being matched by equally poor performances, showing a
frustrating lack of consistency. As I write we are too near the bottom
of the table for comfort, but I am sure we all know, we have far too
much talent within the club for this to last.
The gates in support of the team have been excellent as we are the 5th best supported team in the division.
We
are intending once again to fund the Centre of Excellence trip to
Northern Ireland. It is only the support you give to our fundraising
efforts which allow us to do this and we really appreciate all the
support we receive from our membership and other Swindon fans.
If
any one wishes to participate in the pounds for points scheme which is
“ring fenced” for the centre of Excellence, then Mavis Knight will be
delighted to hear from you. Mavis’s contact details are found on our
website, as is all information about the Supporters Club.
We
are again match ball sponsors for the Notts County match in April ,
prior to which , a random lucky draw will be made for ten members to
enjoy a VIP day at the County Ground. We will contact the lucky
recipients well ahead of the match to confirm acceptance.
With this newsletter there are two free to enter competitions.
The
prizes are 4 separate mascot packages, plus a copy of “Shearer
Wonderland” the autobiography of Duncan Shearer. All you have to do is
complete the answer sheet enclosed with this news letter.
Each
member may enter once, but the winners of the mascot prizes must
nominate a youngster to be a mascot who is under the age of 14, they
need not be a member of the Supporters Club and it could for example, be
a son, daughter, relation, friend etc.
A draw of all the correct answers will be made to find the overall winners.
On
behalf of the supporters club may I wish you all a very happy Christmas
and a happy New Year and I am delighted that Paul Bodin, Jeremy Newton
and Karen Ainscow from the Youth department have penned this message to
you all, in recognition of the support we have given to the Youth
department over many years and now amounts to around £60000. .
Roger Bunce Chairman
Dear Swindon Town Supports Club Members
We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for the your continued support to the Youth Department.
Over
the past 5 years you have contributed heavily to the cost of sending a
squad of players to the Prestigious Milk Cup Tournament held in Northern
Ireland.
Without your
contribution we would be unable to give the players and staff a
wonderful opportunity to play against some of the top teams in Europe.
This enhances their potential, particularly with living and playing in a
tournament environment and we also get to see how the players cope and
adjust at living away from home.
We
find out who the characters are and we also discover all the social
aspects of the players. We feel this is a huge part of each player’s
development. Some of the players that this has helped recently are:
Lukas Jutkiewicz (Coventry City)
Scott Doe (Dagenham & Redbridge)
Nathan Thompson (Swindon Town)
Lloyd Macklin (Torquay United)
Billy Bodin (Swindon Town)
Will Evans (Swindon Town)
Jamie Stephens (Liverpool)
Alex Henshall (Manchester City)
Many
more have also enjoyed the experience of this great tournament. Not all
of them can make it as professionals, but have this experience for
life, to remember forever.
Not
only have you contributed to this trip, but have also paid for numerous
items of equipment for the Centre of Excellence and Youth Team players,
improving the appearance and furthering the professional nature of the
department..
We hope that
with your continued support we can carry on striving to produce players
or Swindon Town Football Club. All that you do for us is very much
appreciated by everyone connected in the Youth Department.
We would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year.
Kind regards
Paul, Bodin, Jeremy Newton and Karen Ainscow
December 2010 competition -
Before
entering these free competitions please read the conditions and notes
on page I of the newsletter. By entering it is deemed you will adhere to
them. All decisions of the Supporters Club committee will be final.
Competition for a Mascot place
Question
which player who represented England in this years World cup finals,
scored 2 goals for Swindon, whilst on loan in Season 2003/4
Answer ………………………………………………………….
______________________________________________________________
Competition for Duncan Shearer autobiography
Against which Country did Duncan score his first full International goal for Scotland ?
Answer…………………………………………………………….
Name …………………………………………........
Telephone………………………………………….
Membership Number ……………………………..
Return
by post to the County Ground, committee member by hand or half time
draw seller at the Yeovil match on the 15th January latest
Chairman’s View:
www.swindontownsupportersclub.com
Dear Member (s), July 2010
As the new season looms, it seems only a few weeks ago that we all trooped out of Wembley with heavy hearts. Now, having had time to reflect, I think everyone will agree on the whole it was a successful season. We saw continuous improvement both on and off the pitch, we can only hope that this progress continues and that we can make the step up to Championship football at the end of this season.
As a group, we have continued to support the Football club in many ways and we regularly have discussions with Nick Watkins and Mark Isaacs as to how our fundraising can improve the stadium for fans.
I am delighted that we are also once again funding the Centre of Excellence trip to Northern Ireland for the prestigious International Milk Cup Competition. The staff of the centre really do feel this trip is an essential part of the players continuing development. Let’s hope that they have a good trip this year and that one, two or maybe three potential new stars surface from the ranks of the Town’s young players.
I mentioned the trip to Wembley earlier but cannot close comment on that particular day without mention of Sally Anne and Mark from SAS travel and the tremendous work they put in ensuring around 3000 fans in 62 coaches got to Wembley under the banner of SAS Travel. All those coaches departed within 45 minutes – the earliest at 9.15 and the personal time they both invested in getting everyone there and back is to be commended and cannot be underestimated.
On behalf of those that travelled with those coaches may I offer, to both Sally Anne and Mark and their helpers, my sincere thanks and appreciation. Indeed, the trip was so successful and efficiently run, that it has allowed SAS to make a significant donation to the Centre of Excellence to help with their work.
The final comment on last season relates to the half time draw for the final league game of the season. Thank you to everyone who participated whether through buying or selling tickets and the winners were:
R Harris of Newbury won £1000 with ticket number 85
C Hart of Westbury won a new season ticket with their ticket number 1115
M Page of Swindon won a new first team shirt with ticket 1010
I will move on to matters for the coming season.
Firstly, Pounds for Points. Mavis Knight will again be looking for participants and if you have contributed before no doubt she will be in touch – your support is really appreciated and as I mentioned earlier in this note, it really helps towards funding the Centre of Excellence and that essential Northern Ireland trip.
There have been some minor changes to the benefits that members receive, due to the way the Football Club will be introducing various new schemes. Most remain unchanged, but the discount in the Football Club shop will now be fixed at 5% - you must take your membership card to claim this. The ticket priority has now been withdrawn as this has not been used for many seasons now and simplifies arrangements with the Football Club. Family membership is reduced to just £10.
However, there is an incentive for members, not previously offered– a free chance to win £100. It works like this. When your membership card is sent you will also be sent your free “Bingoal” card. Just like Bingo the first to cross off all the numbers on their card wins the prize. If there is more than one winner the prize is shared. “Bingoal” is only open to those who are aged over 16.
The numbers to be crossed off each week are the times that Town score their goals during each match in the season – the timings of the goal used will be taken from the “Sun” newspaper and will be confirmed on our web site and in our programme notes.
Once you have crossed off all your numbers you must send the card by recorded delivery within 7 days together with your contact details to STFC Supporters Club C/O County Ground Swindon Wilts SN1 2ED
We are already speaking to the Football club with a view to improving some of the décor within the Football Club and I hope by the time the season starts, there will be a new pictorial time line established in the Legends lounge charting our history over the past century and a bit. Secondly there will be a new International honours board recording those players who represented their country whilst playing for Swindon, enhancing the look and feel of the club.
As always we are grateful for your support and if you would like to become more involved, please contact me. We hope that your continued support can help the club reach it’s goal of promotion.
I
look forward to receiving your membership renewal. Although this note is going
to all members, I am aware some members have already submitted their renewal
forms – thank you - your “Bingoal” card will be sent / handed to you separately
as you have been sent your membership card already.
Best wishes
Roger Bunce Chairman
Newsletters Season 2009/10
Chairman's views.
22nd December
Following
the late cancellation of the Stockport game, the Supporters Club
Chairman Roger Bunce wrote to the Football League (FL) on behalf of
those fans who made the abortive trip.
We replicate in full their response below, prefaced with "an apology for the inconvenience caused."
“ The
FL issues written advice to clubs regarding early inspection of pitches
during the winter months. If there is any doubt about the condition of
the pitch, clubs are asked to contact
a) The League office with an early warning and to seek advice
b) The visiting club to ascertain the travelling arrangements of their team and supporters
c)
The match referee, to inform him of the situation and, if necessary,
request that he inspects the ground before the visiting club and
supporters commence their journey
If
the match referee is unable to attend for an early inspection, The
League appoints a local official. He makes an inspection and reports the
conditions to the Football League and the League would then make a
decision as to whether the match would go ahead.
As
the rainfall subsided the day before the fixture and with freezing
temperatures forecast overnight, the Club was confident that with no
more rainfall the pitch would be playable.
Stockport
County officials spoke with the ground staff at 9.00a.m. on the day of
the game who informed them that there were no issues with the pitch as
it had “firmed up”. Swindon Town were then advised of this.
In
the afternoon, as the frost softened and the drains clearly backed up
water levels in the pitch rose and the surface deteriorated. The ground
staff attempted to counteract this by applying a significant amount of
sand.
It
was only when the match referee arrived that the club became aware of
any issues. He went out to inspect the pitch and immediately had
concerns about the amount of water within the pitch/sand. He liaised
with the ground staff who were unable to treat the sanded area of the
pitch as it was too wet. He took out a ball and it would not bounce.
He
also obtained a weather forecast which indicated that from 6.00 p.m.
onwards rain was expected and would get heavier towards 9.00 p.m..
He
again inspected the pitch with the two Managers and agreed that in it’s
current state and with heavy rain forecast, the pitch was unplayable.
In the interests of player safety the match was postponed.
As
no request was made for an early inspection, the League has written to
the club reminding them of their responsibilities in adhering to the “
early warning policy”.The Club has subsequently reviewed its policy on
pitch appraisal and are undertaking remedial pitch works on the playing
surface to alleviate the problems.
We
can only re-iterate we are extremely sorry for the inconvenience caused
to travelling supporters and hope we have at least highlighted there is
a process in place to ensure that these occurrences are kept to a
minimum.
Best wishes to you and your team for the rest of the season “
The Football League
Chairman’s View:
May I
take this opportunity to wish everyone a very happy Christmas and New
Year, both at home and at football.
In recent seasons we have
never really known what division we would be playing during the
following season and this year I have to make the same statement. This
time however, instead of looking over our shoulders at the league below,
we are looking upwards.
As I
write we have been as high as 6th place two games in hand and a 3rd
round cup tie at Fulham to look forward to. Unfortunately we were
eliminated from the other two cup competitions both on penalties. Indeed
at Wolverhampton it was only after magnificent efforts by the team and
fans alike.
It really seems the feel good factor is returning at
matches. Danny has given us all confidence in his management and
judgement in team strengthening and certainly the team is improving all
the time, with the play offs a definite possibility.
The
feel good factor is also seen in the off the pitch activities, where the
teams under Nick Watkins continue to improve income and improve the
facilities around the ground and we as the Supporters Club have been
proud to play our part in that. However the biggest income stream to the
club is through the turnstiles and we can only hope improved
performances will improve the attendances.
At the moment our
average gate of 7343 is the 10th best in our division. However this
would only leave us in 23rd position in the Championship with only
Scunthorpe 7047 lower. It shows just how much work has to be done for us
to reach the Championship, but with the present management teams both
on and off the field I know we are now moving in the right direction to
reach that goal.
I am
delighted to be able our members the opportunity to enter two free
competitions. All members may enter either or both competitions.
The
first an opportunity to win mascot packages and whilst any member may
enter this, if you win this and are over the age of 12 you must nominate
a child who is under 12 to actually be the mascot on the day. It could
for example be a son, daughter, relation etc. The beneficiary does not
necessarily, need to be a member.
The
second competition is for a hospitality package for an adult and the
entry form which should be returned to us by the Gillingham game on 16th
January.
I have invited Gordon Greer to write a piece for you
on the season so far and this is below.
Roger
Gordon Greer writes :-
Thank
you for giving me the opportunity to write to you all. May I wish
everyone a very Happy Christmas.
We’re just getting to the
halfway stage in the season and everyone can be pretty happy with their
efforts so far.
I think if someone had told us at the start of the season that we would be in and around the top six at Christmas, we would definitely have settled for it.
Obviously we’re pleased to be in and around
the play off zone as we are at the moment, but we’re not getting ahead
of ourselves as it’s such a long season and there’s a lot of hard work
to be done yet.
There have been a few
occasions so far this year that I think we have been a bit sloppy, and
as a result we could probably have a few more points but it’s important
we keep positive and keep moving forward.
You get ups and downs in football and it is
important no-one gets carried away when we are winning, and it’s
important that no-one gets too down if we lose a game or two.
We’ve got three games in a week after Christmas so it would be nice to get some good results out of those, and then we can really start to see how good a shape we’re in for the rest of the season.
We face Charlton Athletic away and
Yeovil Town at home in the space of three days starting on Boxing Day,
and then of course it is the big FA Cup Third Round tie against Fulham
on January 2nd.
It’s great for us to have been drawn against a Premiership side who have done really well over the last few seasons so we're really looking forward to it.
The difference between us and our Second Round
opponents Wrexham is pretty similar to the difference between us and
Fulham, and Wrexham raised their game against us in the last round, so
we’re hopeful we can do the same at Fulham and really show how good we
are.
Fulham’s players are in the Premiership for a reason so it will obviously be a tough game, but we showed against Wolves earlier in the season in The Carling Cup that we can compete with top division sides so there is no reason why we can’t do it again.
As far as the rest of
the season is concerned, we are in and around the area we want to be,
and I think with a few wins over this important period we can really
start to cement a place at the right end of the table going into 2010.
I think we're in pretty good shape at the moment, but it's up to us now to keep it going, as there are loads of tough games coming up.
If we can just concentrate on the games that are in front of us
then we can hopefully get some really positive results and cement a
place up at the right end of the table. - Gordon Greer
Newsletters Season 2008/09
Invitation sent to members for season 2008/09
Dear Member (s), 1st July 2008
The
2008/09 season will soon be upon us and with all the changes from this
time last season I sense a renewed feeling of optimism around the club.
I am sure we all wish Maurice, the team, all the off field management
and staff every success as we move forward into the new season.
I
can report once again the Supporters Club had a very successful time
last season and is now well established as the leading fans
organisation, dedicated to raising funds in support of the Football
Club.
However, without wishing to dwell too much on our past
achievements it’s still worth recalling that we have now passed the
150,000 ticket sales mark for the Half time draw and sales of the
scratch cards continue to prosper. I am sure you appreciate that the
pounds for points fund also made a significant contribution towards the
Supporters Club being able to pay the entire cost of sending the Centre
of Excellence team to the prestigious Northern Ireland Milk Cup
Competition. The tournament starts very shortly, so let’s wish the boys
going the best of luck.
Our membership numbers also saw an increase last season and we intend to continue to develop this area.
With
the support and encouragement already shown to us by the new Management
team at STFC I am sure we will see that partnership bear fruit, as we
all work in our own ways, towards a common goal of trying to develop a
better future ahead for the Football Club.
Many of you enjoyed
our end of season dinner where I was delighted to award the player of
the year trophy to Miguel Comminges. Although once again the “curse” of
our award means that the winner will be seeking pastures new for the
forthcoming season.
Moving on to membership for the new season I
appreciate some of you may already have re-joined already using the web
page to download the application form.
But if not, I am
enclosing two forms, both the same …. One may be used for your
membership application, the other, should you wish to make a regular
subscription to the half time draw. This allows you to participate if
you cannot get to every match and want to retain the same draw number
throughout the season.
Please feel free to pass any spare copies of the form to any one interested
Versions
of this letter and forms are also being distributed for the very first
time on our behalf by the Football Club ticket office, as they hand out
season tickets.
As is normal we are sending just one renewal
letter to each address where there are members recorded. Please share
this note with everyone as you may include as many members of the
family/household on the same application form which is enclosed. This
would certainly help us and also saves costs.
I’m delighted to say once again Membership fees remain unchanged and full details are described on the form.
Membership
brings a package of benefits allowing members to make more savings than
the actual cost of your small subscription. I anticipate the benefits
will be broadly in line with those of last season, although we are
hoping that one or two further enhancements will be in place before the
season starts. Any changes will be confirmed on our web site.
Our
Annual General Meeting takes place on Thursday 18th September at 7.30
p.m. in the Supporters Club “Legends” lounge. Please accept this letter
as your official invitation to attend. We will publish reminders in our
programme notes and through other media, leading up to the date. Any
proposed rule change or nominations, must be with our secretary 14 days
prior to the date of the meeting.
All of our achievements
wouldn’t be possible without your support and endorsement, so may I
thank you for that and I look forward to once again welcome you as a
member of the Supporters Club.
If you would like to help the committee further I would be delighted to hear from you. Please telephone me on 01865 820499.
Roger Bunce
(Chairman)
Committee
Members: Ann Alder, Nigel Bennett, Sally Anne Carter, Mike Dew, Teresa
Cawte, Iris Higgs, Mavis Knight, Ian Ratcliffe.
Visit our web site at www.swindontownsupportersclub.com
April 2009
Chairman’s View:
Once again I write the final newsletter of the season not knowing which division we will be playing in next season and by the time you receive this note hopefully we will have added a few more points to those gained against Southend and Hereford thus enhancing our chances of staying in League 1.
We have seen some excellent performances this season, but they have been few and far between. If only we had won half of our drawn games we would be comfortably in the top half of the table. Danny now appears to have found the right formation. Let’s hope we can maintain our recent improved form.
Two weeks ago the Supporters Club sponsored The ‘69 reunion night. I must say it was one of the best functions I have ever attended at the club. To see those legends that had given thousands of Supporters so much enjoyment in their years in a red shirt, is what supporting a team is all about. We can only dream that such days will return.
At the ‘69 Dinner, ably assisted and with shared funding support from our friends and fellow supporters at SAS Travel, we successfully bid and have retained a unique signed photo by Don Rogers and Bob Wilson of that wonderful moment of the third goal at Wembley. It’s legacy is assured and it will be on view for future Swindon fans to enjoy as it will be displayed permanently in the Legends lounge very shortly.
Can I again thank all the people who support our fundraising schemes. This year, despite mixed performances on the pitch, the support you have given us in this activity has been superb.
This season we have already been able to help the Football Club in improve the P.A. system, the catering outlets, refurbishment of the Legends Lounge. We have also helped physio Dick Mackey with some equipment he required and we will again be paying £10,000 to allow the Centre of Excellence team to travel to Ireland for the Milk Cup.
As is usual we are asking all members to sell just one book of 10 tickets for our last draw of the season at the Bristol Rovers match. I fully appreciate this is much easier for some members than others but all your efforts are appreciated. We regularly make the last draw of the season into a mega draw and this season is no exception. We are guaranteeing a first prize of a minimum of £1000, the second prize will be a season ticket for next season and the third prize £100. So all the prizes are well worth winning !
Please return all your tickets to any Committee member or send to us at the football club prior to the kick off of the game against Bristol Rovers. With a 12.00 p.m. kick off that day, if you can return the sold counterfoils and payment even earlier so much the better, as it will no doubt be a very hectic morning with that kick off being brought forward by 3 hours from the norm. (Cont.)
We will be holding our annual dinner at the club on Tuesday 28th April. A number of the first team squad and hopefully Danny Wilson will be in attendance. Details of this function together with a form to advise us of your choice of meal are enclosed. Please return these as soon as possible and all cheques, in payment, should be made out to Swindon Town Supporters Club.
Finally please also find enclosed for each member a voting slip for the player of the year. Please return these to us by Monday 20th April.
Hopefully, I will see as many of you as possible you at the dinner - 7.15 p.m for 7.30 p.m.
Thank you for all your support.
Roger Bunce
Chairman
We are delighted that Danny Wilson has taken time out from his hectic schedule to write this piece for our newsletter. Addressing the fans Danny comments ….
You can play a big part for us between now and the end of the season. Your support was fantastic against Hereford United and Southend United and it gave the players a big boost when they can feel that support behind them. Your backing can be vitally important to the outcome of our season.
As a Club we have to be in touch with the local community, after all your support is what keeps us going. There is still work to do to get further into the community and our footballers are certainly not untouchable. The supporter’s evenings that I have attended here so far have provided an excellent opportunity to meet and greet members of our fan-base. Next season the club have even bigger plans to get into the community. It is important from our point of view to not be detached from supporters and it is at times like these when that support begins to bear fruit.
Wiltshire was an area that I knew before joining Swindon, and that was a big bonus from my point of view. The type of passion and understanding of the game here is top-notch. As a fan, you want to come along to the football club and talk to a player like he is a friend of yours. That’s what we have to maintain. That relationship, is one that every fan and player should have, up and down the country.
At this moment in time we are concentrating on the remainder of the current season. If we get the results that we need then we can sit down with an open mind looking to the 2009/10 campaign. Right now we cannot do that, because we do not know where we will be. The players know that they have to knuckle down to secure our status in League One.
Carlisle United is still a ground that we have to visit this season. It will be a lengthy trip but I am sure that our fans, as loyal as you are, will turn out in your numbers if you feel that we have a great chance of staying up.
In the meantime thank you for your fantastic support.
Danny Wilson
Manager STFC
Newsletter Season 2007/08
Newsletter April 2008
Chairman’s View:
In all my years of following the Town I don't think I have ever felt as low as that afternoon in December when we had
been beaten 3 – 0 at home by Brighton and it appeared that the Andrew Fitton led consortium’s proposed take over was
not going to proceed. Thankfully, as we all know the takeover took place.
Despite the uncertainty hanging over the club the support for the TEAM was magnificent. The takeover now gives us the chance not just to support the team but also the CLUB.
As football supporters we all want to see a successful Club, but we have to make great strides as the Football Club have a lot of catching up to do to get the complete infrastructure back on track. I know this is something that Nick Watkins our Chief Executive is working hard to achieve. Let’s hope all supporters can get behind him and his colleagues and hopefully we will be in a position to push for Championship football next season.
Even just thinking about Championship football shows the work that needs to be done. As I write our average gate is over 7,000 which means we are the 9th best supported team in the division. Better than promotion chasing Tranmere and neighbours Bristol Rovers despite their cup success. However, this would only place us in 22nd place in the Championship attendance league table. Indeed 15 clubs in the Championship enjoy an average crowd greater than our capacity, which also demonstrates what is needed off the pitch for the club to move forward, as well as, of course on it.
Over the last five seasons the Supporters Club have paid for the Centre of Excellence to fly to Belfast for the Milk Cup and for the last two seasons we have been rewarded with the team returning with a trophy. I am delighted to say that this season we will be paying not just for those flights but also the cost of the whole trip amounting to some £10000 and presented to the club a the Oldham game - Supporters Club Super Saturday. This is only possible thanks to everyone who contributes in anyway to our fundraising activities and to all those people I can only say a big thank you.
Once again for the last game of the season we are asking our members to sell some half time draw tickets as we once again turn this into our “end of season special”. I fully appreciate that is easier for some to sell tickets than others. If you cannot sell the tickets please return them to me at the club. For those members that are able to sell them can you please return any monies and counterfoils to me by post at The STFC Supporters Club C/O The County Ground, Swindon Wilts SN1 2ED. Alternatively you may hand them to me or Teresa Cawte in the away travel office on a match day.
Many thanks to my Committee who give me 100% support in all we try to achieve. Lets all hope the club continues to progress for the benefit of us all. The draw tickets and counterfoils need to be back with me by Saturday 3rd May at the latest.
My best wishes to all members.
Roger
Away travel
Members will appreciate that they are entitle d to discounts on the fares to Away matches when booking with SAS Travel 2005.
SAS report that up to the Brighton game they had taken 59 coaches to matches, transporting around 2890 safely to matches. Jus t in the league this season they will cover round trips totalling 6020 miles watching the Town. The two most popular trips have, unsurprisingly, been Leeds and Notts Forest.
Note from Roger - I would like to thank Sally, Mark and all their helpers for their organisation and providing such a fantastic and valuable service for fans which I know is very much appreciated by those that use it.
News
Oldham match.
We are pleased to announce that the Football Club will be recognised our contributions over the years, as well as this season, by officially naming this game as a Supporters Club Super Saturday.
Not only did we officially presenting the Centre of Excellence with the £10000 for the trip to Northern Ireland, but we are also the match sponsors allowing 10 fans who were selected through a “lucky draw” to enjoy a VIP day out at the County Ground. All our match sponsorships allow us to select and invite fans in this way and the names entered in to the draw come either from our complete membership list or those who support the half time draw through the pre payment scheme. We are sure you know about the prepayment scheme, but if not do get in touch.
Finally, we had the second of our mascot days. The free competition earlier in the season where we selected 4 members to nominate one young fan each proved very successful and we were so pleased with the number of entries we are anticipating running it once again in the forthcoming season.
Player of the year and dinner instructions
Please return all the player of the year nominations and dinner menus to us by Saturday 19th April – the Port Vale match. They may be handed to any committee member, posted to us C/O The County Ground Swindon Wilts. SN1 2ED or handed to any half time draw seller in an envelope together with the appropriate payment.
Dinner
Please use the sheet to advise us of the number of guests, their names and the menu choices. Please only use one form per household including everyone at that address that wishes to attend, on the one form.
Player of the year
A voting form is enclosed for each member within the household. They may be returned in one envelope as indicated above.
Firstly may I apologize for the delay in producing this newsletter but such was the uncertainty around the football club during December, it was impossible to know quite what to say.
Although as I write, matters still have to be finalised, everything is looking promising. I have already had the pleasure of meeting both Jeremy Wray and Nicholas Watkins and there can be no doubting their enthusiasm and desire for the club to be successful.
They have both clearly stated the need to speak to Supporters and Supporters Groups, which should benefit all of us. The Supporters Club look forward to meeting them and exchanging ideas.
The season of course has already seen us lose our manager when Paul moved to Plymouth. I always found Paul to be most approachable and I feel that he gave us a good early start, on top of the promotion achieved last season. Let’s hope his successor can ease us into the play offs and hopefully maintain a good cup run for extra interest and revenue that it will bring.
Our fundraising, thanks to our willing band of invaluable helpers, continues to go from strength to strength. The Swansea 50/50 draw paying out £566 to the winner, whilst the pounds for points scheme
for this season has now passed £2000 and hopefully there will many more pounds and points to come.
Should any member have any ideas how we should use our funds raised to the benefit of supporters please contact any Committee Member or comment using our web site e-m ail facility.
You will find enclosed a form (one for each member in the household) with a simple question to answer. Please answer the question and return the form by kick off time at the Nottingham Forest match at the latest and you will be entered into a free draw. Entries can either be posted to us, handed to a committee member, or given to one of our half time draw sellers on the day of that match.
The draw is open to all members. Four lucky winners who get drawn out, after answering the question correctly and can nominate someone to enjoy a full mascot package and accompanying benefits, for the matches against Northampton and Oldham. There will be two winners for each match.
Those nominated by the winners do not need to be Supporters Club members. For example, they could be a relation or friend, but they must be aged under 13 on 1st January 2008.
Finally, can I thank you all for your continued membership and support. Let’s hope for stability in the club and wish those running the club every good wish, because if they succeed, we will all benefit.
Roger Bunce
An Away trip to the Den of Mr. Wise.
As members will be aware you are entitled to discount with our appointed away travel organisation SAS Travel 2005. Here is an account of the recent trip to Elland Road through the eyes of regular travellers Iris Higgs and Kim Young
“An early start on a freezing November morning with a convoy of 8 coaches carrying around 400 of the 1700 fans making the trip up North and invading Elland Road.
The mood at this early hour was quiet and pensive. Can we beat them? A few including Teresa (Cawte) were optimistic “I think we can,” she said. A few thought a draw would be a good result and anything more a bonus.
Departure was a short while after the scheduled time but soon we were speeding along the A419. We hadn’t been travelling very long before we were overtaken by a few Leeds fans !
A trouble free journey passed without any incidents and we arrived at Donnington services for a short comfort break. This was a real and successful takeover by the town fans, many of whom shared our pleasure in taking a delicious fried breakfast.
Off we went up the M1 to Leeds and the fortress they call Elland Road. This was of course a really special trip and with an anticipated 30000 crowd we were passed by many other town fans as well as those supporting Leeds in cars many of whom honked horns as they passed such is the camaraderie of travelling football fans. W e of course acknowledged that interest with waves and smiles.
At 1.15 we arrived in good time at the imposing stadium fronted by that bronze statue of that Leeds legend Billy Bremner. A short search for the entrance we made our way to the bar underneath the “away” stand. This is where all the singing started – what an atmosphere. It was electric; we were proud to be Swindon fans and thought it would be great to have this special away spirit and the County Ground for home matches.
We were up for the game and the players seemed up for it what a shame the referee spoilt the party. Penalty against us yet surely we deserved at least two and also suffered seven bookings! It was not a dirty game but a match between two evenly matched, competitive and passionate teams.
How Leeds got away with one booking amazed us when no action was taken against their player for deliberately kicking the ball away.
A 1-0 half time reverse was quickly 1-1 as Lee Peacock smashed in a brilliant cross to equalise. Peter pulled off some great saves but a second Leeds goal put us behind again and despite valiant attempts we could not quite find a second and deserved equaliser.
We were proud of the team and as we left the stadium Leeds fans shook our hands and we wished them well for the rest of the season. The coaches got back to Swindon between 8 and 9 p.m. We were a little later departing Leeds as unfortunately Steve Harris fell ill and we had to be taken to hospital and not released until a week later. All at SAS wish Steve and the rest of his family every good wish for the future.”
Chairman's welcome.
Welcome to our new look website. Whilst it is fair to say it is still under development, we do hope that you are able to find all crucial elements and information about our activities and how to get involved.
Before I move on to other matters, it would be remiss of me, not to thank Patrick Richings who maintained the previous site for the past 5 or 6 seasons and I am grateful to him for that support.
Whilst last season ended in the disappointment of relegation, every one is now looking forward to the new season with a renewed sense of optimism under the new team management structure of Dennis and Gus. I would like to welcome them both to the club and wish them every success.
There have also been a number of changes in the administative structure at the Football club and whilst some roles may have changed, we in the Supporters Club, are looking forward to continuing and developing our working relationship with everyone involved and look to continue our success from recent seasons.
The Supporters Club always works to promote a positive, family friendly atmosphere around the County Ground. So why not have a browse through our site now and look at the many ways you can play a part, however small, whether you are a Supporters Club member or not, as we try to reach that goal. Every little bit does really help.
I am always available on match days for your comments, or you can e mail me on chairman@swindontownsupportersclub.com . I look forward to seeing you all back at the County Ground very soon.
Roger
3rd August 2006
Newsletters
Chairman’s View: April 2007
I am writing these notes having just returned from Lincoln. That was a great result and more like those at Lincoln, Walsall and Milton Keynes will hopefully lead us to promotion and Division One football next season. We wish Paul and his team all the very best for the rest of the season.
The support given to the team this season has been superb. Our average home attendance is the best in the division at 6880, which would put us in the top ten in the league above. The away support has also been magnificent and we are rewarding those going to Hereford with SAS travel an additional discount of £2. As members you too can claim this as well as the discount usually applied to you automatically as a member of the supporters club.
Incidentally, whilst looking at an old programme recently from January 1993 our promotion season to the premiership, our average gate then to watch Hoddle, Calderwood and Taylor etc was 8213 just 1333 more than this season. This shows what superb support there has been this season.
The Supporters Club gives significant financial support to the Centre of Excellence and Youth teams. We were especially delighted to again pay for the Under 14 team to travel to Northern Ireland for the Milk Cup and this time see them return victorious, with the cup. Possibly one of the best games at the CountyGround this season was the FA Youth Cup Quarter final against Newcastle, which we sponsored as well. The other quarter finalists, Liverpool, Man Utd, Arsenal, Birmingham, Sheffield United and Middlesbrough shows the abilities of our boys. We wish them luck in their future careers.
We all have views on the transfer of Lucas. Only time will tell whether it was the right decision, I am sure we will all watch his future with great interest and in any event wish him every success.
As is normal with April’s news letter, we are enclosing 10 half time draw tickets for our last 50/50 draw in what could be a cracker against Walsall. Should you require anymore tickets please do not hesitate to contact any committee members or me on 01865 820499. Please return any sold or unsold tickets to Roger Bunce, Swindon Town FC, CountyGround, Swindon. SN1 2ED before the Walsall match or leave them with Theresa in the away travel office. .Your support will be very much appreciated.
Our end of season dinner will be held at the club on Tuesday 1st May, it is hoped that Paul Sturrock and a number of his players will join us for the evening when our Player of the Year award will be presented. Both the dinner and Player of the Year forms are enclosed so please follow the instructions overleaf.
Can I thank you for all your support this season and let’s hope for Division One football next season.
Cheers for now. See you at the Player of the year dinner.
Roger April 2007
Player of the year Information and instructions
Please return all forms to us by Saturday 21st April – the Mansfield match – they may be handed to any committee member, posted or handed to any half time draw seller in an envelope.
Dinner
Please use the sheet to advise us of the number of guests, their names and the menu choices. Please only use one form per household including everyone at that address that wishes to attend, on the one form.
Player of the year
A form is enclosed for each member. The forms may be returned in one envelope as indicated above.
SAS Away travel
This season we have already taken almost 3500 fans to away games on the coaches , which given the distance to each ground and back, equates to a staggering 21 million “fan miles” and with 9 wins on opposition territory at the time of writing this, there have been some happy trips back home.
We would like to thank everyone that has travelled with us this season for their loyalty and support and looking ahead, we are already planning for next season so if you are interested in considering a coach season ticket for 2007/8 please contact us on 01793 536757 or e-mail salcart@aol.com.
Sally.
Update on major projects since the last newsletter
The Winner’s lounge.
It was well recognized that it was time this lounge had a makeover. Following discussions with the football club we were able to come to an agreement to fund a majority of the improvements, including the flooring, in exchange for the naming convention change to The Supporters Club legends bar from the star t of next season. It is also our intention that by building on the “legends” theme we will develop the area into one steeped in the history and memorabilia of the Football Club. The naming convention is protected for a number of years. We hope all fans will embrace this change and make it an area to be proud of and revive many memories of past exploits. The bar will remain fully open to all home fans with a match ticket.
Legends days
The next legends day is due to take place at the Mansfield game - we cannot let you know just yet who will be attending, but keep your eyes open in the days leading up to the match and no doubt we will have a surprise or two !
Newsletter December 2006
Chairman’s View :
As is usual, when we send out a newsletter, there are changes to report.
Dennis and Gus arrived and then departed to Leeds, leaving us handily placed after a great start to the season. We all hope that Paul Sturrock and his team can continue the good run and lead us to promotion. Paul certainly appears to be the most open manager we have ever had at Swindon. He is clearly informing all the supporters of his aims and views and long may this continue as I am sure all fans will appreciate this openess and support him 100%.
As I write we are without doubt the best supported team in the league both home and away. The away following has been superb, and thanks must be given to Marc and Sally Anne and all their helpers, for the work in making the travel for fans run so smoothly.
As for our own fundraising, we continue to do really well, with the 50/50 draw going superbly. Mavis Knight has her best ever total on the pounds for points and with the team doing their part we hopefully will obtain our best ever total in support of the Centre of Excellence, (money well spent, this year, when we paid the air fares for the successful milk cup team, which was very rewarding for us, together with players such as Lukas breaking into the first team and then making his mark with some goals and hard work). Mavis just needs another £4 per point to bring in £200 for each league win, so if you feel you could sponsor from 50p for each point just contact Mavis, she will be delighted to hear from you.
We are always pleased to hear of any ideas you may have so please contact any Committee member and we will willingly discuss them with you.
I hope you all had a very Happy Christmas and hopefully everyone can look forward to very successful New Year. Thank you everyone, for your invaluable support for the last year and hope for the same in 2007, when I am sure a united club with every one pulling in the same direction will see the team gain the promotion we all desperately want.
Roger Bunce
Chairman
SAS Travel 2006
The number of season ticket holders for Away travel has more than doubled from season. We are regularly taking at least 2 coaches, often more, to games so we would like to remind people that they should book early in order to avoid disappointment.
This season we have sponsored both Peter Brezovan’s kits and co-sponsored the Football in the Community van. We have now moved into our new office, which is situated, between the Football in the community and Trust buildings. Our thanks go to the Football in the Community office staff for all their help in getting this up and running.
We held a Christmas Raffle ( drawn on 23rd December)– prizes included a Signed Football (squad from Bury match + John Trollope, Peter Downsborough, Willie Penman, Joe Butler and Arthur Horsfield)Free travel to MK Dons ,£10 STFC Gift Voucher, Tin of Quality Street, a prize donated by Football Club and other prizes donated by our regular travelers.
Supporters Club New Year “International” Quiz
- with a prize of an Andy Gurney signed away shirt from last season. Entry is completely free.
1. How many caps did Paul Sturrock win for Scotland.
2. How many goals did Duncan Shearer score for Scotland.
3. Against whom did Colin Calderwood score his only International goal.
4. How many caps did Rod Thomas win for Wales whilst a Swindon player
5. Which Swindon player played for Wales Under 23 against England Under 23 in 1974.
6. Which former Swindon player won 7 under 23 caps for Northern Ireland between 2000 & 2002.
7. Which former Swindon goal keeper was part of the Northern Ireland squad in the 1958 world cup finals
8. How many goals did Jimmy Quinn score for Northern Ireland
9. Which former Swindon and Eire International striker is now a travel agent in Dublin.
10 How many caps did Alan McLoughlin win for Eire whilst a Swindon player.
* * Tie break what will be the gate for Swindon v Wrexham. Please include your guess with your answers
Entries can be handed to any Committee member or the travel office by 3pm of the Wrexham game.
Finally, for this issue, some words from acting Football Club chief executive Martyn Starnes
It’s been an extremely interesting time since my appointment to the Board a few weeks ago. Paul Sturrock’s arrival as manager has been a breath of fresh air and I’m feeling very positive about the future of the Club. I have no doubt there will be setbacks along the way. That’s inevitable in the game that we love. However, I believe we are building a momentum that will bring us success on and off the pitch.
Our overall plan is to reach the Championship within five years. It’s a tall order given the difficulties of the last few years but we are determined to return the Club to the country’s second tier of professional football. The fans can play a major role in achieving our aims by continuing the excellent support they have given the team this season. I would like to thank all our loyal supporters for their ongoing commitment to the cause. Keep the faith!
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