Trust Ade – Season 2009/10 – No .1 – Football’s back.

 Trust Ade – Season 2009/10 – No .1 – Football’s back.

So it’s back. My summer is over, and Football will cover my life for the next 11 months. And then it’s the World Cup!

Following on from ‘that bloody day in North London’, apart from seeing England v Andorra, I’ve had a nice break away from it.

Of course you always keep up to date with the various websites, and Supporters Trusts don’t exactly have summer breaks. Summer is for planning, agms, elections et al.

My summer consisted of winning the shrewsTRUST Bowls comp, with my fellow team members (get in!). Attending a wedding reception on a glorious summers evening and going on the Stretton Ale Trail (going back to my old stomping ground), and travelling up to Scotland behind a Heritage Diesel Locomotive for a three-day rail tour to the Kyle of Lochalsh.

On that Mid Summer’s Day, I walked from Kyle over the new Skye Bridge to a place called Kyleakin. I sat on the bank of Loch Alsh, and it was so quiet and peaceful. The bridge was to my left, and the little village to my right. It was wonderful.

It did make up somewhat for the disappointment of Wembley, which in some ways I’ve just hidden away in the back of my mind. But certainly all the lead up, and press and media was fantastic. It was great to see not only us but also groups like the OSC, get their day in the sun. Shame we couldn’t just cap it off.

So we are left with no Ben and no Humph. In some ways no great loss, if my fellow supporting friends in Block 14 are anything to go by, but you’ve got to replace these people. Fans thought Paul Evans was rubbish, but we never truly replaced him did we, and we have to do that.

Humph could be a world-beater, but then so could have Sam Aiston. Humph showed that he has pace, but does he have the brain. I hope Jim Gannon can do that. Whether he’s the next Davey Edwards I doubt it.

Of Simmo’s new signings, Craig Disley immediately stuck out, and Dean Holden is a player you know what you’re going to get. It maybe though that some of the fringe players or players that haven’t been getting into the limelight will step up to the plate. Kevin McIntyre has already showed that he is capable of so much more, and the big question we are all asking is, can Terry Duffield do the same.

Andre Gray, whom I’ve seen on a number of occasions at youth and reserve level, may be one that could come through, but that’s the beauty of football. You just don’t know.

Tomorrow sees old rivalry with the Bucks from Wellington. I know speaking to the Telford Trust that we wanted to do something to really ‘big up’ the competition. It’s the oldest surviving original cup trophy still played for, and despite some negativity that surrounds the fixture due to a minority of people, we hoped to really put some positive spin on the occasion.

Unfortunately time and other events beat us, but I hope that as we usually do at Supporters Direct level, myself and my fellow Trust colleagues can have a beer with some of the Telford Trust guys.

Take out the rivalry, and the fact that we are a million times better than them (J), I have so much admiration for the Telford Trust and in particular the club chairman Lee Carter.

In 2004, Lee was an ordinary fan, just like the majority of us. Proud to support his team.

When the actions of an over zealous owner took the club to the brink, Lee stepped up to the plate, able helped by a number of volunteers.

I’m sure Lee will tell you that trying to save your club and set up at Supporters Trust in seven days (which is what they did) is not any easy task. Maybe some of those people, who continually whine on Internet message boards, would think differently if it meant they were the ones having to make tough decisions. That’s what Lee and his fellow board, with the Trust owning AFC Telford, do.

At the time of the old Telford’s demise, there were some opinions this end of the A5 that the Trust actually killed off the original club, by not handing over the funds they had raised. But as history has shown at places like Stockport, unless the club, in its current guise has a viable proposition going forward, the AFC route is the only option, and with it three division demotion.

It can’t have been easy to make that decision, but the club has rebuilt with a stronger and larger fan base. Telford is a community club, and community recognise the Football Club, and they have done it sustainably.

I believe in the model of Supporters Trust, but that’s not to say that you can’t have local dedicated businessmen running your team either and here at Shrewsbury we have that, and applaud its success.

But, I’m so glad we have a Trust for Shrewsbury. Even though we’ve been going four years now, I think we’ve set our mark on the Shrewsbury supporter’s scene. I’d rather us have something in place just in case the day happens, rather than try scrambling around to set up one. You want to be dedicating your time to getting ‘fivers in buckets’ than do all the legal niceties of an Industrial and Provident Society.

I feel that right now we have the best board we’ve had since we’ve started. And we had some really good people when we first set up. Running a Trust does require dedication but with the right people, the right outlook, the support of Supporters Direct as well, I think we can really achieve some positives for the fans, and the Football Club

On that subject some of you may have seen that we have managed to get the FA Cup to the Open Day next Sunday. More on that then. But it’s something that I’m sure all the supporters groups and the Football Club can use to maximum effect to promote being part of this great team.

When you think that 80% of the fan base aren’t a member of a group or even an Internet forum that speaks volumes. We need those people involved and part of the ‘bigger family’

Ade Plimmer

shrewsTRUST