Fundraising

[Vicki England]

Luckily, I am not on the committee and have to come up with a workable and successful answer to the problem but i am sure the committee would welcome all constructive ideas Just a comment from me about ideas etc

Hi all,

We know that supporters have been talking about a get together, and we on the Board have been too. As soon as the last game is played, this will be arranged.

Loads of great suggestions, loads that we could/would like to take forward. We know ourselves, areas that need more focus on and where we want to improve as a club. But.....we need help!

It takes so much to run 1874 and with us having day jobs and families, then a football workload on top, we don't always have the necessary time to do everything we want to do. Not enough hours in the day, is the old cliché! But this is where 1874 Members and Supporters can assist! Let's have a chat after the season ends, and after the Legends game etc.

In the meantime.... "GET IN GREEN BOYS"!! What a great performance and result. And if results go our way by next Saturday, we could finish mid table again. It has been a mad league! We've honestly got a fantastic set of lads, who care about the club. We know what they can do, sometimes it's not come off for them (deserved/not deserved) but we have a great platform to build from for next season.

See as many of you as possible next Saturday, to cheer the boys on to the end.

Then try and get to the Legends game on the 30th (team sheets soon!) and let Richard Stockton know about the Presentation Evening on 6 May. Both events should be good.

We have so much to be thankful for, we do have a great little club

#UTStep4SG

 

[JAS94]

Agree with most of the above, I’m not sure if it’s an issue with us being seen as out of town however. We simply don’t do enough to advertise ourselves in the local community these days.

We should be out in the schools etc making a song and dance to the kids to come down (they’re the future!)

We’ve also got a massive catchment in the Winnington urban village right on the doorstep too with lots of families with young kids, get stuff through our doors and let them know we have games.

 

[1874Craig]

So you’re not criticising the work and efforts that Bo and Goody put in? Strange way of showing it I have to say.

Do you really think that they won’t be carrying out a review of the strengths and weaknesses of the squad during the close season? Of course they will! In fact they are constantly doing this, but it’s not just about signing any player - anyone can do that!

But not only do they have to be the ‘right’ type of player (i.e. they fit in with the ethos of 74) but affordable and importantly better than the players we already have.

Interested to understand a little more re what you mean with your comment “During the summer there has to be changes both on & off the pitch.”

Yes 100% the management team will be conducting a review of the squad during the summer as they should. In a recent newsletter the management said they wanted to keep the main core of the squad together for next season which is all good but that’s why I said they’ll need to have one to two hard reality checks to see which’s ones are up to the standards of the NPL & therefore perhaps they’ll need to move on one or two long term 74 players.


I fully understand bringing in a player to a football club is no straight forward task, they’re many factors which goes on including making sure the certain player fits the ethos whilst representing our football club, and what I meant by bringing in a striker by any means necessary was because in my opinion the way our performances/results were heading in the last couple of months we were seemingly sleepwalking towards relegation.
74 were mid table at the time although we were only a few points off from the bottom clubs, yet some supporters & even a quote
from a newsletter after the Glossop win suggested 74 were fine/we were never was in a relegation battle/we won’t be etc etc despite a alarming run of form which I put in my last post.
Well it very nearly made a complete mockery of us all because that run of bad form continued & we almost fell into the relegation play offs.
in some games our performances were alright yet we didn’t take our chances & we ended up coming away with nothing, we just needed a goalscorer.


As for the summer what I meant was we as supporters needs together & have a good think on how we can progress 1874 Northwich forward. Here’s a few of examples off the top of my head.

1 : Attracting new supporters (especially younger ones, perhaps we can target the local schools to encourage them to come)

2 : Making Townfield a better match day experience for everyone, this could mean helping improve the facilities, better match day atmosphere (chanting & singing) during games & so on etc .

3 : Improving the financial income to the football club & seeing what we as fans can do more.
I know I said about the possibility of the supporters helping cover the wage budget but that’s just a suggestion, as you stated we would need top dollar to bring in such a player & it may upset the long term players such as Mark Jones & the Woolley brothers which is understandable but at least it’s an option out there.

I could go on & on but I don’t want to drag this post on too much and I’m sure everyone will have their own opinions & ideas which will be most welcomed, at the end of the day there is no right or wrong answers, some ideas we can progress on, some we may not but we need forward/progressive thinking people to move forward.

Anyway let’s enjoy the last game of the season & let’s see what happens in the summer.

#WeAre74

 

[Tez]

Lots of ideas there Craig, perhaps you might consider standing for election to the Board next time or at least helping out with the fund raising for the new players

I get that you want the best for the club and the run of results has been frustrating and a little worrying, but the reality is we are where we are, working within the financial constraints we have. We could stretch the budget, but then where does it leave us ..... potentially back to pre- 2012 and rolling right back to the financial ups and downs of the late sixties (the troubles of the old club don’t just rest at the door of Connett and Rushe) ..... the main reason we walked away.

Even a decent Step 6 forward these days would be looking to cash in on our interest. It’s eye watering what some players are expecting. Then they need to produce goals, turn up for training regularly and be committed to the ‘74 cause one hundred percent. One of the reasons we appear to struggle signing players is that they need to be of the right fit, playing for ‘74 for the right reasons. If £ is their first consideration then the likelihood is that we are merely a stepping stone to wealth and not commitment and self improvement. Loan players, well they don’t come without a cost and if you’re banging in the goals why would your parent club loan you out in the first place?
I have absolute confidence this Management team will leave no stone unturned in endeavouring to strengthen this squad, in the right places, but they need to be the right players. How many potentially decent prospects do you think they’ve had and still have under the radar? How many players have given verbal assurances of their interest only to then to go elsewhere? Finding the right players at this level, on our budget isn’t easy. Staying in this Division is not easy. I think our duo do a fantastic job. They’ll be the first to admit they don’t get everything right, but look at some of the gems they have unearthed.
It’s been a close one, but we’re over the line. Chance to regroup and go again now. And finally just ponder this thought, you don’t need to look too far down the road to see what you could have had. Count your blessings I say

 

[Edge]

I'm going to copy the posts about fundraising & boosting income to here so it doesn't all get lost in the football discussion

 

[Edge]

And my brief thoughts...

To boost income we have a few options

• Persuade the existing fanbase to part with more of their money
• Find free money - e.g. Easyfundraising, A Plan Insurance
• Attract new fans & sponsors

Existing extra income - 300+ club & memberships
Possible extra income - Townfield can bar, hospitality in the Memorial Hall.

But do we have the volunteers to action the new ideas?

 

[Tez]

I sense that is the perennial problem.

 

[ash10]

Looks to be spread over a few headings but just offering (some) insight into this topic as for nearly 10 years now I have volunteered to try to help promote the club as best I can. Prior to getting involved I was critical of how the club promoted itself and believed we could do better, so offered to help, initially on socials but willing to chip in where I could. I’m still unsure I wish I did - I had no idea of the amount of hours put in over the years, the criticisms that would come by, the impact on social life, always being on call to be reactive when needed - all in what is a field I know little about but did believe we could do more to develop the club by picking up on ideas to give us a feel of a progressive, open, characterful, sometimes niche, always welcoming, and inherently different but essentially a club we can be proud of.

It is there to be judged and whatever criticisms have been directed at what we have not done, for me, have always been outweighed by some of the amazing stuff that has gone on over the years. The people and organisations we have linked with have given us a platform to kick on with. Some clubs have gone by with little interest in the same period. There are now real relations to build on.

Individuals have come and gone over the years, but we should appreciate the diehard custodians for their service - a few being totally overstretched. So much goes on behind the scenes.

“We need to do more”, “we simply don’t do enough” – I completely 100% agree with statements like this. But it will only be achievable with money and more people getting involved.

For me it is simple. We now more than ever need the fanbase to recognise the club in its present state is doing what it can right now with little resource; whether that be time, skillset, money, or hands.

No intention of exposé or dirty laundry airing but there are countless battling factors that should be understood.

Whatever promotion of the club over the last 10 years you may have seen has been achieved with zero budgetary help, little directive, just attempted with best intentions, in an already busy locale, all vying for the same attention. Whatever we’ve done with socials has been done with purpose. Some positives in that time, often imitated. Not all of it has worked and again is there to be criticised but done with good intention to forge us a profile with personality. The best bits we’ve put together have been funded personally or from the odd favour but that must now change.

It’s tough going and there’s no silver bullet – we know we are operating out of a limited facility compared to others. We also must accept without a massive footballing budget increase that we probably won’t win as many games as mid-Cheshire rivals given the present league standings. One thing for certain is we just have to improve the matchday experience. Naturally we will plateau to a humble little club, but we’ve got to get back that enjoyment factor.

After a fair run at it, it is time to handover to someone who can give a wide-ranging role new energy and dedication needed at an important time.

I very much hope a fans forum springs new promotional ideas to take forward. Suggestions are one thing but the club really does need people to engage and offer help to act on them. The suggestions put forward so far will no doubt have been looked at before in some manner, but we have to appreciate the optics around such ideas will present challenges.

I get the frustrations and there are areas I personally believe we can do things so much better. All clubs have their problems but we can all work to solve ours. I think the club would benefit from opening a board appointed, ambassadorial type role who could internally be a one point liaison between fans and board to proactively engage with supporters acting as a conduit for directing issues to the appropriate department and tracking issue resolution. But also externally, looking at what can be sensibly achieved locally and building on relations.


All said, to see the club kick on we're going to have to put our hands in pockets and have more supporters step up. Enough typing for now but it should now be an enjoyable couple of weeks to see out the campaign with hopefully good support at the Widnes fixture and Legends game on Sunday 30th. Sadly I will likely miss any fans forum as I go off on a spring mission promoting 1874 in Japan. Thanks, and come on the Greens. Ash D

 

[Tez]

Excellent post Ash

 

[Greenman91]

I know that we keep the proceeds made on hot drinks, food etc. at the home games. But have we tried to negotiate a deal with barnton where by we can stick the bar with cans much like they do now and keep the profits made from that? Surely we must pay them some rent for the use of the facilities and pitch on match days, and they have benefitted from the upgrades to the stadium carried out by our volunteers. I think if we don’t see any of the profit from the bar and are able to negotiate where we can stock the bar on our match days with cans and sell them and keep the profits we could make a small fortune over the season. Or even if we could install an outside bar which sells cans only that we then keep the profits from or negotiate a set price with them. Just an idea, which may or may not have been put forward and acted on previously.

 

[JAS94]

I know that we keep the proceeds made on hot drinks, food etc. at the home games. But have we tried to negotiate a deal with barnton where by we can stick the bar with cans much like they do now and keep the profits made from that? Surely we must pay them some rent for the use of the facilities and pitch on match days, and they have benefitted from the upgrades to the stadium carried out by our volunteers. I think if we don’t see any of the profit from the bar and are able to negotiate where we can stock the bar on our match days with cans and sell them and keep the profits we could make a small fortune over the season. Or even if we could install an outside bar which sells cans only that we then keep the profits from or negotiate a set price with them. Just an idea, which may or may not have been put forward and acted on previously.

Either that or something like having a refreshment stall/hut on the site where we can sell our own. I’m sure Barnton would still benefit from pre/post game drinks at the bar etc

 

[josh89]

"Football Club Fundraising Ideas | easyfundraising" https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/fundraising-ideas-for-football-clubs/
"Football Fundraising Ideas in the Time of Social Distancing" https://www.gofundme.com/en-gb/c/fundraising-ideas/football
"12 Fundraising ideas for your football team" https://blog.pitchero.com/fundraising-ideas-for-football-team?hs_amp=true
"15 Creative and Easy Fundraising Ideas for Football Teams in 2022" https://donorbox.org/nonprofit-blog/football-fundraising-ideas
(This site is aimed more at American football but the ideas could still be converted)

Just came across a few ideas online and also below is a similar version of the easyfundraising site that may be of use

"Fundraising for Football Clubs - don't miss out" https://www.goraise.co.uk/fundraising-for-sports-clubs/football-clubs/