SAToffeeImp
Vital Youth Team
An amazing year has passed since Rob Makepeace identified me as the new investor and I agreed to do a Q&A on Vitals. A lot has changed over the past year but some things haven't. Just like last year we have a weekend without a game, then because of bad weather, this year because of strange happenings at the lower levels of the English football pyramid.
It's great to see the continued progress the club has made over this period. There have been fantastic wins in recent months against Tranmere, Forest Green and Wrexham but the game on Monday night has elevated us to another level. Although the performance and the result against a team two tiers above us was excellent in itself, it was the attendance of more than 6,500 Imps fans on a cold winter night for a televised game that was truly extraordinary and highlighted the enormous potential that the club can harness. How amazing to see the Co-op stand packed and the 617 squadron in full voice. The publicity the club received from the Oldham game has been significant and I am confident that it will be the catalyst for further investment and opportunities.
It doesn't happen often that the planets align and everything comes together but that happened when we had a small window of opportunity to sign up Danny and Nicky. We might not have hired the Special One (in any case I don't think he is that special anymore) but we have managed to get a very special management team. We can all see the incredible work that Danny and Nicky have done in the very short time they have been with us, both on and off the field, to lift the club and create the enthusiasm and belief that was so much in evidence on Monday night.
Momentum is such a powerful force and it is up to us all, from the Board to the fans, to ensure that we keep the club heading in the right direction and capitalise on that. There is still a long way to go to achieve our immediate objective of promotion back to the Football League but the foundation has been laid and we have the right management and players to attain that for us. It won't be easy with a number of other teams pushing hard for that same prize but I know, as a Board, we will do our very best to support the team as much as possible.
Form a personal level it has been an incredible journey so far. When I first contemplated the investment there were a few people involved in football who suggested I should be looking to do better than Lincoln City. Emotion was always going to win but I think I was really sold on the club from that first night in Lincoln when Bob dragged me around the city from The Strugglers to dinner at the Wig & Mitre to a another pub with Irish music and finally the Rock Haven. If I could survive a long night with Bob, Glynise and their friends I felt I was ready for anything that the club was going to throw at me. Seriously, I am enormously grateful for the hospitality and welcome I have received from so many and especially from Bob, Kevin and Roger and their partners/wives. That personal connection is so important in any partnership. I am also thankful for having been able to interact with some of the fans and many others involved or connected with the club and that has made this year so much more exciting and meaningful.
UTI
It's great to see the continued progress the club has made over this period. There have been fantastic wins in recent months against Tranmere, Forest Green and Wrexham but the game on Monday night has elevated us to another level. Although the performance and the result against a team two tiers above us was excellent in itself, it was the attendance of more than 6,500 Imps fans on a cold winter night for a televised game that was truly extraordinary and highlighted the enormous potential that the club can harness. How amazing to see the Co-op stand packed and the 617 squadron in full voice. The publicity the club received from the Oldham game has been significant and I am confident that it will be the catalyst for further investment and opportunities.
It doesn't happen often that the planets align and everything comes together but that happened when we had a small window of opportunity to sign up Danny and Nicky. We might not have hired the Special One (in any case I don't think he is that special anymore) but we have managed to get a very special management team. We can all see the incredible work that Danny and Nicky have done in the very short time they have been with us, both on and off the field, to lift the club and create the enthusiasm and belief that was so much in evidence on Monday night.
Momentum is such a powerful force and it is up to us all, from the Board to the fans, to ensure that we keep the club heading in the right direction and capitalise on that. There is still a long way to go to achieve our immediate objective of promotion back to the Football League but the foundation has been laid and we have the right management and players to attain that for us. It won't be easy with a number of other teams pushing hard for that same prize but I know, as a Board, we will do our very best to support the team as much as possible.
Form a personal level it has been an incredible journey so far. When I first contemplated the investment there were a few people involved in football who suggested I should be looking to do better than Lincoln City. Emotion was always going to win but I think I was really sold on the club from that first night in Lincoln when Bob dragged me around the city from The Strugglers to dinner at the Wig & Mitre to a another pub with Irish music and finally the Rock Haven. If I could survive a long night with Bob, Glynise and their friends I felt I was ready for anything that the club was going to throw at me. Seriously, I am enormously grateful for the hospitality and welcome I have received from so many and especially from Bob, Kevin and Roger and their partners/wives. That personal connection is so important in any partnership. I am also thankful for having been able to interact with some of the fans and many others involved or connected with the club and that has made this year so much more exciting and meaningful.
UTI