Club Loan - Trust Statement - 1st July 2010

[Shrimperstrust]

The Shrimpers Trust regrets to inform both its members and supporters of Southend United Football Club that the Trust's £60,000 loan to the Club, originally agreed in December, has not been repaid, despite an extension to the end of June 2010.

The Statement in full can be found by clicking here (http://www.shrimperstrust.co.uk/home.asp?page_id=179).

[JamesTheSuperBlue]

Surprise, surprise.....

[pickledseal]

This bit worries me:

"having been informed by the Club that the repayment was not likely to be met, Chairman Ron Martin has chosen not to discuss the matter personally with representatives of the organisation."

http://randysright.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/head_in_sand.jpg

[Cricko]

No real surprise is it with what is going on all around at the moment.

[number11]

No surprise there. However, as Ive said elsewhere, if this loan is backed by a personal guarantee against Ron, the trust have inadvertently put themselves into a decent petition...... They have the option to issue a Stat Demand against Ron requiring payment within 21 days. If it's paid then all well and good......if it's not paid then they can petition for Ron's bankruptcy.

What the Trust have to decide is whether Ron's bankruptcy would benefit the club. Having lost faith in the Trust in giving this loan without telling their members, I do hope they have been spending the last year deciding what the best outcomes will be in various scenario's and whether this is a course of action they want to take and are not merely groping in the dark.....

[The Late One]

merely groping in the dark.....

Think you may need to edit that bit

[Mick]

The Shrimpers Trust regrets to inform both its members and supporters of Southend United Football Club that the Trust's £60,000 loan to the Club, originally agreed in December, has not been repaid, despite an extension to the end of June 2010.

The Statement in full can be found by clicking here (http://www.shrimperstrust.co.uk/home.asp?page_id=179).

Numbers dropped lately then. Not surprised,

[seany t]

This saddens me greatly.

As someone who has been a member for a few years now, the Trust does admirable work and - whilst I desperately don't wish to see the end of SUFC - this sickens me. In the grand scheme of things, football has totally lost it's way and is fast becoming a past time I despise.

I want to see the club survive, and the players stay, but they shouldn't be taking loans they cannot repay from a foundation who would otherwise be using it for the good of the wider community (hopefully!).

I sometimes wonder if it'd just be easier to put our hands up and admit defeat.

Shame on you SUFC.

[Yorkshire Blue]

This saddens me greatly.

As someone who has been a member for a few years now, the Trust does admirable work and - whilst I desperately don't wish to see the end of SUFC - this sickens me. In the grand scheme of things, football has totally lost it's way and is fast becoming a past time I despise.

I want to see the club survive, and the players stay, but they shouldn't be taking loans they cannot repay from a foundation who would otherwise be using it for the good of the wider community (hopefully!).

I sometimes wonder if it'd just be easier to put our hands up and admit defeat.

Shame on you SUFC.

Keeping SUFC going is for the good of the community and it's certainly why I became a life member.

To be honest, I think the Trust have been pretty astute with this loan so long as it isn't their entire fighting fund. It's given them a stake in the proceedings and a bargaining chip with RM. If it came off RM would be grateful for their assistance, if it didn't that's what they were there to try and prevent anyway.

[Cricko]

Keeping SUFC going is for the good of the community and it's certainly why I became a life member.

To be honest, I think the Trust have been pretty astute with this loan so long as it isn't their entire fighting fund. It's given them a stake in the proceedings and a bargaining chip with RM. If it came off RM would be grateful for their assistance, if it didn't that's what they were there to try and prevent anyway.


Are you on the funny pills today or something?

We did a collection for The Trust when the club had problems last year..RM stated at the time...he didn't like the idea and did not want the money....a few months later he takes 60k from The Trust promising to pay them back in Feb...some 4 months later he still has not and the time for repayment has passed without as much as a single returned call..In hindsight The Trust made a grave error in lending him that money but I am sure they did it with the clubs interest at heart... it now seems in fact he has not just taken The Trust for a ride but all of the fans that put money into them .It was the fans money. Therefore he does not give a toss about anybody but his megalomaniac ego.

My blame does not rest at the feet of The Trust in this.

[number11]

Are you on the funny pills today or something?

We did a collection for The Trust when the club had problems last year..RM stated at the time...he didn't like the idea and did not want the money....a few months later he takes 60k from The Trust promising to pay them back in Feb...some 4 months later he still has not and the time for repayment has passed without as much as a single returned call..In hindsight The Trust made a grave error in lending him that money but I am sure they did it with the clubs interest at heart... it now seems in fact he has not just taken The Trust for a ride but all of the fans that put money into them .It was the fans money. Therefore he does not give a toss about anybody but his megalomaniac ego.

My blame does not rest at the feet of The Trust in this.

Im not sure I entirely agree with you......certainly the Trust committee who I presume actioned this loan whilst deciding not to canvass opinion or even tell their members can't exactly avoid scrutiny in this decision. Ron explicitly said not to bother collecting. I remember at the time of the collection my Dad saying he wouldnt be putting any money in the buckets as it would just be going to Ron. I explained to him how it was actually the Trust, an independent body raising money to safeguard SUFC etc etc and it was not going to Ron. Looks like I was very wrong.

As I said above though, at least it has now given them Trust inadvertantly a position of strength to some degree as they can petition for Ron's bankruptcy and bring the whole thing down....... or is there really not a Personal Guarantee in place????

[Berrichonne shrimper]

Would never have happened on my watch.

[mcnasty]

I have thought about the Trust Loan long and hard and still struggle to understand anyone criticising the Trust trying to help in times of need.

The Trust have supported the club with donations to support the Youth set-up for a few years, sponsoring shirts and purchasing equipment when asked by the Youth bosses. I seem to remember, but I may be wrong , that the Trust paid money towards the European Tour / Tournament in the near past. No-one can question the good intentions of the Trust in financially supporting the club over the last few years.

I am not party to the whys and wherefores of the £60,00 loan, I do not know whether the Trust offered the money or if RM asked to borrow it or how the decision was made as none of this was revealed at the time but I could understand the Trust lending the Club money, especially if RM gave a guarantee for the repayment at a later date.
I do not know what conditions were placed by the Trust but they were not to know they were not going to be repaid on time, other companies appear to have been convinced to "invest" larger sums than the £60,000.

The problem now is that some people may feel , as the likelihood of getting the money back seems slim (RM ,I think, hasn't made contact with the Trust on or since repayment date) that the Trust shouldn't have lent the money in the first place -- others may think by getting the money back ( if and when ) that the Trust are depriving the club of valuable financial help.

Damned if you do and damned if you don't.

[Pak66]

Having watched my first game from the North Bank in 1966, I feel I have some understanding of Southend United and have seen many strange and sometimes very good things happen in the 44 years of following the Shrimpers.
I am also a life member of SUSCT.

SUSCT were totally wrong in not approaching the membership via an extraordinary meeting to discuss the possibility of the loan to the club.

Having previously worked with Ron I am sure my opinion may have assisted The SUSCT committee and members on whether to proceed with the loan.

There be others within SUSCT with experience of Ron outside of and prior to his new found love of football who could have voiced opinions to make a decision.

Unfortunately we will never know whether that meeting would have agreed or declined the offer of a loan to the club.

That is the main reason why I feel the SUST committee were wrong in proceeding with the loan.

[mcnasty]

Having watched my first game from the North Bank in 1966, I feel I have some understanding of Southend United and have seen many strange and sometimes very good things happen in the 44 years of following the Shrimpers.
I am also a life member of SUSCT.

SUSCT were totally wrong in not approaching the membership via an extraordinary meeting to discuss the possibility of the loan to the club.

Having previously worked with Ron I am sure my opinion may have assisted The SUSCT committee and members on whether to proceed with the loan.

There be others within SUSCT with experience of Ron outside of and prior to his new found love of football who could have voiced opinions to make a decision.

Unfortunately we will never know whether that meeting would have agreed or declined the offer of a loan to the club.

That is the main reason why I feel the SUST committee were wrong in proceeding with the loan.

The only point I would add is that no-one has made any complaint regarding the various sums ( the total of which I have no idea ) that the Trust have donated to the club in the past without consulting the members.

[ldnfatso]

Having watched my first game from the North Bank in 1966, I feel I have some understanding of Southend United and have seen many strange and sometimes very good things happen in the 44 years of following the Shrimpers.
I am also a life member of SUSCT.

SUSCT were totally wrong in not approaching the membership via an extraordinary meeting to discuss the possibility of the loan to the club.

Having previously worked with Ron I am sure my opinion may have assisted The SUSCT committee and members on whether to proceed with the loan.

There be others within SUSCT with experience of Ron outside of and prior to his new found love of football who could have voiced opinions to make a decision.

Unfortunately we will never know whether that meeting would have agreed or declined the offer of a loan to the club.

That is the main reason why I feel the SUST committee were wrong in proceeding with the loan.

oh how hind sight is a wonderful thing. Could you tell me which horse is gonna win the 3.20 at Kempton next week too?

[Shrimper]

Not surprised it hasn't been paid off.

[Pak66]

Nothing to do with hindsight, just hard facts.
You have no idea who I am or what I know of individuals within the club.
I have been around a lot longer than most of the SUSCT committee, lived all my life in Southend and have knowledge that may have been very helpful in assisting SUSCT in making a very important financial decision

[BarnaBlue]

The only point I would add is that no-one has made any complaint regarding the various sums ( the total of which I have no idea ) that the Trust have donated to the club in the past without consulting the members.

Why would they?
Those sums were donated for physio equiment etc and I doubt they ever reached anywhere near the sum of 60k.
The 60k loan(to the Chairman/SUFC)howver is a rather different matter.
It was advanced without full consultation of the membership and in circumstances where its repayment was always likely to be problematic.A poor judgement call IMO(as I said on SZ last year).

[Xàbia Shrimper]

A life member: I have to admit that I was also a bit peeved that the membership as a whole were not consulted before this "loan" was made to the club and was really only aware of it when the first late payment issue was made public a couple of months ago. I don't want a personal visit from the board to explain an issue but an email might have been appropriate before the "loan" was made? As it is, it seems that this is 60K thrown down the drain - I can't see Calamity Ron paying it back soon, no?

[ldnfatso]

Nothing to do with hindsight, just hard facts.
You have no idea who I am or what I know of individuals within the club.
I have been around a lot longer than most of the SUSCT committee, lived all my life in Southend and have knowledge that may have been very helpful in assisting SUSCT in making a very important financial decision

We can all spout on about it after the event though! Where was you to give the invaluable advice before the proverbial **** hit the fan though?? And why be so secretive about who you are? By simply saying stuff here after the event you actually make yourself look foolish and unbelievable.

[Pak66]

Thanks for the compliments, maybe now I understand a little bit more, I would have not been believed anyway.

[Napster]

Thanks for the compliments, maybe now I understand a little bit more, I would have not been believed anyway.

To be honest, it's hard to separate those who claim to know from those who actually do. And its easy to claim in hindsight that the Trust should'nt have done it - and also, that you wouldn't have given your consent if asked.

[BarnaBlue]

To be honest, it's hard to separate those who claim to know from those who actually do. And its easy to claim in hindsight that the Trust should'nt have done it - and also, that you wouldn't have given your consent if asked.

I didn't need hindsight as I complained as soon as the Chairman announced the "loan" late last year.And I for one certainly wouldn't have given my consent if the membership had been consulted.

FWIW, I think this will end up with the Beaver eventually taking the fall and having to resign over what was (IMO) a gross error of judgement.Hopefully some of those committee members who also voted in favour will go with him.

[mcnasty]

I didn't need hindsight as I complained as soon as the Chairman announced the "loan" late last year.And I for one certainly wouldn't have given my consent if the membership had been consulted.

FWIW, I think this will end up with the Beaver eventually taking the fall and having to resign over what was (IMO) a gross error of judgement.Hopefully some of those committee members who also voted in favour will go with him.

Why Mr Beaver ?

[Beaver]

Why Mr Beaver ?

Why not, i'll take the blame for anything ;)

I think Mr BarnaBlue thinks I'm the Trust Chairman - I've been promoted :clap:

[BarnaBlue]

Why not, i'll take the blame for anything ;)

I think Mr BarnaBlue thinks I'm the Trust Chairman - I've been promoted :clap:

I was indeed under that impression.:whistling:
Which I take it is not in fact the case? :unsure:

[Beaver]

I was indeed under that impression.:whistling:
Which I take it is not in fact the case? :unsure:

Paul FitzGerald is the Trust Chairman, I do the Membership Stuff and look after the Website amongst other things.

[jamesmut2000]

I was indeed under that impression.:whistling:
Which I take it is not in fact the case? :unsure:

Well if you're gonna slag the trust off you might like to find out who is actually who on the committee first.

P.S. Beaver out!

[Beaver]

Well if you're gonna slag the trust off you might like to find out who is actually who on the committee first.

P.S. Beaver out!

OK I'll get me coat :O

[jamesmut2000]

OK I'll get me coat :O

Maybe you need to send pics of all the committee members out as obviously some don't have a clue who's who?

P. S. I didn't really mean it -just thought it would be amusing to post 'Beaver out!'

[Shrimpero]

Paul FitzGerald is the Trust Chairman, I do the Membership Stuff and look after the Website amongst other things.

:O Good grief! I thought you were Paul Fitzgerald - apologies for correspondence to that effect last year. :dim:

[BarnaBlue]

Paul FitzGerald is the Trust Chairman, I do the Membership Stuff and look after the Website amongst other things.

Yeah I KNOW Paul Fitz is the Trust Chairman.We've had a few email chats on the yahoo Shrimper list and I have his private email address.I'm also aware(since he told me)that he doesn't post on here often because of the quantity of wind up merchants.IIRC you replied once before(on here) to something I'd mentioned to him(or vice versa) in a private email so I naturally put 2+2 together to make 5.:sherlock:

[BarnaBlue]

Well if you're gonna slag the trust off you might like to find out who is actually who on the committee first.

P.S. Beaver out!

Feeling nervous? :unsure:
Not had any outstanding 60k loans paid back lately,then? ;)

[jamesmut2000]

Feeling nervous? :unsure:
Not had any outstanding 60k loans paid back lately,then? ;)

Not quite sure what point you're making???

[Beaver]

:O Good grief! I thought you were Paul Fitzgerald - apologies for correspondence to that effect last year. :dim:

No worries, like all correspondence, pm's received I just pass them onto Paul F.

Mind you it is an easy mistake to make. I'm the good looking one though :D

[BarnaBlue]

Not quite sure what point you're making???

I believe I'm asking you (indirectly)if you're a Trust Committee member?:dim:

[jamesmut2000]

I believe I'm asking you (indirectly)if you're a Trust Committee member.:dim:

Well you don't have to be so sly -just ask! And no I'm not on the committee. I am however a lifer though. Hope that satisfies you.

[Cricko]

Well you don't have to be so sly -just ask! And no I'm not on the committee. I am however a lifer though. Hope that satisfies you.

He got 15 years for believing in Rm ;)

[jamesmut2000]

He got 15 years for believing in Rm ;)

Well if that was the case then there would be plenty of us locked up by now, yourself included for a while I believe!!!

[BarnaBlue]

No worries, like all correspondence, pm's received I just pass them onto Paul F.

Mind you it is an easy mistake to make. I'm the good looking one though :D

As you rightly say it IS an easy mistake to make.BTW,having seen him on the Trust stand in the Shrimpers bar he's not that bad looking for his age(and I'm not gay FYI).:)
FWIW (as I've told Paul privately)I have no axe to grind here.I've always thought he's done an excellent job as Trust Chairman up to(but obviously not including) the "loan" decision.

[Cricko]

Well if that was the case then there would be plenty of us locked up by now, yourself included for a while I believe!!!

Touche! Git...;)

[BarnaBlue]

Well you don't have to be so sly -just ask! And no I'm not on the committee. I am however a lifer though. Hope that satisfies you.

As a fellow life-member thank you for your honesty.

[jamesmut2000]

As a fellow life-member thank you for your honesty.

And just for the record I was as critical as anyone about the loan and how it was made. I had several conversations with Paul(Beaver) about it around the time the news broke.