The live blog from tonight's club forum will appear here. The event starts at 7:30pm.
Summary
- Carol Shanahan OBE, Matt Hancock and David Flitcroft will be on the panel
- Event starts at 7:30pm
- Questions will be taken from the room
19:32
Dan Townley gets proceedings underway and welcomes tonight's guests to the stage - Carol Shanahan OBE, David Flitcroft and Matt Hancock!
19:38
Q: How do the postponed games affect the club both on the pitch and commercially?
DF: We believe that the international callups have hampered us. When you look at the rhythm of games, it certainly hasn't worked for us.
CS: One of my big learnings this year was the international callups. When we first got them, I was chuffed! I was so pleased and bragging that we were on an international break! I wouldn't do it again though because we lost the momentum and we didn't have the experience of how to deal with them properly. Virtually every postponed game was a home fixture and it was so frustrating!
MH: Commercially, Saturday fixtures are much better for the club for a magnitude of different reasons. So, it was tough for the club, losing the four home Saturday fixtures. From a supporter's experience, it wasn't great either and we have suffered as a result. There was a myth that we were happy about the Wycombe game being called off, but we absolutely weren't - we were as disappointed as anybody else that, that game was postponed.
19:47
Q: Can you talk us through the discussions between yourselves, Reading and the EFL regarding the postponed fixture?
MH: The game against Reading was frustrating for a number of reasons and the subsequent discussions have been frustrating too. In the buildup to the game, we had discussions internally and with the EFL and we were given assurances that, although it could happen, there were plans in place and that there was no risk to the match being abandoned. So we were pretty confident that, even though there might be some disruption, the fixture would be concluded on the day. Carol's first thought was how supporters would be reimbursed for their tickets. Carol personally contacted the EFL to raise that concern personally.
Reading's terms and conditions were quite clear that there would be no refunds due to the postponed game. We are very grateful for the £9k that the Reading supporters have raised for the JR statue and we completely empathise with the Reading supporters, but it doesn't mean that Vale supporters should feel the affects of what happened out of their own pockets.
The EFL agreed with us that refunds should be allocated and it moved quite quickly with the Supporters Club, but it got to a point where the legal side of things with Reading and the EFL and possible sanctions meant that we couldn't come out publically and explain what we were planning on doing re. refunds.
Once the EFL had published their sanctions on Reading, we were then able to publish what we wanted to much earlier surrounding supporter refunds.
There will now be a rescheduled game on 20/02, we hope that their club is in a much more positive situation over the coming months and years, but our focus was on doing what was best for Port Vale FC and Port Vale supporters as a whole and we made the best of what was a very bad situation.
CS: Everything that we were hearing was that everything was going to be fine. I contacted the EFL on the Saturday morning expressing concerns for the supporters, the players and ourselves, but they reassured us that everything was going to be absolutely fine. But what I want to say publically how proud I was of every PVFC supporter that was there, every single one. We always do try to get our messaging out as soon as possible, but sometimes we are restricted on what we can say until we are given permission to go public.
19:52
Q: How difficult is it to bring permanent players in during this window?
DF: It's difficult when you see players going for extensive money in this window. What we have got to do is the PL2 and look at the younger players and build relationships with clubs. The best time to recruit is in the Summer when you have done your work on players.
We have been looking at a good few non-league players, Ireland, Scotland - we have better people in these places to scout these players.
We aren't in the place that we want to be yet when players have the likes of Derby to choose from, but that's what we're aiming for.
CS: There are players that aren't saying yes to us now because they are saying yes to the Boltons and Derbys etc but there are players saying yes to us now that weren't saying yes to us just a couple of seasons ago. Some of our existing squad wouldn't have joined us a couple of years ago, but they're really happy now.
19:55
Q: What is the main pull when bringing in the higher quality of loan players?
DF: Through experience, I have been able to earn trust and make fantastic contracts. We have fantastic owners and at football clubs, players are seen as assets, but here they are seen as people. We support them as people, we support their families too. We have good coaches and good people at the football club and that message is now out there with the elite clubs that have seen us, scouted us and are trusting us with their elite players.
We lost a few players last season due to the pitch, we have addressed that and there is still work to be done, but it has improved.
We are promising that they are going to leave here as better players but they will also be leaving here as better people.
In the Premier League, they have everything but this level humbles them and even though they have the quality, they're all coming here with the correct work ethic, which is one of the reasons why our supporters loved Alfie and Ollie so much.
20:01
Q: What is the latest on the Railway Stand/Paddock?
MH: The club is going to invest in the club, not just the first team product.
We have a fantastic stadium that means so much to the area and to the supporters, but what we haven't got is a stadium that guarantees the best experience.
The toilets ARE going to get sorted, they'll be sorted before the beginning of next season and there will be investment within the Railway to make sure that facilities are upgraded.
At the same time, we want to ensure that we are investing in the right projects that will in turn, generate more money for the club which will then be reinvested into the club.
The Shanahans allow us to compete financially at League One level, the challenge for us is how we start being more Commercially-savvy without losing the community ethos, giving supporters the best experience when they're here off the pitch, as well as on it.
We won't over-invest and put the club at risk, we will do things sensibly and invest in the right projects at that time.
20:09
Q: Are we sustainable as a club?
CS: Very few clubs in football are not sustainable. Most clubs in the lower leagues only exist thanks to the extra investment from their owners. That's why the EFL is working on filtering more finances down to the lower leagues than there currently is.
The club can become self-sufficient, but the money that Kevin and I have put in is an investment to make this club one that we can all be proud of.
MH: We have got the model owners here at the club. When we go to EFL meetings, we have Leicester City and the likes asking about Port Vale FC and the setup that we have here. It's important that we don't forget just how lucky we are to have what we have and don't take it for granted because we are all here for the love of Port Vale Football Club.
20:13
Q: Where does the extra money generated from cup runs etc get re-invested back into the club? In the first team? Other areas of the club?
DF: We are trying to become a trading model like Peterborough, Brighton etc, recruiting and selling players at a higher level - these models have been developed over the years. There is money that's coming in through the Academy now which is reinvested back into the club and back into the Academy.
As the model develops, it's been agreed by the board that more investment will be reinvested back into the squad to invest in the higher caliber players that we all want.
20:15
Q: What are the plans for last week of transfer window?
DF: The permanent market is too expensive, but there are some really good options available in the loan market. There are clubs that are waiting on a player to drop for them before they will release the players that we are after.
It’s a bit of a waiting game, I’m not avoiding the questions, but we are probably looking at two different players across two different positions.
20:18
Q: Who does Andy Crosby report to at the club? Do you have conversations following games or only get involved every now and then?
DF: We struggled in October and November, there was an intervention when we sat down with all of the staff to ensure that performances and results improved and in December, we picked up 10 points, so there was a big improvement.
We've had a lot of injuries this season, we've had a training ground problem which have in turn resulted in more injuries, but the club takes collective responsibility for the poor run of form and we have to ensure that we support the manager both on and off the pitch.
20:28
Why did communications dry up during the bad run of results?
CS: Last year, I was very ill, I was taken to hospital and almost admitted to the ICU which came from a number of different illnesses. Following that, I fell from a wall and cracked my rib - I was in absolute agony! So, I was quite low as a person and the social media really, really upset me so I had to delete my social media accounts.
How people talk about our players and some of the comments are vile, we have a minority of people booing our players - they are OUR players! I listen to those who come and speak to me face-to-face with positive and negative feedback, but I don’t want to just be the instrument for somebody to be spiteful and nasty on social media.
MH: I saw first-hand just how nasty some of the personal remarks made towards the family, but from a club POV, as a club, we haven’t communicated enough about what the plan is for Port Vale via videos, statements, etc about what is going on inside the club and we want to stop assumptions being made about the club due to lack of communications.
We have to get you, as supporters, fully behind the football club and this club will only move forward with you onside and it’s important that we listen to all feedback, positive and negative, and communicate transparently, far better than we have done.
20:33
Q: Can you tell us what kind of club and team you really want us to be known as?
DF: We have set a culture at the football club, we want good people at this club and we will continue to sign good people with a hunger, with a desire.
I look at a group of players that are developing. The team has got to keep developing and with the investment, this club will progress up the leagues over the years to come.
We have youngsters in Baylee Dipepa, Ben Lomax etc that are getting better each and every day.
Right at this minute, we are using the loan system to get points on the board and in years to come, we will become less reliant on the loan market as our own players develop and as the club develops.
20:40
Q: The finances that the youngsters are bringing in when we are selling them to the likes of Aston Villa and Newcastle United?
DF: I would never avoid a question, but I can't give you the exact figures. You are talking in the hundreds of thousands. Cat 1 teams are now looking at us and wanting our players and are watching our players regularly.
20:42
Q: What is the latest update on the Dimensions development?
MH: We are in conversations and there is intent from ourselves and the council to look at a partnership around Dimensions and surrounding areas.
We are looking at a development that will bring elite football and community together. We want to create a campus where we will have a community impact area. We want to link the football, the education and the community side of things to create a well-being campus that, we believe, will bring life back to Burslem, which has been the aim of the Shanahan family since the beginning which will create life and employment opportunities as well as great footballing opportunities.
It’s a five year plan to see how we stage that, how it’s financed, the club will have to invest in it, but we absolutely believe that this will have a massive, positive impact on our local community that is a partnership project that is as much for the city as it is for the club.
You will start seeing consultation, conversation and commitment over the coming months and years.
20:45
Q: (To Carol) There are rumours that you have turned down external investment, are these true?
CS: I haven’t turned anybody down. A lot has been said about Ian Donaldson, he is a really good friend of mine and a really good friend of the club. He paid for his hospitality suite upstairs up front which in turn allowed us to develop the boardroom and Upper Hospitality Suite.
We have an interest-free loan from Ian that paid for the scoreboard, which helped cash flow to ensure that we could invest in that project at that time, but Ian didn't purchase the big screen, we are very much repaying that loan and we thank him for his support.
Ian offers me advice, he’s there for me, but no, we haven’t turned down any money from anybody.
20:53
Q: What is the club's playing philosophy throughout all age groups?
DF: We have devised a way of playing based on a possession style of play, but we had to go a little longer into Uche at times because we have to find ways of winning certain games given the run that we were on.
The club is working on developing Cat 1 players at a Cat 3 level and they have to be playing in a certain way, we have to coach them on the required skills to make the step up to Cat 1 academies and into the First Team.
20:55
Q: There is a huge frustration regarding purchasing tickets online. Is there anything planned to improve this?
MH: Things will change ahead of the new season. I can't say too much, but there is a review of our systems that is ongoing and things will change before the beginning of next season.
We are listening to your feedback, the Supporters Club's feedback and the Supporters Summit. I know it's not good enough, you know it's not good enough and we are working towards improving that very soon.
20:56
Q: Any update on Rhys Walters' contract situation?
DF: We have moved forward in the past couple of weeks. Rhys wants to sign the contract, the family wants him to sign the contract. He wants to stay at the football club and it is getting closer.
20:57
Q: Are there any players due to leave before the deadline?
DF: Every day I have had a phone call about our players. We have braced ourselves for teams wanting our players over the next four or five days. You just never know how the window will pan out.
21:02
Q: Is dealing with agents the most difficult part of agreeing on a deal?
DF: There are some really good agents out there that have the players' back. There are some that aren't right and the ones that give the wrong advice, but we deal with some really good agents that will help and support you with deals and deals with other potential players, but you do get some bad ones that are an absolute nightmare.
21:03
That concludes this evening's Club Forum.