Supporters' group say club must be 'more transparent'

A NEWLY-formed Stratford Town supporters’ group has called on the club’s board of directors to show more transparency.

The Stratford Town Independent Supporters’ Association (STISA) was founded earlier this month, with the aim of giving Town the “best possible opportunity of success” on and off the field.

The group, headed by elected chairman Rob Maisey, say in order for the club to continue to thrive, Town’s directors need to be more open in their communications with its supporters and volunteers.

“We are passionate about ensuring the club has the best possible opportunity to maintain its present level of success both on and off the field,” a STISA statement read.

“The club has achieved unprecedented success in recent seasons and in our view this success can only be maintained through a combined off-field effort that involves greater involvement from the supporters and the community.

“We do not wish to downplay the efforts of the board, who have done excellent work to bring the club to this point, but we do want to be a democratic voice that reflects and communicates the views of the supporters more formally and encourages the board to be more open and transparent in their communications.

“We only want to work collaboratively with the board for the mutual benefit of the club.”

Maisey himself is keen to stress the group are there to simply assist the club and he has rubbished any talk of a possible takeover.

He said: “The problem we’ve got is they think we’re going to take over the club. No. No. We don’t want to do that. The board runs the club, they spend the budgets.

“We are in the background and we want to help them out on things they haven’t got time to do.”

Also on the committee is Jonathan Gullis, who until this season was part of Stratford Town’s club management team.

Now on the other side of the fence, Gullis is hoping to convince the club’s hierarchy of the benefits the group can bring.

He said: “I sincerely hope the board members can see the benefits of STISA and will embrace us so we can become an official supporters’ association.

“For Stratford Town to grow, then the club has to engage more with the supporters, local community and businesses.

“I feel STISA will help bring in new business for sponsorship, over time increase our crowds and balance the average age of our supporters at home games.”

STISA has requested a meeting with the Stratford Town directors and are awaiting a response.

Aside from Maisey and Gullis, the commitee consists of Jim Connolly (secretary), Martin Brookes (membership secretary), Chris Simpson (treasurer), Doug Armstrong and Charlie Hewitt (committee members).

Membership of the association costs £2 a year for under-16s and £10 for adults. Membership forms can be found at www.stratfordtownisa.com