Swindon City proprietor Clem Morfuni slams ‘abuse’ of gamers and employees and says that the membership had been 10 days from going into administration.
This assertion is available in gentle of latest occasions the place each on-field efficiency and off-field administration have been topics of fan unrest and discontent. Response from supporters to this assertion is on the backside of this text.
Morfuni inherited a financially troubled membership in 2021, the place points included unpaid wages, authorized battles over possession, and monetary mismanagement.
However the state of affairs at Swindon has remained dire, the membership going through important monetary challenges, together with not paying employees and gamers in full for intervals, and being beneath a switch embargo resulting from these monetary irregularities.
They sit twenty first within the League Two desk with 8 factors from 10 video games performed, 2 factors above the drop zone. They head to Cheltenham, who’re a spot above them, on Saturday.
Swindon City Soccer Membership want to challenge the next message from Clem Morfuni:
— Swindon City Soccer Membership (@Official_STFC) October 9, 2024
STATEMENT
Swindon City Soccer Membership want to challenge the next message from Clem Morfuni:
To all our supporters,
I need to take this chance to reply to the Belief’s latest assertion and supply readability on the problems raised.
Once I acquired the Club in July 2021, we had been simply 10 days away from administration and the brand new season beginning.
What we inherited:
1. Six gamers and no Supervisor.
2. The Membership had £10 within the financial institution and the employees had not been paid.
3. The package had not been ordered or paid for, due to this fact there was no package for the gamers to play in.
4. There was no coach journey to take the gamers to the video games.
5. No sponsors for the package.
6. There was a £1.5 million HMRC debt which we needed to pay, which is now cleared.
7. The Membership had not paid the hire to Swindon Borough Council for 15 months, there was £300k of unpaid hire. The council had taken the Membership to court docket to retrieve the monies. This has been cleared.
8. We inherited £4.5 million price of collectors, these have been paid.
9. The Membership had a £2.95 million debenture because of the earlier exorbitant spending on the taking part in funds, which has been cleared.
10. There was an impressive COVID EFL mortgage of over £500k, which needed to be paid off.
11. There have been excellent authorized points, a few of which proceed to today, which wanted to be paid. We can not focus on the small print of those for authorized causes and confidentiality.
The things now we have achieved since taking on:
1. Shopping for The County Floor 50/50 with the Supporters Belief. With out the good Nigel Eady and the Trustees Robert Carter, John Carter, Jez Webb, and Gary Herbert this could by no means have occurred. I thank them for securing the way forward for the house of Swindon City Soccer Membership for generations to come back.
2. Organising an Advisory Board Assembly to meet with all of the supporter teams to debate objects throughout the Membership which I’ve attended in particular person or over groups solely lacking one assembly. As a Chairman, the supporters & supporter teams have extra entry to me than many different Chairpersons. I’m at all times keen to focus on points with any supporter or supporter teams both personally or on the cellphone no matter the place I’m round the world.
3. We have injected monies into The Nigel Eady County Floor, little or no funds have been spent on the stadium for 30 years.
4. We have paid the deposit for Statue Park and have organised the contractor to position the Don Rogers statue in the park.
5. We have appointed the Architects for the event of the Don Rogers Stand.
6. We have built-in the Girls’s Crew to safe their future as an integral a part of the Membership and are investing within the staff to intention for promotion and constructing a pathway for youthful feminine gamers into first-team soccer.
7. We’ve got invested within the Academy so we are able to develop our youth and kind each a pathway into the primary staff and potential participant gross sales.
8. We negotiated a launch from our contract with Puma which was costing the Membership 100s of 1000’s of kilos per yr. This has allowed us to negotiate a brand new contract with Professional-Direct and entry to the Adidas package.
9. We’ve got opened our books to Truthful Sport and to the Supporters Belief which clearly confirms that I’ve by no means taken a penny from the Membership. I don’t take any cost or bills for my flights, journey prices, lodges, or meals, I even pay for my very own reproduction shirts.
10. We’ve got elevated the funds on the soccer aspect, to the second greatest funds since Paolo Di Canio.
It’s essential to recognise that the Membership’s journey should embody constructing a stable basis from which long-term success can develop. Merely put, it’s not nearly fast fixes. It’s irritating for us all that it takes time, however we should guarantee now we have stability and sustainability.
I additionally need to tackle the criticism that my monetary assist for the Membership is structured as debt. That is normal follow in soccer and ensures transparency and accountability. As I’ve stated many instances, I’m not right here to revenue from Swindon City Soccer Membership. Each penny I’ve invested has been to guard and construct the Membership.
We signaled as much as Truthful Sport and offered them with all the data that they wanted to provide their report earlier in the yr.
In our conferences and on the Advisory Board conferences, the Belief has confirmed that few different Golf equipment present as a lot entry to the proprietor and the monetary and common particulars of the Membership as we do.
Swindon followers vent anger in direction of their very own gamers after 2-1 defeat to Port Vale
Communication and Engagement
Relating to communication, I acknowledge there’s at all times room for enchancment, and we have been actively recruiting a Senior Digital Marketing skilled to bridge this hole over the past 5 months.
Originally of final week, we carried out a second spherical of interviews with candidates and are hoping to nominate this place by the top of the month. It takes time to recruit this kind of function, and we want to be sure that this key place is crammed by the best particular person.
I’m dedicated to creating certain that our supporters are stored up-to-date and engaged with the Membership’s actions.
We’ve got appointed a Fan Engagement Officer. As this appointment contains ticketing queries and supporter liaison it naturally sat nicely with the SLO function as they’re obtainable to followers on matchday, and it supplyed a chance for a employees member’s development.
We’ve got produced a Fan Engagement Plan that’s obtainable on our web site which can be up to date every season and are totally dedicated to bi-monthly advisory board conferences (this was agreed by all our supporter group representatives in our January AB assembly, which included a Belief consultant).
We have a staff of employees which might be taking a look at what we are able to do to reinforce the matchday expertise for all our followers which incorporates the boys’s and girls’s groups. The Junior Reds room has been an awesome success and as a Membership, we’re at the moment taking a look at what we are able to do for the 11-17 and 18-24-year-old supporters.
Our advisory board has welcomed new members from key supporter teams, and we even have extra employees members obtainable on the conferences to reply questions and provides division updates. I’ve attended all however one in all these conferences.
We are going to proceed to carry our Followers Boards and are at the moment taking a look at completely different ways in which we are able to make the discussion board extra inclusive for all of our supporters’ teams, together with our youthful followers and abroad supporters.
We’ve got been holding common conferences with the OSC to debate joint initiatives i.e. Charity of the 12 months and to seek out methods to enhance our fan expertise and hearken to suggestions from the followers.
Following our supporters’ group assembly in June, now we have, as requested, been assembly with the Belief regularly to reply any questions and to hearken to their suggestions.
We’ve got confirmed, in our matchday programmes, our social media channels, and on our web site, the delay of and reasoning for the completion of the Legends Lounge and Store entrance and we are going to remain dedicated to offering updates as and when now we have data to offer you.
We’ve got recognised the significance of holding followers updated with what’s occurring within the footballing aspect of the Membership. We’ve got drastically elevated the data obtainable relating to the boys’s first staff, academy and girls’s groups with pre-match and post-match critiques, interviews and different articles which can be found throughout all social media channels, on the web site together with our match day programme. We stay dedicated to offering extra partaking and informative content material for our followers, as at all times, we welcome our followers’ suggestions on how we are able to enhance.
On Area Efficiency
We all know that each one of you had been as upset as we had been with the outcomes on the pitch final season and this season hasn’t but met our expectations, however we moved to recruit a brand new head coach and staff as shortly as we may for the beginning of the season. All of the employees and gamers on the footballing aspect of the Membership are totally dedicated and dealing very exhausting to get outcomes on the pitch.
I elevated the funds to allow us to recruit gamers and elevated this once more on the finish of the final switch window to recruit some extra gamers to reinforce the squad additional.
We are within the means of recruiting some extra employees for the Academy, we have launched some extra roles and the Women’s groups have extra coaches working with them this season.
Funding is and continues to be made into the soccering aspect of the Membership.
Various Possession and Funding
As for the Belief’s name for various possession and funding alternatives, I’ve at all times said that I’m totally dedicated to proudly owning and working the soccer membership.
In our assembly with Neil Hutchings and James Phipps, I said that I wasn’t involved in promoting the Membership. Nevertheless, if the Belief desires me to depart, I said they need to present proof of funds and a proper letter of curiosity and I reiterated that the soccer membership shouldn’t be on the market and I stay devoted and dedicated to constructing a Membership that followers could be pleased with.
Influence of On-line Hate and Division
I really feel strongly in regards to the on-line abuse and unfavourable behaviour that has surfaced in latest weeks. Criticism is a component and parcel of soccer, and I settle for my justifiable share. I’m involved by the degrees of private assaults and abuse directed at not solely me but additionally at gamers, employees, and different supporters. This isn’t what being a Swindon City fan is about.
Bullying is for cowards and on-line hate impacts the psychological well being and efficiency of our gamers, particularly the youthful ones. It’s demoralising and it might even push gifted people away from the Membership.
The administration and training employees additionally really feel the stress of those assaults, making an already demanding job even tougher. All of us have to keep in mind that there’s a human aspect to soccer that goes past wins and losses.
I urge all supporters to rally behind the staff and positively channel their ardour. All of us need the identical factor – to see Swindon City succeed and transfer up the soccer ladder. Your assist makes an actual distinction on match day, and I ask that we deal with creating an setting the place gamers really feel inspired to offer their greatest.
Help for Belief Initiatives and Subsequent Steps
The joint possession of The Nigel Eady County Floor is a testomony to what we are able to obtain after we work collectively, and we’re grateful to the Belief for his or her efforts in making this a actuality and naturally, the fantastic legacy left to us by Nigel Eady who made this doable.
Work has begun on Statue Park which we shared with you lately as we intention to offer a brand new outside assembly house for our supporters and improve the matchday expertise.
I welcome the Belief’s continued engagement and sit up for assembly in particular person subsequent month once I return to Swindon.
Till then, I encourage all followers to remain united, assist the staff, and be aware of the influence their phrases and actions can have on those that symbolize the Membership.
Let’s deal with what we are able to construct collectively.
COYR!
Regards,
Clem Morfuni
Right here’s what Clem stated 8 months in the past in a video posted on the membership’s YouTube channel…
Twitter customers gave their take because the Swindon proprietor slams ‘abuse’ of gamers and employees and says the membership had been 10 days from administration…
@rachw101: The Nigel Eady fund purchased the CG not you. We had our worst league end. You’ve lied repeatedly. Get the fundamentals proper the remaining is pure waffle. We want new possession now.
@dickostfc: No point out of missed funds “admin errors” quite a few horrible coaches and the involvement of the kielys hart Austin ranford and so on oh and the abysmal on subject performances now we have needed to endure
@ChisieWeirdo: One more new low for the Membership. Who’s advising the proprietor earlier than statements like this are launched? Is their no primary comms or PR technique? Each week the senior administration on the Membership acts more and more like a two bit non-league membership
@haydenbedwell2: You missed off your achievements “lowest ever league end within the golf equipment historical past”.
@DinseyRob: It’s not the form of assertion you place out when issues are going nicely, is it?
@DeanMcMackin: Completely proper, abuse is flawed and everybody would like to be totally behind the gamers nevertheless it’s been robust. Taking credit score for what must be regular enterprise practices is the place followers get irritated although. It shouldn’t be a privilege that payments are being paid and issues are painted
@SN1Insider:
“CLEM MORFUNI, GET OUT OF OUR CLUB”
Loud and clear on Saturday, city followers!
@ijwilmer81: I miss out on how ‘getting a package’ and appointing an architect as optimistic strikes for a soccer membership….. that’s simply normal enterprise. My suggestion can be appoint a PR skilled and or company as these statements have gotten increasingly shambolic!!
@Simonhockey45: It’s not working Clem. We thanks for saving the membership, however I would not have confidence that you’ve the monetary means to take this membership to the following stage. Please take a look at all critical gives that come your manner.The followers will recognize you extra for that, than sticking round..
@PaulD_70: Hello Clem, thanks for the assertion. Don’t let the door slam in your arse on the way in which out. Love and kisses…
@pvfcken: Rivalry apart, no fanbase deserves (particularly loyal EFL supporters) should be taken for a journey by two bit businessmen who don’t give two hoots in regards to the membership they personal. For the betterment of your membership, I as a vale fan want youse the very best 👍🏻
@harryjjnicholas: We don’t care, promote up
@MarkHopgoo44290: Setting apart rivalry I hope you get your possession sorted out. You have to be difficult on the high finish of League One. I’m sufficiently old to recollect you beating Arsenal 4-3 on the County floor in 79 in entrance of 20k plus followers.
@mtholmes84: Simply pack up and go Morfuni. The entire tone of that assertion stinks of you claiming to be the sufferer & followers being flawed for anticipating a competently run soccer membership! Morfuni out! #stfc
@jackomanaco: We’re not falling for this anymore. Continued gaslighting of followers and a regurgitation of ‘achievements’ that remind me of somebody wheeling out their 90s file of Achievement Folder to point out off their GCSE in meals tech for a 2024 job interview. We’re not fools
@ClaireFurnell1: What a load of waffle… promote up and get out of our membership Clem and take all of the “others” with you
@JamieD_STFC: In the event you want to make this membership one thing to be pleased with, fuck that prick Corridor out. I 95% agree with the targetting of membership workers needing to cease, however I refuse to cease calling out this man till he’s gone. Absolute fucking virus upon this membership full of fine individuals.
@Alfiesims08: Promote up and fuck off ✊🏻✊🏻
