We have ten people that are willing to volunteer to be Board Members for the Hull City Supporters’ Trust. The Trust Board will meet regularly and make decisions on behalf of the Trust’s shareholders. Whenever possible, and whenever there is sufficient time, the Board will consult with shareholders on significant issues before it makes decisions.
There are up to ten places on the Board available, so at the moment there is no need for a full election vote at Saturday’s AGM. However it is important that all shareholders know who the Board Member candidates are. To this end, all candidates will each introduce themselves to the AGM before the meeting ratifies (or not) each appointment to the Board with a show of hands.
Information about the people standing to be Board Members is provided below. If you have asked Mike Scott to cast your proxy vote and you don’t like the look of any of these characters, please let him know asap at mike.scott@citytillwedie.com!
- Geoff Bielby
Geoff has been a City fan since the mid 60’s and East Stand season ticket holder for ten years since returning to live in East Yorkshire. He became involved with Hull City fans groups over the Huddersfield /West Yorkshire Police “Bubblegate” and was part of the group organising the fans’ protest jointly with the Huddersfield Supporters Trust. Through that involvement he saw how a combined and recognised fans’ group, ideally an active Supporters’ Trust, could benefit Hull City fans who had numerous passionate groups but no single voice. He joined the CTWD committee in April 2014 having actively supported the NTHT campaign. He has also participated in the Fans Working Group forum arranged in recent months by the Club. - Chris Cooper
Chris goes to City home and away and is known to many fans due to both his links to the Football Supporters’ Federation and through his youngest son Louis Cooper who challenged West Yorkshire Police over the Huddersgate scandal. Chris may also be known to fans for organising (with the OSC) the safe standing survey and rail seats demo at the KC. At work Chris is a founding partner in an international consultancy firm and his expertise is in Business Strategy and Turnaround. “You can check my CV!” In his spare time Chris is the chairman of The Manchester Olympic Diving Club and also serves as strategic advisor to the City of Manchester Institute of Gymnastics in Sport City, where his eldest son is currently burning up Sheikh Mansoors’ millions training for the Tokyo Olympics. Chris knows what can be achieved when a club works with its community not against it. In his business travels Chris began to compare and contrast the English Football club ownership model with that of other countries and concluded that us English fans get a raw deal because we have traditionally ceded control of our clubs to owners who are not fans. Chris is passionate about reversing this, but to also come up with something suitable and sustainable for an age where the TV money dominates everything before it. He believes that with the massive TV revenues in the game fan ownership is now more achievable than ever and becomes more so the bigger the audience gets. Chris was a founder member of CTWD and would like to work on strategy for the trust, the atmosphere / match day experience for fans, and on FSF / SD liaison matters. He is a season ticket holder in the North Stand and would be there for every game except for today as his son is competing in the Scottish Open – hence his absence. Chris respectfully wishes to serve fellow supporters and the Trust . - Mark Gretton
Mark has been a Hull City AFC supporter for over thirty years and is an East Stand pass holder and away match regular. He has been involved with City Till We Die (CTWD) from its inception. He was predominantly involved in strategy and media communication in the ‘No To Hull Tigers’ campaign and led the delegation that presented the CTWD case to the FA. At the First General meeting of CTWD last April, Mark was elected as chairman and has served in that capacity since, overseeing the merger between CTWD and the Tigers Co-operative to form the Hull City Supporters’ Trust. For further details of Mark’s activities this year, please see the Supporters’ Trust Chairman’s report. - Rob Harmer
Rob Harmer has been a City fan for forty years and has been a West Stand corporate member since the KC opened, he also attends most away games. Rob was on the City Till We Die committee and was responsible for maintaining the membership database and sending out all membership packs, a role he has continued with through the transition to a supporters’ trust and one he hopes to continue ongoing. Rob is also the Hull City Supporters’ Trust representative at the monthly Fan Working Group meetings, working with the club to bring forward any issues that may be of concern, including ticketing arrangements, the matchday experience at the KC Stadium, merchandise and communications. - Alan Hemingway
Alan has been the Finance Officer of CTWD from its formation in April 2014 and during that time he has been looking after the finances and been dealing with the bank. He has also been assisting with the formation of the new trust and has been the finance point of contact with Supporters Direct. Alan would like to stand for the Board of the new Trust because he has been in since its formation and would like to now to continue to help it become established and to grow. It is important for Alan that the current and future fans of Hull City have a strong independent voice and he would be very happy to help the trust to deliver this. Away from the Trust Alan has been a qualified Chartered Management Accountant for 20 years and he runs his own accountancy practice. He is a season ticket holder in the east stand. - Ryan Kerr
Ryan is a founder member of HCST and City Till We Die before that. He has been a big supporter of the No To Hull Tigers campaign from day one but hasn’t worked with the Trust before. He has been vice-chairman of the Hull City Official Supporters Club since last summer and intends to continue with this role. Ryan strongly believes in fans having more of a say at their clubs and hopes to help the Trust achieve this at Hull City in the long term. - Andy Mills
Andy has been a season ticket holder at City for over thirty years. He believes strongly that fans should have a significant voice in football and that a strong supporters’ trust is integral to that. Andy hopes his experience in strategic planning and implementation will be of value to the trust. He joined the CTWD committee in April and has assisted the secretary in developing our aims & objectives and forward planning. He also wrote the ACV nomination. - Mike Scott
Mike Scott has been a Hull City fan since 1976 and has followed the Tigers ever since through thick, thin, thinner and wafer thin. An East Stand season pass holder and an away match regular, Mike combines an administration role for Hull City Southern Supporters with the important role of Secretary for the Hull City Supporters’ Trust. Mike was involved in the group that opposed the Huddersfield Town ‘bubblegate’ restrictions in 2013, and was heavily involved in the City Till We Die campaign, for which he compiled the submission to the FA sub-committee and wrote several key sections. He has been busy for the last six months juggling the franchising of buses in Newcastle with setting up the Supporters’ Trust website, establishing communications, liaising with Supporters Direct and Tigers Co-operative, and latterly launching the membership drive. - Rick Skelton
Rick is an East Stand season pass holder and has been attending City games since the age of seven. He is a software developer in his day job and a keen football blogger in his spare time – which also involves fulfilling various roles for local community football club, Hessle Rangers. Rick was a member of CTWD from the first meeting and was responsible for storing and packing merchandise during the campaign and took on that role again in HCST. He would like to continue that work on the board of the Trust as well as being involved in increasing membership and resolving issues Trust members have with the football club. Rick believes strongly that there should be an independent Hull City fans’ organisation and that the organisation should have a positive effect on the running of the club through communication initially and hopefully one day, maybe way in the in the future, through representation on the club’s board. - Chris Smith
Over 60 years ago Chris was baptised into the Tiger Nation gaining Raich Carter’s middle name and with a father and grandfather on the Boothferry Park and, pre-1946, the Anlaby Road gatemen’s staff, it was inevitable that he would be “City ’til I die”. Chris has held two directorships in separate companies including 7 years working for several of the biggest English football clubs. Latterly he was a Town Clerk in local government for 11 years. He likes to think that he was an innovator and forward thinking officer of the OSC’s board until such time the club’s name change reared its head and he tendered his resignation. Chris was member 308 in CTWD and now notes that he is member 264 in the Trust, so for him that represents real progress!