Category: HCST News

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HCST 2016 AGM Announcement [UPDATED 6 MARCH 2016]

We are pleased to announce details for the 2016 Annual General Meeting of the Hull City Supporters’ Trust:

  • Venue – Minster Suite, Royal Station Hotel, Ferensway, Hull
  • Date – 12th March 2016 (prior to the Hull City vs MK Dons home fixture)
  • Start Time – 10:30am

The agenda for the meeting has been prepared to meet the requirements of the Trust’s Rules, and can be found by clicking here.

The Trust’s annual report, which sets out the work the Trust has done during the 2015 calendar year and summarises the Trust’s financial position, can be accessed by clicking here.

You will see that Item 5 of the Agenda includes the election of at least 3 new Board Directors for the Trust. It is a Trust Rule that a third of the Board Directors are re-elected every year. It is important that the Board of Directors attracts new and diverse people to help guide the work of the Trust for many years into the future. If you are interested in joining the Board of Directors then please let me know at mike.scott@hullcityst.com by sending through some basic details:

  1. Your Name and Address
  2. Your Phone and Email Contact Details
  3. Details of Your Two HCST Shareholder Nominees (I can help you with this if necessary)
  4. A personal statement setting out what you hope to bring to the HCST Board (no more than 1000 words)
  5. Please confirm that you comply with the requirements set out in para 21 of the Election Policy, which states that no person can be a member of the Society Board:
  • who is subject to a bankruptcy order or has in place a composition with his/her creditors.
  • who is subject to a disqualification order made under the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986.
  • who has a conviction for an Indictable Offence (other than a spent conviction as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974).
  • in relation to whom by reason of their mental health, a court makes an order which wholly or partly prevents them from personally exercising any powers or rights which that person would otherwise have.

While there is an element of formality about the AGM, the Board is also eager to ensure that the meeting is interactive and provides shareholders with the opportunity to have their say about the Trust’s business. This can be achieved in two ways:

  • Formally, through a member’s resolution (agenda item 6), as per Trust Rules 26, 49 and 50. A member’s resolution is an idea for the Trust’s future work that you wish to place on a formal footing. It requires you to submit a draft written resolution in advance of the AGM, which sets out the resolution you wish the Trust to adopt and explains why you believe adopting the resolution is important. The resolution will be debated and considered by all those present at the AGM before a vote is taken on whether to adopt it. If adopted, the Board of Directors must carry out any actions contained within the resolution; or
  • Informally, through the discussion of the HCST priorities for 2016 (agenda item 7), which will be a less formal way to bring ideas to the AGM. These priorities will not be debated formally, although a discussion amongst those present at the AGM will be encouraged. There will be no formal vote or adoption of these priorities at the AGM, but those that receive general approval will be taken forward by the Board of Directors in due course.

If you wish for the AGM to consider your Member’s Resolution then please let me know as soon as possible at mike.scott@hullcityst.com. I will let you know the format that the resolution should follow, and I will happily give you some help with wording your resolution, if required.

There is no need to submit a suggested HCST priority to the Secretary in advance of the meeting. Just stand up when it’s time for Agenda Item 7 and say your piece.

The HCST Secretary is currently busy compiling an Annual Report on behalf of the Board of Directors. This will be made available on our website prior to the meeting, and will be presented to the meeting by relevant Board Directors on the day.

Two final matters for you to consider:

  • The Trust has standing orders that relate to the business of Annual General Meetings and the conduct of those attending the meeting. You can read these standing orders by clicking here.
  • You can choose someone to act as a proxy and vote on your behalf at the AGM. This is in accordance with Trust rules 52 and 53. You can choose a friend to vote on your behalf, or you can ask either myself or the Chairman to cast your vote on your behalf. If you want to choose someone to act as your proxy and vote on your behalf, you MUST let me know by email at least two days before the AGM.

The Board of Directors look forward to welcoming you to the 2016 AGM on the 12th March 2016. We hope that you can make it and contribute to work of the Trust in the future.

Note 1: This invitation references the Trust’s Rules at a few places, you can find the full set of Rules along with accompanying standing orders and policies by clicking here.

Note 2: An Election Management Group (EMG) has been formed to oversee the election of new Board members at the AGM, in accordance with the Trust’s Rules.  The EMG members are Peter Forster, Chris Johnson, Mike Scott (HCST Secretary), Jackie Smith and Richard Weatherill.

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Read our submission to the FA

The proposed name change to Hull Tigers has been rejected once more by the Football Association.  As a consultee nominated by the Membership Sub-Committee of the FA, Hull City Supporters’ Trust provided a comprehensive submission that set out why it opposes the name change on behalf of its shareholders, on behalf of a wider group of Hull City fans that do not support the name change, and on behalf of the wider footballing family who as a result of today’s decision will hopefully see an added layer of protection given to their club name.

The HCST submission can be accessed by clicking here.

A critical aspect of this submission is the call for the club that is still called Hull City, to once more recognise that name in its public facing communications.  The stealth rebranding of the club needs to be reversed, this is a critical aspect of healing the divisions between supporters and the club and should start straight away.  The Trust is developing a programme of initiatives and ideas, hopefully with the blessing of the Football Association and national supporters’ organisations, that will encourage the club to reverse the rebrand, while at the same time provide resources and ideas for how supporters themselves can take the rebrand into their own hands.

Watch this space!

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Hull City Supporters’ Trust announces name change poll outcome

As Secretary of the Hull City Supporters’ Trust I am pleased to announce the outcome of the vote conducted by the Trust in relation to the proposal by Hull City owner Assem Allam to change the playing name of the club to Hull Tigers. In total 770 votes were cast, 767 by email and 3 by telephone. The total number of Trust shareholders and junior members eligible to vote is 1,086.

The outcome is that:

  • 764 Trust shareholders and junior members wish to retain the playing name HULL CITY
  • 6 Trust shareholders and junior members wish to change the playing name to HULL TIGERS

The result is clearly an overwhelming rejection of the Hull Tigers proposal by the membership of the Hull City Supporters’ Trust, some 99.2% of the votes cast supported retaining Hull City as the club’s name.

The results also provide some significant findings:

  • Firstly, the turnout for the vote was very high, some 71% of all our members cast a vote. This means that we have a very strong endorsement from our members for a position of rejecting the proposed name change.
  • Secondly, while the result is overwhelming, the sheer number of people willing to firstly pay money to join our Trust; then go to the additional trouble of casting a vote, is significant. There is clearly a considerable ground swell of fans that wish to express an opinion on the name change.
  • Thirdly, we are proud that a small number of our shareholders chose to support the Hull Tigers proposal. This shows that we are starting the transition from polarised campaign group to fully inclusive supporters’ representative body, a journey we intend to continue in the coming months and years.
  • Fourthly, the outcome of our vote has considerable legitimacy locally, and amongst loyal supporters of the club. Local support comes from the fact that 58% of the people who voted to retain Hull City live in HU postcodes, with a further 10% living in neighbouring YO and DN postcodes. Legitimacy from City’s loyal support comes from the fact that 59% of those who cast their vote to keep the current name are current Hull City season ticket holders.
  • Finally, we are clearly fortunate to have a passionate and articulate group of shareholders that have joined our Trust and follow Hull City. We are grateful for, and humbled by, the many eloquent messages we received accompanying the votes, some of which we will use in our FA submission. Please rest assured that every email was read carefully and passed on to the relevant people within the Trust Board. Your inputs have been nothing short of amazing.

The outcome of this vote will be included within, and influence the content of, our submission to the FA regarding the proposed name change. We thank you once again for your participation in this vote.

Mike Scott
Secretary, Hull City Supporters’ Trust

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For the love of City

HCST has today issued a press release calling on the Allams to take stock and call a halt to the divisive and pointless name change proposal, following its savaging by the FA and the arbitration report issued on Monday.

The press release can be read in full by clicking here.

The main body of its text is reproduced below.

 

Hull City Supporters’ Trust is delighted to learn that the club’s playing name will remain Hull City A.F.C. for the foreseeable future in spite of the arbitration process embarked on by the club’s owners, the Allam family, with the Football Association.

HCST urges the owners to abandon the name change application once and for all. It is clear from the evidence set out in the arbitration document that a strong and compelling case for change does not exist.

 

The FA has published a thirty-page arbitration document that describes why the FA Council’s decision to reject the club’s proposed name change has been “set aside” on a very minor technicality, having rejected most of the arguments offered by the club. The Trust is disappointed with this finding – the FA Council made a sound decision made in the interests of football in general, not just those of Hull City supporters.

We are dismayed to see in black and white the contempt held towards Hull City supporters by vice-chairman Ehab Allam. Mr Allam was quoted stating he wanted the FA to make its decision without fans’ views being taken into account, while the club took the position that its supporters were irrelevant.

It is, to say the least, disappointing that Ehab Allam thinks so little of supporters – who are the life-blood of the football club.

The arbitration document also reveals that the club agreed to present a business case for the change and then failed to do so. We believe this is because there is and has never been any evidence that “Hull Tigers” would generate a financial benefit. The report also stated that the heavily-weighted ballot of season ticket holders the club ran was “poor”, “unimpressive” and the outcome was “unconvincing”.

In what is something of an understatement, the document added that “Ehab Allam confirmed the club had not handled liaising with supporters or the public relations well“.

In setting aside the previous decision the arbitration panel says that the Allams could re-apply to change the name for the 2015/16 season. As they were entitled to do so anyway, this means nothing has changed. It does beg the question as to whether such a new application was the motivation behind the club’s reported attempts to demand that the FA delay announcing the arbitration. Such delay would have meant the application could have been re-submitted without the knowledge of the supporters. In any event, HCST wrote to the FA twice to remind them they agreed to inform supporters as soon as a decision was reached. We are pleased that the FA took note of this and published the arbitration promptly.

Assem Allam stated last September that there would be no further application to the FA, but the club’s statement issued on Monday was far from clear as to whether they will honour that pledge.

It is vital that the club makes clear its intentions for any re-application before supporters are asked to renew season tickets for the 2015/16 season.

Now is the time for the owners to show our City, our history and our supporters the respect they deserve and allow us to put this saga behind us, so we can unite as fans of Hull City A.F.C. and focus on keeping the club in the Premier League.

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HCST AGM – Candidates for Board of Directors

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!

  1. 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.
  2. 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 .
  3. 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.
  4. 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.
  5. 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.
  6. 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.
  7. 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.
  8. 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.
  9. 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.
  10. 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!

 

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Invitation to Annual General Meeting, Hull City Supporters’ Trust

This is formal notification for the 2015 Annual General Meeting of the Hull City Supporters’ Trust (whose registered name is Tigers Co-operative Limited).

The Annual General Meeting will commence at 11:00am on Saturday 21st February 2015.  Doors will open at 10:00am for people that wish to join the Trust in advance of the meeting.  Only shareholders with a valid membership card, or have signed up during the hour beforehand, will be permitted to enter and participate in the meeting.

The meeting will be held at the Edwardian Suite, Mercure Royal Station Hotel, Ferensway, Hull.  The room is adjacent to the ground floor bar area, which will be serving drinks during the meeting.

The purpose of the meeting is to conduct and discuss important business for the Trust going forward:

  • elect a Board of Directors nominated from the current shareholders – this election will be for up to nine board members, and will either require a vote for (if more than nine candidates) or an approval of (if nine or fewer candidates) each person standing. A further email will be sent out shortly on this subject;
  • review the work of the Tigers Co-operative and City Till We Die over the last year, as the two bodies that came together to form the Hull City Supporters’ Trust;
  • review the work of the Trust going forward, including a review by shareholders of the proposed Trust business plan developed by the interim Board;
  • approval of the current financial position of the Trust; and
  • any other business that members wish the general meeting to discuss, which can be raised by any shareholder by notifying the Secretary in advance at contact@hullcityst.com.

The Trust’s first annual report is here.

If you are unable to attend and wish to tender your apologies, please email the Trust Secretary Mike Scott at contact@hullcityst.com.

Also please contact Mike if you wish to appoint a proxy to vote on your behalf at the meeting.

We are pleased to confirm that the meeting will be attended by a representative from Co-operative Energy.  She will be on hand to provide you with a no obligation quote that might save you money on your energy bills – bring your current bills with you to see if you could save money.

Hull City Supporters’ Trust has partnered with Co-operative Energy in an effort to promote their ethical, low cost gas and electricity tariffs while helping to increase awareness and raise funding for our Trust.  Co-operative Energy will make a £25 donation to Hull City Supporters Trust for every customer who signs up under our referral.

We look forward to seeing many of you at the Station Hotel on the 21st February.

 

Mike Scott
Secretary, Hull City Supporters’ Trust

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Hull City Supporters’ Trust – Become A Member!

The Hull City Supporters’ Trust is delighted to launch its 2015 membership scheme.  The Trust has been established to continue the previous work of the Tigers Co-operative and provide an independent voice for Hull City supporters.  The Trust will attempt to exercise a positive influence on the management and direction of Hull City, as well as providing benefits to members.  In time, perhaps we will achieve a formal say in the running of the club.

For £5 anyone over 16 years old can become a full shareholding member of HCST – you pay £1 to become a Trust shareholder and £4 for your annual membership.  If you are already a shareholder of Tigers Co-operative then let us know and we will refund you £1 via Paypal. Under 16s can also join for a bargain £2, although our rules prevent younger members from being shareholders.

In return for joining us you become a part of a growing movement and independent voice for Hull City fans.  You also get the benefit of our Partners Scheme, which entitles you to discounts on a wide range of goods and services  – from driving lessons and golf practice, to chimney sweeping and a chippy tea.  To be honest, you’ll soon get your fiver back in Partner discounts if you live in the Hull area.  Some of our partners are online retailers that will allow anyone to benefit regardless of where they live.

Full details are available on our membership page – www.hullcitysupporterstrust.com/join.  We will soon be switching to a new HCST website address once we have our new graphics in place, but please use our existing site to sign up to the Trust in the meantime.

We will commence the formal work of the Trust by conducting a ballot to elect the Trust Board, then hold an Annual General Meeting open to all HCST members.  This AGM will take place at 10am on 21st February 2015 at the Royal Station Hotel on Ferensway in central Hull.  Full details will follow when you have become a member.

We hope you will join us and make the Trust a vibrant and positive community that champions the cause of not only our members but all Hull City fans.

Yours sincerely,

The HCST Interim Board

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Our members have spoken – welcome to the HULL CITY SUPPORTERS’ TRUST

Many thanks for the fabulous response we had to our vote for what the Supporters’ Trust should be called when it forms from the merger of Tigers Co-operative and City Till We Die at the end of the month.  Straight talking Hull people have spoken – the no-frills option of HULL CITY SUPPORTERS’ TRUST was the clear winner amongst the membership of both groups, attracting 210 votes.  The 1904 Trust got 76 votes while retaining City Till We Die garnered 78 votes.

We will continue to progress the move to a Supporters’ Trust in the coming weeks.  In a few days’ time we will launch our new membership scheme, where anyone over 16 years old can purchase a single share in the Trust as part of an annual membership fee of £5.  Discounts will be available to our younger members.

We will also publish details of our HULL CITY SUPPORTERS’ TRUST PARTNERS, who will provide a discount to all Trust members on presentation of a valid 2015 membership card.  If your business is interested in becoming a partner then drop us an email at contact@citytillwedie.com – the proposition is simple, you give our members a discount, we publicise your business on our website and Twitter.  More details can be found by clicking here.

Over the coming weeks we will rebrand this website with attractive new graphics designed to reflect the purpose and ethos of Hull City Supporters’ Trust – we will hopefully retain our Ambition and Tradition tag line.  We will rearrange our website to create a #notohulltigers archive, and provide members with access to the Rules and Policies that the Supporters’ Trust must adhere to.

We will rename our Twitter account in the next few days as well as launch a new Facebook page.  We might even get stuck into Google+, LinkedIn and Youtube too!

We look forward to travelling with you towards the exciting new opportunities and challenges that a Supporters’ Trust will provide for us.  Support Hull City, get the fans involved, show ambition and respect tradition.  That’s how we have reached today and that’s how we will continue.

Mike Scott
Secretary (temporary!), Hull City Supporters’ Trust

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Be A Supporters’ Trust Partner – building community and business links

CTWD is becoming a Supporters’ Trust, and we would like to give all businesses in the Hull area (and beyond) the chance to work with us to improve the benefits that our members receive through our PARTNER SCHEME.  We have already had a good deal of interest, with two high profile local firms and a local café already signed up. 

On Thursday 18th December we will announce the results of our vote on what our Supporters’ Trust will be called going forward.  In a few days time we will then launch our new Supporters’ Trust membership scheme in advance of our Annual General Meeting scheduled for Saturday 31st January 2015 – more details on the membership scheme and the AGM will follow shortly.

We are now launching our Supporters’ Trust Partner Scheme.  The proposition is simple:

  • Your business becomes a Supporters’ Trust Partner for the 2015 calendar year
  • We list your business, with suitable logos and weblinks, on the new Supporters’ Trust Partners page on our new website
  • We tweet about your business being a Supporters’ Trust Partner once a month to our 7,000 followers
  • We list our Supporters’ Trust Partners on our letterhead, meeting notes and other online materials
  • In return, you offer Trust members a 10% discount on your business when they show you a valid 2015 Supporters’ Trust membership card

Do you like the look of that?  We think it’s a great way to work with local business and develop our community.  If you agree, email us at contact@citytillwedie.com and we will sort it from there.

We only have 25 slots for our Supporters’ Trust Partners, and three are already gone, so please move quickly!

The CTWD Committee

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Your Ideas Please – what should we call the Supporters’ Trust in the future?

City Till We Die members will know from the recent email they received from Mark Gretton, that CTWD is transforming from a campaign group into a Supporters’ Trust by merging with the Tigers Co-operative and taking it over as a new and vital independent voice for supporters of Hull City AFC.

You can find out more about what a Supporters’ Trust is by looking at our special Frequent Asked Questions page on our new website – just click the link.

The merger will happen in the coming weeks, with a first Annual General Meeting of the new merged Trust taking place at the end of January (date, time and venue details of the AGM will be made available over the Christmas and New Year period).

In the meantime, the name of the Trust is something that we would like members’ views on.  The CTWD Committee thinks there are some issues that need to be taken into account:

  1. The merger between CTWD and Tigers Co-operative is the coming together of two organisations under one unified banner – so if there is a desire to change our name, the ideal time is now.
  2. City Till We Die is a name that has acquired a high degree of recognition amongst City supporters, and is the banner under which you, loyal City fans, have come together to oppose the name change.
  3. City Till We Die has also attracted a degree of negativity, from within the club and amongst people that support Dr Allam’s ideas regarding Hull Tigers.  We don’t imagine that a change of name will kid the club or anyone else that we are a different organisation, but dropping the CTWD name may ease relationships.
  4. There is a strong irony associated with City Till We Die, an organisation born out of opposition to a name change, changing its name – we completely understand that as a Committee.

CTWD is a democratic organisation, so it is vital that we get the views of our members in order to decide our future name, it’s a major decision for the Supporters Trust.  We intend to put to the vote a choice of names to our current members, in order to decide what we are called in the future.  We will then finalise our new Supporters’ Trust constitution in draft form using the name that the members will have chosen.

Rest assured – City Till We Die will DEFINITELY be one of those names being voted on.

Firstly though, we want your views as members on:

WHAT ALTERNATIVE NAMES WE COULD ADOPT AS WE MOVE FORWARD AS A SUPPORTERS’ TRUST?

Please email us at contact@citytillwedie.com with your ideas.  We’d like to hear serious suggestions, and we’d appreciate one or two amusing suggestions to if you have them!

Please let us have your suggested alternative names by this Wednesday 10th December – we will put the front runners to a vote amongst members, which will be completed by Friday 19th December.  We will then be ready to open memberships to the new Supporters’ Trust prior to Christmas using our newly chosen name.

We look forward to hearing from you,

Mike Scott, Secretary, City Till We Die

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Statue for Ebenezer

CTWD applauds the efforts of 15 year old Oliver Harsley who is campaigning for a statue to celebrate the life and work of Ebenezer Cobb Morley, founder of modern day football and the first Secretary of the FA.

Ebenezer was born in Hull in 1831 and we support any initiative which seeks to recognise the history and tradition of the great game, particularly where it has a local flavour. We are also pleased to see any campaign which gives recognition to Hull’s famous people, past and present. Hopefully this is something we will see more of as we move towards 2017 and City of Culture status.

We understand Oliver plans to give a presentation to the FA in the coming weeks in order to explore areas such as funding, design, sculptor and a choice of location for the statue. It is hoped the statue will become a local landmark, meeting place and focal point for both home and visiting fans. CTWD fully supports the campaign and will be delighted to see Ebenezer Cobb Morley recognised in his home city. You can follow the campaign on Twitter @ForStatue

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CTWD and Tigers Co-operative Merger – A message from the Chairman to all Hull City AFC fans

First of all, welcome to the new CTWD website. We hope you like it.

CTWD is about to undergo some fundamental and exciting changes. Last summer the CTWD and the Tigers Co-operative committees asked their memberships if they thought we should merge our two organisations to form a powerful Supporters’ Trust, representing the views of a wide range of fans of Hull City AFC. Both groups gave their committees a resounding “Yes!”

Since then, the committees of both organisations have been working hard to make this a reality. We have listened to Tigers Co-operative members’ views on what we should do with the Co-operative’s funds, we have worked on a new constitution, we have explored our various options as an independent Supporters’ Trust. Now we are pleased to report that we are in a position to move forwards as a merged force, linked with the national reach and influence of the Supporters Direct organisation.

The two organisations will formally merge on 31st of December and then the first general meeting of the new organisation will be held During February 2015. This will be an opportunity to elect the new board, share your views on what you think we should be doing and meet your fellow Supporters’ Trust members. Further details of this will follow shortly.

What will the new organisation do? It’ll do what the Tigers Co-operative has always done and strive to ensure that the voice of our fans is right at the heart of the club. And it’ll do what City Till We Die came together to do and ensure that we protect the heritage of the club as we move forward with an ambition that honours our tradition. But it’ll do more than that. It will work with the club to improve the experience of Hull City fans on match days at The Circle. It will work with local businesses to provide deals that make being a member of the organisation attractive to you, with money off goods and services. And it will provide merchandise to celebrate the sheer mad enjoyment of being a fan of Hull City AFC.

Before we merge, current members of CTWD and the Tigers Co-operative have been asked for their views on the name of the new merged organisation and they will be asked to vote on this in the near future. We’ll also be opening up membership of the Supporters’ Trust to everyone. You’ll be able to join online and details of how to do so will be posted as soon as possible.

We aim for the Supporters’ Trust to be a place where all Hull City AFC fans can come together and celebrate their love for the club and its place in the City of Hull. It will be for people who love football and think that it belongs to the fans, not just owners and television companies. It will be a place where people can enjoy past memories and build excitedly for a better future. But it will only meet these aims if it has your support. We hope you’ll join us and help shape our future.

Mark Gretton, Chairman, City Till We Die

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Get The KC Rocking

The summer move of City fans from the North East corner (E1 to E3) to the North Stand has, it is widely acknowledged, seen the atmosphere at the KC Stadium improve this season.  However there is still more than can be done to make the KC a cauldron of support for the home side and a fearsome ordeal for away sides.  City Till We Die would like to work with supporters, supporters’ group and the club to get the KC rocking.

The announcement that seats in Block N5, next to the new away fans’ area, will be released to season ticket holders next season offers a great opportunity to create a new singing area.  And the existing stands around the ground – including the newly formed singing area in the North Stand led by the ‘Ulltras – can all improve their vocal support of Steve Bruce’s team.

We can’t make this happen as individuals.  We need a collective of supporters to generate ideas (such as singing areas at the back of stands, and co-ordinating singing between stands) that can be considered by the club when they make decisions about ticket allocations in the future.  City Till We Die is able to provide a co-ordinating role for this collective, but we need volunteers to work with this group, bringing their ideas and imagination so that we can approach the club’s administration with some great ideas to get the KC buzzing every home match, from start to finish.

Interested in taking part?  Then send us an email to contact@citytillwedie.com with a few basic details (your name and mobile contact details, where you live, what stand you sit in, why you think you can contribute to the group) and we’ll do the rest to get something started.

Hull City has its greatest ever team on the pitch – let’s create the KC’s greatest ever atmosphere in the stands.  Let’s get the KC rocking.

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CTWD publishes draft Supporters’ Trust vision, aims, objectives

The CTWD committee is tonight delighted to publish, for consultation with CTWD members and with Hull City supporters across the globe, its draft Supporters’ Trust vision, aims and objectives.

The vision along with the aims and objectives have been worked up by the committee over recent months and provide some guiding principles that the new Supporters’ Trust for Hull City, when it forms at the end of the year, will work towards in the short and longer term.

Our longer term objectives are ambitious, and will stand for many years to guide our work with the club on behalf of supporters, under its present ownership and future owners.

The shorter term objectives will guide the work of the Trust for the next 6 to 12 months and provide CTWD with a focus to become a voice for supporters of our great club Hull City as it continues to experience thrilling and unprecedented levels of success on the field.

The name change also remains an issue we will keep a watching brief on – although right now we continue to consider the matter closed until such time as Dr Allam’s appeal to the FA is concluded.

So, our vision, aims and objectives are set out below. Please feel free to let us have your views. If you are a CTWD member, please let us know your name when you reply. If you are not a CTWD member but want to be, click the the “Membership” link above and sign up before telling us what you think. If you are not a CTWD member and don’t want to be, we still welcome your views as long as they are constructive and polite.

You can provide us your feedback in a variety of ways:

> by registering with tumblr and adding a comment below;
> by emailing us at contact@citytillwedie.com;
> by tweeting or direct messaging us @notohulltigers; or
> by putting a post on our Facebook site at facebook.com/notohulltigers.

We have also set up threads on the Amber Nectar, City Independent and not606 Hull City message boards as a means to open a debate.

Please get involved – we look forward to hearing from you!

Mark Gretton,
Chairman, City Till We Die Group

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CITY TILL WE DIE: VISION, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

» VISION

CTWD’s vision is to have a real and significant influence, on behalf of all Hull City AFC supporters (locally, nationally and globally), in the running of our club.

» AIMS

We aim to achieve this vision by:

(a) Preserving, protecting and developing the identity and community of Hull City AFC, embodying ambition with tradition

(b) Being the voice of supporters as an independent, democratic, community-based, grassroots organisation and being a key representative in any Hull City consultative arrangements

(c) Being at the heart of partnership working with Hull City AFC, Hull City Council and other stakeholders

(d) Acquiring a stake in Hull City AFC and attain representation on its board in order to exert real supporter influence on the governance of the club

(e) Promoting the development of the club through supporter involvement, initiating and leading supporter-based social and community initiatives that engender that involvement

(f) Actively campaigning at local and national levels on issues that impact on our membership and the wider supporter base

(g) Adhering to our core values of integrity, behaving ethically and supporting local businesses, organisations and communities

» OBJECTIVES

In order to achieve this we have set ourselves some objectives that will guide our work in the short-and long-term. These are:

Short-term objectives – to establish our independent offer

(1) Becoming an independent supporters’ trust
In June 2014 we received overwhelming support from our members for starting the process of becoming a fully fledged supporters’ trust for Hull City AFC fans. We will fulfil this objective through the merger of CTWD with the Tigers Co-operative, hopefully by the end of 2014

(2) Influencing the direction of Hull City
Supporters’ Trusts across the UK (including those for Premier League clubs) have a role in influencing the decisions made by the club that most affect supporters. We don’t necessarily want a say in every inner working of the club – but where key decisions affect supporters, we think it is right that supporters are heard

(3) Broadening our appeal
We want to broaden our offer to encompass Tigers fans’ wider interests: events, travel, merchandise and wider campaigns. We are proud to have begun as a campaign group that successfully defended the historic name of Hull City. And that commitment to oppose a name change will not change.

(4) Exploring the opportunities that being a Trust gives us
Becoming a supporters’ trust opens up options for funding, ownership and employment that City fans don’t currently have. We won’t rush into anything, we will explore things carefully and determine in consultation with our members which of our long-term objectives below can really be achievable

Long-term objectives – to reflect that Hull City is part of a community, not just a business

(5) Giving supporters a voice on the Board
We don’t imagine that the current owners are interested in giving CTWD an official seat on the Board, but in football things can change fast and we need to be ready. This isn’t about grabbing power for the sake of it, this is about ensuring that fans become positively involved with the club and exert influence at the highest level

(6) Bringing benefits to community assets
Hull City is more than a football club, it is part of the community. It is part of the city’s soul, and in the KC Stadium it is part of the city’s infrastructure. We want to explore how we can ensure supporters get a say in how these community assets are managed and developed in the future. The Supporters’ Trust gives us the ability to run companies, employ people, make a difference

(7) Developing productive relationships with other supporter groups
CTWD does not exist in isolation – it is but one of a number of vibrant Hull City supporter groups. And the issues and challenges we face are largely common to fans throughout the country. We will develop our burgeoning relationships with Supporters’ Direct and the Football Supporters’ Federation and lend our voice to help influence the wider football family

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CTWD call for Hull City fans to unite in support

No civil war on 1904.

On Monday evening during the West Ham game, the singing of “City Till I Die” on 19 minutes and four seconds was met by sporadic booing from some sections of The Circle. The booing led to arguments between fans at the game, and on message boards and fans’ forums afterwards. This was particularly disappointing, given Steve Bruce’s plea ahead of the game for the fans to unite behind the team.

City Till We Die were appalled and saddened by the booing. When we chose to publicise and energise our campaign against owner Assem Allam’s plan to change the historic name of our club, we chose a song sung at a time that demonstrated our commitment to our club, our city and our history.

“City Till I Die” is a song that has been sung by Hull City AFC supporters all over Britain, Europe and the world, for more years than any of us can remember. We chose to do this in line with our campaign aims of always positively supporting the team as we attempted to protect the club’s name. We knew we had been successful in this when club Vice Chairman Ehab Allam said on Radio Humberside earlier this year that he enjoyed hearing the 19:04 singing, as it was the loudest and most enthusiastic our home support ever became.

The name change campaign ended on April 9th when the FA voted overwhelmingly and unequivocally to accept the recommendation of their Members Committee that our club would retain the name Hull City. Since that point we have not asked fans to sing “City Till I Die” on 19:04 as the campaign has ended, in success. We make this point as it seems likely that the booing has been provoked by Assem Allam’s press conference last week, in which he repeated previously made claims of initiating legal action and of using various appeals processes against the FA’s decision. City Till We Die was disappointed to hear this, but believe it changes nothing.

The club first talked of making an appeal in March before the FA had even made their decision. The FA has no appeal process for this type of decision and their process – taking evidence from the Club, the East Riding FA, the Hull City Official Supporters Club and City Till We Die, as well as local and national elected politicians – was clearly fair and equitable. City Till We Die therefore believe the name change debate is over.

We are now putting our energies into setting up a Supporters Trust, in line with the wishes of our members.

Though we are no longer campaigning, we’re not surprised that fans have continued to sing “City Till I Die” on 19:04. Like Ehab Allam we believe it has enhanced support for Steve Bruce and the team. We know that a lot of fans sing this to celebrate our historic identity and our current success. It is not an anti-Allam song. It never has been. Because City Till We Die have never been an anti-Allam organisation. But we do ask all fans, whether you sing at 19:04 or whether you don’t, to respect your fellow Hull City fans.

Sing whatever you like to support the manager and the team. But please don’t boo. We hope that means that all of us, the fans and the club, can move on together, supporting our team loudly and passionately, everywhere we go, as our football adventure continues. We want to enjoy supporting our team. We want no civil war on 19:04.

City Till We Die Supporters Group.

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CTWD statement on arbitration and ownership

City Till We Die is confident that the Football Association’s decision to reject the “Hull Tigers” name remains fair and just and that Hull City AFC can prosper under the current or new ownership.

CTWD is disappointed to learn that Chairman Dr. Allam intends to appeal to the Court Of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) over the Football Association’s rejection of his plan to rename Hull City Association Football Club to “Hull Tigers”.

Hull City has enjoyed a period of relative stability since the FA turned down the name change application after a thorough and fair process. The Allam family have continued to support the club’s manager Steve Bruce in the transfer market and the club has experienced a first ever FA Cup Final and a historic, but sadly short, European campaign.

These momentous firsts, continued Premier League football, a record shirt sponsorship deal and strong season ticket sales in spite of a massive price rise have been achieved by Hull City AFC, our best ever manager Steve Bruce and owners Assem and Ehab Allam.

CTWD continue to support the Allams’ ownership of the club. We remain grateful that in 2010 they secured the future of the club when it was uncertain and we appreciate their positive contributions to the club’s history in the four years since.

However we still see no justifiable reason to change the name of a football club that has existed and been a pillar of the local community since 1904 and we know that a significant number of the club’s fans agree. The Football Association were convinced that this was the case in April and we are confident that there are no grounds for CAS to overturn any decision achieved by such a rigid process.

Should CAS support the FA’s decision – Dr. Allam will look to sell the club. This was always going to happen at some point as the Allams are not, by their own admission, “football people” and they stepped in to secure the club for the city and ensure a lasting legacy.

Their input means the club is in far better shape on the field than it was when they took over and for that – we thank them. We remain happy to work with the owners, old or new, on issues that matter deeply to fans of Hull City AFC and especially the 1,800 members of City Till We Die.