Last night the working group held our public meeting as previously advertised. Despite the torrential downpour minutes before the scheduled start, the event was well attended with around 130 people in person and many more listening to our online live audio stream.
Dan Pallett from BBC Midlands Today was there to report back to the studio live just before the presentations started.
Bob Low, chairing proceedings, got things started at 7pm with military precision. We heard first from working group member, Marcus Mulcahy, as to how the idea of a Worcester Warriors Supporters Trust was formulated and the progress of the working group thus far. Guest speaker, Pete Davis, chairman of The Brakes Trust (1) of Leamington FC, provided more detail on the potential of a Supporters Trust as a voice for fans and a flag-bearer for local communities. He also outlined the potential for fundraising as a not-for-profit organisation.
Malcolm Mitchell spoke of the pre-announced aims of the WWST as follows:
*To strengthen the voice of supporters in the running of the club, with the primary goal of enabling and assisting the resurrection of a men's Worcester Warriors team, playing and training at Sixways Stadium; the stated ambition being to return the team to elite level in the longer term. (2)
* To work closely with the Worcester Warriors Foundation to secure its future financial health.
We heard here from Carol Hart, CEO of the Foundation, who explained the incredible work of the foundation and some of the difficulties they are currently facing.
* To support and form partnerships with the Worcester Warriors Women's club and the RFU Midlands Academy. The ambitions being to ensure that elite level Women's rugby remains at Sixways and the restoration of our Academy status.
The immense achievements of the Women's squad, their managerial team and coaching staff, in this season of adversity, were widely acknowledged at this juncture.
* To restore the damage done to the legacy of Cecil Duckworth.
Much was said of the trauma and upset that the demise of Worcester Warriors has caused in particular relation to the outstanding contribution that Cecil made, not just to the rugby club, but to the whole of the wider Worcester community
Bob Low, with his WRSC hat on, gave the audience an insight into his perspective of a potential WWST. He felt that it was a positive step towards unifying supporters and proposed the dissolution of WRSC in favour of a merger with WWST should the vote later be in favour.
Longterm fans, Gabby Radford and Sally Ellison shared their stories of being supporters and the huge importance of Worcester Warriors in their lives. The enormous impact that the loss of the club has caused was evident in their emotive presentations.
The chairman then introduced Robin Walker MP, who relayed his concerns about the state of elite level men's rugby in the West Midlands and the pressure he hoped to apply on the RFU to achieve a pathway back for both Worcester Warriors and Wasps.
Richard Edy, a founder member of the working group, presented examples of how Supporters Trusts in English Football and Welsh Rugby have been a vital influence in aiding the recovery of financially stricken clubs. He reiterated the widespread concern regarding the harm to Cecil Duckworth's legacy and the impact this could have on the Worcester community.
The panel, consisting of Richard Edy, Marcus Mulcahy and Pete Davis, ably assisted at times by Bob Low and Steve Lloyd (Chairman of WRFC), took many questions from the audience and attempted to clarify the immediate aims of both the meeting and the WWST going forward. The Primary Aim (the return of men's elite rugby) was clarified and it was stressed that the WWST had no immediate intention of starting a Phoenix club themselves. The proposed plan is to work alongside current and future owners to facilitate and enable this to happen. The wording of our Primary Aim has been updated to reflect this better.
Several questions were posed regarding WRFC; in particular why WW supporters shouldn't switch their allegiance to the amateur club. It was confirmed that WRFC had no ambition currently to become a professional elite club, which would be contrary to the Primary Aim of WWST.
A vote was called with the motion - "The supporters of Worcester Warriors, as represented by the audience of this public open meeting, wish the working group to continue the process of establishing a Supporters Trust."
The vote was passed with an overwhelming majority.
Over 30 people left contact details after the vote, expressing their desire to offer specific skills to the WWST going forward. We are extremely grateful for the huge amount of positivity for our plans on show at the meeting last night and are happy to put the wishes of the supporters into action.
The working group has consisted of:
Rob Boyle, William Brittain, Kevin Burton, Michael Clarke, Richard Edy, Sally Ellison, Bob Low, Gary Mather, Malcolm Mitchell, Marcus Mulcahy, Gabby Radford & Rob Wyke
We will have discussions as to the makeup of a provisional board for the WWST whilst simultaneously beginning the process of registering with the Financial Conduct Authority. This process will take several weeks or more, dependent on bureaucracy rather than the enthusiasm of our contributors.
Footnote (1)
Footnote (2)
This aim has been re-worded to clarify & better reflect our current position following some confusion about our immediate intentions (see above).
AUDIO LINK TO EVENT:
Comentários