I thought it would be worth updating everyone on where things stand regarding the Supporter's Trust. I have a recurring image of being on a railway journey when the train mysteriously stops half a mile from your destination. If there is no word from the driver as to why the train is stationary the wait becomes almost unbearable. However, if you hear an announcement "We're not sure what the problem is but we'll let you know of any progress every 10 minutes," the anxiety drops and you can concentrate on other things. So I'll be your train driver for today.
As I have alluded to before, we are reliant on the Football Supporters Association to populate our application to become a Community Benefit Society under the auspices of the Financial Conduct Authority. Inevitably the good people at the FSA have to concentrate on assisting Football clubs as that is what their funding provides for. As the first ever English Rugby Union Supporters Trust we have to rely on their goodwill (and unpaid overtime) to prepare our Constitution and FCA application form. Inevitably the usual timeframe has stretched a little so we have had to remain patient. I am very pleased to say, however, that we now have a completed set of model rules for the Worcester Warriors Supporters' Society Limited (which will be our formal registered name). There is a small amount of tweaking required to our FCA application form but we anticipate that the forms will be completed, signed by the interim directors and then submitted at our next working group meeting on Wednesday 12th July.
The make-up of the interim board will likely be finalised at the same forum which will be held at the Royal Porcelain works, courtesy of the Worcester Warriors Foundation. We will, of course, then share details of all interim board members. For the time being we can confirm the following positions:
Society Secretary - David Verralls
David is retired, having spent 35 years in the Finance Industry, latterly in Compliance and Operational Risk for an FCA regulated business. He has been a Warriors Season Ticket holder for over 20 years.
Chairman - Marcus Mulcahy
Marcus worked for the NHS for over 30 years, predominantly as a GP. He was part of the medical team at Sixways for 2 seasons in 2016-2018. He now helps manage a small-holding. He has supported Warriors since their unbeaten promotion season of 2003/4.
Treasurer - Gabby Radford
Gabby is a Management Accountant for a luxury travel company. She has a Bachelor's degree in Business Management and a Master's in International Standards Management. She has been a Warriors supporter since childhood and played mini and junior rugby for WRFC.
Under our newly formed constitution, the board will have no less than 6 members and no more than 10. The interim board will sit until our first AGM at which democratic elections will take place.
If progress is happening elsewhere then I'm afraid we are currently in the dark as much as everyone else. We have requested to meet with Atlas but, due to business commitments, Jim and James can't accommodate us until early August. We are also trying to broker a meeting with the Administrators but, despite a few false dawns, this has not yet been forthcoming. The statement issued by Steve Harris of Worcester Raiders, regarding their lease agreement with Atlas, is interesting and presumably reflects that things are happening behind the scenes.
In other news, I'm sure all Warriors fans are delighted to see the announcement from the Worcester Warriors Women that Ashley Beck has been appointed as Attack Coach for next season. He will be an integral part of Jo Yapp's team as they navigate the first year of the rebranded Premiership Women's Rugby competition. It's great to see him return to Sixways and we wish him all the very best in his new role.
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