Looking ahead- perceptions of the club.

[Jonty]

I disagree with everything in that post Jonty, but not your right to say it and expect an adult response.

Play decent football, run cohesively and fairly, represent the streets where you are from, uphold the identity and traditions of the club and town, warts and all.

Steve- I'm all for a community run football club- I'm all for fan ownership. Don't be misunderstood by what I mean about modernising the club's image. Changing a badge and freshening up the image, re-exploring ground sharing ideas with the rugby does not mean abandoning core community values. We all want the club to grow in the town but it must appeal to all fans- old and new.

[DaveC]

I can see you've put some thought into that so please don't take this too badly, but no on every level. We have an identity, one that's been built over the years, I can see no reason at all to re-invent our image.

Dave, I don't disagree, but largely that identity is associated with 40 years of non league wilderness with the occasional purple patch. Twice this club missed the boat to progress- post 90 and post 2010 and the club has never reached it's potential. Next time- new dawn- new era, things have to be done differently. The whole approach has to be looked at or else it will be more of the same. And its not just about modernising the badge /image. It's more than that- ground share has to be on the agenda- so when the economic climate changes we are talking about a new fit for purpose sports venue to progress both clubs- the crown jewel of future regeneration- not a marina for the few, but a sports venue for all the community. Everything needs to be looked at with open minded views to all things. The club is stuck in this negative mentality and there needs to be a massive change of thinking towards what can be achieved. I'm open minded toward all things that will help progress this club.

I hear what you're saying Jonty, but I still don't feel we need to re-invent the clubs image/identity. 40 years of non-league history is out history, I wouldn't re-brand the club just to disassociate ourselves from those lean years.

The ground share has reared it's head many times before, it would seem that between both sets of fans, AFC & RLFC, that it wouldn't be that popular. I'm not keen on the idea, but must admit the maths makes sense. I don't know where the money would come from to do this either, it's plain to see we're skint.

As for the badge, I quite like it, look at others from this league and they're terrible, Histon fro example is schoolboy-ish. Ours is a version of the towns crest, reworked and looks good to me. We still build subs, so for me that part's valid. Having said that if someone could rework the badge into a shit hot new version I might be tempted.

[MDC1958]

Strawberry - - - no need whatsoever for the nature of your response. Disagree by all means, but mocking the poster with "how long did it take you to think up that garbage" is unnecessary and disrespectful.

I do not know Jonty and have never met him but I do know from his posts on this site over a number of years that he cares passionately about this club and there is no call for for the manner of your disagreement.

+1

[barrowfan_chris]

If we redesign the badge to copy Morecambe and leave Holker street to ground share with the rugby that will be the day I stop watching football.

[barrowfan_chris]

Strawberry - - - no need whatsoever for the nature of your response. Disagree by all means, but mocking the poster with "how long did it take you to think up that garbage" is unnecessary and disrespectful.

I do not know Jonty and have never met him but I do know from his posts on this site over a number of years that he cares passionately about this club and there is no call for for the manner of your disagreement.

It's a internet forum some of you lot take this place far too seriously.

[barrowaberdeen]

I actually agree about the need to change the direction of the club. I don't know very much about accountancy or law (as anyone who knows me will testify ) so I don't know if this is possiible, but this is what I would like to happen.

Barrow A.F.C would become an arm of a wider, not for profit, organisation- Let's call it The Barrovia Trust, for want of a better word. . The Trust's aims would be as follows:

1) Promote community cohesion through sport in the Furness area

2) Development of elite sports performance in Barrow

3) To provide work related training through links with Furness College

4) To provide educational opportunities for 3-18 year olds.

From that, you'd be able to bid for a lot lot of things we can't do now, as football is too narrow a pot to take from. You'd have to have a joint bid from many organisations, such as The Sports Council, Probation, Voluntary Sector, Schools etc.

The Trust woul be run by someone with experience in community development, sports development and in football (Let's say Doc for the sake of argument)
It would be all be run from Holker Street, enabling us to also employ someone to solely do admin and promotion of all three arms of the business.

Purchasing through grants the land beside Barrow A.F.C, we'd turn the Furness pitch and area into a multi use 3G pitch, and the Soccer Bar area into a martial arts and dance gym, using it as a focus for education, and training, for the Furness Performance centre, and as part of a five year plan, eventually the first team training there also. It could also be rented out to groups and teams. In the mornings it could be used for groups such as N.A.C.R.O, Young Offenders, and local schools, connected to the rooms at the study centre, where education and training would be offered. College students in areas such as Business admin, trades and sports science could work out of the club, both around the ground and on different local community projects.

Another, underpinning link through all courses and the whole facility itself would be to promote an understanding of Barrow's history and culture, sporting and otherwise. Free tickets would be given to groups who attended the centre.

It would mean the the football club would be only a part of this, and would be given a budget to work from determined by the management group, overseen by the trustees. However, commercial activities to build up this could still take place and be run from the facility. The club would be lile a department of a charity organisation.

That's, roughly (and I took 10 minutes to your 5 Jonty ) how I would like to see it go. We reconnect with the town, by becoming the central hub of sport and community development in the town, linking with others, to do the best to enhance the lives of the children and adults where we live.

[mally]

I can’t see the point of any re-branding personally and especially right now if we still have to suffer the same old same old at Holker Street. I would like to think Mystery Investor would have a few ideas in this direction if he does take control of the club.

Furthermore, I heard on Saturday from a few good sauces that MI is arranging for Sheryl Crow to parachute into the ground next Saturday v Ramsbottom to sing ‘A Change Will Do You Good’. Stayaways - miss this historic event at your peril.

And My very reliable sauce informs Me that the mystery investor was never a mystery in the first place, for the mystery never was the invisible, it was / will always be the visible.

[Tunnocks]

Why does the mystery investor need to own the club to put money in ? If I win big on the lottery I'd be putting some money in but wouldn't want to own the club and would keep it as a members club.

Let's face it, anyone who put's money into a football club with the exception of the top few in the Premier League will lose their money. It's not an investment it's giving your money away ! That is unless you want to get your hands on the ground. I don't want there to be another Stephen Vaughan, Brooks Mileson at Gretna or even Venky's at Blackburn here at Barrow. For me it has to remain a members club.

[Nigel Bamford]

Jonty, you have the club at heart, of that there is no question but what you propose is not a 'major overhaul'. No one ever supported a club because of its branding and, if anything, having AFC rather than FC in our title sets us apart as something different. A brand will never create a good club, it can only reflect it.
But, you are right - the club's image is tarnished. And that comes down, I'm afraid, to the way the club has been run over the past few years. It's all very well saying we are a 'family club' although I have no idea what that actually means. But let's say, for the sake of argument, it means welcoming and inclusive. If there's one thing the club has not been, it's that. Exclusive and insular are more apt descriptions if you ask me.
Neither has the club lived up to its 'squeaky clean'/'open and honest' claim. We all know countless examples of that.

If a business is going to espouse a set of values it has live by them - and sometimes that will hurt. If it doesn't then it's just so many empty words and people will see through it. I don't know anything like enough to say how a football club should be run but, in the end, it's a business. And any business has to decide what it is and what it stands for. If people like what you do and what you stand for they will support you even when times get tough. The business might have to adapt to changing circumstances but I think the town would be generally supportive of a club which was trying its best even when the team itself is not performing well. Get the underlying business right then think about the brand - not the other way around.

[barrowfan]

Good post Nigel.

[audigex]

To be honest I don't think a badge change would make any difference whatsoever.

Brand awareness is important on a large scale, but not in fairly local football: Morecambe's attendance is based on their results, not their badge... the same as any other club below about Championship level. Locals don't care what the badge is, they attend if they want to attend. If we're going to change it, a simplified version of the current badge, or a simpler shield-shape with a submarine and a bluebird in it would do me, with the word "Barrow" across the top.

As for the name - most people forget the FC/AFC anyway: either change it to a plain "Barrow" or leave it as it is. We'll still be called the same thing by anyone referring to the club.

[Manchester Branch]

I actually agree about the need to change the direction of the club. I don't know very much about accountancy or law (as anyone who knows me will testify ) so I don't know if this is possiible, but this is what I would like to happen.

Barrow A.F.C would become an arm of a wider, not for profit, organisation- Let's call it The Barrovia Trust, for want of a better word. . The Trust's aims would be as follows:

1) Promote community cohesion through sport in the Furness area

2) Development of elite sports performance in Barrow

3) To provide work related training through links with Furness College

4) To provide educational opportunities for 3-18 year olds.

From that, you'd be able to bid for a lot lot of things we can't do now, as football is too narrow a pot to take from. You'd have to have a joint bid from many organisations, such as The Sports Council, Probation, Voluntary Sector, Schools etc.

The Trust woul be run by someone with experience in community development, sports development and in football (Let's say Doc for the sake of argument)
It would be all be run from Holker Street, enabling us to also employ someone to solely do admin and promotion of all three arms of the business.

Purchasing through grants the land beside Barrow A.F.C, we'd turn the Furness pitch and area into a multi use 3G pitch, and the Soccer Bar area into a martial arts and dance gym, using it as a focus for education, and training, for the Furness Performance centre, and as part of a five year plan, eventually the first team training there also. It could also be rented out to groups and teams. In the mornings it could be used for groups such as N.A.C.R.O, Young Offenders, and local schools, connected to the rooms at the study centre, where education and training would be offered. College students in areas such as Business admin, trades and sports science could work out of the club, both around the ground and on different local community projects.

Another, underpinning link through all courses and the whole facility itself would be to promote an understanding of Barrow's history and culture, sporting and otherwise. Free tickets would be given to groups who attended the centre.

It would mean the the football club would be only a part of this, and would be given a budget to work from determined by the management group, overseen by the trustees. However, commercial activities to build up this could still take place and be run from the facility. The club would be lile a department of a charity organisation.

That's, roughly (and I took 10 minutes to your 5 Jonty ) how I would like to see it go. We reconnect with the town, by becoming the central hub of sport and community development in the town, linking with others, to do the best to enhance the lives of the children and adults where we live.

Yes, this. I hope members of the board are reading this.

[barrowfan]

Whilst all these wishes and aspirations are very laudable I think the reality is that our current board is fighting fires.

[Jonty]

Interesting views. It remains to be seen if any new investors come in just how they will propose to do things to take the club forward. Potential new owners will be looking at everything.

You are absoluely right about a community club having a set of values that should underpin every decision. The existing board did their upmost to bring us a redeveloped ground. How things might have been different if that had happened. It was all about having a positive community impact and bringing benefit to the town- core values. There was an enormous effort to make this happen. I believe we were that close then we caught the recession and things changed. It could still happen in the future- who knows, It ceratinly should not be discounted by any new group becuase a lot of time and investment went into that.

The badge thing wasn't really the key point and it probably caused a few coffee splutters over the screen at the very thought of it, but look around and you'll see it is happening elsewhere as part of any ongoing change- you know - "out with the old in with the new" sort of thing. I remain open minded about this- so long as it wasn't something ridiculous- also if ground share was back on the agenda as part of the wider long term vision. Just my views- everyone will have their own. All valid.

Just thoughts lads, just thoughts, Let's just hope we fans get a say in helping shape the future whatever happens.

[Kieran]

look around and you'll see it is happening elsewhere as part of any ongoing change- you know - "out with the old in with the new" sort of thing.

So what?

Other clubs are disregarding years of history and tradition, so we should do the same? This is one of the massive things that is wrong with today's game.

Sorry Jonty, but these are amongst the worst suggestions I've ever seen on this forum.