wm
Sussex County Division Two
Posts: 207
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Post by wm on Dec 20, 2023 17:57:34 GMT
Meanwhile we need to be aware of the potential loss of sponsorship as we slip down the leagues. When, or if it happens, it will be very painful. The Club and the Board are in a difficult position. Do we willingly just watch and scale economically, or do we take risks to try and stabilize the situation? Any body’s thoughts appreciated………. Do we take risks? In the 21/22 season, we needed donations of more than £600k to stay afloat. Last season, from the bare financials we've been provided with so far, we made a group loss of almost £400k. How much more of a financial risk do you want to take? The simple truth is we're trying to compete well beyond our means, and so the club is now either reliant on massive donations (which are drying up) or trying to sell out to private equity, and we saw how well that went. I was astonished that at the recent AGM there was no real mention of trying to cut costs, because we're heading to a cliff edge - whether we're relegated or not - at the current run rate. Trying to throw more money at a bid to avoid relegation will simply worsen the problem. It's astonishing how few people realise how precarious our financial position is.
Oh, to be a fly on the boardroom wall.
I'll get jumped on, I'm sure, by those 'in the know', but I for one would fully understand those fans who might wonder if your last line could even apply to some directors / ex-directors. Stranger things have happened, eg Enron, Carillion, Northern Rock, etc. Or is such a suggestion 'potentially libellous' – I'm sure I'll be jumped on again for that too.....
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Post by stuartnoel on Dec 20, 2023 18:51:04 GMT
Do we take risks? In the 21/22 season, we needed donations of more than £600k to stay afloat. Last season, from the bare financials we've been provided with so far, we made a group loss of almost £400k. How much more of a financial risk do you want to take? The simple truth is we're trying to compete well beyond our means, and so the club is now either reliant on massive donations (which are drying up) or trying to sell out to private equity, and we saw how well that went. I was astonished that at the recent AGM there was no real mention of trying to cut costs, because we're heading to a cliff edge - whether we're relegated or not - at the current run rate. Trying to throw more money at a bid to avoid relegation will simply worsen the problem. It's astonishing how few people realise how precarious our financial position is.
Oh, to be a fly on the boardroom wall.
I'll get jumped on, I'm sure, by those 'in the know', but I for one would fully understand those fans who might wonder if your last line could even apply to some directors / ex-directors. Stranger things have happened, eg Enron, Carillion, Northern Rock, etc. Or is such a suggestion 'potentially libellous' – I'm sure I'll be jumped on again for that too..... I can assure you that, until at least the end of October, the ongoing financial situation and funding options were top of mind of the board. The recent discussions about the potential investment from Mercury 13 defined the alternative scale back plan if investment wasn’t found this financial year. But, just to remind everyone, the club has no long-term debt so alternative funding did not include any borrowing. Of course, that may have changed since I was party to any discussions since I stepped down
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dicksmith
Sussex County Division One
COYR
Posts: 298
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Post by dicksmith on Dec 20, 2023 22:50:43 GMT
Stuart's point is a key one. The Club isn't about to go into bankruptcy as has happened to many clubs over the years. Typically, they were burdened with a huge debt load. We have no long-term debt.
The absence of additional funding however, means that the Club will need to structure the budget accordingly. And that will be painful.
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Post by sedlescombe on Dec 21, 2023 7:40:31 GMT
As we enter 2024 and the last audited accounts on the website are from 2022 it’s difficult to know what the financial position of the club is. I’m afraid I can’t locate the incomplete financial information that was provided for the AGM. My recollection was that £450k of cash on the balance sheet and a net cash outflow of around £400k so 12-18 months of cash burn left from May. In my view the word “about” in the sentence “not about to into bankruptcy” is doing a lot of heavy lifting here.
It could be that the club are doing a hundred things that increase revenues and cut costs that improve that situation. However it terrifies me that LinkedIn is the only sort of information I have regarding the financial management of the club. That the finance manager left in May and someone is claiming to be the clubs finance director as of September. To me given the financial crisis that circumstances have presented the club with - that previous boards have left them a failing business model -means that not having string financial management is negligent. I’d also say that the owners (us) have failed the club by not appointing people to the board with financial experience.
Can someone from the board advise when the signed accounts will be on the website. And will we have filed our accounts by 31st December?
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Post by Fhorum Mhember 22 on Dec 21, 2023 16:15:23 GMT
Sedles - isn't it 9 months from year end? If only we knew an accountant 😎 So end of Feb for filing? It's a leap year so that helps.
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Post by sedlescombe on Dec 21, 2023 18:20:06 GMT
Nine months is a deadline not a target. It is changes in behaviour that matter. The AGMs seem to have slipped back from September / Octoberish to this year and accounts last year were signed in October though in other years they have sometimes been filed later. Even into the next year. My experience is that the reasons accounts get produced and filed late are rarely good. Of course there are also perfectly innocent reasons too but I think someone should ask the question rather than let things drift. Maybe we couldn’t find the right person when the previous guy left - so we got delayed but it’s all under control now then fine, however the comment under the AGM thread that it was delayed because we were waiting for the Auditors to complete their review ( as opposed to us being late to get information to them) didn’t ring true. There are entirely reasonable explanations but the position is too serious to just let it go. I would have preferred we had more financial experience on the Board This is critical stuff and the clock is ticking. Given our cash burn it would be nice to know we have plans in place
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wm
Sussex County Division Two
Posts: 207
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Post by wm on Dec 21, 2023 20:40:48 GMT
I can't be bothered to look back through the very long threads, but I can't recall any reference from anyone associated with the club to the M13 'opportunity' being described as the best of several options. I have the clear impression that it was described as the only option. Can anyone confirm this view?
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Post by Barry Collins on Dec 22, 2023 7:12:03 GMT
As we enter 2024 and the last audited accounts on the website are from 2022 it’s difficult to know what the financial position of the club is. I’m afraid I can’t locate the incomplete financial information that was provided for the AGM. My recollection was that £450k of cash on the balance sheet and a net cash outflow of around £400k so 12-18 months of cash burn left from May. In my view the word “about” in the sentence “not about to into bankruptcy” is doing a lot of heavy lifting here. It could be that the club are doing a hundred things that increase revenues and cut costs that improve that situation. However it terrifies me that LinkedIn is the only sort of information I have regarding the financial management of the club. That the finance manager left in May and someone is claiming to be the clubs finance director as of September. To me given the financial crisis that circumstances have presented the club with - that previous boards have left them a failing business model -means that not having string financial management is negligent. I’d also say that the owners (us) have failed the club by not appointing people to the board with financial experience. Can someone from the board advise when the signed accounts will be on the website. And will we have filed our accounts by 31st December? It is, of course, within the board’s gift to co-opt someone with the relevant financial experience. To answer the earlier question - the finances affect the whole club, not only the women’s side. The two are indivisible.
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