Gaffer

I can't imagine he's reached a points threshold, but this is a blow if true BH.

You've actually hit the nail on the head here in terms of why democracies don't work. In this country, around 8 million people vote. I would hazard a guess that almost two thirds of them vote in complete ignorance of what they're actually voting for. Democracy works when you have informed people casting a vote. Very rarely does that happen though, but if we know we operate under that system, we have to accept the consequences, or change the system.

He did stand, and the members voted for him. That's democracy in action.

It's not futile at all Craig and you shouldn't perpetuate that myth. If the other board members convened, they could put a motion to the membership. They didn't. They just resigned, and that's poor. It's for that reason that I am suspicious of their motives, or at the very least I doubt their appropriateness for a position on our board.

Your original post was excellent, and was actually very well timed. Unfortunately for you/us, we are being let down by too many appointed board members. However, the reason I say your post was well timed is because there's no time like the present to motivate a wider group of supporters to take an interest, and fix this for the longer term security of our club. We have problems, but we are only a small number of good people away from making a real difference. Perhaps we will be more careful before appointing representatives in future. It's a good lesson for all of us, and very timely.

It's all just hearsay. If these disputes are real, or concerns are real, then show me the minutes of the meeting where it was discussed. As I've said many times before, I won't hold my breath because I'll be surprised if they exist.

From what I am reading, he's the only one that appears to be using the correct governance structures to resolve issues. If others disagree with him, perhaps they need to start doing the same.

He can. In fact any material issue can be resolved by the board convening and either taking the action themselves, or putting it to the membership. It seems that none of them are doing this for some reason. As I've said a few times, I don't know any of these personalities so I don't know what their skills and expertise is, but none of them appear to be able to use the governance in place. For that reason I would not expect any of them to be voted in again, but what are we replacing them with? If it's more of the same, what's the point? Let's just get them the support they need to develop the skills and then get behind them.

This is the twilight zone again. Who is this resigning board director? I couldn't see from the twitter link (I'm not great with twitter - sorry). I only ask because I want to make sure I don't inadvertently vote for this person in future. A single board member cannot take control, unless the others allow it. Why don't they arrange a board meeting, either with or without him, and then propose an action to remove him (if they have that power) or take the vote to the membership. That's how you deal with situations like this rather than resign. I may be unfair here (and perhaps not for the first time), but it seems to me that we have appointed a weak and inexperienced bunch of people onto the Club 1872 board. Having them resign is perhaps a good means of saving time in weeding out the weak. Actually, I acknowledge that I've used terms such as weak and childlike in these posts, but perhaps inexperienced is a better term to use. I really think we need to appoint our board members and then get them some support and training. I'd be happy if some of the money went into this.

Great post gaspard, and one that I can relate to, on so many of your points. The problem is that if all fans had this attitude, we would have no club. The only reason DK put his money in was to save his club. There is no investment in a club in Scotland so any money has to come from the fans. We can't even rely on any material sponsorship money. With that said, I think the one key point where I strongly agree with you is on the issue of representation of the fans by Club 1872. I agree that trying to harmonise the fan base, with its multiplicity of opinions, is a real challenge. Perhaps the Club 1872 requires more of a presidential figure and election. It's just an idea, but then we would have something similar to Real Madrid and Barcelona where one single person creates his manifesto and all others around him/her supports in that if elected. What appears to be the case is our inability the function as a team or committee. Under those circumstances a president or dictator is the way to go. That's capitalism at its finest. ;-)

If that's the case, hold a board meeting and discuss the issue. If it's true that one board member is acting unilaterally and won't change, the other members agree a motion to remove that board member and take it out to members to decide. This isn't difficult if they are grown up about it and use the proper governance. That's what it's there for. And if it's doesn't exist, the board members have the responsibility to create it. If they can't, they shouldn't be there, or at the very least they should seek help and guidance from those that can.

I'm sorry but I completely disagree. The reason we are this mess is because certain board members appear to be acting in a childlike manner and resigning when they should be arguing/debating like adults in the privacy and under the governance of the boardroom. It serves no purpose whatsoever for the other members to resign. What have they done wrong that means they should resign? It's those people that are resigning that I've got the problem with. Ridiculous. None of those that resign should be re-elected until they can learn to conduct themselves in a manner befitting of the Club. I'd personally like them to stay away altogether.

If that's the case Frankie, I'd expect to see something in the minutes indicating the identified conflicts of interest, or material disputes. I won't be holding my breath for them though.

I really hope it isn't true that more directors have resigned over a vote! What is it with these elected people? I'm literally sat here with my head in my hands. YOU DON'T RESIGN OVER THINGS LIKE THIS! If you don't understand that, you shouldn't be taking up these positions. To be a responsible board member, you have to work through these disputes using the normal governance. If governance doesn't exist, you create it as you go along. It seems to me that people think that resigning is the option to take when you disagree with a point of view or action. It's not. It's immature. It's attention seeking. It's pathetic. It's undermining the credibility of the organisation and it must stop. Once again, I'm frustrated unreasonably because I'm not willing/able to invest my time, but whatever happens, can I please urge someone who is willing to volunteer on the board to sort out this madness. Please acquire some advice and guidance for the board members from people that understand what it means to be a board director. There is no shame in arranging training and I'd propose that Club 1872 pays for this.

I agree that these signings would strengthen the team, however if we had to make just one signing, I would expect it to be a striker. When you watch our games, we would win almost all of them if we had a reasonable finisher. We make more than enough chances in every game (except in that recent home game against Celtic) to win easily, but we can't finish our chances. If we can find someone who can, and I appreciate it's a huge IF, we can do well next season. There's a huge pressure on PC to fill that slot wisely, and for me it's the one I'm looking forward to. For me, it's that single signing that will determine how our next season goes.

PC is excellent with the press and is managing them from what I can tell. He is far smarter in his manipulation of the press than you give him credit for. ;-)

Are these two ladies the ones who resigned earlier this year?

It's ironic that these types of personal issues occur in relation to our football club. I say it's ironic because football is a team game, and yet many of the supporters who involve themselves in Club matters would appear to demonstrate very few of the attributes required to be a good team player. I've built many high performing teams in my business life and know what the key differences are between those that succeed and those that fail. I can recognise dysfunctional behaviours, and we appear to demonstrate these perpetually. I would imagine many of us have had experiences of being part of a high performing team, and there are some critical elements to it. Firstly, the team has to share the same vision, the same goal, the same objective. I'd like to think that this is easily established when it comes to Club 1872, or any supporters' organisation. The second key attribute of a successful team is trust in each other. A big part of building trust however is understanding what motivates each member of that team to achieve the goal. For some, it is the satisfaction of achieving something worthwhile. For others it's the personal recognition (either from the outside world or those internally) for their contribution. For many it's being part of a team itself that provides that sense of enthusiasm. Regardless of the reason, understanding this is an important part of being in a team and getting the best out of your team mates. If you don't understand the motivations of your team mates, you can easily misconstrue their actions as being selfish or political. To build trust may appear to be difficult but it can be accelerated if each member of the team is willing to be vulnerable, be open and honest with their teammates, and even ask for their help. This vulnerability and trust is completely destroyed when there is any suspicion of your private conversations and actions being leaked to those outside the team. What goes on in the dressing room must stay in the dressing room. This breakdown of trust is like a cancer and has to be cut out and removed immediately. What I appear to read is a plethora of examples of this cancerous behaviour and it annoys me that we tolerate this as supporters. If our club is to be successful, we need a high performing team on the park that knows the formula for success. Equally, we need a high performing team off the pitch too, and I'd hope that someone (if not already on the board) can come in and install these behaviours in those working for Club 1872. If we can't build a successful team, there is no future for the organisation. If we can, the future is bright. When I listen to PC, I can see that he has most, if not all of the attributes required to build a successful team. Only time will tell if he can embed his own behaviours into the dressing room. It's too early to determine his tactical expertise but NOTHING is more important than building a sense of team and he certainly understands that. He is a true leader in that regard. I'm hoping a leader emerges to take Club 1872 forward. I know nothing about the various personalities involved in many of these discussions, but I can tell you that there is no one that exhibits the behaviours of leadership and that's really disappointing. I appreciate the desire to maintain independence from the Rangers board, but perhaps there is merit in former players of a high performing Rangers team to come in and build that team ethic in the Club 1872 board. However, it doesn't need to be ex football players. It could be anyone who has been part of any successful team and knows how to behave in a team environment. Our support is extensive and we must have many such people. The question is do they have the willingness to step up. I hope so.

I find all the personal attacks distasteful and I would NEVER want any of those making such comments to represent me in Club 1872. I would expect anyone with personal views like that to keep them to themselves, in particular if they had been on the same board. This is not a time to become involved in those types of insults, true or not. It's that sort of behaviour that brings the Club into disrepute and there is no place for such negativity. If anyone has a problem with anyone else, I'd expect that to be a conversation between two adults, and not conducted via online forums or in the media. It would appear that it's not when it comes to our club. Very disappointing!

You can take some of the credit for making me read it Frankie ;-) Well done AM89 and @TheBigBlueBear6 ..... I can confirm that my first contribution was made 2 minutes ago and my monthly contributions will continue via direct debit.

Great article Frankie and I doubt many, if any, will disagree with your sentiments. We have a tremendous opportunity to get this right, and I've been someone who has watched on with hope and anticipation that it will some day be sorted out, and achieve the objectives it's set itself. My intention was to wait for that point before investing monthly, however your article got me thinking. On reflection, I realised that I'm part of the problem. I'm one of many who wants the issues to be resolved before investing, when in fact there is an investment required right now to make sure it has every chance of working. It's for that reason that I will take the leap now and pay the monthly contributions to this cause. I would point out that this does not reflect any change in stance I have with regards to the problems with current board, but as someone who cannot spend the time helping to fix it, I can at least give money in the hope that others can use it wisely. Perhaps this is a guilt payment of sorts, as I know I could really help if I committed my time. There are many of us out there who could help but don't. Maybe a few of us should now decide to be part of the solution, either directly or indirectly, and I'll make the first step this afternoon. I started this post by praising the article, but perhaps it deserves more recognition than that when it results in a change of perspective, as well as the motivation in supporters like me to take significant action. I hope it inspires others to do the same. Cheers.

Rangers 3-0 Bates FGS

I too felt that Hill was the better player but I'm hoping Pedro has options/prospects at the back, in particular the Alves connection. One thing that did sour the Hill experience for me was seeing him party hard after the defeat to Celtic. For me, that's not the sign of a winner and perhaps that attitude shows in other ways to Pedro too. That's complete speculation and a personal opinion, but either way Hill will leave with thanks from all supporters for the job he's done this season.

What a great idea! I would imagine it will be a great way to attract young talent to the club also. If kids see that their development will involve games against top opposition, it can only be a benefit to the club in enticing them to us. Well done for trying something new and exciting.