Wednesday 10 January 2024
As a football fan and supporter of a club there are times I want to be treated as a customer (when buying merchandise or entering a stadium for example). A true fan is more, much more than a customer though. We are investors in the club we support and as such own a small part of the club. It is therefore natural that we are interested in more than just how the team is performing week by week. We want to know that the club is being run well. We want to see the standards we would expect being followed and we feel entitled to have a role in the governance of the club. That requires the club’s owners and Directors to be transparent and truthful in matters of importance. There is recent history at Charlton Athletic of this not being the case and the reaction of fans, evidenced by dwindling attendances, public demonstrations and views expressed in various media outlets, not least social media, has shown how damaging this can be. We can only hope that the new owners and Directors at the club understand how the fans are far more than just customers and deserve truth and transparency.
Let’s hope that starts today. The club have a very effective communications set up in place and should be using it as a way of embracing fan involvement in all aspects of the club.
As an added thought on how the club build its defence for next season, the huge talent that is Zach Mitchell is gaining valuable match experience at the heart of the Colchester United defence in League 2 while on loan this season. He has also scored a few goals.
The big game today is in the FA Youth Cup 4th Round:
7.00 pm Bristol City u18s v Charlton u18s
Let’s hope the Charlton under 18’s do the Academy proud with a win, and opportunity to perhaps take on an even bigger club in the next round.
Tonight also sees the ‘Online Fan meeting with Club Directors’ at 7.00 pm. This is available to watch on Charlton TV and the club’s U-Tube channel with fans able to put questions to the panel via WhatsApp. Spare a thought for whoever it is from the club’s media team who is going to decide which questions, from what could be a barrage of many, are put to the Directors to answer on the night!
With the news breaking on Danny Senda’s four year ban from all football and football related activity by the FA yesterday the club will be under renewed scrutiny. The ban arises following misconduct on a course in June 2023 (while Senda was still employed at Charlton) in relation to two complainants.
The FA alleged that the coach’s words and/or behaviour towards the complainants were improper and/or indecent and/or insulting contrary to FA Rule E3.1. There is no place in football, or indeed in our society, for this type of behaviour. Why has the club made no comment on this matter? Maybe tomorrow afternoon would be an ideal time to announce a new striker signing!