Cod Almighty | Diary

Beatings will continue till morale improves

29 May 2025

"You do have a right to voice your opinions, but if you have nothing positive to say don't say it all. That would help."

Mr Fenty, clinging to the torn threads of democracy, but in full passive-aggressive mode when talking to fans who had the temerity to question him some years ago.

We now know the cost of everything but do we know the value of anything? What is the value of keeping up an all-consuming lifelong passion supporting a provincial lower-league local football team? It helps your mental health by injecting hope once or twice a week in the hours before kick off. But it often ruins your weekend when things do not go to plan result or performance wise. That self-induced high comes crashing down. And then you start to tot up the cost. No, maybe that is a bad move.

That loyal addiction does not come cheap. The cost of attendance, the kids are pestering for the new shirt, the lack of cheap and cheerful snacks in the ground to feed them. The edict that you can't take in your own scran to save a few quid. It's all gone up for next season. But then so has everything else you buy. The cost of living is spiraling with no end in sight. Your Guest Diarist used to grow food for a hobby, now I grow food out of necessity.

I think everyone knew ticket prices would rise. If we are honest they should probably have gone up by quite a lot more. I am a great one for that back of a fag packet arithmetic. So if I am miles out let me know. The owners are probably subsidising every match ticket sold by about a tenner. So think about that for a minute before you start to whinge.

For the past sixty years, the time I have known, Town have been losing money in large amounts. In the recent past, especially the last decade, the cost of operating a football club has sky-rocketed. The pitch has to be better, the ground has to be safer, the backroom team has to have fitness specialists, more physios, performance analysts, media people, the list goes on. The whole setup has to be modern professional to stand even a chance of staying in the football league. And of course you have to recruit new players and write off the cost of last seasons failed signings. Five thousand or so season tickets get gobbled up before a ball is kicked.

Where I defy Mr Fenty's suggestion and raise a voice of dissent is to say that the way that the club has announced changes over the past months has been a PR disaster. I hark back to the fairly recent interview the CEO gave to the inhouse media man. She went through the list, briskly ticked all the boxes, waxed lyrical about the progress made but glossed over the hard stuff. The truth is the remit to expand commercial revenues is failing. Sixty years ago the club relied on the generosity of local businessmen. Today, it seems nothing has changed or improved. Pete Rose has "put a bit back". And we thank him for it - a great Grimbarian and a credit to the Town. But even ten Pete's would not fix the underlying economic problem. Without major league corporate sponsorship the club will rely heavily on hand-outs from the owners. The CEO talked a good game but you can dress it up in whatever biz-speak you like the numbers don't lie.

So why did she not address the elephant in the room and tell her customers that Town have a monopoly on their affections and that the cost of that will rise? Dropping the Mariners Trust discount, putting kids prices up, not allowing you to bring in a few mars bars and so on does nothing to improve the overall finances of the club. Literally a rounding error. In my opinion this is a PR disaster with no upside. Failing to advise matchday ticket prices earlier is another error. If you are pushing your customers towards an earlybird subscription model then give them time to get used to the idea and a chance to marshall their finances.

But what the hell. We love the club, and the pain will pass. Twas ever thus. Some will realise they can't afford to go any more. Some will end up in debt. Some will cut their nose off to spite their face and refuse to go. But most of you will still be there next season. And, whatever the football is like, you will still be in the most beautiful ground in the country. It's official. See yer.