Paying My Debts!
Swansea City Supporters Trust is that little bit richer tonight after I paid up my Pounds for Points Pledge.
With the Swans amassing an outstanding 47 points over the course of their inaugural Premier League season, a cool £235 was deposited directly into the Trust bank account courtesy of the “donate” button on its website.
The Pounds for Points Pledge saw me backing our boys to stay up and every point won would see me give £5 to the Trust…
…of course nobody could envisage the consumate ease with which the Swans secured their Premier League status and I was probably the only Jack fan celebrating that four game losing streak a few weeks ago as I feared for my solvency!!
The Pounds for Points Pledge caught on and a number of fans followed suit with pledges of their own and, if all follow through with their promises, then the Trust would benefit to the tune of around £30 per point – a very tidy £1,410 deposited into the coffers.
Of course, we sometimes need reminding just why we need a Supporters Trust now that we are benefiting from the huge finances of the Premier League; the fact of the matter is that we are perhaps more at risk from an unscrupulous foreign owner now than we have ever been, our Premier League status and almost debt free position making us a very tasty target for someone looking to jump on the Premier bandwagon.
The Trust provides us with a modicum of protection from the sorts of “investors” that have crippled the likes of Portsmouth and Glasgow Rangers – not that I believe for an instant that the current Board would sell us down the river but the Trust is a safety net we must always have to protect our club now and in the future.
That isn’t to say I agree with everything the Trust do – on the contrary, I was on the opposite end of the spectrum with regard the McDonalds issue for example – but the Trust has represented its members in sterling fashion and does an awful lot of good work on behalf of the fans and the club too (such as organising special events on the club’s behalf).
And if ever we needed a reminder of how lucky we are to have our Trust and our Board of Directors then Cardiff City delivered it with their latest tragi-comedy that saw their “beloved” Malaysian owners attempt to rip the guts out of the club and replace it instead with a gaudy red replacement…turning the Bloobirds not into a Welsh club that is big in Malaysia but a Malaysian club in the capital competing in the Championship.
That would NEVER have happened with our Trust and fans and we sure as hell wouldn’t be arse licking Tan and Chan in order to salvage this supposed £100 million gift that is going to wipe away all their debts. Again!
We’d be fighting to take back our club, protect its rich heritage and secure its future even if it did mean administration and a drop back down the leagues – at least it would be OUR club again and not the cash cow of yet another Hamman or Ridsdale spending money that isn’t there whilst increasing the debt by siphoning off “consultancy fees” and interest payments.
But Cardiff fans are just a different breed and haven’t got the guts to do what Swans fans did in the Petty days and every day since…and that’s why they are still in the Championship and riddled with debt and Swansea City is in the Premier League and in rude health off the field.
The Swansea City Supporters Trust has played a huge part in that success – it’s why we need them and I’ll continue to back them. It’s my pledge 
May 14, 2012 at 9:40 pm
I have paid my dues too. So that’s another £47 added to the kitty. 47 points, a remarkable season. Very proud to be a Jack
May 14, 2012 at 9:46 pm
Outstanding – all donations gratefully received. And fully agree with you…very proud to be a Jack!
May 16, 2012 at 11:57 am
£94 donated – a brilliant performance by everyone at the Club that has well and truly earned every penny.
May 16, 2012 at 5:32 pm
Nice one Matthew and yes, every penny earned by the club and its players who have been magnificent!