If the crowd is 20,000 - which is a very conservative estimation, East Fife would make £100,000.

I'd really like to see us build a bit of terracing that would mean we could keep any big cup ties at home in the future.

The playing squad for this season.

Develop the stadium or Back the manager with players.

The Club are asking the fans to back the team so with this extra bonus income i hope they do one of the above suggestions but i said in another post i think the Board might try and do this season on the cheap,hope not

Short sighted to spend everything on players. Youth development and stadium improvement would be a better investment in my opinion.

We certainly don't want to give up home advantage for cup ties again. Surely capacity increase is a must.

Think we still have the second lowest ground capacity in the league behind Albion! We will lose money in the long run unless we can increase it a bit. No point having great players if the club isn't capable of staging games against bigger sides..... and it needs to be accessible to away fans. A wee bit behind the goals at the sea end would be totally pointless.

First priority is to ensure that the manager has a budget to employ players who as a minimum will keep us in this division.
Priority 2 is to hire a cement mixer.

Why would we want to spend money creating more empty spaces over spending money to fill the empty spaces that we have?

In something like 300 games at new bayview,Lack of ground capacity has been a problem twice.

And 1st division average attendances are below the 2000 mark so no problem their either.The cost vs return make terracing a non starter.

an indoor training are with 5 a side pitches rented out to the public, all income re invested in club

Protection for out pitch during the long hard winter.The number of games that have been called off due to frost on the pitch is getting beyond a joke.

Staying in this division next season is our top priority, if we can do that then we can enjoy revenue fron the Hun hordes who will visit next season. Making more money! We'd need to upgrade Bayview if we went up a division anyway. We need the ground to be able to generate cash for us, and a plastic pitch would help towards that too. Just having a ground with 2 sides is going to improve upon the crap atmosphere. Bayview is not an enyoyable place to watch football at the moment.

EF are the equivelant of a manufacturer running a factory which operates at 35% capacity and as such struggles year on year to balance the books. Suddenly you have a windfall so you decide the best way to spend it is to increase your capacity on the off chance that in the next few years you may win a large order. Priorities must be
1)The current squad
2)Pro youth team
3)JSC (where the process should start)

Within 1-3 comes the need for training facilities,kit
etc,etc.
Come our first home league game we will have 600 in the main stand. If we had built covered terracing several years ago we would have 400 in the stand,200 on the terracing and be £100K worse off.

Bob,
Imagine you own a pub which earns you a decent living but not much more. It's busy a couple of nights a week but otherwise just breaks even. You have a windfall so you may see it as a chance to spend money on improving levels of customer service and entertainment. You don't leave the entertainment/service levels unchanged and double your capacity. If you increase custom to a point where the pub is regularly full then you consider increasing capacity.
A covered enclosure will not increase crowds,will not improve the team's performance.
You can also dress up fan ownership/shares any way you want but ultimately you would be lucky to generate 10% of the funds required to build an enclosure.
Generally speaking it's 25% of fans who buy season tickets,programmes,hospitality,merchandise etc, and serious money will only appear when there is a real crisis. What was the response to the Manager's Fund ?

Improve the product and maintain the improvement. If,after a couple of seasons, lack of capacity is restricting your ability to generate additional revenue it's time to look at a solution. Whether now or at that point in the future the decision must be based on a forecast of regular,long term revenue.
Spending £100K on the strength of a cup draw which may not happen is gambling not structured growth.

Bob,
You are the eternal optimist. £15K in a season is 400 x £2 per game. Not a snowballs chance. Lucky to get 100.
Why spend and build for something which may not happen. Have all the approvals and planning in place and if we get promoted and if increased capacity is one of the criteria it is surely not beyond technology to build a terracing in the close season.

Upgrading the stadium to make it a good place for watching football would leave a legacy that could last us 100 years.

Spending money on a better quality of journeyman, who'll be off after his one year contract runs out to move on to the next big offer elsewhere might result in us doing better for a season or two. It might not though.

Facilities for developing our own talent are paramount, improving on what we have ground-wise makes sense in the long run too.

The manager reckons our squad is only a couple of players away from being complete. I'm happy with that if he is. Will two new signings require £100k?

The more 'senior' players that are brought in now, the less young guys we'll see blooded in the first team when places become available. Is that not what most fans have been crying out for for at least the last ten years?

Would we not be better seeing just how much we make out of this 'glamour' tie? Is it 50% of gate receipts after costs we get? Can't imagine that it only costs a few £ for this game to go ahead, so that is probably taking a chunk off any windfall right away.

Personally I think youth development should get the lions share of any cash and shoring up the clubs finances to make sure there is a club, should get the rest. No point building terracing, which would be great, if it is only needed for the odd cup tie and two visits of a team that will potentially pass us on the way up.

Also if we have improved our youth policy, maybe we will unearth a few players who might bring in a few £ in years to come, then that money could go on terracing.

I think we get 40% so a crowd of 20,000 would mean around £100,000.

I would like to think we are going to build a nice wee covered terrace behind the goals at the sea wall end? Give our stadium a better atmosphere and more enjoyable experience for all at Bayview.

if you extend a crematorium doesnt mean u get a better atmosphere.

i'd love a terrace at the back of the goals or a stand at the back of the dugouts but what is the point?

an opposite stand for away fans means we sit and watch maybe 30 to 50 fans on a tuesday night game from forfar being swallowed up in a 1000 seater stand.

an extra stand wont make the home fans sing, Airdrie away last season..1 stand open ,3 empty stands and yet it was basically the airdrie fans who chanted. Even the Pars pre-season game last month was the same 1 stand open and 3 empty ones and it was only the home fans with their drum who sang all game.

East Fife just dont sing anymore, one or 2 games being the exception


Spend the money on plastic pitches inc. training ones and develop our young players also hire out the pitches for community use so the club has a 2nd income outwith a match day.

An empty stand wont bring in money

A dug out for me with heating and radio link to the manager lol x

An Ipad, I Phone, and a three weeks in Ibiza and a pink Fiat Uno convertible please Cheers lol

Maybe we should use the 100k to pay fans to come to the game, thus increasing crowds, generating an atmosphere and ultimately create a demand for increasing capacity.

Maybe we should use the 100k to pay fans to come to the game, thus increasing crowds, generating an atmosphere and ultimately create a demand for increasing capacity.

Not much more to say on this so I will finish with this.....

Whoever thinks adding terracing or an extra stand will leave us a one hundred year legacy should get to bed now so he/she can join their pals waiting on the chemists opening at 09.00. That one must be a wind-up.

SPF
Sorry,if you think building a terracing will do any more than make a marginal difference to crowds or performance you should join the 09.00 gang.

Marginal for crowds and performances but a far, far better place to watch East Fife.

It's hellish as it stands (excuse the pun).

Got to speculate to accumulate. First priority must be for the team.My priorities would be.
1. Get key players signed on decent longer deals and strengthen team with view to promotion.
(Success breeds success)
2. Finance youth teams and youth development.
(Creates pool of talent and increases potential for transfer fees).
3. Extend and improve the stadium facilities to increase conference, function and sports facilities. (Increases potential for income generation throug hire outs. Why not get the plastic pitch in now?).

Depending how much money the club has we could get a better function suite and small extension to terracing. My preference would be for a social club at the Dubbieside end or power Leven side with a few rows of steps in front. Alloa is a good example of what Id like our ground to provide for fans and local residents in terms of facilities. Grants are available to areas of multiple deprivation like Levenmouth so the fund could be topped up if the applicants are community based organisations.

What about 7000 Club deck sandwiches to the punters in the top section at ibrox, as a thank you fievthe extra £20000 they gave us?

I'd like to see some of the money spent on 3 or 4 players to strengthen the current squad with the goal being promotion. Hopefully we could get up and get a temporary stand or terracing. Which would be justified as in Div 1 we would have bumper crowds with games against raith, pars, falkirk, dundee etc so potentially half a dozen sell outs plus potential cup ties. The down side would be ataying in div 2 and still getting terracing with 2 sell outs against the gers plus any cup ties.

If we don't build terracing and remain in Div 2 next season then we will have missed a massive opportunity to capitalise on the huge away support Rangers would bring. It would also give us fans a better experience every other week and would surely add a bit of atmosphere at souless Bayview. Terracing is a must imo. Not sure how much it would cost but it would be money well spent. Obviously we can't even half fill Bayview just now so i understand why people are saying it would be a waste of money, but at least we could play every home game at Bayview in years to come and also encourage more fans to attend.

Lack of terracing is not the reason fans stay away from football grounds.

A lot of interesting business based comments, I tend to agree with ntoc, whilst additional capacity would be good, I think if memory serves me right New Bayview has been filled once.

Priority has to be given to the squad, we are extremely light in midfield, and require cover in the full back positions (and probably another permanent striker), just to survive in the second division this season! This was painfully obvious on Tuesday night, and would have been the case whether we had recieved this "windfall" or not.

We need to strengthen the team and get the top players on two year contracts so we're not constantly rebuilding.

Youth development is also a must.

Lots of interesting comments and viewpoints here.

The club board has its rescheduled meeting tonight and I'm sure there will be some discussion on this.

The absolute priority of course is always maintaining the financial stability of the club - and that means thinking of the lean times ahead as well.

But I'm sure some of the "bonus" money will be spent in some way.

Forget about players and terracing what we need is a big massive sound system with big muckle bass speakers shaking your false teeth out.
The atmosphere at Ibrox with the music booming out was fantastic.

Pre-game music thumping like that would be a disaster.
10 mins. before a game requires relative silence so that fans can discuss what type of sweets they have,what the Directors have been doing wrong and who has died since last season.

Do we have a figure yet?

on behalf of pieman

What happened to the gate money the last time we played RFC at Ibrox? Answers on the back of a postacard to ToC!

We cant blow our wad on a few players for a temporary artificial league position. What would be ther point of that? As long as we're competing and not at the arse of the league staring relegation in the face, that is!

We need to reinvest money in the club itself. That means facilities. An artificial pitch would help us to generate revenue and possibly go some way to making us the attractive community club we should be. We are just too wee to be a "buying" club. It's money down the pan. Better to attract and nurture talent with a youth academy etc. I'd put terracing/stadium a close second. That would allow us to host bigger ties (which would generate more money)and help to improve the atmosphere. Think Forfar Athletic's covered terracing, nothing more fancy that that. We'd have a proper atmospheric football ground instead of one stand. We'd have a real home. A modern version of old Bayview Park. We'd look and feel like a bigger club, one that players would want to sign for!

To go back to pub analogy: Does the struggling little pub or club spend its windfall on attracting U2 for a discrete one off gig, or does it build a shiny new function suite?

See today's Courier - good interview with Sid in there.....

I would be looking at investing in something that will give you a return.
1) Youth and Player Development. Bring on the youth, improve the team and if they move on the club will see a return on its investment.
2) A marketing strategy that brings in new paying supporters. Once we start having 1500 bums on seats EVERY Week then a new stand would be worthy of consideration.
3) alternatively you could look at a new stand if it can be made to pay ...empty. e.g. build Offices, Retail Units, Gym,, Bar, restuarant, Hotel etc into the design of the New stand Construction.

With regards to building a new stand for the Ibrox travelling support next year - They might not be in division 2 next year ...it wouldnt surprise me if SPL2 was set up by then....to prevent 4-5 SPL Clubs going out of business. There again if they go to the wall and have to start again in the 3rd we might end in the 1st or SPL ......stranger things guys!!!!

Bob,
In the lower divisions we get "TV money" but are almost never on TV. The assumption that,for instance, EF have a latent support of 400-600 who aren't attending home games because they are watching English/Scottish games between 12 and 3 on a Saturday afternoon is just not believable.
If live Scottish TV games stopped and all other things remained equal I would be surprised if our gates went up by 10%. Similarly would Hearts increase their average crowds from 9-10K to 14-20K ???

Back to the subject of terracing. To build an uncovered terracing is the equivelant of deciding to buy a new TV and choosing a B&W set. Whenever it rained,which is not uncommon at Bayview, 90% of those on the terracing would do a runner for the stand assuming of course that the stand isn't full because we built the terracing.

Terracing would improve the look of the ground 100% and undoubtably the atmosphere as well.. but the main reason we need it is that we could pack it with away fans in big games, allowing us to keep fixtures at Bayview, and generate a LOT of money for not too much outlay. For that purpose it doesn't even need to be covered! Some clubs have little more than a raised walkway around the pitch for standing... so I use the term terracing loosely. Peterhead have standing room for 3000, where's their terracing????

Fred,
When you get back from the chemists tomorrow morning and you are stable for a few hours,post a list of of the games where we have either had to turn hundreds of fans away or have had to switch grounds for extra capacity.

Never mind the look of the Terracing ...what about the look of the team.

I refer to my earlier post.
Here is question & I have said it many time before. The East of Fife has a large cachment area , from the Mining towns to the fishing towns to the farmers, yet we only get a crowd 500-600.

I would look at investing in a model similar to spartans. Developed a full youth set up....6-8 y.o to 19 throughout the East of Fife. Link in with the schools , local communities etc.
That level of engagement will add a further 200-300 on the gate.
Issue Aspiration Statement that we want 80% of the team to be home grown Fifers within the next 5 years.
We will rise up and be a Kingdom Again.
Reunite the communities, get kids of their fat A3rses.....
I dont see how we couldnt try and do this

It's quite simple, one-sided, freezing, morgue-like Bayview is a horrible place to watch football and to entice people to watch football there. We all love going to grounds like Forfar and Arbroath. We should improve the ground. Thankfully, Sid himself has said he's a fan of terracing. How can people bring their 5-10 year olds to the game and expect them to sit for nearly 2 hours glued to a freezing seat?

It's a non-starter bringing little future Fifers to Bayview without it being a mini ordeal for them and a chore for the dads. They must be itching to come back the next Saturday like we all were at that age at Bayview Park - not.

Ps, we need two decent creative wide players and a couple of solid full-backs who can defend and are always comfortable on the ball - something along the lines of Dicky Gibb. Doesn't have to be world-beating, just consistent and reliable (like the former). Linn's form was all over the place but we haven't replaced his talent either. Rest of the squad looks promising.

I like New Bayview. The friendly welcome, old photographs and memorabilia all over the place bars at the stadium and mixing with the players after the game. The home support are a bit quiet but I don't think you can blame the facilities for that. It would be good to increase the capacity of the stadium though, whether by another stand or simply opening up the other three sides to spectators like Peterhead.
I'd put half the money aside for improving the playing set up including the youth teams and start a stadium redevelopment fund for supporters and businesses to add to through sponsorship.
Everybody should then be happy.

What does the article say, for those of us living outside Courier land?

So that's it settled then, reading through the posts.
If facilities are to be upgraded, then we're looking at a new 3G pitch.
Everyone else is doing it, and we can't afford to be left behind. That should set us back about £600k, but we may be able to recuperate a big chunk of that in grants.

We could probably double the capacity of Bayview relatively cheaply with a trackside crush barrier and a raised walkway around the pitch.. surely that's something worth considering?

Spend it on Burds boys I'd come along to watch that !

Fifer, after several cases of champagne we could discuss an all night casino sounds a little more appealing than discussing terracing again, yes nice to have but Just won't appeal to the glamour model community. At the end of the day the EF board and certain elements of the support need to listen to this minority group. I suppose a compromise could be reached if the terrace construction went to stringfellow's who no doubt could engineer metallic poles into a very welcoming atmosphere for our visitors and adolescent section of our support.

Here, here. Nice to hear Frank speaking out. Only the other day on my way back from a shoot in London did I say wouldn't it be great if we could visit some of the smaller clubs. So a powder room is a must in my opinion, I don't mind standing but as for the poles I think due to the weather if you are going down that route you will need to cover them in pink fur. Love to hear from you again Frank keep thinking of us.

Excuse me ! But how much is a glamour xxx oops I mean season ticket at east fife? Do you pay more for a seat near the fur wrapped structural supports ?

After watching the games against Rangers/Alloa/Cowden,I should think its obvious.

Whilst believing that the upgrade of Bayview Stadium to include terracing, perhaps an artificial pitch, more community facilities etc are still required and that cash should be put aside for this purpose as a medium term goal, there is now an urgent need to address the playing situation.

Performances so far have been poor culminating in that shocker last night and a mauling from QoS is highly likely on Saturday. We need creativity out wide, a proper ball winner in the middle and a additional outlet in midfield to feed the forwards (e.g. a box to box type with a bit of pace who can pass). A left back and central defence cover are also required. That's five at least and we need to acquire these guys right now otherwise I fear where this season is heading.

In previous seasons I've been optimistic about our chances to get promoted and have been very disappointed. This time I've gone the opposite way. Let's hope I'm wrong again.

.....and Durie is trying to blood the young talent. This takes time.

On the strength of ONE bad performance, we're going to piss away all our money on 5+ panic buys? If we need 5 players this early, then we also need a new manager and backroom staff because they by implication, don't know a footballer from a steak pie..

We need to take into consideration that players are playing who are not fully fit, it shows a severe lack in depth in the current squad. Hopefully we can get a good result on Sat and we can all get behind the team.

If it's true that the club are spending the money on heated pitch covers then I'd be really disappointed.

If the club want to spend the money on the pitch, making sure they get games on, and bringing in much needed revenue, then an artificial pitch is surely a much better option.

Will these covers not require a fair bit of labour to put down, and a fair bit of money to operate? They still won't comply with any SPL2 proposals, which
require undersoil heating, either.

Then there's the small matter of our playing squad being both very small, and nowhere near good enough to stay in this division.

I hope this was just a rumour and that the club would consult supporters before rushing in to spend this money

Stopped buying the pies after they changed suppliers. Strange that the board have kept the same supplier for their pies but the fans get offered an inferior product.

Starks Park has the heated covers mentioned and the work fine unless the temp drops below -5 which, given Bayview's proximity to the sea, won't happen that often. It's not exactly a 1 man job laying and lifting them, but nor is it a massive operation.
SPL2 is going to be a small league if undersoil heating is a mandatory requirement. I can't see many SFL clubs jumping into bed with Doncaster and co after the carry on this summer to form an SPL2, at least I hope not.