The following was sent to the London Bulls this morning:
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Dear London Bulls
You will know that our group have put forward a proposal to Herefordshire Council for Hereford FC to play from Edgar Street in time for the 2015-16 season. Our proposal is based on a partnership between HUST and a group of long-standing Bulls supporters who have written a business plan. This is backed by benefactors, also long standing Hereford fans, who want no return for their donations.
Should the Council invite us to become the new tenants, we will need a monumental effort by supporters including London Bulls to make a club to be proud of. There will be much work to do, much of it unpaid on a volunteer basis, and there is no doubt the success of this phoenix club will depend on the appetite within the fanbase to get involved.
London Bulls have been a strong supporter association since your inception, offering skills, experience and time in years past. I would like to think that your members will be continue to be motivated, more so hopefully, by the opportunity to help build a sustainable football club alongside an equally enthused fan base across the world. We will also look with HUST at how UITC can be developed for the benefit of everyone under the Hereford FC umbrella.
The next month will be critical in our bid to persuade the Council that we are the right tenant for them. In our meetings to date I have found the Council Leader to be forthright and honest, respecting and straight forward. He has been impressed with our plans and our people because we are all long standing Hereford United supporters with solid business experience behind us. Much is made of the term ‘businessmen’ but we are not on any special pedestal. We have the backing of the benefactors who are prepared to introduce donations to help start this new club, with our group charged with running the club alongside HUST board members. We are still discussing with HUST how best to set the constitution of the club to safeguard it and the ground for generations of fans to come. Profits will filter directly back to the club and that should forever be the case. Whilst new benefactors will be invited, their suitability will be measured against their agreement with the club’s constitution.
We cannot proceed without HUST. They have been central to our plans and the future of Hereford FC. They will ask their members to vote on the proposal in a democratic way and that is absolutely correct. That will hopefully give HUST the mandate to support and help implement our proposal. The new club’s Board will involve at least 3 HUST Board members.
The response we have had from supporters has been incredible, people across the world looking to support our plans and that is fantastic. We realise there are a lot of questions still to be answered and whilst our negotiations with various parties continue it is very difficult to give all of the answers. But we are adamant that supporters should have every chance to ask questions face to face. That includes London Bulls and we will be sending members of our group to an open forum with you just as soon decisions are made by the relevant authorities.
Collectively, supporters of Hereford FC have an opportunity to create the club we all crave, one with its supporters and community at the heart of its fabric, but one that is forever protected against the experiences of the past months.
Much work to do, but we can do this. Forever United.
May I wish you all a happy, and hopefully exciting 2015.
Jon Hale
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