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| Rhyl determined to become a people club |
| Monday 21 June 2010 |
 RELEGATED Rhyl say they are determined to become a people’s club and never to be a one-man show again. That key message emerged from a packed public meeting on Friday where Lilywhites supporters welcomed in a new era of transparency and togetherness, writes Dave Jones in the Daily Post. Whilst the Belle Vue club is still getting over the disappointment of its relegation from the Welsh Premier League for failing to gain a domestic licence, the mood of the meeting at the Pavilion Theatre was one of optimism and a determination to rise again. For 10 years wealthy businessman Peter Parry (pictured) bankrolled Rhyl and delivered considerable success, including two Welsh Premier titles, two Welsh Cups, six successive qualifications for Europe and a total transformation of Belle Vue stadium which made it the envy of the league. But through the joy of winning trophies, many fans also felt increasingly detached from the daily goings-on at the club and considered parts of the Parry regime “cloak and dagger”. Nonetheless, there was plenty of euphoria at the end of the 2008/09 campaign when a star-studded Rhyl squad funded through Parry’s resources won the Welsh Premier crown for a second time. But a summer of discontent followed with the announcement that new player-manager Greg Strong would have to operate with a considerably reduced budget in 2009/10. Several key players departed but Strong brought in new faces and the Lilies enjoyed a tremendous start to the season. However, main benefactor Parry announced he was stepping down as president last December due to business commitments and a serious cash-flow crisis followed for the then champions. Prize money later received from Champions League qualification was owed to Parry and with finances ultra tight, more top players left Belle Vue. Despite the difficulties the team got through the season and finished a highly-creditable sixth in the Welsh Premier under the inspirational Strong. Then came the bombshell of relegation to the Cymru Alliance, but Rhyl’s new chairman Paul Higginson told Friday’s meeting that the club’s financial situation had improved considerably, with debts of over £500,000 hovering last summer having been cleared. However, some fans felt that to avoid past problems reoccurring, both from a financial and supporter-club relations point of view, the Lilywhites should never have one sole controller again. Long-time Rhyl fan Ian Endres told the Post: “The last time we had one of these (public) meetings was 10 years ago and over the past 10 years decisions have been made and we as fans were not allowed to question them. “That’s what happens when you let one man rule the whole roost and it should not happen again. “I’m not running Peter Parry down, he did great things for this club, but I feel from now on we need more meetings like this to keep the fans informed.” Higginson replied: “For the past 10 years Rhyl have been extraordinarily successful. "Peter Parry put in a lot of time and investment purely out of his love for the club and got nothing out of it, only satisfaction from seeing their successes. “But in the end it became too much for one person – we won’t get into that situation again.” Another Rhyl supporter, Alan James, welcomed the fact the board had called the meeting. “I’m heartened by the openness of this meeting. Had what’s happening tonight happened a few months ago maybe people could have helped and the club might not have found itself in the situation it was in.” Higginson admitted some wrong decisions had been made and spoke of future “direct engagement” with the fans and increased supporter involvement in the running of Rhyl FC. Fresh investors and new ideas to revitalise the club were encouraged and Higginson revealed former president Parry was Rhyl’s main sponsor for next season, with other backers being sought. “Not everything is going to be shared by the board – that’s not practical – but the way we operate and communicate will be clear,” he said. After the meeting, former managing director and now board advisor Dave Milner, plus Rhyl FC secretary Kevin Davies, hailed the event a massive success. “What happened tonight was, we gave the general public a view of the new Rhyl FC,” said Milner. “Rhyl FC is not the mighty beast that it was, supported by a major benefactor and focused just on the football field trying to win the league, trying to keep in Europe. “Now it is a far broader beast that is supporting the community, that has academies, that has teams from very young ages up to 16 – and at the same time is going to break even.” Davies added: “It is now a much broader base with fan involvement at the forefront of it – not at the background of it. “The fans now have a voice. They know after tonight they will be able to communicate with the club and the club will communicate with them and that’s the way the football club has got to go forward. “We are where we are. I thought the meeting was positive and it was great to see so many numbers here. We will rise again.” Photo: Peter Parry [Trinity Mirror North Wales]. |