The future of TUST

My thoughts are that a supporters' organisation can only claim to have legitimacy and be representative of supporters if it has a decent number of members.

Whilst a small number will sign a standing order and expect nothing in return, a lot of people will not bother if they see no return.

From talking to supporters, there is a real desire for social events which involve people with the club - such as the events Lou has organised in the past.

There is a school of thought that such activity is beneath the dignity of a Supporters' Trust - which should concern itself with far more important things than supporters. It's not one I agree with.

Yes, the Trust needs to be kept going ready for the day when we may need to rally the troops for battle. But if we look down our noses at the troops, there won't be any left to rally come the glorious day.

I don't think there is a conflict in whether to work with the club or not. The Trust can plough a straight line - to further the cause of TUFC and to place the club at the heart of the community.

If the club's board has the same goals, the supporters can pull in the same direction as the board. That's not forelock-tugging, it's common sense. If the club's board goes in the opposite direction, then the Trust can confront them.

I think any supporters' organisation should be inclusive and focus on what we all have in common rather than be divisive.

I do recall Chris Roberts trying hard to get a Supporters' Club going when he sensed the growing strength of the Trust. Divide and rule.

On the other hand, if the Trust is going to be paralysed by fear of looking anything like an organisation that might encourage members to enjoy themselves - maybe it should just go into mothballs.

One problem with TUST is the lack of officers. Splitting in two will double the need for officers. How will that work then?

So do I understand correctly that the TUST wants to become a supporters club now? I will start off agreeing fully with everything Rags has said in his post and I do feel having a TUST is important for any football club.

I for one was so pleased when the TUST was formed and while I still maintain Roberts was already on his way due to not being able to make any further monthly payments to Mike Bateson, I do feel Roberts knew with the TUST against him, he would have no where to go even if he could find some cash.

It should not be forgotten that we did have a separate supporters club at the time, but the TUST talked it into becoming a part of them in order I would suspect to boost its numbers.

The TUST has gone to great lengths in the past to get the message out it was not a supporters club as they state on their own website

We are NOT a supporters club. The business of a trust is primarily to represent the supporters to the club as opposed to the traditional supporters club role of representing the club to the supporters. We aim to purchase shares in the club and gain board representation to ensure that the voice of the supporters is heard and heeded.



What are the aims of the trust?

This is best summed up through our mission statement: "The aim of the Torquay United Supporters' Trust is to further the cause of Torquay United Football Club, to strengthen the links between the club and the wider community of Torbay and South Devon, and to represent the views of the supporters for the continued benefit of the club."
Why should I join the trust?

The Torquay United Supporters Trust is NOT a supporters club. Supporters clubs serve a vital function at football clubs up and down the land. But the supporters trust is independent and aims to gain fan representation at the club, so that the voice of the supporters - the lifeblood of the club - is heard and heeded, while maintaining and upholding the ethics of governance and transparency in all our dealings at the behest of our membership.


I was a member myself at the time the TUST decided to sponsor the youth team and felt at the time the TUST should not have done that as it changed the whole relationship it had with the club. Rags asked who was asked to make the new changes. My question is when have the paid up members ever been asked about anything? I sure was never asked if I wanted the TUST to become a sponsor or asked about how any of the money raised was spent on.

My main reason for leaving the TUST has been discussed to death on here before so I won’t go over that again, but Jon makes the point about the TUST looking down its nose at the very fans it looks to recruit as members.

When the TFF was set up our other fans forum already had a TUST board up and running. I think it was Chris Fleet who made contact with me to ask if such a board could be set up on the TFF. This was done and I also set up a special board for Lou to use for the then Junior Gulls.

It was only when Chris was no longer on the board of the TUST that the TUST decided it did not want to be a part of anything they considered to be unofficial. I did feel at the time that both forums were independent of the club and as the TUST claimed they were as well, I was not sure why they felt they were anymore official as the two existing forums.

I also felt it was a rather short sighted view the TUST took as the forums are a place where the fans are found and the TUST could have used them so much more to their own advantage.

One thing I have talked on here about in the past is the real need for a good supporters club. One only has to read the old programmes on here to know just how important the old supporters club once was. I’m not sure we could ever have one that was as successful as the ones (yes we had more than one) back in the 50’s, but I’m convinced one set up and run properly could do very well.

It should never be a part of the TUST if only for everything the TUST says it stands for. I long argued that fans should have a choice and that choice should be join the TUST who them it seems decides itself what to spend its money on, or join a supporters club run by the club knowing your money goes straight into the club.

The TUST wanted to put on one social event this year and I asked at the time had the TUST forgot about the real fans of our club. Their event was far of the reach on most ordinary fans and the reason in the end I suspect the event never went ahead.

So why does the TUST now want to change? Maybe and I don’t know for sure, year on year since it was set up its membership has dwindled. I’m sure that is the case and the reason why maybe no more than the fans now feel the club is in very safe hands.

For me its shame the TUST has acted in the past they way it has, no one can tell me the Junior Gulls are far better now that Lou is no longer involved with them. What is the future of the TUST? Not sure myself but as Jon says there may come a day when it might have a major role to play and if it is going to have a voice the club HEEDS as it claims, it will need to have far more members than it does now.

Leave running a supporters club to the club or someone who runs it on the clubs behalf, you can’t have a voice that will be HEEDED if in fact you have become a part of the club as you would surly do if you became a supporters club.

I'll vote for you Darren!

And what's wrong with our wine bars? They're very nice wine bars with excellent cellars and a relaxed line in theoretical dogma.

"I say, my good man, another bottle of the Cote du Py 2007!"

As I had not read the TUST letter Jon, I was only trying to read between the lines. It does seem a shame the TUST board is struggling to get new people to join its board. I have been sent a copy of the letter now that I have put up on this post for all to read.

I do have mixed views about some of money paid to join a new supporters club being filtered into the TUST, surely the TUST should get money from those who want to join it.

What seems a real shame is we all know one lady who is the best organizer and fund raiser the club or the TUST for that matter has seem for a long time.

Maybe as the TUST is having such problems it would be a good time to build some bridges and put the past behind and get on board Lou again.

What ever happened in the past should be forgotten for the good of the TUST and also the good of the club.

I may have had my disagreements with Merse in the past, but he and three others set up the TUST for all the right reasons and back then it could be called a proper TUST. It’s a shame that those who set it up lived so far away and therefore could not run it as such, I wonder how the TUST would be now it they had all lived here in Torbay.

I have quoted your part Chris about personalities, as for me that has been the biggest problem and the one that has seen the TUST in my view, fall from grace. Yes people have given their time for free and for that they do need a pat on the back, but personalities have been allowed to get in the way and that is maybe why the TUST is struggling to get new board members.

I’m sure I will get crucified for what I’m about to say, but they are my own views based on many facts I do know and I feel its time to put down on paper my thoughts. Who remembers the very fist legends night that Lou put so much hard work into. She did that for the fans and to raise money for HER Junior gulls.

She decided to do another one only this time she was TOLD the money had to go into the TUST funds and she would be given some back in the form of an allowance. Colin Lee became involved and set up a new separate account so any money Lou raised for the junior gulls would go into that account so it would only be spent on the junior gulls.

I’m sorry but how come when Colin Lee was put on gardening leave and no longer in a position to stand behind Lou, that the TUST suddenly came up with a letter supposedly written by one of Lou’s friends who had an axe to grind it seems, used to remove Lou from the TUST.

It should not be forgotten that when asked for some transparency, asked to state all the allegations made against Lou in public (something Lou wanted to be able to clear her name) they all went and hid. Yes a few selected people were given the details via email, but it was and always has been just one side of the story, theirs.

I read some of the correspondence that had been sent to Lou, I just wish she had been brave enough to allow me to put it up on the TFF, Jon knows full well what happened to an event that was planned not that long ago and what was claimed at the time, the real reasons the plug was pulled on it.

Despite how I feel about some of the things the TUST has done and the manner in which they went about it, I still feel it’s very important we do have a TUST, only one that does what it says on the lid.

We do need a good and well supported supporters club and when the TUST thought a few years ago, I was looking to try and start one up, it was clear they were frightened. Given the choice with the club now in such good safe hands, I would put money on fans choosing to belong to a supporters club rather than the TUST.

Why? Well I can only speak for myself, but I would rather my money go straight into the club and let them use as they so wish. For me one problem with the TUST has been that just those on the board have decided what the money was spent on. I know for a fact many good ideas were put forward by some members, but it was the case if someone who was once the chairman did not want it, then it was never going to happen.

I was a member for a year, not once did I hear from the TUST during that year, it felt like they just took my money and forgot about me. In this day of email contact it’s not hard to send out mass emails to members. Its not hard to sent out a list with projects on it and allow the members to vote. That way it’s truly democratic and the voice of the fans do really matter.

I would be more than happy to join a new supporters club, but not if the TUST were allowed to have some of the money. The TUST needs to fund itself and encourage more people to join it and it can do that by becoming something that is respected once again.

Maybe the fab four could take the TUST back to its beginnings and start it once again on the right path, the path they started if of on back then.

If the TUST want to do some social evenings then all well and good, but why not act in an adult way and get back on board the best money raiser and organiser this club has seen for a very long time.

Do not look down on the two forums; use them as more fans will read the sites than your own website. We should all be in this together for the good of the club and maybe if the TUST is put back on the right path and runs itself in the correct way, it will find it appeals once again to those who were once members, but ended up saying no thankyou.