05/01/08

This is my account of the shenanigans regarding football that goes on, and is going on, at the Club of which I am Chairman.   Tyne Youth & Community Centre - formerly -Tyne Boys' Club.

I am assuming that by clicking onto this particular page you have followed the link from 'June 10th - 40 days to go', and are therefore interested in the finer points of Club politics.   Most, if not all, of my account is recorded in the official minutes of the Club.

Any other version is a mixture of rumour, hearsay and tittle tattle.

I shall start at the beginning, it seems as good a place as any.   I joined Tyne Boys' Club in 1966 when I was 11 years old and  England had not yet beaten the Germans in The World Cup Final.   I played football for Tyne before I was ever considered good enough for my school team, which was odd 'cos Tyne were much better.

By the time I got to 16 and was playing in Under 18 football, Tyne Colts', as we were known, were comfortably the crème de la crème of Northumberland.   In fact we were selected en masse to represent the County in 3 games in season 1971, and we won them all. 

We continued winning, seemingly non stop, and won every trophy at our level for 3 seasons, beating the 'mighty' Wallsend Boys' Club, North Shields Boys' Club and Montague & North Fenham along the way.   We progressed to the 3rd round proper of the FA Youth Cup (check your Rothman's) and had beaten a couple of professional sides before being knocked out by Scunthorpe United at The Old Show Ground, Kevin Keegan was a Scunthorpe first team player at this time.   Scunthorpe were hammered by a Brian Clough managed Derby County team in the next round 6 - 0.

When I finished in junior football I continued to play for my beloved Tyne despite tempting offers from 'higher' ranked teams, I had to give up playing following a car crash which caused havoc to my knee when I was 23.   I eventually had to have my cartilage out in my left knee some years later as a result of my knee giving way and 'locking' which was stopping me working. 

As a married man with a young family work was my priority and we moved up to Scotland for a couple of years, before returning in 1985.   The first thing I did after moving back was to go and see Ron Chirnside, he was by now an MBE, the founder and Club Leader of Tyne Boys' Club.   I took over a 'wild bunch' of 16 year olds and became a football manager at my boyhood Club.

I also joined the management committee and served as an ordinary committee member before becoming Club secretary for 2 years.   I succeeded Sid Cope as Chairman in 1991 and at the time of writing, still am, unless of course there is a coup d'etat about to take place.   I was also still a football manager during a lot of this time and took 2 teams through the system before taking them into senior football as the first ever Magnesia Bank football team.   We had moderate success reaching countless cup finals but never actually winning a trophy.   Only 1 thing to do - I SACKED MYSELF - and appointed a manager to replace me while I took over the admin. and fundraising responsibilities.

 At the same time as this was going on my own 2 sons were now members of Tyne so I was acting as 'gofer' and chauffeur for them and their team mates every Sunday and doing the ferrying up and down to Lightfoot Stadium twice a week for my eldest who was progressing through the ranks of the judo system at the same time.

I do not take kindly to the 'new parents on the block ' accusing me of not liking football and having no sympathy for them as they bring up their own families and go through the routine as I once did.   I do not see any of these at our management committee meetings nor indeed at the AGM of the Club.   Still I suppose they must be right. 

Do keep in mind that I am Chairman of the Club during  all of this period and  Secretary of Percy main Amateurs FC playing in the Northern Alliance,( which I was right up to and a few months beyond having my heart attack and subsequent heart transplant), about which a lot of the parents are completely oblivious.

Having given you a bit of background information about my football/Tyne  credentials I will let you  judge if I know something about which I am talking and also whether I like football or not.

The following is a copy of the information I am about to publish on Tyne Youth & Community website - for the benefit and information of all interested members/footballers/parents:

Football – ‘The Way Ahead’

The ‘old’ Tyne Boys’ Club has a tradition of excellence going back to the mid 60’s and it is something we are very proud of. However, we are not and have never been a football club and as a result we suffer in comparison to the likes of North Shields and Whitley Bay Football Clubs.

The members of the ‘new’ Tyne come to us because they like the club set-up and then join in with the football side of things - and once every 3 or 4 years we unearth a great bunch of lads (at the moment) who win league titles and cups which is great.

At the same time we also cater for the lads who simply want to play football and we provide them with the opportunity to do so regardless of their talent. This is fine as far as it goes but we lack continuity and if a manager leaves for whatever reason (he is usually a parent of a player) the team is set back and has to start again from scratch.

In an effort to prevent this I have been working closely with Percy Main Amateurs FC to see if we could find a new way of doing things.

After lots of discussion and meetings with ALL of the present managers it was decided that we would pool our resources and become one big football family.

The official title will be Percy Main Tyne Youth & Community Centre FC.

Obviously this is a mouthful but we think the younger teams will get tagged Tyne and the older teams Percy Main, which is fine.

We will be setting up a system, hopefully in time for the coming season (2003-04), which will include Under 8/9/10’s small sided teams. The Under 11/12/13/14/16/17 or 18’s will operate in either the Coast Colts’ league or the NACYP leagues, the choice is theirs! At the top of the system will be the first team of Percy Main FC who play in the Northern Alliance Premier League.

If this is not the way ahead then I am not sure what the alternative would be. The status quo, as far as I am concerned, is not an option because we would not be offering the young people the best football structure available to them.

We at Tyne and Percy Main Amateurs FC are working closely with the NFA and The Coast Colts’ League and also the NACYP.

It is very important to all parents and footballers alike to understand that this is not a sell out but it is a way of improving our football provision at Tyne. We hope to become a Community Football Club and also a Charter Football Cub recognised by the Football Association.

All managers/coaches/trainers will not only have police clearance to work with young people but will be encouraged to take FA Coaching Badges as well as First Aid qualifications. Tyne has guaranteed ALL of the managers who have attended the meetings that we will help with funding for training courses etc. and ALL were happy to go along with this with the exception of our outgoing football secretary, George Betham. We tried all ways to keep George on board but he has chosen to go his own way, we wish him well.

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In fairness to George, he has let his feelings be known all along and has said so to everyone at the numerous meetings we have had.   At the meeting  which the managers currently at Tyne attended, with Nigel Voules the secretary of the Northumberland Association of Clubs for Young People (NACYP) acting as an independent chairman, a vote was taken.

The proposal was whether to proceed along the 'way ahead' as put to them by me as Chairman of Tyne.

Apart from George, ALL of the other managers were in agreement to go for it.   He told the assembled group that he would be resigning and left the meeting.   As I was not in the meeting when the vote was taken (I was sitting outside the room) George told me of his decision, shook my hand and left.   I was then called into the meeting and informed that All of the managers would be going down the route as had been put to them.      Fine!

Next Step - contact Percy Main Amateurs FC (PMAFC) and arrange meeting with all details, concerns, hopes and aspirations to be discussed fully by everyone.    This was done and another meeting was arranged so that new people coming on board would be introduced and we could start to implement the plan.   An announcement was  put in the local paper, which is read by all local sports nuts, and a meeting arranged for Wednesday 4th June 2003.

We still held a slight hope that George Betham might change his mind, and be part of the new set up, I was informed that the odds were better than 50/50. Despite any differences we all thought that George could 'do a job'.   This proved not to be the  case - George has left.

The meeting was convened and ALL of the managers were in attendance plus 4 new managers who had joined us.   Again I was in the building, chairing a meeting of the management committee, but kept out of the meeting and would go in if asked.

I was asked in after the management committee meeting had finished to answer a few specific points raised by existing/new managers.   Specifically

1. Would Tyne pay for coaching for managers ?                           YES
2. Would Tyne pay for pitches?                                                      YES
3. Would Tyne pay insurance?                   For Tyne members - YES
4. Would Tyne help with setting up U8/9/10 football.                   YES.

Providing the costs of setting up the U8/9/10 football were not sum fantastic sum of money it was the intention of the Tyne committee to fund the start up costs in full.   It was hoped that the teams concerned would raise funds to help buy new strips etc., but where it was possible for us to help - we would.

I explained that ALL players who were members of Tyne would be financed in the same way as had always been the case.   I expected players from U14 and below to be members of Tyne, the others would choose, I thought it would be better if they were simply footballers over the age of 15 and that they would be financed by PMAFC/Tyne by way of fundraising.

To put it on the record, members pay £12/annum and 50p/visit to Club.

On match days they had previously paid £1 to the team funds.

Everyone was delighted with this news - the comment was made how cheap it was and that to play for Whitley Bay, the players had to pay £12/month.

I left for home in the knowledge that matters were going ahead and ALL managers/officials were happy.

So to the phone call on 10th June

Len Renham, had secretary of PMAFC, rang me to say that 1 manager  was leaving and taking all of the players with him.   He had rang all of the parents (he is one too) and told them of his intentions and would they follow him!

To where? - I hear you ask - to the 'promised land' said Alice.   No, No be serious Marsh.   He told us that his allegiance was to George Betham, not Tyne, and he was going to help start another football club, called  FC TYNEMOUTH.

It is possibly just me but again I will let others be the judge,  how is it that a man can attend 3 meetings, at least, and vote FOR all of the proposals and not speak up up in front of his peers that he would be deserting them in the knowledge that he would be creating a hole where his team had been.   Also that by not being up front and honest, the Club in the form of Tyne or PMAFC would not be given an opportunity to explain the way ahead to the parents of the players in the team that exists.

To say I am disheartened would be, especially in my case, an understatement.   I have seriously reconsidered my position as Chairman and the easy thing to do would simply be to walk away from it all.   Why should I?

After all I have been through and everything we have achieved at Tyne I will not be put off by a lone selfish parent who should know better.

The biggest laugh happened on Friday night (13th June) when George Betham came to see me at Tyne with a list of trophy winners for the presentation night which is coming up soon.   He gave me the list of each team's winners and asked if I would do a favour for one of the managers (GUESS WHICH ONE) and order some extra medals for each on of his squad to be presented on the night.

Do you think I am being unreasonable by declining the request ?

I realise the above account of recent events is complicated - but if you have read this far and understand it all -
LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK.