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Archive Latest May 2007
(30/5/07)
Season Tickets Pegged
The club have announced that the prices of season
tickets has been set and the good news is that they're the same price as last
term. £120 adult, £150 family (2 adults and 2 kids no admission without a
child), £70 concession, £30 youth (12-16), under 12's who are accompanied get
in free!
Although this suggests that admission at the gate remains fixed this is yet to be confirmed.
(29/5/07)
Yee Ha!
The club have appointed John "Cowboy"
McCormick as manager. McCormick previously held the reigns at Dundee, Queen's
Park and Morton, and it's important to note that all of them gained promotion with
his help! His time at Hampden in particular shows he has experience of working on limited
budgets which shall of course be invaluable
at Cliftonhill.
Celtic Match Announced
After last years highly successful Jock Stein Friendship Trophy match the club have announced
that the Parkhead side shall once more be featuring at Cliftonhill. The match is
set for Saturday July 28th, the band Ronelles who proved popular the last time
they played Cliftonhill will also be playing and tickets will be £5 with a
number of parent & 1 child tickets at the same £5 price.
All season ticket holders and Trust members will have a ticket guaranteed up
till an agreed date to be announced, and all public sale tickets will be
available only from the Candy store in Whifflet. Watch this space for ticket
availability dates.
(16/5/07)
Manager "News"
At the same time one newspaper states Rovers are
seeking CV's of potential gaffers another stated that former Celtic starlet
Gerry Creaney (brother of the recently freed Rovers player Phil) is the
favourite to fill the position.
Supporters' Trust
The AGM of the supporters' trust has been set for Thursday 31st May at
Cliftonhill, members shall receive official notification through the post. More
details on the trust page!
Sportsmans Dinner
Once more the annual club dinner was held last Friday at Drumpellier Golf Club.
Guest speakers Des McLean and Dick Campbell were well received as was Pat Rolink
in his role as Compere!
The tradition game, auction and raffle raised a significant amount of funds to help the club build for next season. People there included Cliftonhill old boys Jamie McKenzie and Stewart Easton as well as a smattering of local worthies, businessmen and of course fans!
(14/5/07)
Del In Charge
Whilst the board of directors consider applicants
for the vacant Cliftonhill hotseat physio Derek Kelly shall be looking after
team matters in the meantime. Del has had management experience at previous
clubs and with Rovers.
Lennox Heads South
Fans favourite Tommy Lennox has declined the offer of a new contract with Rovers
and has signed for newly promoted Berwick Rangers.
(11/5/07)
Signings
Despite being manageress Rovers have not
sat on their laurels regarding players. Iain Chisholm, David Scott, Brian Smith
and John McGeough have all signed new contracts. Tommy Lennox, Gordon Lennon,
Scott Chaplain, Dave McFarlane, Ciaran Donnelly, Kevin Nicoll, Gordon Moffatt and Pat Walker have
all been offered terms and have until May 31st to decide if their future lies at
Cliftonhill. 'Keeper Jamie Ewings is off to the USA on a scholarship so wasn't
offered a new deal, and all other players have been released!
(7/5/07)
Club
Statement
The board of directors of the club have issued the
following statement on the departure of manager Jim Chapman.
“On Thursday 3rd May the Board of
Directors unanimously agreed to terminate Jim Chapman's tenure as Head Coach at
the Club. This decision was reached after much discussion dating back to October
last year and was certainly not taken lightly.
The current board inherited a financial shambles and has worked diligently to
bring Club finances under control. Inherent in that situation were a number of
current liabilities, which left unaddressed would have resulted in the closure
of the Club. These debts are still being paid off and that has limited the
funding available on the playing side of the Club.
When Jim Chapman was appointed Head Coach almost 2 years ago he was made fully
aware of the Club's financial position. It says much about his ambition that he
was prepared to work with a budget which was a fraction of that enjoyed by
previous managers. While it is true to say that Jim and his staff did not
receive a salary, it is untrue that they were working for nothing. Jim had use
of a Club car for much of his first season and he received ex-gratia payments
from the Club in recognition of his efforts. In addition during the season just
ended Jim and the backroom team were part of the same bonus scheme as the
playing staff, again recognising their contribution to the Club. Final payments
under that scheme will be made within the next week or so as will any other
outstanding expenses due.
Much has been made of an apparent breakdown in communication between Jim and the
Board. Despite financial constraints the Board has always been supportive of
requests from Jim for improved resources. That support is demonstrated by the
fact that the Club now enjoys the use of facilities at St Andrew's School and
the JJB Fitness Centre.
The Board recognises the fine line which exists between giving advice and
interfering in team matters. Robert Watt, Football Director, has an enviable
record in finding and bringing new talent to the Club. Indeed he was
instrumental in bringing Gordon Lennon, Ciaran Donnelly, Brian Smith and Stephen
Donachy to the Club and his input is viewed as invaluable by the Board. At no
time has he interfered in team matters but he has always been available to offer
advice to Jim Chapman. That Jim has not availed himself of Robert's experience
more frequently is a matter for him to comment on, but we all need to bear in
mind that communication in any relationship is a two way street. At this time of
the year communication between the Head Coach and the Board is vital, but that
has not been conducted to the Board's satisfaction despite several attempts by
the Board to achieve this, thus ensuring that those players we wish to see
retained were offered new and improved contracts before the end of the season.
Indeed at a meeting between Frank Meade, Robert Watt, Jim Chapman and Alan
Adamson less than 3 weeks ago, the Chairman reinforced the need for improved
communication and left no doubt about the consequences should this fail to
happen.
Against the background of a deteriorating relationship and uncertainty about
squad depth and quality for next season it was the Board's view that action was
required to protect the Club's interests in the medium and long term and
concluded that this would be best achieved by terminating Jim Chapman's tenure
as Head Coach.
Some supporters may have heard radio interviews given by Jim Chapman and
Chairman Frank Meade on L107 on Friday 4th May. The Board was disappointed to
note that while Jim Chapman publicly, and rightly, thanked his backroom team of
Alan Adamson, Eric Stallard and Jimmy McLaughlin he made no mention of Derek
Kelly, who has been an outstanding servant of the Club over many years. The
Board wishes to rectify that omission by placing on record the Club's thanks for
his commitment and dedication. Derek will remain at the Club.
The Club's ambitions remain unchanged and the search for a new manager is
already underway. An appointment will be made as quickly as possible but we will
not rush into anything.
The Board fully understands the concerns of true Albion Rovers supporters and
recognises that the unofficial website is a valuable communication tool. However
we in no way condone comment which is defamatory or offensive and those people
responsible for such posts undermine the genuine concerns of our true
supporters.
One major concern raised by supporters seems to be the manner in which the news
broke. Jim Chapman was given advice by Robert Watt on how this might be handled
to both his and the Club's satisfaction to eliminate the possibility of
conjecture and ill-founded rumour. The Board wish to point out that Robert
Watt subsequently received his first enquiry regarding the vacancy less than 3
hours after the meeting with Jim Chapman ended. The Board is disappointed that
Jim Chapman decided to put the news in the public domain in the manner in which
he did.
Finally, as a Board we have always been accessible to supporters and that will
continue despite much of the ill-informed comment around Jim Chapman's
departure. As Directors we have a statutory responsibility to protect the
interests of the Club and we will not step back from making decisions which we
believe are necessary to protect the future of the Club.
Board of Directors:
Frank Meade (Chairman)
Robert Watt
Lew McWilliam
Patrick Rolink
John Cornfield
Neil Welsh”
(5/5/07)
Chapman Gone
In a shock move it appears that manager Jim Chapman has been sacked by Rovers. The story broke in the Evening Times newspaper on Friday afternoon that
Chappie had been axed as Rovers gaffer. The story is as follows :
Albion Rovers have sacked manager Jim Chapman.
In a move at odds with the progress Chapman, who worked for free, has made with the Cliftonhill club, Rovers have cited a breakdown in communication with director of football Robert Watt as the cause behind their decision.
A surprised Chappie said: "It is hard to get my head round the decision as we have made clear progress on the park, having finished eighth last season and now moved into sixth place.
"I gave the board a five-year plan to take the club forward and next season our target was promotion.
"Yet they have cited communication problems as the reason for my dismissal.
"However, I believe the bottom line is the club's ambitions don't match mine."
The club have been slow to respond but have promised a statement by Monday which can be found on the website.
(3/5/07)
Q&A
There is a summary of the question and answer session which Jim Chapman had with fans
after the final game of the season can be found on Chappie's
Chat page!
SFL NEWS
The Scottish Football League has appointed
David Longmuir to their newly created post of Chief Executive. Read about it at
the SFL
website.
The league have also issued the following statement about a
new sponsorship deal.
Diadora the famous Italian sportswear manufacturer are proud to announce that they have agreed a two year deal with The Scottish Football League to become their Official Ball Supplier starting from next season. The new deal will see Diadora supply a specifically designed football to all the SFL clubs from the 2007/2008 season.
The new SFL match ball will be based on Diadora’s FIFA approved GAMMARETE PRO ball which is at the very cutting edge of ball design and technology and will be used by Teams across the globe. The 8 panel ball design delivers an increased surface area and reduced stitching that cuts air friction giving the ball a faster truer flight.
The new ball and replica versions will be available from all good sports retailers for the start of the season.
Peter Terry, Managing Director Diadora UK commented, “ We are delighted with this new deal and are very much looking forward to working with The Scottish Football League and member clubs. The new GAMMA ball is a fantastic design and one that we are sure the SFL clubs will enjoy playing with across the next two seasons.”
Peter Donald, Secretary of The Scottish Football League, said: “We are extremely happy to enter into an agreement which will see Diadora become the Official Ball Supplier to The Scottish Football League during the next two seasons. I am sure that players will enjoy the new GAMMA ball and that the SFL and its member clubs will develop a close working relationship with Diadora which will prove to be mutually beneficial.”