Property Update......

Several weeks have now passed since the shareholder meeting to discuss the Club’s proposed property deal. The Trust Board understands that the Club Board remains committed to pressing on with a partial sale of the ground (being the Main Stand and South end), subject to final shareholder approval. We have not been provided with a date for this shareholder meeting as yet, but expect that it will take place before the end of August, with the deal completing shortly after the meeting.

Given the allocation of shareholdings at the Club, we fully expect that the decision to proceed with the partial sale to be ratified at the shareholder meeting, regardless of whether or not the Trust supports the proposal. We will shortly canvass our membership to obtain your view on this issue before the upcoming shareholder meeting.

It is well known that the purpose of the property deal is to reduce the debt repayments which are due to the Bank, so as to assist the Club to trade at break even going forward. Based on the level of investment in the property deal disclosed by the Club Board at the June shareholder meeting, the Trust Board estimates that the reduction in payments due to the Bank (assuming no additional borrowing) will be in the region of £60,000 per annum. That clearly leaves a significant six figure funding gap when we look at the annual losses posted by the Club in recent years.

The Trust Board also understands that funds received from the sale of Gary Harkins and Marc Twaddle will be allocated towards last season's losses. As such, the proceeds from the sale of these players will have no direct impact on the position with the Bank.

The Trust Board therefore does not believe that the proposed property deal will, on its own, generate the kind of annual savings which are required in order to safeguard the Club’s future, in even the short to medium term. We do not like the deal that is on the table, but we have to be realistic and accept that without the significant financial backing needed to make any alternative options feasible, the Trust cannot stop the deal from proceeding.

It is clear that in the current environment, the Club cannot continue to operate at a loss unless significant new investment is found – in short, the Bank is unlikely to continue to fund a loss making business. Since the Club Board has been unable to secure the level of investment which would see the Bank debt cleared, they believe that they have no option but to proceed with the proposed property deal while also looking at other ways of cutting costs and increasing revenue, all at a time when the wider economy is struggling under recession.

We know that none of this makes pleasant reading, but every Thistle fan is united by a desire to ensure that the Club survives for generations to come. We all want better players, and clamour for them, but we have to be realistic in our expectations. The Club has been making unsustainable losses for a number of years and we now have to pay the price for that.

The Trust Board is committed to trying to help the Club Board to achieve the magic “break even point”, so that the long term security of Partick Thistle Football Club can be guaranteed. In reality, that is our only option. We hope that all supporters will join together in demonstrating to the Club Board that we accept as fans that we can sacrifice short term success for long term stability. We all have a part to play in helping the Club to achieve that stability.

Regardless of our differences, we are all united by our love of the Club, and we believe that this is the only way forward to secure its long term future.