It's That Time Of Year Again......

Dropping through the letterbox on Tuesday morning (actually, it was probably afternoon as I don't think postmen get up early in the morning anymore) was a letter containing an invitation to the club's Annual General Meeting and a copy of the Accounts for the year ended 31 May 2008.

The AGM will be held at Firhill on Tuesday 31 March commencing at 1900hrs. The covering letter from Tom Hughes states that "the operating loss was reduced from £510,297 to £268,523 in the year to 31 May 2008" and goes on to comment that "losses for the current year are at a similar level and it goes without saying that in the medium to longer term that is unsustainable".

Over the past number of years it has been Firhill itself that has been at the root of any reinvestment plans. In the letter, Tom goes on to say that "In previous years capital and revenue expenditure had been committed on the basis that there would be advantageous realisations from the property. (In the year in question) that has not happened and the current set of accounts includes a reversal of a previous option which did not crystallise"

Whilst recounting some of the initiative taken to improve the position in the last year, it is noted that "further steps will have to be taken to increase revenue and reduce expenditure"

The somewhat sombre tone is continued in the accounts themselves where the auditors have added a comment on the club's ability to continue as a going concern. It is worth quoting this section in full :-

In forming our opinion, which is not qualified, we have considered the adequacy of disclosures made in note 1 to the accounts concerning the company's ability to continue as a going concern.

The Company incurred a loss for the year ended 31st May, 2008 of £268,523 and is projecting further trading losses in the year to 31st May, 2009 prior to any anticipated gain on the redevelopment of the company's property. The bank has provided a facility of £550,000 which is being fully utilised and support from the bank is being confirmed on a month to month basis. The directors consider the company to be a going concern as the redevelopment of the company's property will provide an injection of funds and enable the company to substantially reduce its borrowing costs which for the year to 31st May, 2008 were £117,000.

These statements indicate the uncertainty of the company's ability to continue as a going concern. The financial statements do not include the adjustments that would result if the company was unable to continue as a going concern."

We are undoubtedly not alone in finding challenges in the current climate, but the combined effect of these statements seem to indicate that all our eggs are in a Firhill-shaped basket at a time when any property developments are up in the air.

Given all that, it is somewhat disconcerting to find in the notes to the accounts that "the company has received a claim for damages of £443,000 from Regency Homes (Scotland) Limited". It confirms that this claim is being defended and that "the directors assess the probability of a settlement being made as low" and, as such, no provision for this is made in the accounts. Let us hope that judgement proves to be sound.

As an indication of the glorious manner in which banks operate, the notes to the account also confirm that it will cost the club the princely sum of £200,000 when the bank loan is paid in full.

The JagsTrust will be present at the Annual General Meeting and will be considering the information just received along with other shareholders. We'd welcome any input from members of an accounting or other numerate background to assist us in understanding the finer points of detail that we might wish to consider. If you would be able to assist, please contact Sandy Wilkie.

Meet The Manager

The Jags Trust is holding another 'Meet the Manager' event at Firhill on Thursday 26th February 2009 which will give you the chance to quiz Ian McCall on how things are going this season and on his plans for the future.

The event starts in the Aitken Suite at 7.30pm and will be compared by Lance Gilmour who will be familiar to all of you as the voice of Firhill at every home game. Questions can be submitted in advance on http://www.jagsforum.net/, by e-mail direct to chair@jagstrust.com. We will also be taking questions on the evening as well if you prefer to hold your fire until then.

Admission will be free to paid-up Jags Trust members. Non-members can gain entry by joining the Trust on the evening. (Any members who are partially paid for the current year - commonly, those paying by Standing Order - will be harassed in the nicest possible fashion for the balance of their subscription). If last year is anything to go by, it's likely to be a very popular event, so it's first-come, first-served on the door.

We will also be running a raffle to win some signed footballs and signed Club shirts and there will also be a special mystery prize! So, would Ian consider playing Harkins in defence? Should we stick with 3-5-2? What key players will the manager rely on in the closing stages of the title race? Get the date in your diaries and bring yourself and your mates along for what will prove to be a very interesting evening.

Centenary Fund Winners For February

Details of the winners in the first Centenary Fund draw are available on the official club website

And There's More.....

We are pleased to confirm that Sandy Wilkie has agreed to resume the role of Chair of the Trust until the end of the current year. As you will know, Sandy carried out this role until the 2008 Annual General Meeting when he indicated his desire to stand down.

In addition, the Trust Board have also co-opted two new members to the Board. Past member Tom Hosie returns after an absence of about a year, and Donald Larmour represents a further injection of young blood into our activities. Both will serve until the end of the current year when they will be eligible to put themselves forward for direct election by the members

We wish all of them the best of luck in the coming months

News From the Trust Board........

The Trust Board met for the first time on Monday night for the first time since the Special General Meeting which agreed that the Trust should support the Centenary Fund by 42 votes to 33.

As you may be aware Greig Forbes, Colin Quinn and Raymond Rose have all resigned from the Trust Board in the light of that decision as they felt sufficiently strongly that they did not feel able to continue to serve. Whilst the remaining members of the Board regret their decision, they do go with our thanks and best wishes.

Some of Monday’s meeting was spent on refocusing our activities to reflect the new situation that we find ourselves in. We will be looking to make a number of announcements as a result of this in the near future, including some additions to the Trust Board to replace the departing members.

With regard to the Centenary Fund, all current members of the 1876 Club have been contacted to obtain their consent for ongoing payments to be made to the Centenary Fund.

We had also indicated that we would be conducting a final draw for the 1876 Club and I can confirm that the winners are:-

• 1 pair of full hospitality ticket at a 2008/9 home game of their choosing to F.N. Walker
  
  
• 1 pair of Thistle Partner hospitality tickets for home fixtures in March to
  
  Bill Copeland for 7 March 2009 v Clyde
  Neil Roden for 22 March 2009 v Dundee
  
  
• £50 voucher for Greaves to Tommy McMillan
  
  
• And, finally, a £50 voucher for Borders to Fraser Murray
  

We will be contacting the winners directly with further details about their prizes.

Further information will also be contained in the next Newsletter which will be distributed to members within the next week or so.

New eBay Items in Support of the Jags Trust

New items up for auction on behalf of the Trust.
A Kenny Arthur framed print courtesy of Campbell Hughes.
A pair of match worn (Peterhead play-off) autographed Kenny Arthur gloves with thanks to Nomad, Jag of Arabia for these.
Don't be shy, get your bids in!
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110339788808

Special General Meeting Update

At the Special General Meeting the following motion will be tabled;-

This Special General Meeting of the JagsTrust notes the offer by Partick Thistle Football Club to merge the existing members of the 1876 Club into the newly created Centenary Fund and, in particular, that;-

- There is no longer a requirement for the JagsTrust to pay an annual fee in cash or in kind to maintain their position on the Club Board in recognition of the unique role played by our Club Board Representative

- That “B” shares in Partick Thistle Football Club will be issued to the JagsTrust in respect of monies paid to the Centenary Fund in the first year for the existing members of the 1876 Club. For subsequent years, a payment of 10% each year in cash will be made in respect of continuing contributors which the JagsTrust may choose to convert into shares or otherwise use as they see fit.

- That new members of the Centenary Fund will be able to indicate that they wish their contributions to the Centenary Fund to be used to generate additional “B” shares for the JagsTrust in their first year of payment. For subsequent years, a payment of 10% each year in cash will be made in respect of continuing contributors which the JagsTrust may choose to convert into shares or otherwise use as they see fit

- The club will make available 24 hospitality places per annum for use by the Trust provided only that these are not sold at a rate less than that applicable at the time

- The club board will consider an invitation to the JagsTrust to provide a second board member in 2010.

This meeting agrees that this offer meets our objectives and should be accepted. It also authorises the Trust Board to make the necessary arrangements to manage the migration of 1876 Club members to the Centenary Fund recognising that the power to migrate lies with the individual members.

Please note that this includes a change in the original offer as allowance is made for ongoing contributions in second and subsequent years.

The format of the meeting on Tuesday evening will be as follows;-

Eddie Prentice and David Beattie have been invited to attend and to speak to those present, and also to answer question from the floor. Please note that any questions must be related to the proposal on the table, and the meeting will be chaired with this focus. Once this is concluded, they will then leave the meeting.

This will be followed by a report from the Working Party followed by a debate amongst the members present. After this, the motion will be put to the vote. Please note that amendments from the floor will be permitted but only so far as they do not widen the context of the motion

We hope to see as many of you as possible at Firhill on Tuesday night

SPECIAL GENERAL MEETING - JANUARY 13th

All members should now have received notice of the Special General Meeting taking place on January 13th (next Tuesday) to vote on continuing with the 1876 Club or accepting the club's offer to merge into the Centenary Fund. We hope as many of you as possible will attend or appoint a proxy to vote at this meeting, which has a great bearing on the future direction of the Trust. The issue is being debated at www.jagsforum.net and we are happy to try to answer any questions both before the meeting and on the night to help members make their minds up on this question.

Here is the text of the formal notice, for anyone who may have missed it:

Dear Member,

Formal Notice of Special General Meeting

You may have seen a recent announcement from Eddie Prentice, the Chief Executive of Partick Thistle Football Club about the creation of a Centenary Fund, or received a written notice about this if you are a Season Ticket holder.

The club has expressed a preference to launch this scheme with the support and active involvement of the JagsTrust.   As a consequence, the Trust Board established a Working Group to work out a basis on which this might take place working with the club board, principally Chief Executive Eddie Prentice and Director David Beattie.

The Working Group has now completed its work and has reported to the Trust Board who will be considering the results of this as a matter of priority over the next couple of weeks.   As this is such a significant step for the Trust it is a decision which requires to be made with the full involvement of the members.   As such, you are invited to attend a Special General Meeting which will take place on Tuesday 13 January 2009 at 1930hrs in the Aitken Suite at Firhill.

The key element to be considered involves the merging of the 1876 Club into the Centenary Fund.  Should the Trust agree that this should be the case, then the club have agreed that;-

1.     The requirement for the JagsTrust to take out a Thistle Partners Package at a cost of £5,000 per annum for their place on the board of the football club will be waived in consideration of the members of the 1876 Club agreeing to migrate their subscriptions to the Centenary Fund.

2.     For existing members of the 1876 Club who migrate to the Centenary Fund, shares will be issued to the JagsTrust equivalent to  monies paid in the first year of operation.   

3.     For new members who join the Centenary Fund via the JagsTrust, additional shares will be issued based on the amounts paid in the first year of membership.  The Club are happy to make it as easy as possible for new members to indicate that they wish to support the JagsTrust when joining the Centenary Fund thus assisting our ability to generate additional shares from this route.

4.     The Club will make available without charge 24 hospitality places per season for the JagsTrust to do so as they wish as a means of raising funds, only provided that these are not auctioned or sold directly at a discount over what the club would normally charge.

5.     The Club will review the possibility of appointing a second board representative from the JagsTrust in 2010 and have confirmed that in principle they are prepared to appoint anyone to the board of the club who can add value without the necessity of a cash injection.   

6.     The Club will pay for the mailings from the Trust to its members in the calling of the Special General Meeting and a subsequent mailing with details of the Centenary Club by covering postage costs

As noted above, the Trust Board will be considering these matters and will present the proposal to the General Meeting for debate and ultimate decision.   It will also be our intention to consult with those members who are already members of the 1876 Club to allow their views to be shared at the meeting.

If you are unable to attend the meeting, it will be possible to appoint a proxy to attend and vote on your behalf.   Please contact me by e-mail at secretary@jagstrust.com, or phone me on 07789 030527 if you wish to pursue this option.

Finally, only full members of the Trust will be able to vote at this meeting.  If you have not yet paid your subscription for the current year you will not be allowed to vote.   We will be able to accept monies on the night of the meeting.

Yours faithfully

Allan Heron

Secretary

1876 CLUB - JANUARY WINNERS

We'll be updating the blog with all the recent developments surrounding the 1876 Club over the next couple of days to help discussions leading up to our SGM on January 13th, but for now we offer you the most important news of the scheme - this month's lucky winners.

2 tickets to Hospitality v Dunfermline on 14th Feb: Mrs C Thompson

2 tickets to Hospitality v Morton on 21st Feb: Jim Rudge

2 tickets to Davie McParland Suite v Dunfermline: Stephanie MacKay

2 tickets to Davie McParland Suite v Morton: Iain MacDougall

£50 Greaves voucher: T & KA McMillan

£50 Borders voucher: Graham Lang (we recommend this hot title)

Congratulations to all concerned. We've finally gotten hold of the vouchers for previous winners and will be distributing them this week. Sorry for the delay!

NOMAD DONATION

The Jags Trust is grateful to receive a £500 cheque from the Nomad supporter group, lead, Hugh, prior to the Ross County game on 27/12/08.

Pictured receiving the cheque on behalf of the JT are Raymond Rose and Sandy Wilkie. (Thanks to Tommy Taylor for the use of the picture)