Eve of season thoughts [11 Aug @ 10:00pm]

Many supporters have been asking questions over the summer months regarding developments at the club and its’ plans for the future. With this in mind, the clubs’ chairman, Arfon Jones, shares his thoughts, and hopes for the future on the eve of the 2010/2011 season. Can you explain to the supporters what has happened concerning the managerial side of the team since the end of last season? Arfon: I will personally be forever grateful to Geraint Williams and his team for the incredible work they did with the team under extremely difficult circumstances last season. All I asked of Geraint was to get a team on the pitch for the remaining 10 fixtures to ensure we fulfilled our Cymru Alliance League obligations. What followed will forever stay with me, as the results were more reminiscent of a top 5 Club than a Club in turmoil. Unfortunately, due to minor disagreements regarding the direction the Club was proposing to take, my relationship with the Manager deteriorated quickly and it soon became apparent that it was time for the “tail to stop trying to wag the dog” scenario to stop. The club has announced a new Youth policy and will have a Youth team for the first time in many years. What are the reasons behind this shift in direction, and how did it come about? Arfon: Whenever the Club has run into financial problems in the past they’ve decided to recruit locally based players to save the Club from going under. I find this totally unacceptable. If the local players are good enough to bail the Club out in times of trouble, then surely they deserve a fair crack at the whip. In order to ensure that we have the best local talent here at CTFC, it was imperative that we had a conveyor belt of players knocking on the Manager’s door, pushing for a place in the 1st team. It will take 2/3 years before we see the benefit of the huge investment we have made in the Youth team and I am totally convinced that we have the right management team in place to develop these youngsters for the long term future of Caernarfon Town Football Club. The club has committed itself to assisting and encouraging junior football in the town. What steps have been taken towards this end? Arfon: We have made a commitment to support Cae Glyn Utd and Segontium Rovers as we quickly realised that these 2 junior Clubs are the future if this Club is to be serious in it’s efforts to cement itself as a true Community Club. Having established a Youth Team for the new season this would be the perfect platform for the youngsters of these 2 Clubs to progress into senior football by bridging the huge gap that has existed for many years in the area. Can you give an overview of the work that has been carried out at the Oval during the close-season, and the reasons why it has been necessary? Arfon: The Oval has been our spiritual home since 1888 and unfortunately some parts of the ground looked as if we were still in the 19th Century. The playing surface was hazardous, the perimeter wall was in a dangerous state and almost everything you touched either fell apart or left a nasty stain on your hands. You had to be a brave man to enter the toilet block and on entering one of the sheds a rat passed me carrying a suitcase saying he wasn’t prepared to live in this squalor anymore. I must thank Mulcair Ltd and M-Tech Engineering for eradicating the major problem areas and the volunteers and committee for the tremendous hard work completed over the last few months bringing this embarrassing football ground back to life. It was widely reported that the club was in financial difficulties when the new board took over in March, 2010 and many supporters are still concerned that there may be financial problems at the club. With this in mind, can you explain the present financial situation? Arfon: It’s no secret how dire the financial situation the Club was in when I was asked to take over during the latter part of last season. The Club could not meet it’s financial obligations and was suspended from all aspects of football by the governing body. The manager had left, along with the majority of the playing staff and there was still outstanding utility bills and fines to be paid. When I agreed to take on this mammoth job I really had to question my own sanity at the time but what followed left me totally overwhelmed. The way the community rallied during this dark period in the history of the Club will stay with me forever. This has made me determined that this Club will never again be in this situation and the financial foundations of this Club has never been stronger. We still have a lot of hard work ahead of us as a committee but I am confident that the right decisions have been taken to ensure this Club can finally move forward and we can all look forward to a time of stability and hopefully a successful period in the history of this Club. What goals does the club have for the upcoming season, and also for the future? Arfon: Unfortunately there is still a stigma associated with the Club and combined with last season’s relegation into the third tier of the Welsh Pyramid system makes it even more difficult in enticing the quality of players we are trying to recruit to the Club. We need to have a time of stability and need to be realistic and patient in our short term goals for the Club. I’m determined to get this Club back to the Cymru Alliance as soon as possible and attain the Welsh Premier Domestic License. This would be a huge step forward for the Club and I’m confident under the current regime this will become a reality in the next 2/3 years. What is the policy regarding the playing staff? Is it still the long-term intention of the club to field a local based side? Arfon: You can only make assumptions at this stage but I am confident that by investing in the new Youth system and the Club’s future plans for re-establishing a quality academy system, then there’s no reason why a locally based team cannot take this Club forward to the next stage and beyond. It has been proved over the last few months that there is talent in the area and I’m determined to bring these local players playing for other Clubs back home. Do you feel that Gobaith Caneri has been a positive thing for the club, and are there any plans for a follow-up programme or series of programmes? Arfon: I must admit when the idea was first discussed I was more than a little concerned at what impact the programme would have on the football Club. However, I am the first to admit I was wrong, and if I had to single out one event that changed our fortunes, it was this programme. The support we’ve received since the programme was aired has been incredible. I never dreamt for one moment what an impact this programme would have on the Club and if there is ever a follow up to the book “Canaries sing again” then I would seriously suggest that Gobaith Caneri saved this Club from certain obscurity. How do you feel things have gone since you became Chairman of the club? Arfon: This question can only be answered by the supporters, committee members and Supporters Club and like everything else in life you are judged by results. I would suggest that the jury is still out for the time being and would welcome this question in 12 months time.