Lets go on strike

[black morse]

I can't accept the idea that Whittingham is putting money into the club but not taking any interest out. Either he is a lot richer than we all suspect or he's had to get that money from somewhere and, if he' takes out loans, he must be paying interest himself on it. The idea of him adding the loan onto the final price of the club is ludicrous. Who would pay way over the odds for a club when they cannot sell the actual ground?
He's either taking interest on his loans or there is something very strange going on

NAPM

[Hodgie1978]

Well said black horse
The more this crazy fiasco goes on the more serious questions need answering.
Unfortunately the board have gone silent and Dick Whittington is never gonna show his face.
Enough is enough
NAPM

[Billy bodger]

If, as has been said, Whittingham is indeed putting money into the club (It was not enough to fund a League 1 side to a decent level or a League 2 side to a decent level), and it’s a loan at some stage he will want that paying back.
The only thing that will not push up the initial price of the sale is that the loan is taken on by the new owner and paid back at some later date.
If it’s added on at the point of sale, as it has also been said, doesn’t that push up the initial price the prospective buyer has to pay up front?
If that’s the case who would buy it? The only way to sell it would be for the loans to be paid back at a later date and then again with all the delays, it’s just making it more and more money because of any interest on the loan that has to be paid back at a later date.
Morecambe and it’s fans pays the price.

[Billy bodger]

The debate over wether to support the NAPM campaign will really start to hot up after the last game of the season and rightly so, we are in a S*** Hole and for me it all comes back to the owner. I think as fans we have all proved our faith in the Club.

Here’s another question!!

Does the stay away owner, do whatever he wants? Or does he do as the fans want him to do? ANS:- (Clue- very easy!!).

I did not always think the NAPM campaign was the right thing to do, I like others thought that it would only hasten the decline of the Club, but over the last few months, since I was told at the fans forum, for the umpteenth time, ‘Jason want to sell’ and having given it even more time and having contemplated long and hard I came to change my view.

Even if the NAPM campaign means as others are saying ‘that it may well hasten the Clubs demise’, I honestly believe it will ONLY be because Whittingham will still be a stay away owner and carry on being unable to fund the Club to a decent level.

I did promise to myself that it was right to support the team till the end of the season and I will do that on Monday in the Halo and in corporate at the last home game of the season on May 3rd.

I now firmly believe that as long as he is the owner he will continue do as he wants and he in my humble view, by his stay away antics, his total inability to fund the Club to the level it needed to both stay in League 1 and now League 2 and finally his intransigence on the sale of the Club with his failure to choose a buyer over the last four years, who can finalise a deal without delay. I’ve come to the conclusion that he in-fact holds the fans in contempt.

Playing with us really and perhaps now daring us to stay away. Who the hell knows? He is doing what he wants, isn’t he, I think we all know that and each and everyone of us has a lot of contemplating to do before next season.

For me the only release is to try as fans to push him out, futile or not and the get out clause for me and any other fan who joins the NAPM campaign starting next season, is for the Club to be sold in the meantime.

So until we know, it’s time to meet the challenge.

[Hodgie1978]

This is Stuart Rae's post from Facebook.
I think it's brilliant

The Trust is a democratically elected representation its membership; Morecambe FC supporters. They have consulted with that membership, and currently the majority of its members do not want to boycott home games (though response has been limited). I don’t think you can level much criticism at the Trust - they have been doing a great job, in terms of communication with the membership… can you imagine what the output from the club and owner would be without them? I’m certain it would be radio silence.

Personally, I have boycotted home games throughout the 24/25 season - a tough decision for any supporter to take, but one based on principle and belief. I think the clubs incumbent board of directors are partly culpable for the attitude amongst the fanbase - which is to blindly carry-on and sleepwalk into oblivion, believing everything is ok… and that by buying season and match tickets (people who get in on a free, really shouldn’t comment on the boycott situation - but have been) you are helping the club. In reality that action has not resulted in the completed sale of the club to date (approaching 1000 days) and has now seen the loss of its coveted EFL status - something that will have massive reunifications for the entire community, not just the people employed by the club. I’d actually go as far as saying that by supporting the club financially it has enabled the owner to hold-out for offers based on conjecture and pure fantasy, the identity of whom remains as sketchy as the source of their finance, prolonging this period of decline (who knows where this will end?). Of course we do not know - but had there been a reduction in financial contributions from supporters, it might’ve created a situation whereby the owner had to entertain offers from parties not linked to crypto Ponzi schemes. We’re fed limited information, and serious financial breaches are swept under the carpet. I know the board claim that they’re equally in the dark and do their best to keep things ticking over and managing the business, but when you hear terms such as ‘if only you knew half of what goes on’ at fans’ forums, you do stop and think ‘tell us then’. It all adds to a false impression that on the whole everything is ok and that we will be fine. We get a big game/opportunity like Chelsea away to highlight our plight, only for some supporters to proclaim ‘can’t we just enjoy the day out’ rather than protest - something I continue to shake my head at in utter disbelief.

I can understand a reluctance to boycott through fear that it will result in a cut to the playing budget and jeopardise match day roles with EFL status depending on this, but as it happens it didn’t make a difference anyway. I do not understand why people are publicly and gleefully saying they can’t wait to renew their season tickets next season in some weird act of defiance. As supporters we do need to have a collective discussion about the direction of the club, because I don’t think people really understand what is at stake here.

[lancaster shrimp]

For anyone who is not supporting NAPM. I'd be interested to hear your reasons

[Hodgie1978]

After yesterday and talking to people I'd say the club should prepare for for losing 1/4 of their fan base.
Simple way to stop it .

[Billy bodger]

If Hodgie is right and with our current Ave attendance being 3,386 that will be around 846 fans.
Now if that’s people supporting the NAPM campaign that’s a reasonable sum of supporters who have had enough of the owner but crucially definitely not Morecambe FC.

We may also lose some more supporters if we are not in the EFL, just as we did when we fell out of League 1, we will see.

Overall if Morecambe can keep fans continuing to turn up with gates over 2,000 that will be a good level in the National League, there is no doubt about that. BUT will that only embolden the owner to carry on his intransigence, while continuing to underfund the Club. It’s his funding of the Club that is crucial and he cannot or will not do it, it the root of our problems and our decline.

When we don’t know the half of it as fans making decisions on carrying on going to matches is not easy, as I have said each to their own. Let’s see how things pan out and if Whittingham’s naked aloofness carry’s on.

[P/T Indie]

I fully agree with Stuart's post, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again!

I've not boycotted games as such but had lost all faith in the club, been fed the same old story over and over again so haven't been to many games. I just couldn't stand there week in week out pretending everything is ok like the majority were.

Even if we had a protest outside the ground every Saturday but not gone in I would have turned up every week but nothing, all we get is trust the club, trust the board, trust Derek, trust that Jason does want to sell repeat x 100

Instead I've been spending my money at local grass roots clubs instead like storeys, carnforth rangers, Milnthorpe etc and will continue doing so until Jason has gone.

You can say what you like about me not supporting the team this season although we have done a few away games, after 30+ years of supporting us but what do you do when you have completely lost all faith.

NAPM next season on the plus side though there will be some cracking non league away days!!

[Andy D]

As things stand I'd be surprised if we sell more than 400 season tickets.

Maybe we should do a prediction thread on its own for that?

[P/T Indie]

Only prob with that is someone would need to communicate how many we have sold and communication isn't our strong point.

[Hodgie1978]

I don't think we'll ever know how many we will sell.