Revisit last night's Fans' Forum with Gary Caldwell, Marcus Flitcroft, Ben Purrington, Millenic Alli, Jeremy Tipper and Joe Gorman.
For supporters who were unable to attend, we have summarised the key points in detail below:
The forum began with an update on the January transfer window from Marcus:
Why is the January window so difficult?
It is a short window and in-season
Everybody is under contract, unlike in the summer
A lot of people need to say "yes": managers, heads of recruitment, boards/chairs; then agents, players and families.
The club are unable to force people to say "yes"
Many clubs chase the same players
Leads to having to be reactive, which is were preparation (scouts, contacts, data) comes into play.
Plans for future windows:
Offering longer contracts as a result of the greater visibility offered by the work of Joe Gorman (CFO)
Alternative markets as a result of relaxation of rules around foreign players
Progressing the academy, aiming to reach Category 2 status
The forum then moved on to answers from Gary Caldwell:
On future windows:
We want to create a core squad going forward that can be around for a number of years
We still want to bring in good loans in the future
On Harry Lee:
He's had successful and unsuccessful loans
He's at a point in his career where he needs games and a high level of training (which he is getting at City)
He needs to be the best goalkeeper when out on loan and show it week in, week out
On injury updates:
Ben's been back in training the last couple of days
Milli has been part training last week, full training this week
Demi won't be back this season, but he should be fully fit for the start of pre-season
On style of play:
Clubs he played in were teams that dominated the ball
He wants his sides to be a possession-based team because it gives a better chance to win in the long term
Every player has different attributes, it's the staff's job to get players in areas where they can show their strengths and hide their weaknesses
He has adapted his philosophy out of possession from a man-to-man to a more zonal marking, leading to controlling games out of possession
On short corners:
We haven't been good at attacking corners, we were better at the start of the season
Statistically, the best way to score from a corner is from a short corner
We have good footballers who can drag players out at corners and free up space in the box
On whether we need 4 goalkeepers:
It's good to have 4!
We only have 3 with Lee out on loan
Woods was injured earlier in the season, which is why MacDonald came in
The budget has allowed for it this season
We probably won't have 4 next season
On why Aimson was made captain when he signed:
When Gary came in Matt Jay was club captain
Wearing the armband doesn't make you a leader
Pierce Sweeney was going through a tough time
Aimson was made team captain and Sweeney was made club captain
The two players get on well together and spread the responsibilities
Over the festive period Aimson was struggling and we wanted to develop Cole's leadership
We want to develop more leaders going forward and that will require giving them responsibilities
Ben and Millenic then took to the floor:
Ben and Milli:
Milli says he is settling in well
Ben says he's delighted to be playing for City, with his family all supporting the club
Ben on joining the club:
There have been many positive changes to SJP from when he played here previously for other clubs
The new training facilities were a big pull in joining the club
After a short break, CEO Jeremy and CFO Joe spoke about off-the-field matters at the club:
Jeremy on recent changes:
We were previously having to leave budget decisions much later than we wanted to
24/25 season scenario plans are varied: a base League One budget, a budget in case of changes to division and a budget depending on the EFL-PL deal
Significant improvements have been made to our match day analysis, with much more granular detail
Joe on our trading performance being ahead of budget:
A record year for retail and merchandising
Improving non-match day income
29 new commercial partners
Best ever season ticket sales, with average attendance slightly below last season
Carabao Cup run
Joe on transfer income being ahead of budget:
Ethan Ampadu, Sam Nombe and Archie Collins payments spread over three seasons
Josh Key tribunal is still ongoing
Considerable additional income from add ons
Jeremy on supporter survey feedback:
Doing our best to solve food and beverage queues
Looking at introducing digital programmes next season
Changes to stewarding have allowed additional capacity, but frustrations on Big Bank have been noted
Jeremy on planned/completed stadium improvements:
Accessible away-end toilets now in place
New kiosk opening in the Nevada Construction stand in March
Additional Big Bank kiosk for next season
Jeremy introduced the room to Travis Bramley, the Club's new Sustainability Officer:
Travis has briefly spoken about his role, including helping reduce the carbon emissions of the Club and the financial opportunities that come from this approach.
Jeremy on kit:
Discussions have been held to ensure stock issues do not occur next season
Next season's Third Shirt will be voted on by members of the Supporters' Trust
Jeremy and Joe on transfer income reliance:
Academy is one of our largest income generators and this will continue
Transfer revenue doesn't stop after the next few years thanks to add ons
Work is being done on growing commercial opportunities and driving other revenue streams to reduce reliance.
If you wish to watch back the full forum, you can do so below ⬇️