Speak to us Mr Martin.

[Sutherland Arab]

Is Mike Martin a spin doctor? Don't know. Will his plans make the club money long term? Not sure, possibly doubtful. Is Csaba going to lead us to promotion this season? I would say 99% no way. Am I hopeful for the season ahead? No.
Credit where it's due though, there has been a big revamp to the way the club is being run on and off the pitch and a real effort to bring some positivity and communication back.
Huge game on Saturday, we have to get off to a good start and do our bit as supporters by backing the team.
Yet a couple of days to go and we have people raging about our physio and a sports bar. Pernickety as f uck and a waste of energy in my opinion.

[TerryTheTerror]

Terry the Clown, i have read loads of your comments, you have to be the biggest clown on the united forum..Do you really go to games..I am not convinced you do, just comment on what everyone else says..Do your own post please..

Even though it's getting physically very difficult for me, yes, I do go to games. In fact I have a season ticket and have done for many years. To be honest I'm really not sure why what I post would lead you to think otherwise.

Isn't the whole concept of this board to comment and have others givee their opinion of that?

[TerryTheTerror]

Huge game on Saturday, we have to get off to a good start and do our bit as supporters by backing the team.
Yet a couple of days to go and we have people raging about our physio and a sports bar. Pernickety as f uck and a waste of energy in my opinion.

I agree with this!

[ahlltanyirhide]

Not really no. So we take an (expensive) punt on a sports bar which may or may not make money (I think it'll flop dramatically btw).

Lets say it works, that leaves us with a fantastic sports bar generating income but a ****e football team on the park that see us stay down yet another season.

Do you genuinely believe a soulless sports bar is going to generate enough income across a year to not only cover the massive losses we currently make, but also strengthen the playing budget? If it was that easy every club would have one.

As for the medical stuff - I expect every team in the land to be looking to improve and adequately resource their medical team and facilities. I don't expect the Chairman to be talking about it in interviews. It's a transparent attempt at currying favour with a support who he (or someone at the club) has seen talking about this very issue in the week leading up to this video.

We are a football club. I want my chairman to talk passionately about the players, the management team, the youth team etc, not a ****ing sports bar and physio. No point having the best sports bar in the championship for me but maybe I'm mental in thinking football comes first.

See if we get promoted and stabilise in the top flight, with all the revenue that brings, maybe start breaking even as a club or turning a slight profit, buy back our existing, previously profitable assets like Gussie and the clubs spiritual home in Tannadice from the security holders, then is the time for long term vanity projexct style initiatives - not when we are ****ing rooted in the diddy league bleeding cash everywhere to the tune of millions in loss a season. Do you genuinely think a sports bar will cover those losses?



What a ****ing clueless and pointless statement - any chance you could clarify what your point is and what you are getting at?

From my perspective I couldn't give a **** about his accent, but I want him to be talking players & managers, not avoiding the real issues and talking about frippery ****e off the park that will do absolutely **** all to get us promoted this season.

I am genuinely stunned that so many are lapping up this nonsense - it's clearly an attempt to divert from the cluster we have on the park and in the dugout. There again if I'm expecting people with that level of intelligence to actually think about this then maybe I'm the idiot.

The frippery pish that you allude to does indeed matter, and very much so. It adds to the overall experience of matchdays for a lot of folk, especially those purchasing hospitality where the facilities were well past the use by date. But that sort of thing is lost on phukkin knuckleheads like you who whinge constantly about all things United. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if we won 5-0 on Saturday and dicks like your good self berated the team and the manager for not scoring 6 😘

[FTD1983]

The frippery pish that you allude to does indeed matter, and very much so. It adds to the overall experience of matchdays for a lot of folk, especially those purchasing hospitality where the facilities were well past the use by date. But that sort of thing is lost on phukkin knuckleheads like you who whinge constantly about all things United. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if we won 5-0 on Saturday and dicks like your good self berated the team and the manager for not scoring 6 ��

What a lot of unadulterated pish.

The pub trade is difficult enough at the moment, and that's for boozers that are established and open 7 days a week.

The target for this is Utd fans (and away fans when the Fun are playing I suppose?) yet the reality is, we are opening a bar in an area saturated by more established, and likely cheaper, competition.

On the occasions I am having a pint before the game I go to the Fairmuir Clubbie or Frews before the match - occasionally the Snug. Am I going to bin off my usual haunts to go to a sports bar - no to be honest.

The frippery pish should be a secondary consideration to getting a winning team on the park.

I can guarantee you now we won't win 5-0 tomorrow, and I can further guarantee that "knuckleheads" like yourself won't be buzzing about the sports bar when we are out of the title race by Xmas due to gross mismanagement on the part of MM by backing a manager who has consistently proven to be unfit for purpose, and allowing funds to be focussed on off park projects such as hospitality upgrades (unnecessary - I'll explain in a bit) and a spots bar.

Football first while we are where we are - if and when we get up, the Premiership crowds and TV/Prize money is when we pursue this stuff. Theres no point having a sports bar earning a (ridiculous projection) of £250k a year if we are spewing out a million in losses from being in this league. It's really basic yet you seem to be struggling with it.

RE Hospitality - I am a regular attender at Hospitality (and boardroom hospitality), both as a freebie and as a paying customer with clients - it's already an excellent offering value for money wise and is on a par with almost every Premiership side up to and including Aberdeen. It is completely unnecessary to pump any significant sums into it - effectively improving an asset (Tannadice) that we don't own to all intents and purposes.

In order to see any ROI they will need to increase hospo prices to reflect the higher quality of facilities - no-one will pay more for hospo at a Championship game, so it's a pointless exercise.

[Danny_Dyer]

Does the chairman not deserve some credit for identifying areas of improvement and then taking action?

The chairman deserves credit if and when we are promoted. Until then he's achieved nothing!

At the moment we are an average championship team with a phuckin idiot as manager. All the sports bars and fancy suites in the world doesn't change that!

[FTD1983]

Is it beyond the realms of possibility that licenced premises open on match days only could turn a profit?

You seem to be dismissing a lot of the changes as stuff we should have anyway. Does the chairman not deserve some credit for identifying areas of improvement and then taking action? It's a far cry from ST cutting every corner possible.

You seem to be incapable of taking anything positive out of anything MM says or does.

Any profit will be a drop in the ocean of the losses we are making while we remain in the Championship. the only positive I can see from the sports bar is it will eventually be another asset we can flog the security for to our soft creditors.

Our average attendance last season was 5,505, we have 18 home games a season, so, in order to achieve a profit of £250,000 (which I'm sure someone on the board has projected) it will need to be packing out with every fan, every week buying multiple drinks and food. It won't happen.

If all 5,505 fans attended the sports bar every home game and bought a pint each at £3 a pint, we'd make just shy of £300k in cash.

Of course that's before rent, staff costs, stock costs, utilities etc.

It's a lossmaker all day long. It smacks of someone using the club as leverage for setting up a personal venture which they'll eventually take sole ownership of via a security loan or purchase quite frankly. That's a cynical view but that's what all Utd fans should be in light of recent history.

[FTD1983]

The chairman deserves credit if and when we are promoted. Until then he's achieved nothing!

At the moment we are an average championship team with a phuckin idiot as manager. All the sports bars and fancy suites in the world doesn't change that!

Finally someone that gets it.

It's all smoke and mirrors to divert from MM making the wrong call on keeping the manager and despite all the warning signs in the world since his statement, failing to display the courage to admit his mistake and address the managerial issue. That decision will hang MM IMO.

[Jim_Jam]

It makes sense for the club to make money from as many different ways as possible. I hear at the "Campy New" the Fun are going to have a Crematorium.

[FTD1983]

It makes sense for the club to make money from as many different ways as possible. I hear at the "Campy New" the Fun are going to have a Crematorium.

Yes but it makes sense to prioritise getting the club into the top flight over anything else. MM said something in his interviews along the lines of being in the Championship is expensive business - well get out of it and then look at other revenue streams. To me it looks like he is saying in order for the club to survive in the Championship long term, we need additional revenue - that scares me as we should be thinking, we'll get out this league first then look to improve off the park from a stronger base.

The Fun have owners with genuine cash to use, as well as a relative safety net of Premiership income and players with potential to attract reasonable fees. Theres also the parachute payment if they do get relegated (and they will this year IMO)

I admire MM for stepping into the breach but I don't think it's controversial to say our current board isn't awash with cash to keep covering losses, improving the playing squad and staff and expanding off park areas at the moment. I'd rather he focused on the main thing - i.e the football club and it's league position.

I'm not big on this "match day experience" thing bandied around - I go to the game to have a pint with mates and watch my team, but in fairnesss to the fun, a crematorium will improve their match day experience as attending a funeral has to be a happier experience than sitting watching that ****e.