Back
A Letter From The Chairman
Logan Young13 Jan - 14:19
The Ramblings of a Non-League Football Chairman……
A week on from once again finding ourselves the victims of crime. As many will know our national game at the level at which we ply our trade is often surrounded by unfathomable dramas and between us we often joke that we should write a book which we hasten to add are convinced would be a best seller and it would no doubt wind up as a soap opera (or continuing drama series) and as such in his latest attempt to put a brave face on this weeks proceedings the Chairman found himself penning the following spoof headlines to share with colleagues:
“The chairman in a club statement is reported as being furious that the Club has had absolutely no contact from the Police since the recent crime was fully reported just a matter of hours after the club had once again found itself the victims of a ramraid style attack on its premises”
“He is left wondering why business rates are paid. Having had multiple unrequested nor announced visits from the local constabulary during a hugely successful summer of football held at the stadium he cannot fathom why he cannot hear from anyone when an actual crime has been committed”
“He is certain that the vehicle used in this latest attack is not someone’s pride and joy and is itself the spoils of further motor vehicle theft (yet to be solved (based upon the amount of vehicle bodywork and light cluster debris that has been recovered from the scene)) He has read with interest just earlier today that Essex boast a total of over 4000 vehicles that have been seized for a lack of insurance in the last year alone”
“He is also delighted to have spent countless hours on Saturday evening in Sub-Zero temperatures assisted by the Clubs Centre Forward dealing with a burst mains water pipe in the garage that was raided. Clearly with the doors quite literally smashed off, the freezing temperatures have ravaged the water pipe and led to this disastrous further twist of fate in scenes reminiscent of Home Alone delivered by our very own Wet Bandits”
“He remains upbeat safe in the knowledge that the Club is much loved by its peers and community alike and that Harlow Town FC remain Massive everywhere they go!”
I was asked earlier in the week if we could share the images that we had captured however wanted to wait for this to be provided to the relevant authorities however now that we are one week on and have not had that contact, we have this evening shared some initial images.
Back to the reality of the current situation. As many will know, the plight of all non-league clubs is one of living hand to mouth in most cases calling upon a small core of those who care to make a difference to facilitate making the magic happen. Football never really pays for the football and every penny that comes in to support what as a club you try to achieve is not a given, you have to deliver a certain something to ensure people keep coming back. (not of course last Monday mornings visitors)!
In our case we are a site that’s open 7 days a week attracting many thousands of people passing through the gates each year. We place no demands upon people other than to treat others how they would expect to be treated themselves. We know it’s a great place to be, our growing attendances are testament to the welcoming environment we have built, and the team are certainly going along very nicely and doing their bit which always helps.
As mentioned previously, we operate professionally with a very small staff and a core of simply fantastic volunteers who selflessly give considerable time and effort to ensure we simply exist. If I look at everything we do and the volumes of people we interact with every year, I can reflect with incredible pride in the fact that we are self sufficient and place no demands on others including our public services so do feel incredibly let down right now. We’ve always gone about our business quietly and diligently however this feels like a repeat strike of lightning which simply isn’t being taken seriously.
Yes, I know our losses are insured and the tongue in cheek narrative presented above attempts to apply some humour to a sad situation. Yes, it could be argued that this is a victimless crime as it’s against a company who are insured, however a repeat break in and the trauma and upheaval caused does have so many victims who work so hard for this incredibly important part of our community. Every insurance claim will negatively impact insurance premiums for all and as such the economic implications are that the money we already work so very hard to bring in gets spread even thinner.
As testament to our wonderful community, I’ve been overwhelmed by the levels of emotion and support shown in the last couple of hours since sharing details of the break in. I will follow up with additional footage as I know we can identify the vehicle involved (probably dumped somewhere locally). Essex Police, please, please help us to help you, too many people care about our little Club and Town to simply sit back and accept that this is Harlow and its just how things are – I know it’s not knife crime, I know it’s not another headline grabbing crime but it’s a repeat crime that has many victims and in many cases it’s against the very people for whom we should be able to provide that welcomed escape for a few hours each week.
To our extended family in Football, a huge thank you for all you are doing and all that you will continue to do, I’m determined not to let this episode set the tone for the year ahead so please provide any information or assistance that you can to help us move on from this and in the process bring these absolute Rat Bags to justice.
“The chairman in a club statement is reported as being furious that the Club has had absolutely no contact from the Police since the recent crime was fully reported just a matter of hours after the club had once again found itself the victims of a ramraid style attack on its premises”
“He is left wondering why business rates are paid. Having had multiple unrequested nor announced visits from the local constabulary during a hugely successful summer of football held at the stadium he cannot fathom why he cannot hear from anyone when an actual crime has been committed”
“He is certain that the vehicle used in this latest attack is not someone’s pride and joy and is itself the spoils of further motor vehicle theft (yet to be solved (based upon the amount of vehicle bodywork and light cluster debris that has been recovered from the scene)) He has read with interest just earlier today that Essex boast a total of over 4000 vehicles that have been seized for a lack of insurance in the last year alone”
“He is also delighted to have spent countless hours on Saturday evening in Sub-Zero temperatures assisted by the Clubs Centre Forward dealing with a burst mains water pipe in the garage that was raided. Clearly with the doors quite literally smashed off, the freezing temperatures have ravaged the water pipe and led to this disastrous further twist of fate in scenes reminiscent of Home Alone delivered by our very own Wet Bandits”
“He remains upbeat safe in the knowledge that the Club is much loved by its peers and community alike and that Harlow Town FC remain Massive everywhere they go!”
I was asked earlier in the week if we could share the images that we had captured however wanted to wait for this to be provided to the relevant authorities however now that we are one week on and have not had that contact, we have this evening shared some initial images.
Back to the reality of the current situation. As many will know, the plight of all non-league clubs is one of living hand to mouth in most cases calling upon a small core of those who care to make a difference to facilitate making the magic happen. Football never really pays for the football and every penny that comes in to support what as a club you try to achieve is not a given, you have to deliver a certain something to ensure people keep coming back. (not of course last Monday mornings visitors)!
In our case we are a site that’s open 7 days a week attracting many thousands of people passing through the gates each year. We place no demands upon people other than to treat others how they would expect to be treated themselves. We know it’s a great place to be, our growing attendances are testament to the welcoming environment we have built, and the team are certainly going along very nicely and doing their bit which always helps.
As mentioned previously, we operate professionally with a very small staff and a core of simply fantastic volunteers who selflessly give considerable time and effort to ensure we simply exist. If I look at everything we do and the volumes of people we interact with every year, I can reflect with incredible pride in the fact that we are self sufficient and place no demands on others including our public services so do feel incredibly let down right now. We’ve always gone about our business quietly and diligently however this feels like a repeat strike of lightning which simply isn’t being taken seriously.
Yes, I know our losses are insured and the tongue in cheek narrative presented above attempts to apply some humour to a sad situation. Yes, it could be argued that this is a victimless crime as it’s against a company who are insured, however a repeat break in and the trauma and upheaval caused does have so many victims who work so hard for this incredibly important part of our community. Every insurance claim will negatively impact insurance premiums for all and as such the economic implications are that the money we already work so very hard to bring in gets spread even thinner.
As testament to our wonderful community, I’ve been overwhelmed by the levels of emotion and support shown in the last couple of hours since sharing details of the break in. I will follow up with additional footage as I know we can identify the vehicle involved (probably dumped somewhere locally). Essex Police, please, please help us to help you, too many people care about our little Club and Town to simply sit back and accept that this is Harlow and its just how things are – I know it’s not knife crime, I know it’s not another headline grabbing crime but it’s a repeat crime that has many victims and in many cases it’s against the very people for whom we should be able to provide that welcomed escape for a few hours each week.
To our extended family in Football, a huge thank you for all you are doing and all that you will continue to do, I’m determined not to let this episode set the tone for the year ahead so please provide any information or assistance that you can to help us move on from this and in the process bring these absolute Rat Bags to justice.
Further reading