Fans Forum: Liam Scully

Last night I attended the fan’s forum that took place at Sincil Bank immediately after the Red Imps Trust AGM. In the main it was standard stuff, Danny had the same questions fired at them as they always get, Sam Habergham spent most of the evening watching the microphone pass across the table in front of him, and Nicky spent the evening trying to pass it on when it landed in front of him. Anyone who has been at these events before will know what to expect.

One new face, certainly new to me, was the new Chief Executive, Liam Scully. Usually when a new ‘suit’ joins the board he isn’t particularly accessible, and my only experience of seeing one at a fan’s form is recalling belligerent and under-fire men batting away incessant questions about the club’s direction, integrity, or how much they didn’t care about fans. Over the last couple of years that perhaps hasn’t been the case, but from John Reames to early Bob Dorrian and all in between, often the CEO has come under fire for something.

After all, who trusts a suit, right? If we see a new centre half arrive we know what the money has been spent on. If a top striker comes in and bangs in two goals against Wycombe and Morecambe, it might not stop some numpty asking if we’re going to sign a natural goal scorer, but it is clear what the money has been spent on. When a (young looking) chap in a suit plonks himself down at the end of a table, it can lead to suspicious looks and pointed questions. After all, what can a suave man in a suit and nice shoes do to affect our club at 3pm on a Saturday, right?

That’s why the most interesting recipient of questions last night was Liam. I was keen to hear what the new man had to say, if he had been able to embrace our club, but also if he had the correct skills to integrate himself with fans as well as carry out a very important job.

One of the main points that stood out was his insistence that he wasn’t here to ‘do a Doncaster’, or to press for a stadium ‘like Rotherham’. You must forgive me for not recalling his answers ad verbatim as I didn’t feel a Dictaphone was entirely appropriate at a forum. However, Liam spoke of how it was important to find the solutions that were right for Lincoln City, not just copy what other clubs had done. He isn’t here to put what he has seen at Doncaster into place, but his experiences have taught him what not to do in certain  situations.

That really resonated with me because one issue I had with new stadium talk was sloppy comparisons with Rotherham in the main stream media. They all did it, put up a picture of the Rotherham stadium and said something like ‘the new Lincoln ground’. It pained me immensely to think we might be searching for another club’s solution to our issues, or looking to bring another club’s identity over to Lincoln. Liam insisted on at least two occasions that this wouldn’t be the case, and at one point (although it is a long way off) he mentioned discussions about incorporating a piece of the current ground in the design of a new stadium might be an option, whether it is bricks and mortar or certain features from Sincil Bank. That made me wonder if this ‘suit’ might be different to most we’ve had in the role.

In fairness he had opened by telling us how he was a failed keeper (too short) but that he’d gone on to work with the community football team at Doncaster before a brief hiatus in the public sector, returning to start his current career progression after a year and a half. I liked the fact he was a football man first and foremost, whilst it is important to have businessmen around the club, free from the shackles of completely understanding the game and its fans, I think it is important that the man charged with the day to day running understands both.

The questions about the match day experience kept coming. One mentioned the PA system which he found inadequate (first world problems), and Liam stressed he wouldn’t commit to anything there and then to please the fans. He said spending would be measured, he wouldn’t look to throw £20k at a new PA system if we’re moving grounds within ten years. When the quality of the food in the ground was mentioned he refused to be drawn into criticising what he called ‘suppliers and partners’, and said that in some instances conversations may need to be had, but he simply would not discuss those issues openly as it wouldn’t be correct to do so. He is absolutely right, no matter how bad one or more of our current suppliers are, it is a business discussion that needs to be taken behind closed doors and with complete discretion. Any new CEO sitting in front of fans making bold promises and bad-mouthing suppliers would be out of order in the extreme.

When pushed on standing at the matches he was once again reserved at first. His words were along the lines of ‘without wanting to be predictable, we do have to adhere to health and safety rules and the EFL will be watching us very closely in the opening matches’. He refused to condemn the block that do stand, and even Danny Cowley interjected with ‘I wouldn’t want to tell the 617 squad to sit down’. Liam stopped short of condoning standing for anyone in perhaps the most reticent response he gave all night. After the question had passed and Danny had spoken, Liam reached for the microphone again.

He was clearly passionate about the answer and I sensed he hadn’t been happy at merely rolling out the expected and correct response from a CEO. He got the microphone back and spoke of his hope that any new Sincil Bank would incorporate safe standing, and that once a firm proposal for standing safely was put to clubs, Lincoln City would be wholly in support of it. He also touched on a recent question posed by the FA about a rugby-style approach to drinking in the stands, and that again, if put to clubs and it was thought to enhance the fans experience, Lincoln City would support it. He stressed that he was not in favour of sanitising the game, but any progress must be to the benefit of those watching. Football fans are diverse and all come together wanting a different experience, and he is keen to make sure everyone can get the experience they want, within reason one assumes.

He also said that it was important to look after the fans of now not just looking to the future. He said much was spoken of protecting the game for tomorrow’s fans, but he was focused on making sure that those coming to matches today got everything they wanted from their experience. One statement that he delivered in a quite authoritative and definite manner was along the lines of:

“If your match day experience has not changed for the better in twelve months time, we will have failed you as fans.”

Match day experience isn’t all that he is here to do, and I suspect his list of responsibilities and jobs grows by the hour. The EFL governance is swamping the club at present, in six years the landscape has changed dramatically, and in Liam Scully we have a man who has been involved directly with it while we have not. He’s involved in the training ground too, the new stadium will be within his remit as will increasing the club’s commercial appeal. He spoke of maximising the benefits of the club’s current increased profile through negotiations with current suppliers and partners, and about growing the revenue potential, but not simply by hitting fans in the pocket.

Obviously the night petered out with Danny and Nicky being asked a few questions, and once the important issues were addresses we were left with ‘who takes longest in the shower’, or ‘will you do a video with John Robinson’, and the time for seriousness has passed. The time for a CEO’s input had perhaps passed at that point to, but Liam had done his job very well.

It isn’t the first time I’ve conversed with him, albeit previously it has only been Twitter exchanges. This was my first chance to see him in the spotlight and listen to his ethos, his ideas and perhaps most importantly assess what sort of a man he is. He isn’t the belligerent and aloof CEO deflecting the tough questions, nor is he a ‘pleaser’ saying the right things without having the means to back it up. He didn’t just come out with fan-friendly answers, but underneath the professionalism I got the sense of a football fan wanting to change things for the better. The question about standing at games was one which I think tore a little chink in the façade and revealed the man underneath, dedicated to doing the right things the right ways, but keen to see a movement towards a more fan-friendly and all-encompassing approach to the match day experience. If that man can shine through in the next twelve months whilst operating with professionalism and fairness then I think Lincoln City have made a very good appointment indeed.