The Dons Trust, and stuff.

Anybody who's been in the Alex and talked to me about all things AFC Wimbledon will know that I don't "do" Dons Trust. Nor do I "do" CEO's past or present, I don't get involved in who works in the energy control department (I'd be surprised if there is one), who the safety officer is, whether or not the carpet in the Bronze Lounge fairly represents the club's heritage, all that stuff. Mostly I don't talk about that kind of thing because I either know bugger all about it or I'm not massively interested (or indeed both). I like to talk football, THAT'S my thing. DLAG I get involved with a bit, their paths and ours at the Alex cross sometimes and wherever we can, we love lending a hand.

On this occasion though, what with Dons Trust "renewals" being back on the agenda, I'm going to break with tradition. So here's my views on the whole thing love them or loathe them, and I should add that I AM going to join this year. I tried to last year but in a way which remains a mystery to me fucked it up somehow. In the end, they DIDN'T take my £25 and I DIDN'T get a vote. Despite me mistakenly thinking all along that I HAD joined. Once more, it was entirely my fault.

So anyway, Dons Trust. Firstly, it is obvious to me that the entity has a lot of problems if it seriously wants to call itself representitive of the fans. For starters, I would estime that less than 1% of the fans know what the Dons Trust actually does (and that tiny number consists entirely of people who are either on the board or have been on it previously). Very important point here, I'm NOT SAYING THEY DON'T DO ANYTHING. I'm friends with a few ex and current board members and have seen the stress is causes. Clearly they do stuff, it's just that nobody knows what it is.

Another observation. Nobody really knows it seems to me what the actual point of the Dons Trust is. Very important, I'M NOT SAYING THEY DON'T HAVE A POINT. What I'm saying is, people don't know it.

Let me give an example. You wouldn't for example as a Dons Trust member complain to the board if Johnnie Jackson continually picks Lee Brown right midfield over James Tilley. Obviously the manager wouldn't do that, but even if he did you KNOW that the DTB isn't the place to vent over it. Other stuff though? Grass being too long? Turnstiles not working? Flat beer? Poor parking? How much we're spending on transfers? Whether we sell certain players and how much goes back into playing budget? Whether or not we sack the manager at a given time? Whether or not we release a video? Are they in charge of or have a say in ALL of that? Some of it? None of it?

So I think a good start would to have on the Dons Trust website page, at the front, first, a "This is what we do" bit. And I don't mean a "provide an integrated platform for fans to engage with..." load of shite, I mean this.

1. Hold a meeting for members, every month/two months. (This will be followed by a meeting between the CEO, Mick Buckley, the first team manager and the DTB representitives. Minutes of THAT meeting to be published promptly). 

2. Answer fans queries as and when we can. (Note, we all have jobs and lives, a reply via email may take up to ten working days). If your enquiry is more immediate, we have a "meet the board" tent at all match days.

3. We guarantee that as representitives of the fans, we'll look at all contracts/legal stuff, and ensure the club isn't compromised or ripped off. We are YOUR eyes and ears.

What we don't do...

Pick the team (that's the managers job).

Decide on beer prices (CEO)

Influence how fizzy the beer is (Bar manager).

Cut the grass (groundsman)

Etc etc. So please don't bombard us with lots of queries about a load of nonsense that we have no influence over.

We are there to ensure the club is run properly, and we'll do our best to make sure that happens. Cheers.

Something like that ought to do it. There should be at least one DTB board position held by somebody under 25, one by someone under 21. Stop with this "Well if you don't like it, why don't YOU stand?" nonsense (I don't like the government, doesn't mean I want to be an MP), and work towards integrating the membership into the season ticket price. The fact you can spend £500 on a season ticket and not be in the Dons Trust is nuts, utterly mad.

Lastly I apologize. I know I've only been around five minutes, and I'm NOT trying to tell you how to run YOUR club. Sometimes though it takes an outsider to see things. AFC Wimbledon is brilliant, far better than many lifelong fans realise in my opinion, but the Dons Trust is one of the bits of it that needs a bit of a refresh. All IMHO obviously.