Old News

December 4th

Notice of Extraordinary General Meeting of the East Stirlingshire Supporters Society (shiretrust)

The meeting will take place on Saturday 15th December 2007 at 2pm outside the main gates of East Stirlingshire F.C.

Members who require assistance or directions or wish to ask questions or make a point on the EGM should contact the committee by e-mail at shiretrust@aol.com or phone the chairman, Ian Ramsay on (01324)711788.  

Reason for EGM

At the shiretrust AGM in 2007 it was revealed that the yearly full financial audit had cost the trust over £800. It was felt at the meeting that this was an excessive drain on trust resources. As agreed at the AGM, the shiretrust committee have looked into other ways of auditing the accounts - to save on audit costs we recommend that the members vote YES to both proposals.

EGM 2007 Agenda

The only two items on the agenda are; 1) proposed alteration of shiretrust rule 86 (Financial Audit) to permit a choice of full audit or independent examination every year, 2) proposal to waive the need for shiretrust to have a full financial Audit for the financial year ending 31st December 2007 and accept an audit by an independent examiner instead. Both proposals are in line with guidance provided by Supporters Direct (the government backed parent body of supporters trusts, of which shiretrust is a member). Members have been sent further detail on the above proposals and voting forms with S.A.E.`s if they wish to vote by post. As there was general agreement on the need for such action at the 2007 AGM we anticipate a very short and to the point meeting.

November 16th

We are pleased to report that the proposal to split Shire shares in two, sell Firs Park and devide the proceeds among the shareholders and to change the articles of association was successfully voted through at the East Stirlingshire F.C. AGM on 15th November.

We now have the chance of a better future for the `Shire with investor and director Spencer Fearn at the helm. It is to be hoped the final removal of Alan Mackin and his associates will change the whole mood at the club and that everyone can `pull together` and build on the recent improvements that have been made. The consequences of this decision are that new split share certificates will be issued to shareholders in January and that at the end of the season the club could play its last game at Firs Park ready for a move to share Ochilview with Stenhousemuir F.C. next season.

November 12th

Although we have reservations about some of the details, a majority of the shiretrust committee believe the best way to ensure the future of the club is if the shareholders vote in favour of the AGM proposal to split Shire shares in two, to sell Firs Park and devide the proceeds among the shareholders and to change the articles of association. 

It will be difficult for many shareholders to agree to effectively pay off Alan Mackin and Alex McCabe with a large portion of the proceeds from any sale of Firs Park. However these men must be removed from their current positions of power if we are to have any future as a football club and the price for that was never going to be an easy one to meet. We would then be commited to groundsharing with Stenhousemuir F.C. for up to 5 years while looking for a new home of our own with current director and investor Spencer Fearn at the helm.
The alternative is that if the proposal fails current director and investor Spencer Fearn will leave the club which would undo most of the progress made on and off the field in the last year. It would also mean in a very short time (by the end of the season) we would probably revert to what we were before - a team being run at subsistence level paying the lowest wage in the Scottish League. This would be a huge step backwards and would repeat the events of the 2002-03 season when the £10 a week player wage was first introduced - all our good players would leave the club and regular bottom of the division finishes would call our league membership into question once again.

October 29th

shiretrust are always willing to explore new ways to fundraise. On Sunday 14th October we tried a car boot sale at Stirling cattle market which generated £60.70 - all from household items which were of no further use to their owners. Our thanks to Maureen McLeod for her assistance and advice on the day. It is likely we will arrange another sale in the future, perhaps with a different mix of items.

September 10th

We are pleased to welcome Hugo Southwell to honorary membership of shiretrust. Hugo is better known as an international rugby player although his grandfather was a former chairman of East Stirlingshire F.C. We wish him a long and successful career and thank him for supporting our cause.

September 4th 2007

Re-launch of Zebra Lottery

Click on the above link for information on the new lottery.

September 1st 2007

You can now raise funds for shiretrust when you search the web without buying anything! Its totally FREE! Use easysearch every time you search online and we will receive 50% of the fees paid by the advertising sponsors. easysearch is powered by Yahoo!, the world's 2nd largest search engine. It works just like Google, bringing you fast, accurate results every time, but unlike Google, easysearch gives us something back! When you search the web with easysearch you'll generate about a penny for SHIRETRUST and the Club with every search you make. It doesn't sound like much, but the pennies soon mount up and you can raise £25.00 a year - or more - just by switching your normal searching to easysearch! Its simple just visit the following link:

http://shiretrust.easysearch.org.uk/

August 25th

The club recently announced it would be parting company with striker Graeme McLaren when it became apparent he did not feel able to cope with his return to senior football and it is expected he will return to Camelon Juniors. The trust committee are understandably dissappointed by this turn of events as trust money was donated to help pay for the signing on fee for the player, however we are assured that Camelon will give a full refund. shiretrust will continue to assist the club where and when the committee think appropriate and would certainly not rule out participating in the signing of another player.

August 17th 2007

It is the time of year when we ask people to renew their membership of shiretrust - hopefully the majority of renewals will be in by 31st August.
We have had a busy last 12 months assisting the club to buy a player, improve the pitch and tidy the ground, we now run the catering on matchdays and have our name on the away kit shorts. In the near future we will hope to play a part in any big decisions that may affect our club around the time of its next AGM in November. We also welcome any potential new members who want to be part of the trust trying to `do the right thing` to ensure our club has a future.
1) If you have a standing order with us it will be collected automatically.
2) You can send a cheque by post for the amount, payable to shiretrust, to
Shiretrust, PO Box 21654, Falkirk, FK2 7XN.
3) You can pay the amount in person by cheque or cash to any of the committee members - Ian Ramsay, Ian Fleming, Drummond Calder, Tadek Kopszywa, Tony Ford, Mark Batham or Neil Gough.
4) You can set up a standing order with us for the amount by filling in and returning a standing order form - please write or e-mail us quoting your address and we will send one out to you.

August 11th 2007

The result of the East Stirlingshire F.C. shirt sponsorship draw are as follows: Northern Blue - front of home strip, Bonnyside Engineering - back of the home strip and R. Greenaway Roofing - home shorts. Although shiretrust were not one of the lucky ones to be drawn out, we have heard that `shiretrust` will feature on the away shorts this season as a reward for our efforts in helping the club.

July 27th 2007

shiretrust are providing the catering service for the `Shire at home games this season. A rental will be paid to the club for the use of the pie hut and facilities and anything earned over this will be retained by shiretrust. At the beginning our volunteers will be concentrating on the basics like tea, coffee, pies and sweets but it is hoped to eventually branch out to other items. As a trust we believe it is important to try and obtain local produce where possible, so our pies are from Johnston`s the butcher from Brightons near Polmont. On behalf of the committee I want to thank Catering Project leader Mark Batham and his band of volunteers in the pie hut for organising and running this venture.

July 13th 2007

shiretrust has entered the East Stirlingshire F.C. shirt sponsorship draw for next season at a cost of £350. We regard the entry fee as a further investment by shiretrust in the continuing recovery of the club and a chance to get our name on the team shirts or shorts as well as on an advertising board at the ground. We would also gain a complimentary season ticket which it is hoped could be donated to a deserving cause. It is thought the draw will be made on the week beginning Monday 16th July and we can only hope to be one of the lucky ones!

July 4th 2007

The shiretrust quiz night (3rd July) made a healthy profit of £308.50, giving a much needed boost to the trust bank account after a good deal of spending in the last year. We would like to thank all those who came along and participated in a good night out. We also appreciated Bairnstrust sending representatives to take part - it shows that rivals can help each other away from the football field!

July 1st 2007

Coming in August :- easyfundraising’s innovative new search engine easysearch will work just like Google, bringing you fast, accurate results time after time. But, unlike Google, easysearch will give you something back.

easysearch will give 50% of the fees paid by the advertising sponsors to the Shire. So just by searching online with easysearch rather than any other search engine, you will raise about 1p for the Shire with each search that’s made. It doesn’t sound like much, but the pennies soon mount up and a keen surfer can generate up to £25.00 a year – just by switching their normal online searching to easysearch!

To celebrate the launch of easysearch, easyfundraising are giving away a shirt signed by the entire team!

Details of how to register and enter the competion will be posted nearer the launch of easysearch in early August.

June 26th

shiretrust Assist Club to Sign Striker

The signing of Graeme McLaren is the first time in nearly 7 years that East Stirlingshire F.C. have paid a significant transfer fee to another club. After an approach by Director Spencer Fearn and in consultation with Manager Gordon Wylde, shiretrust agreed to contribute a sizeable sum towards the fee to help sign the player. The shiretrust committee want to show their support for the new direction the club is taking and assist those who we believe are trying to take positive action to restore the standing of East Stirlingshire as a senior football club.

June 23rd

shiretrust Quiz Night

shiretrust are holding a fundraising quiz night similar to last year at Lodge St.John No 16, Masonic Hall, 200 Grahams Road Falkirk. The quiz will take place on Tuesday 3rd July at 7.30pm and feature a general knowlege mix of questions. The entry fee for a team of up to 4 people will be £10 with the winning team receiving a prize of £100, there will also be a raffle and an auction of interesting items. Team formation and entry fees can be done on the night and there is a bar on the premises. Anyone is welcome to participate, enjoy a good night out and help raise money for shiretrust.

 

June 14th 2007

The minutes from the AGM can be found via this Link

May 23rd 07

shiretrust AGM `07 - Brief Headlines

Election of Committee

Since the number of vacancies matched the number of candidates there was no need for an election. Scott Fraser stood down and was thanked for his service. Ian Fleming and Tadek Kopszywa stood again and were re-appointed and Neil Gough was appointed to the committee for the first time.

Rules Change Proposal

After some debate and an unsuccessful bid to attach an ammendment, the vote was 40 for with 4 against - the proposal was therefore passed and the shiretrust rules will be changed.

New committee

After the AGM a short committee meeting was held and the following positions were agreed:

Ian Ramsay - Chairman

Ian Fleming - Secretary

Drummond Calder - Treasurer

Tadek Kopszywa - Media Liason

Mark Batham - Leader Catering Project

Neil Gough - Membership Secretary

Tony Ford - General Projects/ Lottery/ Creative Ideas + Jack of all Trades!

 

May 20th 2007

Both the club and fans have witnessed the condition of the Firs Park pitch become a growing problem recently. The lack of investment over several years in the playing surface has seen it become uneven, poorly drained and have poor grass cover in places, attracting criticism from both opponents and our own players. The club has now started work to improve the pitch in time for next season and shiretrust were pleased to help with this important task by making a substantial contribution to its overall cost.

May 14th 07

Chairman's annual report to AGM

May 7th 07

Notice of Annual General Meeting for the East Stirlingshire Supporters Society (shiretrust)

The meeting will take place on Tuesday 22nd May 2007 in the Thornhill Community Centre (a few minutes walk from Firs Park), Thornhill Road, Falkirk at 7.30pm.

Members who require assistance or directions should contact the committee by e-mail at shiretrust@aol.com or phone the chairman, Ian Ramsay on (01324)711788.

 

April 18th 07

This link gives shiretrusts position re the sale of Firs Park and the potential vote to reduce East Stirlingshire to associate membership of the SFL.

 

17th December

`One of shiretrust`s aims states that we should try "To strengthen the bond between the Club and the community which it serves and to represent the interests of the community in the running of the club." I believe that if we are prepared to ask the local community for help at some point in the future WE in turn must be prepared to help the local community.

With this in mind the shiretrust committee recently decided to assist local radio station Central FM with their `Toys for Tots 2005` appeal. This appeal was to gather presents for needy and deprived children (from tots to
teenagers) in the Forth valley area to be given to the Aberlour Child Care Trust for distribution. A request for childrens presents was put on the East Stirlingshire fans forum (see links) and at its close on Friday 16th December we were very pleased to see that so many presents had been donated on behalf of shiretrust to the appeal. On behalf of the committee I want to thank those that contributed for helping local children and showing our trust doing things to help our local community.`

21st November

The "Fans Forum" link has been changed to the new eaststirlingshirefansforum as the previous version will soon be defunct.

19th November

"shiretrust have made a donation of supplies for the club to use on training nights. A stock of soup, biscuits, washing powder and other provisions will help keep players and staff going on the long winter nights. It is hoped the `supply drop` can be repeated from time to time over the course of the season."

 

3rd November

"shiretrust was well represented at the `Shire AGM on Tuesday night with the full committee and many members present. Members raised some important issues with the board, eg an update on ground sale, any plans to arrange another place to play (if the ground sale goes ahead), are the board concerned that new SFL rules allow for a club finishing bottom for 4 consecutive seasons could be expelled from the league and when does the Littlewoods sponsorship deal end and are the board prepared for it? Aside from learning that Littlewoods sponsorship finishes at the end of the season I have to say that little in the way of answers or information was forthcoming from the meeting.

In the election of directors I stood as an alternative to three current board members, the total votes for each candidate were:
Alex McCabe 1388, Alan Mackin 1387, Douglas Morrison 1309, Ian Ramsay 377 As you can see the three current directors were re-elected by a large majority - this was unsurprising given their large shareholding, supply of proxy votes and mutual support. Overall I am pleased and grateful to have received the votes of the vast majority of shareholders present at the meeting and the proxies of many who did not attend. I want to thank the shareholders, shiretrust members and supporters for their backing. At the very least several issues of interest to the trust were discussed at the meeting and awareness of shiretrust has been substantially increased in the past month.

At the end of the meeting Secretary Les Thompson thanked shiretrust and the Supporters Club for the assistance they have rendered to the club this season, it is good to see there is now a working relationship between trust and club. It is a mark of the progress we have made over the last year that shiretrust was mentioned in the Secretary`s report which was circulated to all `Shire shareholders before the AGM."

24th October

Dear Member,

The shiretrust committee and members have been asked to support Ian Ramsay (the current chairman) as an official candidate in the forthcoming election of directors at the `Shire AGM, which is to be held on 1 st November 2005. Due to time constraints we are unable to consult all the members of shiretrust directly for a decision on whether Ian should receive official shiretrust support at the AGM.

Accordingly, the other members of the shiretrust committee have taken the decision on behalf of the membership to unanimously recommend that Ian should receive official shiretrust support at the AGM. The shiretrust committee strongly recommends that members with shares in East Stirlingshire Football and Athletic Club vote for Ian in the election of directors which will take place and also that they follow advice from the committee on any other votes that may occur.

Shiretrust members who wish to attend the AGM but do not hold shares in the football club should contact the committee as soon as possible (in person, by e-mail at shiretrust@aol.com or write to East Stirlingshire Supporters Society Ltd, PO Box 21654, Falkirk, FK2 7XN) as, from past experience, there are usually a limited number of share proxies available from other trust members who are unable to attend. If you are an East Stirlingshire shareholder and are unable to attend the AGM but wish to make available your share(s) to another trust member please get in touch with us. It is important that shiretrust fully utilises the shares we have available to us at the forthcoming `Shire AGM. Please note that any share proxies which become available to the trust will be issued on a 1 st come, 1 st served basis.

Drummond Calder
Treasurer
shiretrust

12th October

"I want to say a big thank you to those of you who have renewed their membership of shiretrust this year, I am glad most of you decided to `keep the faith` in our long term goal of making things better for the `Shire. We also have had an encouraging number of new members joining and we hope to get more as the year progresses. If you know a friend, relative or even an open minded fan of another club why not ask them if they would like to help a `grass roots` oriented football organisation try to make a difference to their club by joining shiretrust?

We now have the shiretrust logo displayed on the site. I hope you agree with the committee that it is simple, expressive and has a good colour scheme!

Everyone should note that the AGM of East Stirlingshire F.C. is to be held on Tuesday 1st November at Park Lodge Hotel (Arnot Hill, Falkirk) with a starting time of 7pm. Shareholders who cannot attend this meeting must get their form for proxy voting to the club`s address (Firs Street, Falkirk, FK2
7AY) by 7pm on Sunday 30th October to be able to use their votes.

If you are a `Shire shareholder who cannot attend but wishes to support the aims of shiretrust please contact us by E-mail: shiretrust@aol.com, write to us at East Stirlingshire Supporters Society Ltd, PO Box 21654, Falkirk, FK2 7XN or speak to any committee member (Ian Ramsay, Drummond Calder, Tadek Kopszwa, Scott Fraser, Tony Ford, Ian Flemming and Linda Stewart). We will have more news about the `Shire AGM soon so watch this space!"

26th September

Last Saturday shiretrust volunteers re-opened the club shop for the first time since 2002 - at a time when positive stories are often conspicuous by their absence this is one thing supporters can feel good about. The shop was busy and did brisk business which raised a considerable sum of money for the club. This is a good example of how the trust can help both the club and the fans – if you have not yet done so why not pop over and see what is on offer. The club shop is one door along from the pie shop hatch and is will be open 20 minutes before kick off and at half time. The shop will be closed during the game so that the volunteers can see the action on the pitch – they are supporters too after all!

4th September

After some discussion with Shire Chief Exec. Les Thopmson the shiretrust
committee have decided to go ahead with our original plan to run the club
shop on matchdays. For the past 2 seasons Shire merchandise has only been
available from Les Thompson`s office which can be a busy place on a
Saturday and this is obviously far from ideal. Volunteer shiretrust members
will open up shop in the portakabin (1 door along from the pie shop hatch)
for the 1st time since the 2001/ 02 season, beginning with the home game
against Montrose on Saturday 10th September. The times of business have not
been fixed yet but we hope to open the shop for a short period before kick
off and during half time so please come along and see what`s on offer. We
want to rotate the people who are running the shop so that as many as
possible can `have a go` so we will be looking for volunteers to come
forward and lend a hand. shiretrust will not recieve anything for running
the club shop but we believe doing it brings benefits to shiretrust, the
club and the Shire supporters themselves and we want to make a gesture of
our good will, flexibility and positive thinking to the Shire board.

23rd August

The shiretrust Committee advises anyone thinking of standing for the Shire board (for this years AGM) that they must apply in writing by 31st August.
Candidates must have 3 nominees and should write or deliver their letter to:
The Secretary, East Stirlingshire Football Club, Firs Park, Firs Street, Falkirk, FK2 7AY

21st August 2005

"The process of shiretrust membership renewals is now in full swing. Members should note that due to some renewal notices being sent out late the deadline before membership expiry (if you have not yet paid) has been put back to 20th September.
For the benefit of the members and the smooth running of shiretrust we have recently appointed committee member Scott Fraser as Membership Secretary who will be specifically responsible for keeping an eye on members records and updating them where nessesary.
If you wish to pay by standing order send your completed mandate form to your bank. If you wish to pay by cheque please make payable to: shiretrust and send toEast Stirlingshire Supporters Society Ltd. PO Box 21654, Falkirk, FK2 7XN. You can still pay by cash to any Committee member in person.
If you have any questions, comments or suggestions about membership renewals or anything related to shiretrust please either write to the above address or e-mail us directly at shiretrust@aol.com."

24th July 2005

"At our recent meeting the shiretrust committee are pleased to have appointed Tony Ford as our first co-opted committee member. We believe Tony has strengths in many areas - the main ones being - previous experience of fund raising, supporters issues and ways of dealing with them (formerly an active member of the Brighton & Hove Albion Supporters Club), an abundance of creative ideas (some of which he shared with us at our committee meeting) and a different background from the other committee members giving us the advantage of having an alternative viewpoint on a range of issues. The committee have taken their time in making this appointment but I am sure everyone can appreciate the importance of `getting the balance right` - aiming for a wide range of skills and abilities in the committee can only be of benefit to shiretrust.
It is that time of the year - the season will start soon and as well as seeking new recruits, we will shortly be asking our existing members to renew their subscriptions to shiretrust. A letter and/ or e-mail will be sent to each member with an invitation to pay their fees (same as last year
- £10 Adult, £5 concession) by filling in a standing order/ direct debit form - both for their convenience and that of the trust. We also hope to include a newsletter to update trust members on what has been happening recently.
There now follows an important message from treasurer Drummond. To avoid a long `drawn out` subscription process existing members should note that if they have not paid their subscription fee BEFORE 1st September their membership will be considered to have lapsed and their share cancelled - they can still pay after this date but it will be considered a new application and they will have to fork out an additional £1 for a replacement shiretrust share."
It is the `Shire`s 125th anniversary next season and one of the main events we have been discussing is a large celebration sportsmans dinner towards the end of the season - I would advise everyone to get their `Sunday best` clothes looked out for this occasion!

. A note from Chairman Ramz

"It seems to have been a long close season this year but there are still things happening in the trust and things in the pipeline still to come. First we have made progress in our search for a co-opted committee member and hope to be able to tell you who the lucky candidate is after our committee meeting next week. The committee have already agreed that membership fees will remain the same for next season at £10 Adult/ £5 concession. A life membership of shiretrust may soon be available for £100 - remove the need to renew your membership every season and give the trust a lump sum cash boost! Like myself, many shiretrust members are also members of the `Shire Supporters Club which (with some other help) has been assisting the groundsman in trying to clean up Firs Park in time for the new season. Usually this involves rubbish removal, cutting down long grass, a bit of painting and a lot of weeding! We should all be gratefull to those volunteers who give up a couple of nights a week to do this badly needed work this summer.Take a look around at the 1st home game of the season - if you don`t notice too much difference then a) you are not looking hard enough! b) you should have seen it before we started in early June!"

New e-mail address :- shiretrust@aol.com

 

Snippets from last nights shiretrust Committee Meeting

A trust logo has finally been agreed on and will be unveiled soon

It is dissappointing that the SFL have voted to bring in a way of possibly voting out the bottom club in the 3rd division if it persistantly fails to improve. The committee will be watching the Scottish Parliament reports progress on the future of Scottish football (which we submitted evidence to) with interest to see what it has to say. We still think that a pyramid set up is the fairest way to let clubs rise and fall naturally in Scottish football and will continue to push for it where appropriate.

The committee has so far not recieved a reply from the `Shire board on our proposal to help the club in various ways in return for some shares. We have sent a follow up letter but in the meantime have decided in view of this we cannot begin to `do up` Firs Park as that would represent `something for nothing`. We have been in contact with the Supporters Club (who have done this kind of thing in the past) and asked them if they want to take the lead in this matter - although they have less resources than the trust they have generously agreed to take on this task.

It is planned to include a newsletter with the trust membership renewals that will be sent out to further update members in July.

 

The thoughts of Chairman Ramz (on the SFL's recent Vote)

On Friday 27th May the SFL voted for a system of playoffs between divisions
but (of more direct concern to us) this motion also included a mechanism for
a club that consistently finished the season bottom of the 3rd division to
be voted out of the league and I believe this is specifically aimed at the
Shire. I think that despite this vote, which dissappointingly has seen the
SFL simply `tinker` with the league structure, we should continue to point
out that a full pyramid system is the fairest way to ensure that clubs rise
and fall on merit and there would always be a place for a club, no matter
how good or bad it was. The other obvious thing we should do is to help the
manager in any way we can to get the best players and get the results to try
and ensure that we do not finish bottom of the league any time soon.
The above will be one of the main items on the agenda of the shiretrust
committee meeting on Monday 6th June.

New Photos from the Poker Night have been added into the Archived Links Page