Chairman's Chat

HI everyone,

I hope that you are looking after yourselves and your families. This disease is only going to be contained if we stay away from as many people as possible, follow the government’s advice and, equally importantly, stay fit, and get a good night’s sleep.

I realise that working from home and staying away from people is not always easy, and that the shutdown of many services causes problems for many families, but it is important to look after yourselves. Please take the time at least to go for a walk in the fresh air.

There are so many uncertainties at the moment, that the future is even more difficult to forecast than usual. We don’t know how the virus will spread, or how long-term the effect on football will be. What I do know is that we are better-placed than most clubs to withstand the loss of revenues that comes from not being able to play our matches.

We have very little debt, and have shareholders who are willing to take whatever steps are necessary to see us through this immediate period to ensure that the club’s finances, while obviously under severe pressure, will enable us to withstand the strain without damage to our staff or suppliers.

That probably means short-term, interest free loans, but, as has happened in the past, those loans could quickly become permanent equity once the extent of any irrecoverable losses becomes known and we have a clearer view of the outlook for football as a whole.

We need all stakeholders to support football. That means not just Argyle’s shareholders being prepared to help the club, but also our sponsors, the media, the EFL, EPL and FA, and, of course, our fans.

Things should become clearer in a month or two, but I am not confident in predicting that we will soon be back playing football. We will use the time that gives us to make sure the club continues to improve its internal systems, under Andrew Parkinson’s leadership, and continues to engage with our supporters and sponsors. If we do that, we will not just survive, but have taken advantage of this terrible situation to emerge on the other side as a stronger organisation, and even better club.

Please take care of yourselves.

Simon