Welcome to the Silkmen Supporters' Trust.

16th Septermber 2020

A  Statement on Today's Winding Up Order.

The SST are devastated by the decision of the court to wind up Macclesfield Town Football Club.

The responsibility for this lies at the feet of one person – Amar Alkadhi.

We are currently looking into what actions we can take to save the club and as such will be seeking a meeting with the receiver as soon as possible.

In the meantime the SST will attempt to put together a rescue bid.

We ask all our fans to unite and get behind the SST.  We therefore ask any fan with specialist knowledge to contact the SST, as soon as possible.

A Further Statement on Today's Winding Up Order.

Following on from the decision of the court to wind up Macclesfield Town Football Club, the SST has ascertained that a receiver has not yet been appointed and is unlikely to be appointed for a week or so.

This is a winding up, so the court will appoint someone, if it believes there to be any assets.

It is understood that Mr Alkadhi was told at last week’s hearing to provide proof of funding or a potential buyer but he was unable to do so.

There is no easy way back from this.  The only way would to pay out all the money owed an option the SST are currently exploring.

The court ruling is in effect the end of the club in the present format.

The only way forward now, and it may be a positive, would be to form a new club, just like Bury have done, debt free and without Mr Alkadhi.  To that end the SST will be contacting local councillors to preserve and protect the integrity of the Moss Rose stadium.

The SST would like to reassure our fellow fans that whatever happens the SST will not countenance Mr Alkadhi being involved in any shape or form.

The SST furthermore hope than the fanbase will unify behind whatever club we have in the future.

10th September 2020

Letter to Mr AlKadhi

                                                                                                                                          Silkmen Supporters’ Trust

c/o 3 Lincoln Place

Macclesfield

Cheshire

SK10 3EW

 09 September 2020

Mr A AlKadhi

c/o Macclesfield Town Football Club

Moss Rose Ground

London Road

Macclesfield

Cheshire

SK11 7SP

Dear Mr AlKadhi

It is with great concern that the Silkmen Supporters Trust (SST) write to you regarding the current situation at Macclesfield Town Football Club (MTFC).

Fundamental objectives of the SST include providing a channel of communication between the fanbase and the club and identifying/assessing issues of concern and where possible attempt to resolve them.  It has become patently clear to us that many fans will refuse to spend a single penny at the club; be it on season tickets, matchday tickets, merchandise or food and drink.  We believe that this will inevitably lead to a funding crisis for the club, that could potentially result in the club going into administration or even liquidation.  This anger can be seen on the Star Lane End Facebook page where many fans are saying they will boycott the club.  A conservative estimate puts the loss to the club in the region of £100,000.

To be blunt the fanbase see you as the problem and will stand for nothing less than you walking away from the club.  The recent statement that spoke of you standing down as chairman, and negating any operational and fiscal control of the club has been treated with disdain by many Silkmen supporters with many believing that whilst you are the majority shareholder; you will simply be able to take out monies for yourself as and when you see fit.  As a consequence many supporters are prepared to see the club fold and be superseded by a phoenix club albeit playing at a much lower level.

We; the SST offer three possible solutions:

1.             Sell the club to one of the 17 bidders you claim to have contacted you, and please be assured that the SST as the fans representatives are quite prepared to assist you as apposite in helping to choose the buyer that has the best long term interests of MTFC at heart; something you have alluded to have been of paramount importance in previous statements surrounding a possible sale of the club.

2.             Publicly transfer your shares across to the SST relinquishing the role of majority shareholder.  The SST will hold the shares in trust until a buyer is found, with the football club operationally and financially managed by an independent chairman and locally based board.

3.             Disclose to the SST in confidence, a figure for which you are prepared to sell the club to the SST.  We could then appraise the information provided, and if practicable, put together a local based community consortium to purchase the club from you.

The SST hope you will receive this communication in the spirit it is sent.  It is sent to safeguard the long-term future of MTFC; preserve the memory of its long and illustrious history, and also help you to find a way out of what could be a disastrous personal situation should the club go into administration or be liquidated.

We look forward to your response within five days of receipt of this letter.

Yours sincerely

SST BOARD

28th August 2020

Response to our letter dated 8th July 2020 from the EFL Communications Director

Dear all.

Please see the recent response from Mark Rowan (EFL Communications Director at the EFL) with regards to our letter dated 8th July 2020 for what it's worth!!

Dear Andy

Macclesfield Town I write further to your letter to EFL Chief Executive David Baldwin who has asked me to respond on his behalf. As you are aware due to the Covid-19 restrictions the EFL is working under we did not receive sight of your letter until earlier this month, and as you know from our recent phone conversation, while conscious that we have not formally responded prior to now, given the number of developments that have occurred over recent weeks, we felt it appropriate to respond once the situation had been clarified further.

Firstly due to the many ongoing issues that have arisen in recent months we recognise it has been a particularly challenging season for Macclesfield Town, its staff and supporters. As you will be aware, on Monday 17 August, the EFL Board rejected a request from Macclesfield Town, made in line with Regulations 7.7A – 7.7C, to allow them to retain their status as an EFL Club. The Club had asked the Board to reprieve the Club should the National League be unable to guarantee to the Board’s satisfaction that competitive fixtures in the National League National Division will commence within a reasonable period of time. However, The National League informed its Clubs on 27 July 2020 of its intention to commence Season 2020/21 on 3 October 2020 and has provided the EFL with further information alongside this confirming the details relating to how it intends to do so in compliance with all relevant government guidance.

Prior to the Club’s request, as you will be aware, an independent Arbitration Panel had upheld the EFL’s appeal in respect of the outcome of an independent Disciplinary Commission who in June 2020 had considered misconduct charges brought against the Club. The charges related to failing to pay a number of players on the applicable payment dates due in March 2020, failing to act with utmost good faith in respect of matters with the EFL and for breaching an order, requirement, direction or instruction of the League. The appeal outcome was published on 11 August. At present, matters of confidentiality prevent us from providing further details but the EFL will release the full written reasons at an appropriate point once they become available.

I note in your letter that you raise a number of matters in respect to the League’s rules and procedures, and while I suspect that some of your questions may have subsequently been answered by recent events, I will provide further clarity where possible.

In respect of the method to curtail the 2019/20 season in League Two, and PPG calculation, while Clubs were able to propose alternate amendments ahead of the EGM on 9 June, overwhelmingly they agreed (by a majority of all Clubs and a majority in the Championship) to adopt the EFL Board’s proposal into Regulations. The vote was in no way ‘rigged’ to remove the Club from League 2 as you allege. However it was understood that the decisions taken would not be met with universal satisfaction from all Clubs and their supporters but in summary the preferred approach was to remain as faithful as possible to the Regulations and demonstrate consistency throughout the League. I can assure you that discussions and decisions in relation to matters to conclude the current season, were not taken lightly. Further to your query (point 6) for minutes of the EGM to be made available, please note these are taken and provided to Clubs and elsewhere if appropriate.

In terms of point 4, matters relating to appeals are for the EFL Board to determine based on the circumstances of each charge and relevant commission outcomes and reasoning. There are examples of previous appeals, most recently on 10 June, when the EFL had its appeal upheld following the decision of an independent Disciplinary Commission to clear Birmingham City of a misconduct charge. Each charge is obviously based on its own discrete facts.

In respect of your suggestion that the EFL should sanction owners rather than Clubs (point 7), the EFL has the ability to take action against individuals, by way of a Board Policy, and will do so based on the circumstances presented at any given time where it is deemed appropriate. In this respect the EFL can only operate within the parameters of its rules, alongside advice from external counsel.

You suggest in point 8 that the EFL should have assisted Macclesfield Town in paying staff wages. Over a considerable period of time the EFL has provided assistance to the Club – and its other member Clubs - in any number of matters, and as previously confirmed for you, whilst we don’t pay the wages of Club staff directly, we did undertake to only release monies to the Club if they were being used for the purposes for which their release was being sought. I would refer you to the decision of the independent Disciplinary Commission published on 19 June (here) as to the background of how the latest charges against the Club arose, and you will appreciate the EFL was seeking to ensure monies it made available to the Club were allocated for this purpose.

In terms of John Nixon’s role and your query at point 9, he is currently the voted representative for League Two on the EFL Board. Clearly a fundamental role of divisional representatives on the Board is to represent the interests of the Clubs who have elected them, and together with the other six divisional representatives and three independent directors, are responsible for providing the organisation's strategic direction. Clubs are able to provide feedback on the actions of any member of the Board at any time should they wish to do so.

Finally, we appreciate that Macclesfield Town supporters and the Club’s local community will be extremely disappointed with the events of the past 12 months and the outcome of the season, and while this letter is not intended to address these particular points, I trust the above has assisted in clarifying the matters raised. Should you have any additional queries I would be more than willing to provide further clarity where possible to do so.

Yours sincerely

Mark Rowan

EFL Communications Director

13th August 2020

SST Response to the EFL Appeal

Dear all

When the heart-breaking news of our relegation from the English Football League (EFL) came to light I was surprised as to how apparently calm I felt. It was only several hours later that I realised that it was not calmness that I was demonstrating but emotional numbness; a coping mechanism which the mind uses to attempt to manage overwhelming emotions such as fear, hatred and grief. It was only as I started to read some of the fantastic comments from a number of my peers on social media that the numbness turned to disbelief and anger at what has happened to us.

A key objective of the Silkmen Supporters Trust (SST) is to provide a channel of communication between the football club and its supporters; something which we must endeavour to attempt to consistently improve upon going forward. On Wednesday 12th August 2020, I spoke with Mark Blower and our Member of Parliament (MP) David Rutley on behalf of the SST board, and both were clearly devastated by the outcome of the EFL appeal. Mark spoke of how he felt terrible because of his belief that he has let so many people down, and was currently exploring a number of options to attempt to remedy the situation as best we could.

I advised Mark that social media had been awash with angst and anger-ridden comments that show that nobody is under any illusion that it is that Macclesfield Town Football Club majority shareholder,  Amar AlKadhi  who is to blame for the horrendous debacle that he has played out in front of us. Mark's effort over the last 2 months had given us a chance of League 2 survival that we didn't have before he became involved. Mark was further advised that Silkmen fans across the board were unanimous in their view that they will NOT return to the Moss Rose until Amar AlKadhi has absolutely no involvement, and that there is growing support towards the concept of a phoenix club. A consistent theme among the fans is that Amar's behaviour has been so selfish and abhorrent that they cannot contemplate a future for the club with his involvement and thus, his removal is essential, whatever the cost.  Mark could clearly understand the rationale behind these views yet understandably found it very concerning when considering the huge challenges that face the club in the weeks and months to come.

Within this spirit of communication to Amar AlKadhi, we the SST board; would urge him to take just a minute to read and digest this wonderful post by legendary Silkmen fan David Westbury which sums up the feelings of so many of us at this awful time in our beloved club’s history:

For 20 years, from being a little boy, all I wanted to do was to see my team compete in the football league , with “big” clubs like Port Vale, Crewe and Rochdale. I supported them when we finished bottom of the Northern Premier League in 1975. And I watched them as we reemerged in the 1980s. And I watched them as our dream of league football became reality in 1997 (after a chairman had given everything including his own life to get us there). I watched my dearly departed dad cry at Kettering. I heard my dearly departed mum say “never mind we’ll go again” when we drew at Halifax. And I saw my team compete, not with “big” clubs like Rochdale, Port Vale and Crewe but with “bigger” clubs like Man City, Stoke, Fulham, Burnley, Millwall, Blackpool, Wigan, Preston. When that Football League dream faded away in 2012, I never thought I’d see my club play league football again. I was wrong. We somehow clawed our way back. Against all odds. I watched my brother cry at Tranmere. I watched us ALL cry at Eastleigh. And now, because of the actions of one selfish man, and a corrupt governing body, that Football League dream is shattered once more. I don’t think I’ll ever see my club in the football league again. The clock is ticking. What we had yesterday was worth protecting. What we have today is worth nothing. AMAR ALKADHI - Your final legacy is now written. And if you have any sense of shame at all, you’ll be gone by the end of this week so that those of us who are left, can pick up the pieces of the wreck you’ve left behind. You’ll NEVER know the impact your actions have had on so many people. You’ll never feel the hurt that we, the supporters, are feeling right now. But, believe me, if you ever set foot on the Moss Rose again, you’ll hear the hatred we feel for you. Get out of OUR club, get out of OUR community, and get out of OUR of lives.

Trust is a powerful concept that is difficult to define but when there is no trust, there is bound to be a withdrawal of energy and engagement. This is clearly the case between Amar and our passionate fanbase, and the level of withdrawal and dis-engagement will increase very markedly in the coming weeks and months.

We therefore urge Amar to sell the club as soon as possible, and in the interim, we as the SST would be happy to receive his shares and act as custodians of the shares until we have an owner that wants to develop the club into the wonderful community focused  club that it has been and can be  in the future.

#OURTOWNOURCLUB  

Andy Worth

Chairperson of the Silkmen Supporters Trust

8th July 2020

A letter to the Chief Executive Officer of the English Football League

                                                                                              SST Secretary

                                                                                              c/o 3 Lincoln Place

                                                                                              Macclesfield

                                                                                              Cheshire

                                                                                              SK10 3EW

Mr David Baldwin

Chief Executive Officer

English Football League

EFL House

10-12 West Cliff

Preston

PR1 8HU

Dear Mr Baldwin

Macclesfield Town Football Club (MTFC) are a small town football club within a hotbed of Premiership clubs in the North West, and one with a proud heritagedating back to 1874. The "against all odds" mentality that pervades our club has seen MTFC achieve promotion to the English Football League (EFL) on two occasions, and on much smaller budgets than many of its peers. 

It is further use to note that in this day and age where there is a great concern about the lack of Black Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) coaches and managers in English football within the game, Macclesfield has  appointed 3 BAME managers and a number of BAME coaches during their tenure in the ELF.

Please be assured that the overwhelming majority of Macclesfield Town Football Club (MTFC) Silkmen fans including the Silkmen Supporters Trust (SST) board, would be the first to admit that the stewardship of our beloved club by majority shareholder Mr. AlKadhi has been heartbreakingly horrendous. Silkmen fans everywhere despise his mismanagement of the  club and in addition to his contemptuous attitude towards the club’s playing and non-playing staff and of course our long suffering supporters. It is our view that the actions of Mr. AlKhadi have clearly angered the English Football League (EFL), and as a result of his actions MTFC have  been rightly docked points for this mismanagement., The recent re-involvement of former Silkmen chairman Mark Blower who played a major role in MTFC's defence at the recent independent panel hearing, had subsequently pointed to a more secure future for our beloved club both on and off the field with an inspiration of a fully operational board dedicated to effective governance of MTFC going forward.

The SST would like to place on record our frustration by the EFL's apparent inability and unwillingness to deal with the actions of appalling owners which have been manifest this season with the cases of Bury and now sadly Wigan. The SST have appealed for help on behalf of the fans, players and community, and have found the EFL to be unsympathetic and largely unresp;onsive. The lack of action on the appeals relating to staff mental healthhave been particularly galling.. 

The last disciplinary hearing held by an Independent Panel against MTFC made their decision after considering all the evidence and this should be respected. It must be pointed out that the decision was made considering the flawed way points per game (PPG) was calculated. MTFC were in effect deducted 16 points not 13, as recommended by the panel. A comparable analogy to this is a criminal sentenced to 18 months in prison who on arrival at the point of incarceration is told "forget what your sentence is, it is now 2 years" without rhythm nor reason. This is against English Law and legal advice appears to be on the side of MTFC.

It is our view that the EFL are inconsistent to say the least. Stevenage avoided a points deduction following an independent panel's decision, regarding a postponement of a fixture against Oldham Athletic where it was cited that three Stevenage players were identified for international call ups when only two were alleged to be eligible to be counted. Where was the EFL appeal? Southend another serial offender of paying wages late received a suspended point deduction. Again, where was the EFL appeal?   These follow the imposition of no points reduction to Bolton Wanderers for missing two games.

The last two weeks have seen a publicity orchestrated campaign by members of the EFL to get Macclesfield demoted, an action the EFL well knows would obliterate the club. The prime orchestrator has been Mr. Philip Wallace of Stevenage, along with others including Mr. Philip Day of Grimsby. We believe that it is disgraceful, that the EFL board representative for League Two, Mr. John Nixon who sits at the high table of the EFL hierarchy, and who should surely provide an unbiased approach to all League 2 clubs; highlighted on social media that such was his indignation at the recent independent panel's decision regarding MTFC, that he was considering resigning from his aforementioned role. Is this the way the EFL conducts its business? The SST  has seen no evidence of him demonstrating denial of his apparent ire since this time. The self-righteous indignation from Mr. Nixon was palpably silent following the decision on Stevenage, not to mention inrespect of the PPG calculationthat effectively saw the SIlkmen receive a further three point eduction.

It is of further use to note that on the 6th March 2020 Carlisle’s Chief Executive Nigel Clibbens spoke of how "on discussions and deliberations of [Macclesfield], penalties etc, [Mr. Nixon] does not participate, except to simply collect League Two views and pass them to the EFL."  The above statement from the Cumbrians Chief Executive appears to have fallen on deaf ears to Mr. Nixon, and the SST would politely request that the EFL provide us with an outline of Mr. Nixon’s role as the League 2 representative, and your explanations to how his recent actions can in any way be seen as reasonable and unbiased. 

The decision of the EFL to appeal against the independent decision now appears to be a witch hunt towards MTFC. Stevenage only managed to win three games in the 2019/20 season and were clearly the worst performing team in the division and deserved relegation. The independent panel made its decision and, as in the cases highlighted above, that decision should be accepted by the EFL

In order to understand what is happening could the EFL please answer the following questions:

1. What date is the appeal to take place on?
2. On what grounds are the EFL appealing? Has any undisclosed evidence come to light?
3. ​Has the EFL been pressureised into the appeal by the owners of other League 2 clubs If so, by how many and who?
4. Why has the EFL only appealed the MTFC decision?
5. Does the EFL want to remove MTFC from League 2 because of the mismanagement of its owner?
6. It is clear that the PPG has been rigged to remove MTFC from League 2. WIll the EFL produce the full minutes of the PPG meeting together with all the relevant comments from League 2 clubs to a Parliamentary committee?
7. Why can't the EFL sanction miscreant owners rather than clubs? 
8. The EFL were supplied with information from the SST and knew the problems that MTFC were having. In particular the SST highlighted the concern that the owner was taking money out of the club. Would it not have been more sensible to help the club and pay the wages directly?
9. Could you provide the SST with an outline of the context of MR. Nixon's role as the League 2 representative and could you please provide a view as to whether Mr. Nixon's recent actions can in any way be seen as reasonable and unbiased?​

I look forward to your prompt response.

Yours Faithfully

Andy Worth

Chairperson SST

Copy to:

Nigel Huddleston MP Minister of Sport

Damian Collins MP

Lisa Nandy MP

Davi Rutley MP

An SST Response to the Independent Arbitration Panel Decision

20th June 2020

Dear all