Supporters stepping in for SUFC

A joint statement from the supporters’ groups of Southend United:

We can’t quite believe that we are having to do this, but here we are.

Due to Ron Martin’s and his “group companies’” total ineptitude and failure to fund Southend United FC adequately, we are raising some money in an attempt to support our club’s amazing staff, players and management through these tough times. They are the heart and soul of SUFC and they, along with Tom Lawrence, continue to work hard in the face of the adversity behind the scenes. The critical underfunding of the football club has resulted in numerous members of staff receiving their salaries late or, as of now, not at all. This is completely unacceptable conduct for any business at any time, let alone approaching Christmas and during a profound economic and cost of living crisis.

Unfortunately, we seem to have moved beyond simple incompetence when it comes to Ron Martin’s performance as steward of SUFC and are now entering the territory of moral bankruptcy and absence of basic human empathy.

Even more unfortunately, the issue with wages is just scratching the surface when it comes to the issues behind the scenes at the club, which reportedly include but are not limited to:
 • a multitude of well-publicised, reported unpaid supplier bills, e.g. to hotels, squad and stadium catering, and GPS data suppliers;
• late Academy wages leading to boycott action from the youth team, despite the club receiving money from the EFL to fund the Academy;
 • a shockingly disrespectful statement from the club after the adjournment to the latest HMRC winding-up petition hearing, with absolutely no contrition, apology or information regarding length of adjournment nor indication of whether the funds will be in place by then;
• consistently late and still unfiled annual accounts from the club and “group companies” and numerous first Gazette notices for compulsory strike-off issued them as a result.

 “Cashflow issues” are not a credible excuse for any of this. Either you have the funds and cashflow to meet all of the football club’s financial obligations in full and on time, or you do not. If you do not, then you are unfit to own and run a football club and should at least engage with parties interested in purchasing it in the near future to see what they can offer. Our beloved football club’s name and reputation are being stamped into the gutter, and it will never fully recover and move on for as long as Ron Martin is attached to it.

 All staff members should receive the money that they deserve for the work that they have already done but as things stand, there is a very real possibility that some of them will not be paid before Christmas. It would be wonderful to see the Shrimpers community rally around the people who have been so badly let down. The support that this club receives is astounding, with home attendances regularly topping 6,000 and sold out away ticket allocations at Maidstone, York and Barnet in the space of just a week. Kevin Maher has repeatedly stated how blown away he is by our unbelievable support of his team and how lucky they are to have us – let’s show that we can provide the same level of support to the club off the pitch too. We are asking anybody who is reading this to make a donation, no matter how big or small, to support the staff members who are struggling to make ends meet. Please see the GoFundMe page here. We will work to ensure that all money raised goes to the people for whom it is intended somehow but at the very worst, it will be ringfenced in its entirety to help the club at any other stage.

 This cannot continue.

Support the team, not the regime.

 #MartinOut

This statement has been approved and signed by: Save Our Southend, The Shrimpers Trust , Shrimperzone.com, Blues on Tour, The Custard Splat Podcast, All At Sea Fanzine, Proud Shrimpers, The Blue Voice, SUFC Exiles