What is the purpose of Club Kildare?

I think the question is self explanatory , I don't need to add much else.

What exactly is the purpose of Club Kildare at this moment in time?
I mean as it stands it seems to me to be functioning as a funding arm to a failing county board. And absolutely nothing else.

At the recent meeting about the Senior County manager it had no voice and I would presume this is the way it will be going into the future.

Currently it asks people to fork out €300 per annum yet it gives them absolutely no entitlements to have a say in the running of Kildare GAA.

This, as the chest thumpers would say must be done "through your clubs".
(I will add that I am a club member myself)

What about the supporter with no club affiliation , as there are plenty of them out there. Is their opinion less relevant?

In recent times the benefits of joining have been lessened by Kildare matches being moved from Conleths Park.

Given that there is a Club Kildare EGM coming up at the weekend, and let's not get carried away here. This is not for club kildare members benefit. This is to see how they can bleed some more money to fund the inept chairman and his group of merry men that stand amongst him.

I want to ask Pat Mangan and June Kelly as an ex club Kildare member.

Of what benefit is it for me to join club Kildare? Because at the moment I don't see any.

Kfm hinting club Kildare could be in trouble. That will be another 100,000 our great CB will need to find. It also puts all the development squads in doubt as they got money from funds.

No doubt ballyboy, kelf or lollypop will be along soon to tell us all is great in the garden. The county is fecked.

Very few benefits in all reality Walter and as a member I have questioned this to myself sometimes . Personally I keep it up on the belief that my money goes straight into team/s funds coffers and I am happy to assist in that without looking for a voice or a vote . The people involved were directly involved in bringing in a professional set up to the county team over the last few years and one would wonder where we would be without them. We'dstill have crippling debt at county board level and have had no modicum of success on the pitch in that period in my view .
Have only respect for the people involved in it

It says in this article that Club Kildare may break up in its current format after the meeting next week. Doesn't sound good.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-football/club-kildare-future-in-doubt-as-crunch-meeting-looms-over-fundraising-29803251.html

Lads the problem with Club Kildare is that I always kind of associate it with being negatively sold. It's a kind of 'give us money attitude if you give a sh*t about Kildare' whereas in the shining light of these groups Club Tyrone it seems to be much more positive.
Now what must be highlighted here is that Club Kildare is not at fault for our county financial trouble but they have been tarred with the same brush.
I fully accept and appreciate volunteer efforts but there are some clubs around the country are being really imaginative. Na Fianna in Meath had a 'strictly' event last year which raised more than a county bucket collection.

My family will be going to all Kildare matches in 2014 but we will not be re-joining Club Kildare, I simply cant afford it but I am also sickened by last years fiasco.

Club Kildare isn't a funding arm of the county board from what I can gather. It is completely independent, which isn't an ideal situation in some ways, all though in others, I could see why one might think it was a great thing! But it isn't directly funding the county board.

I certainly have no issue with anyone who doesn't want to become a member... no-one should tell anyone how much they should or shouldn't contribute to, or indeed care for any cause. But the success of Club Tyrone has been mentioned. I have spoken to the people up there and there is an intrinsic difference in mindset there.

The title of this thread gives the hint to it. Again, I'm not being critical here... I'm not a member of Club Kildare and certainly understand people not being able to afford it.

But you pay £500 (sterling) to Club Tyrone and as far as they're concerned, there is no entitlement. It is a contribution to Tyrone GAA (all codes, grades and sexes). Actually, you get a plaque with your name on it on the wall of the palace they built thanks to this fundraising in Garvaghey. There is no jacket, no sticker, no tickets to games. You're not buying something tangible. You're buying into something.

The county certainly needs a supporters club but the relationship has clearly become pretty poisonous with the board. No point complaining about the board now, as people had their chance to make changes at convention. But if Club Kildare ends, some new supporters club needs to be established. Of that there is no doubt.

As Baba mentioned me above I will comment:

I am not a Club Kildare member but have contributed on occasion by buying tickets.

I don't believe Club Kildare was founded to confer benefits on its members but to raise money for the Kildare Senior Football team ( its remit may have widened to include Senior Hurling and even Underage).

I note what Ogie has said in relation to Club Tyrone, no frills or benefits, its just £500 for THE COUNTY.

The garden will be far from rosy if Club Kildare does not continue.

One thought: I am a member of a county supporters club & it entitles me to nothing but I do get emails & texts re games & busses for away trips. Its membership is €20 & has 1,500 members. Club Kildare has "around 250 members".

Like Kelf mentioned Club Kildare could have a few options where by
option 1: for €50 you get E-mails,texts about buses for away trips about tickets on sale etc and a Club Kildare member car sticker.
Option 2: for €300 you get the above plus the matches into St conleths plus Club Kildare jacket a Kildare gaa calender etc.
 Its worth bearing in mind many Kildare supporters out there buy a season ticket run by croke park at €75 but probably wouldnt mind taking up option 1 aswell to support Kildare.
If even an extra 500 people took option one it would generate 25k.

I always though that there was a perception out there that KSC was a bit elitist, there was never any real attempt to sell it to the ordinary supporter, it relied a lot on the corporate side of things and since the down turn in the economy this has taken a big hit. 350 in membership imo is a small number for a county the size of Kildare, the whole thing needs to be re branded. The current problems to my understanding is not being helped by Croke Park's insistence that KSC funds are to be overseen by the county board, this applies to all counties as far as I know but I'm open to correction on that. KSC has been a valuable asset to Kildare football since its formation, it would be a pity if the current difficulties led to its disbandment, it would leave a big hole to fill in someone's pocket.

Baba will you try and get over your infatuation with me, its getting a little bit embarrassing at this stage, people will start to talk

There's certainly a bit of a generation gap when it comes to these supporters clubs. I'd estimate that the vast majority of members would be over 40. Most of those in their 20s and 30s just don't have the discretionary income nowadays (particularly since the economic downturn) to be putting into things like the supporters club. A lot of those in their 50s and 60s will have their mortgage paid off and the membership fee is less of a chunk out of their annual budget. Whether a reduction in the subscription fee would bring in more income, we can only speculate. It's certainly worth investigating anyway.

I would have had some reservations over some of the club's activities in recent years but it would be a great shame if it went. I often wonder whether we would still be without a Leinster title since 1956 if it had not been for the foresight and ambition of Michael Osborne in the early nineties.

If it was €5 some people would still find fault. KSC hasn't been in existence in about 10 years, KSC was formed during the last recession (early 90's) and was successful. Its called Club Kildare. It costs €5.76 a week, I'll gladly give up giving my local another €4 a pint, some people do, some people talk, I don't look for medals. Club Kildare could be better in some aspects.

I stand corrected I should have said Club Kildare not KSC, am showing my age now

Anyone know the outcome of meeting last night ?

I didn't hear how the meeting went but it said in this article that there wasn't going to be a vote on the future of Club Kildare last night.

http://www.kildare-nationalist.ie/2013/12/10/county-board-firing-line-ahead-club-kildare-egm/

Club Kildare isn't really a sub-committee of the county board. As far as I can see all that has happened is that the Treasurer became a signatory on the Club Kildare bank account and the Club Kildare accounts were presented with the county board's accounts for convention. If it were, its officers would have to be nominated by the county chairman and appointed by the county board. I'm not sure if that would help! Surely it's better to have a degree of independence and have Pat Mangan slightly separate from the county board.

On the accounts, I noted that in 2013 the county board accounts stated that they received €80,040 in 2013 and €35,000 in 2012 from Club Kildare, while the Club Kildare accounts stated that the "county board & team subvention" was €90,850 in 2013 and €77,476 in 2012. I'm not suggesting any financial impropriety, but it suggests that in the county board's accounts team expenses were understated by ~€10k in 2013 and ~€42k in 2012. If that's the case in the two years where the accounts were presented together, how much were they understated in the past?

So it's definitely a good thing to have all the accounts presented together but they should have ensured that those crossing line items agreed with each other, even if it just meant bumping up team expenses in those two years in the county board accounts. But it also means that all these finance meetings we've had in the past two or three years have been making decisions on the basis of incomplete information as regards to team expenses. That needs to be sorted out even if, as I would hope, Club Kildare remains in existence in its current format and continues to have some degree of separation from the county board.

Also, I would have agreed with giving a Club Kildare a vote at county board. It would have been the voice for ordinary county supporters with no particularly strong club affiliation referred to in the OP. And while it wouldn't be a particularly strong voice, given it would only be one vote in 60+, at least it would be a move to recognise the importance of Club Kildare. They could even be brought into the management committee where it would be a stronger vote in the 15 or so.

I wasn't at convention but there was a motion in to give Club Kildare a vote at county board but there was nobody present from the proposing club to propose the motion so it failed.

Check out the bit about the race day and gala dinner near the end of this article:

http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/gaa/kildare-dispute-comes-to-a-head-252317.html

I'm living abroad at the moment so I can't claim to know much about the ins and outs but it does nothing to decrease my suspicion that our county board is not worth a w**k.

Well that says it all and back to my other much earlier post. What Hill16.ie have is mostly a free hand and the Dubs cream it from the fact that creative ideas are just let run without people putting the brakes on.

Once again Club Kildare should not have to hold off on things pending co board approval. If something good comes up then it's a go.

in fairness the Co Board did come up with the bucket collection.  

I hear they have a great idea for next year...bigger buckets!

Sorry lads you can't say anything negative about the CB as you did not put yourself forward for election and therefore have no right to an opinion. The cheerleader squad will be along soon to put you straight.

However before they appear it's stunning the level of incompetence in way things are run. €100,000 handed over on a plate and they turned their noses up to it in favour of a bucket collection. We get what we deserve.

Wait for the cheerleaders to come and defend this one.

How long before we hear "well none of you put your name forward".
Complete and utter shite. Remember back to the crusade of the ill gates Padraig Ashe against all things website and forum orientated.

ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

Snap Baba, snap

So we have cheerleaders for McGeeney on one side and cheerleaders for the CB on the other side?
Why not try reasoned debate without resorting to name calling and stereotypes? It would make this forum a more interesting place to exchange views.