After recently being elected onto the board at Sincil Bank as the Red Imps Community Trust, Supporters Director, we spoke to Peter Doyle to get his thoughts on his new role.
You have been a supporter of the club for a long time, are you excited for your first board meeting?
PD: “I’ve yet to attend a board meeting, my approval to join the board has only just been ratified by the EFL. I’m proud and honoured without being too cheesy, it’s been a lifetime ambition and if I was to paraphrase I’ve gone from ‘ball boy to boardroom’. I walked out down the tunnel onto the pitch in 1967 as a ballboy I remember the historic games against Newcastle, Derby County etc and I felt part of it back then. So, it’s taken a while to get to this position but as I say I’m very proud.”
You’ve stepped up from the trust to become a director on the board at the club. What have you learned from there that you can bring to this role?
PD: “In my time within the trust I’ve spent quite a lot of time dealing with various supporters’ groups from around the City. I think it’s important that they have someone who they can approach that they know and what they ask me will get aired in the right manner through the right channels so I would expect that to play a large part in my role.
“My title is ‘Supporters Director’ representing the trust so I would think that link will be a large part of my role but the board might request me to be a part of other areas too.
“However, I will have a vote on behalf of the people of the trust who own the shares at the club, there’s 1 million in the holding company and 75,511 in Lincoln City Football Club, it’s not an insignificant shareholding. I’ll be sat with people whose business acumen I would never be able to get near, but that’s not what I’m trying to do. I hope I can fill a small gap that maybe the other guys have missed, or whatever is required to make the full pie.”
What do you see as the main benefit for a trust member being elected to the board?
PD: “I can see this giving an opportunity to make the vital link between various supporters groups, keeping their identity but possibly having a one-person voice to take to the board on their behalf.
“I know a few trust members involved at other clubs such as ex Premier League club, Swansea City, and when I go to Cheltenham Town in a few weeks my first port of call will be to sound out if they have a trust board member, and see what they do and pick their brains and learn from them. As a trust we’re learning fast, and we’re keen to continue to learn and if that learning can be used to benefit the club that will be good for everyone.”
