Chairman Darryl Eales writes in the Stevenge programme
Simply magnificent!Your support at Barnet last Saturday epitomised the togetherness that has underpinned this season and allows us to look forward to the future with anticipation and confidence.
Over 1,500 made the journey to the Hive and created a wonderful, joyful atmosphere which made me truly proud to be associated with the club. We were rewarded with a performance of consummate professionalism on the pitch, where the team combined intensity, physicality and desire with fast, attractive passing football.
This was achieved against a tough Barnet side, well drilled by Martin Allen, who have an excellent home record. I would also thank the Barnet directors for their warm welcome and excellent hospitality. All in all, a memorable day; and thanks to all our supporters in the pub pre-game - great fun!
Today we welcome fans, players and officials from Stevenage for the traditional Good Friday fixture. It will be another tough test for us and we also need to deal with missing Callum O'Dowda, Jonjoe Kenny, Jordan Evans, AJ George and Canice Carroll, who are all on well-deserved international call ups. We have an outstanding squad and I am sure they will respond accordingly and put on a performance to match last week’s.
These are my last notes ahead of Wembley. I want to encourage everyone to give it one final push and bring friends, family and acquaintances and create a 'sea of yellow'. It will be a wonderful day for the club - let's enjoy the whole day, indeed the whole weekend, and show everyone the fantastic friendly club that we are.
Off the pitch, I am delighted that we announced the appointment of Greig Box Turnbull as Managing Director. This is another step on the journey to develop a one-club culture based on excellence and the team on the pitch, in the community and across all areas of day-to-day operations.
Greig is both a personable, driven and highly capable executive who will bring both new ideas and passion to the role and I am very much looking forward to us working together and serving the club's best interests.
I have often said that teams, not individuals, build sustainable success. The more capability we have across the club, all aligned and driven by the same motives, the more likely our success. This applies both within the club and in our relationships with all stakeholders but always recognising that supporters are at the heart of the club. Greig fully endorses this approach and I am sure we all wish him well in his new role.
Over the next few weeks and months, we will continue to strengthen the leadership and management of the club and I am also delighted we have appointed Steve Dolton, another lifelong fan, as a non-executive director. Steve will bring extensive commercial and financial acumen to the board as we look to develop the club sustainably.
On a similar theme, we are at the early stages of exploring broader fan engagement, representation and, potentially, ownership with OxVox. This is something I believe in passionately and I hope we can make some progress over the summer.
In the community, the launch of the ADVANCE SIXTH FORM was a huge success and I am looking forward to developing the relationship with the Oxford Academy and helping make a real difference, via education, in the local community.
Back to today, we also welcome back the fan zone in the car park - a sure sign that the days are getting longer and the weather is improving. I hope it is as successful as normal and encourages more fans to arrive early and create a great atmosphere.
Today is also the club’s Kick it Out day. Kick it Out is football’s equality and inclusion organisation, which works throughout football to campaign for positive change and to encourage inclusion practices. As a club we fully support their work to end all forms of discrimination within football.
Including today, we have eight league games to go: eight cup finals plus one at Wembley! Let's get behind the team and be the extra man.
COYY!
Darryl