Hi all and trust this finds you well.
As we are approaching the end of yet another season,I thought it might be time to advise you of what the future holds for the good ship Hatherton as we approach our 35th season.
Firstly thank you for supporting us throughout the years and for the majority of the season. Despite the issues we have faced (Norwich anyone?) it has been another good season with the vast majority of you making the effort and work involved in making Hatherton Wolves worthwhile. I have timed the work I spend sorting coaches, taking bookings, arranging pub stops, dealing with the banking etc, liaising with the very helpful Angela who sorts the online bookings and dealing with any fall outs or emails of praise from passengers and this comes to around 7/8 hours per week, not including the match day requirements (all unpaid) so I hope you can understand the rants etc if we are let down for whatever reason.
Hatherton Wolves is not run for profit and you will note that our coach prices are lower than most if not all our competitor’s who all do a fine job Tatter Kford Cannock Ash tree etc and a lot cheaper than the jelly tots. As such we have fine margins to deal with and every empty seat is more costly to us than the others mentioned. Unfortunately, up to the time of writing we have had a total of 159 “no shows” from people who have booked and not turned up this season. At an average cost of £19 per seat, this equates to missed coach fares of £3,021!! Our aim this year was to provide a free trip to Chelsea for all and this would have cost us around £2,500 but the no-shows have obviously put a stop to any chance of that.
You may recall we sponsored the match ball when we beat Man City 3-2 a couple of seasons ago, that alone was £3,400 and represented the “profits ” we had made over the previous season. This season we arranged and paid for a New Years Eve party in The Tap (Duke of York) and we are doing the same on Saturday 28th May for or regular End of Season “party” which this year also ties in with a joint Hen/Stag party for Sharon Wright and Mark Payton, a couple of Hatherton regulars who tie the knot on June 4th good luck!!
For next season, we will be playing it differently – no pay on the day of travel – every booking must be paid for either on-line or in cash at least 2 weeks prior to the game or your booking will be voided.Someone will be available in The Tap to accept cash or card payments for these bookings.
We also officially welcome Cheryl and Dave Edgley to the fore and they will be assisting Roy and myself in running the Hatherton next season. We have already agreed that we will limit our transport to 2 coaches so early booking and payment is advised next season! We will be re-introducing the travel season ticket, we will be introducing reduced fares for seniors and are considering a loyalty scheme.So keep checking the Facebook page and the website over the summer break.
So thanks again, hope to see you on May 28th and on the coaches again next season. FWAW