Blackpool Supporters' Liaison Officer: Ask your questions and get behind your team

January’s signings and the appointment of Mick McCarthy as head coach will, let’s hope, reverse the decline in confidence, form and results that saw the Seasiders drop into the bottom three. We need a change in fortunes and soon.

The fact that very little this season has gone the way we anticipated it would back in the summer just highlights what a volatile business football is and how difficult it is to build a sustainable platform for success.

Against that backdrop, the second Structured Dialogue meeting of the season between Blackpool FC and fans’ group representatives will take place on March 1.

It is a formal opportunity for fans’ groups to engage with the board, posing detailed questions on key aspects of how the club is being run and what the board’s ambitions are, and to get a considered and in-depth response, properly minuted and made available on the club website. A call-out for delegates and questions has already been sent to fans’ group secretaries.

I’m mindful of the fact that many fans are not members of a formal supporters’ group and while I would recommend that everyone gets affiliated (to be part of the two-way communication process), I don’t want to discriminate against supporters who are not group members. So I’m happy to incorporate into the list questions sent to me via email, with a deadline of February 24 (two weeks today).

It is understandable that our focus is on survival in this division but we should not lose sight of pending developments in the broader scheme of how the game is run.

The long-promised White Paper of recommendations as a result of the Fan Led Review is expected to be published imminently and the indications are that many of the ideas put forward in the consultation phase will be included, among them stronger tests on potential club owners, more supporter engagement, blocks on breakaway competitions like the European Super League and the establishment of an independent regulator.

The BFC Volunteers group continues to do great work in the stadium between home games, clearing up the rubbish left post-match and making sure seats are clean for you all to sit on.

Everyone can really help here by putting rubbish in the clear bags at the exits (or even taking it home). And if you can spare a few hours occasionally to assist the volunteers, please contact [email protected] for details.

Tuesday’s late drama to secure a point against Huddersfield means we go into tomorrow’s clash with Rotherham on a positive note, but nothing will be easy and nothing is guaranteed.

The importance of passionate and vociferous support from the stands can never be underestimated. Let’s try and roar the Seasiders to a much-needed victory from all three home sides of Bloomfield Road tomorrow. UTMP!

Steve Rowland, SLO

Email: [email protected]