Hamilton Academical Supporters' Society

AGM Minutes
Thursday 18th February 2010
Function Suite, New Douglas Park

Present

David Ogg, Alan Hutcheson, Paul Daly, Donald Anderson, Ian Kelly, Darren Jameson
And other 14 members.

Apologies

Alastair Brown, Graeme Brown, Euan Simpson

Janet Watson, Liam Ryder, Jim Bright, Derek Bright, Roderick Hamilton, Ken Berry

Proxies

Name Proxy

Janet Watson David Ogg

Ken Berry David Ogg

Liam Ryder David Ogg

Jim Bright Donald Anderson

Roderick Hamilton David Ogg

Meeting

Minutes of Last Meeting

Kenneth Fee proposed the acceptance of the accuracy of the minutes from the
previous AGM. These were accepted unanimously.
Chair’s Report – David Ogg
1. This has been a year of retrenchment. The current Board took responsibility
for the Trust at the last AGM when the only other alternative was to place the
Trust in abeyance. With the exception of Ian Kelly and Donald Anderson none of
the new Board had any experience of Supporters Trusts from the inside, but
there was a willingness to pull together and move the Accies Trust forward.
2. I accepted the Chair at the first meeting after the AGM and thereafter wrote to
the Club informing them of the changes to the Board and our aims. Ronnie was
most receptive and was kind enough not only to meet me to discuss the Trust
but to invite 2 members of the Board to the Falkirk game late last season as
guests of the Club. We didn’t manage to agree a suitable date for a ‘Meet the
Manager’ evening at the end of last season, but that remains an ambition of your
Board for the future.
3. The Board agreed a winter programme to include Richard McBrearty, an AGM
with a Q and A session with Les Gray and a night with SPL referee. These have
happened, or are in the process of happening tonight.

Anderson, Donald - 12-Dec-03 Page 1 of 4

 4. In the course of year the Trust Board co-opted Graeme Brown on to the Board
as Webmaster and he has produced an excellent Trust Website with occasional
help from Alan Hutcheson and me. We have established email communications
with the majority of members and would urge those who would wish to have
such contact to keep us informed of current Email addresses. The Board also co-
opted Euan Simpson, who has penned a weekly column for the STV football
website.
5. The Board has considered 2 projects under the auspices of the Trust. David
Hamilton wishes to use the Trust website as a vehicle to host an Accies Memory
Bank and stats encyclopaedia (for want of a better expression) and Ian Kelly is
writing a personal history of the last 25 years as an Accies supporter with some
potential assistance (by way of a small loan) with early publishing costs. Ian
hopes to launch his book in early August. The other project is more problematic,
requiring greater IT skills than is currently available to the Trust or to David
Hamilton, but negotiations continue to find a solution.
6. Board Members David Ogg, Craig Rankin and Graeme Brown successfully
attended a Trust Board members training session run by Supporters Direct.
David will attend a pilot training session for Board Chairmen on 21 Feb 10.
7. The next year will continue to pose significant challenges. We will introduce
an annual membership subscription from 1 Sep 10 to avoid the gradual running
down of Trust funds whenever we undertake any activity. Standing order forms
are available tonight and any donations in advance of the start date will be
gratefully received. We would like to contribute more to the club over the next
year, but to do that effectively we need to have a greater sharing of the work
involved. The Trust desperately needs a Secretary and if anyone thinks they
have the skills required please contact me. Additional Board members will be
made welcome, particularly if they come with ideas to take the Trust forward and
the means to carry this out.
8. I remain grateful to all the Trust Board members for their support during the
year. I note particularly the continued support from Ian Kelly and Donald
Anderson, who have been on the Board for some years and whose enthusiasm
and commitment remains an example to us all.
Kenneth Fee proposed acceptance of the chair’s report, which were adopted
unanimously.
Treasurer’s Report – Ian Kelly
Ian Kelly reported the total income for the year as £111 from a shirt raffle and
bucket collection outside the ground. Major items for expenditure were shirt
sponsorship and the purchase of Player of the Year trophies.
The trust still holds £3,000 shares in HAFC.
Copies of the financial statement for the year ended 31st August 2009 were
circulated with the report of the Independent Examiner.
Kenneth Fee proposed acceptance of the treasurer’s report, which were adopted
unanimously.
Membership Fee
An annual membership fee of £5 was re-introduced by the board. Standing Order
forms were distributed.

Page 2 of 4 Anderson, Donald - 12-Dec-03

 Independent Examination for next AGM
It is hereby resolved that subject to the provisions of section 4A of the 1968
Friendly and Industrial and Provident Societies Act, the members of the Society
shall not require an audit for the accounts covering the current financial year
ending on 31 August 2009 when they are presented to the next AGM held in
2010.
The members of the society agree that the Accounts for the financial year ending
on and for which reports will be laid before the following AGM do not require a full
audit provided that:
• The total income for that year does not exceed the threshold laid down by
Supporters Direct for audit exemption (currently £25,000)
• An Independent Examination of those accounts is carried out in place of the
full Audit
• The Independent Examination is carried out in line with the best practice of
Supporters Direct as set out in the Guidance Notes.
• A report from the Independent Examiner is included within the Accounts and
circulated to members.
The Society notes that
• The Independent Examination does not carry the same weight as a full Audit
• The members of the Trust instruct the Board to identify a suitably qualified
practitioner to undertake the review
• The Board shall agree the appointment of the examiner and shall agree the
terms of that appointment in writing
• Supporters Direct has no liability in respect of any Trust Accounts
• Supporters Direct will use the report of an Independent Examiner when
considering your Trust’s eligibility for membership as against criteria in its
membership policy.
The resolution was proposed by Ian Kelly and Stephen Shilton and passed
unanimously.
Board Membership

Name Position

David Ogg Chair

Ian Kelly Treasurer

Donald Anderson Secretary

Alan Hutcheson Communications

Darren Jameson

Alastair Brown

Tommy Jordan

Paul Daly From 16/12/2009

Craig Rankin From 18/12/2009

Euan Simpson Co-Opted 18/8/2009

Graeme Brown Co-opted 18/8/2009

Anderson, Donald - 12-Dec-03 Page 3 of 4

 The Board was re-elected in its entirety. No further applications to join the board
had been received prior to the meeting. Following the appeal by David Ogg, Tom
Marchbank and Kenneth Fee were elected at this meeting on 18/2/2010.
It is noted that Paul Daly and Craig Rankin, while attending board meetings,
could not be formally accepted onto the board until their 18th birthdays, which
took place in December as indicated above.
Any Other Business
Thanks to Ross and Alex at Chambers Catering for hosting the meeting. The
evening’s programme continued with a members meeting with Les Gray of HAFC
followed by a talk from Brian Winter of the Scottish Referees’ Association.

Page 4 of 4 Anderson, Donald - 12-Dec-03