YOU’VE GOT SO MUCH TO GAIN!
GAINSBOROUGH Trinity are on the look out for new directors and investment to fully unlock the undoubted potential of the football club, fast approaching their 150-year anniversary.
Built on solid foundations, the club is looking to move forward from a position of strength having emerged from the darkness of the pandemic in a stable position.
Founded in 1873, Gainsborough Trinity are one of NonLeague’s most famous names. The club where Neil Warnock, inset, started his managerial career, Gainsborough is steeped in history. The first club to play Manchester United after they reformed from Newton Heath, Trinity play in the oldest single purpose football ground in the world.
The tradition and standing of the football club, now in the Northern Premier League Premier Division, is of great pride to club chairman Richard Kane.
Kane has been a proud advocate of the motto “In It Together’ – a hashtag that adorns the club’s social media channels and runs through DNA of the players, management, board of directors, volunteers, and supporters.
The difficulties faced by clubs following the annulled and curtailed seasons of the last two campaigns, brought about a strategic rethink by the club. With the appointment of a young, highly regarded coach, Tom Shaw, a new way of operating was put in place. A new vision, to develop young, up and coming talent and to be the place to be for hungry, exciting players looking to make their way in the game.
Vision
The Holy Blues were relegated from the National League North back in 2018, the first relegation in the club’s then 143year existence, and Kane is certain he doesn’t want that to be his footballing legacy. “Competing against sides with grander budgets has always been an issue,” he said. “When trying to establish a winning side, but something we have tried to do is preserve the long-term future of football in Gainsborough. We have strived to build strong foundations, as the goal has to be to at least return to Step 2.” Average attendances of 5-600, despite the side sitting in 17th position, give the chairman hope that success on the field will be mirrored by success on the terraces, “The numbers we get always surprise me,” he added. “Sometimes I think, ‘It’s raining, it’s horrible and we’re not getting many in today’ and then we get 500+ supthe porters through the turnstiles.”
With a population of circa-23,000 and growing, the potential is there with the right investment and vision that improved league positions and subsequent crowds can be achieved.
Investment in the first team is the main driving force for the recruitment of new directors, although it is not to be underestimated the impact on the wider brand within the community
“We have invested a million pounds and installed a 3G pitch, which is the home of the Gainsborough Trinity Foundation, running teams at almost every level from Under 8 through to Under 21s and a Women’s side,” Kane explained.
The U13-U19s compete in the nationally recognised Junior Premier League. This vision, this set-up is envied by clubs at our level, keeping training in the town. Providing both facilities and a pathway through the age groups.”
Infrastructure
Off the field, in terms of infrastructure, the club is in a healthy position. Debt-free, but looking now to kick on and reap the benefits of the cautious approach and careful planning.
Keen not to run before they can walk, Kane adds: “Things are taking shape. Perhaps now though we need that shot in the arm, that extra push to drive the club on. The facilities we have here are the envy of some clubs at our level and above.”
It has certainly been cited as a reason by some players when signing for the club that the facilities were a major draw. A training base that is your own at Step 3 is certainly a pretty unique selling point.
The club are now searching for additional directors to add investment and take the impressive base they have and advance that vision.
Kane continued: “I am probably the only chairman that’s never owned a pair of football boots, but I’ve learned a lot over the last eight years and I do understand the importance of getting the product right on the pitch.
“We want forward thinking directors that are prepared to commit financial support towards the club, roll their sleeves up and get involved, working alongside myself and the other directors. Everybody in it together, pulling in the right direction to ensuring that in a few years time, we have that lad who started in our Under-8 side, making his first-team debut, in front of a crowd of more than 1,000.”
Future England international, top-flight player and pioneering worldwide coach Fred Spiksley first came to prominence on the Northolme, with the Holy Blues.
The as yet unwritten chapters of the Gainsborough Trinity story could begin as soon as tomorrow if you want to share in an exciting future that will hopefully be talked about in another 150 years.