[Official Site] Exclusive Interview | John Dennis

Tbf I thought he'd be good too, you're not alone!

 

He as a real passion for BFC .
Dont think these new investors will shine a light anywhere near what they all acheived .
I speak with him regards BFC and he shares my sadness regards ever getting back into the top flight.
Everyone makes mistakes.
Steve Parkin springs to light Sheron long contract however the board should be always remembered for what they achieved.
My memories taking my late father who suffered 50 yrs of lower league football.
Watching our team play in the top flight.
Thanks John and all the rest for the memories.

 

Spot on.

 

I’ve mixed feelings tbh .
I used to be angry with him when we went into admin especially the low amount comparatively to our debts.
Then I heard stories he’d refused offers that would have saved us from admin .
After years of listening stories I’m still no wiser to make my mind up whether we could or couldn’t and not being buisness minded probably never will .
So I try to balance the stories and rumours that all involved were looking after their own interests before BFCs.
However what’s past us past we’ve moved on and hopefully learning the lessons .
One thing I do know is his love of BFC and his passion and knowledge so whether his buisness interests and others who were involved led to our admin or not is now firmly in the past .

 

I'm probably repeating people here, but as a fan base we were ecstatic when we told we were getting Nigel Spackman. Did a fantastic job at Sheffield and always spoke really well when he was on Sky. How wrong we were.
Can't complaint about Hendrie either (without who we wouldn't have had Hignett) and Bassett got us within 80 minutes of the premier league.

 

When I was doing Youth Work I took a group of ten kids in wheelchairs to Oakwell to watch a game.
We were allocated seats in the small Corner Stand between the East Stand and Ponte Road stand.
As I arrived in the mini bus, some stewards arrived and pushed the kids into the Stand and their seats where they
were given a programme, pop and crisps. At half time they were given a plate of sandwiches each
with a hot or cold drink of their choice. From memory we played Bristol Rovers and we won.

At the final whistle, the stewards mustered again and took the kids back to our bus. I spoke to the person
in charge of the Stand and with cheque book in hand asked how much I owed. I was told that the Chairman
( John Dennis, ) had issued explicit instructions, that it was a treat for the young people and the full
cost would be borne by the Club, which was a magnificent gesture. It was the first time any of those kids had
been to a live game and they loved it so much that the following season with their Dads, two of them bought
Season tickets. Some years later, I still see one of them with his Dad at every home game and they both still have
ST's.

 

I believe a lot of Clubs make mistakes in appointing managers before they find the perfect fit. Man Utd is a classic
example. After Matt Busby quit, they appointed Wilf McGuiness , Frank O'Farrell, Tommy Docherty, Dave Sexton and
Ron Atkinson ( he won the FA Cup though) over a period of sixteen years before appointing Sir Alex who won them loads of trophies over the twenty seven years he was in charge.

 

Love this.

 

A good gesture from an excellent Chairman.
Sadly there are many disabled people on the waiting list for a suitable seat at Oakwell and are at present excluded from the ground.

 

How many are on the waiting list?

 

I can't remember what season it was. I had written to the Club asking if I could take the kids to a game
involving a local rival, but the Secretary phoned me and said that for ten young people and two Youth
workers, it might be best to attend a Category C game where the crowd could be low. As I say, the game
they offered us was against Bristol Rovers or it could have been Swindon. I have to say, the welcome and
hospitality we got that day was second to none and endeared me even more to a Club I already loved.

 

A friend - long standing ST holder became physically disabled - enquired about getting a seat in the disabled stand - told the waiting list was 'full' - he never even got on the waiting list!

 

That is bad. What is the situation like with other clubs I wonder?

 

I do think we could do a lot better if we were to ever update the west stand

 

To be fair we cant fill the other 3 sides enough to spend money on a new stand.
I would rather spend a bit more on a bit more experienced players to help the kids improve