From Queens Official Website
Update from the Board of Directors
We would like to update the supporter`s on what`s been happening at Palmerston in the last few months.
On the Park
At the beginning of September we were in the hunt for a new manager after Jim McIntyre had departed for Ross County. As a club we must be doing something right if we continue to lose managers to Premiership Clubs, but it can be frustrating and unsettling at the same time. Fortunately we have a great bunch of players and the upheaval hasn`t really shown on the park as at this moment we are sitting in third place in the Championship. It was disappointing however to go out of the Ramsdens Cup and the League Cup so early as financially this is a blow to the club as we all know the financial benefits a good cup run can bring. Hopefully when our name comes out the hat in the Scottish Cup it`s not alongside Livingston!
There is no doubt had we stayed in the Cups longer it would have stretched the squad further as we have had a horrendous run of injuries and it is testament to the lads that have played that we are sitting in third place. Ross Goodwin our physiotherapist has been kept really busy and we have looked at why we have had so many injuries and if there was a pattern to it but they have all been so different?it looks as if it has really been a case of one of these seasons where you have bad luck. Thankfully, Stegs and Vinnies injuries on Saturday had nothing to do with previous ones, so the week off has probably come at a good time. It also gives Mick and Burner another week and hopefully they won`t be too far away, Mick maybe ready for the Hibs game . Mitch is coming on well but will be longer term but everything has gone well with his recuperation so far.
In the Dugout
Regarding the recruitment of a new manager, we took our time and looked closely at all the applications we received but decided to go with James Fowler. James had slotted in really well at the club after Jim McIntyre recruited him in the Summer. He was very experienced as a player and was looking to take the next step up to management . This was why he joined us as assistant manager when he had other playing offers still on the table. The step up to manager has come early for him but he was very impressive in our dealings together and the message from the players was that they were backing him for the job as well. When everything was taken into account we felt he was the right candidate, we especially wanted continuity, we know we have a super bunch of players who have grown together and we felt James was the man to take the group forward. In this industry, especially with social media around, every decision you make gets put under the microscope, everybody (especially with hindsight) is an expert but the most important thing is you learn from the good and bad choices you make and there is no doubt James has started off his managerial career very well.
He is taking his time in recruiting an assistant manager but wants to make sure he recruits the right man. It must have been difficult for him playing as well but as the injury list gets smaller he has other playing options and it allows him to take a step back. He has also been ably supported by Jim Thomson and some of the senior players in the meantime.
We welcome Liam Jukes to the management team. Liam who has worked with James before will help with both Sports Science and Performance Analysis. Previously the Performance Analysis was sourced from out-with the club but now we have it in-house. The Performance Analysis is a great learning tool for the manager and players and with Liam on board he can tailor it down to fine detail which we didn’t have before.
Off the Park
Off the park, the commercial side headed by Victoria Thomson is moving forward. It is important that we make Queen of the South Football Club work as a sustainable business. This will then allow us to put as much resource as possible into the playing side.
Christine Findlater who was on Paul Burns`s testimonial committee has joined the commercial team with a remit of driving the Lottery forward. We are always looking for new agents so if you fancy getting involved she can be contacted at the club office. She will also be out and about speaking to the agents who are working for us just now.
If you take examples of what St.Johnstone , Inverness or Hamilton are doing now, provincial clubs can survive and prosper in the Premiership without paying ridiculous wages and that is our aim. It may not happen this season or the next but we have to keep pushing that as our goal and as the club develops off the field financially then we can develop further on the field.
Ventures which can bring considerable revenue into the club will all be looked at, one of which includes using Palmerston Park as a concert venue.
The work in the Rosefield Salvage Stand will start soon and this will give us new changing rooms and a link to the Ice Bowl so they can be used when big events are held there,?so this continues a partnership between ourselves and the Council.
We are looking at further developments on the official website front and Andy Cowan is helping us with that.
We are delighted that Sandra Brown has also joined us as a Press Officer and is bringing a professionalism to our press dealings.
In the Arena
The QOS arena is working very well. The central heating is run by a BioMass boiler which gives us an income as well as the Solar Panels on the arena roof. Things like the soccer schools and birthday parties mean that a tremendous amount of young people are around the club and this is in addition to all the coaching that goes on around the region at the schools.
The Office team including the Chairman are working extremely hard on phase 2 of the arena. This will involve expanding the area for the Fairy Bodmother business which is going from strength to strength and developing more office space which can be rented out to new business. We want to create a ?business hub in this area and then the different businesses can possibly " feed" off each other which would all help themselves drive forward.
In the Community
We are involved in promoting Water and Hydration to 40 primary schools across the region in partnership with the SPFL Trust and Scottish Water.
In the October holidays we had an Open Training day when the first team squad were down and a great day was had by all who attended. We hope in the future to have the squad down training at Palmerston at regular intervals.
With the closure of DG, the disabled football group were looking for a venue and we have managed to accommodate them on Wednesday mornings.
With the Youths
The Under 20 Development Squad are in a purple patch and the performances recently have been superb. Some of the players have been rewarded with being called up to train with the 1st Team squad and James Fowler works closely with Jim Thomson and Eddie Warwick on how the boys are developing. This will hopefully bode well for us for the future and continue the conveyer belt to the first team which has been fruitful with the likes of Gavin, Holty et al. We are also looking at bringing in a development training session for younger boys which would then feed into Andy Irving’s youth squads. We feel that we may be missing out on boys going to other professional clubs as teams now recruit at a younger age and we don’t want to miss out on local talent.
On the Terrace
How good was it to see the Terregles Street end full for the Hearts game? The club photographer Colin Johnstone got some great shots of it and we hope to get some of these printed and up around the club. We are hoping to get more work done on toilets in this end so it could be used for other games rather than the "big 3" where we imported portaloos for the purpose. It is a case of prioritising monies where we can get a return. The club was boosted as well with the increased capacity and we will continue to look at this and increase it again in the future with continuing work if we feel it is required.
Under the Tree
Lastly ,it will not be long until Christmas so put a date in the diary for the Annual Christmas Shopping night held at the club shop where the players will be present and bargains could be had. It will be held on Wednesday 3rd December, further details will follow.
As always, many thanks to all the employees and volunteers at the club who all do a great job and remember we are always open to suggestions ,all the Director’s can be contacted through the club office.
C`mon the South !