2013 Social Club

[Just One]

Yep - just received ours - we are 11 game members with social club membership, but live interstate. On receipt of notification I was astounded that the letter included no explanation whatsoever as to the membership and on checking web site discovered that 2013 membership is not yet up. That leaves members with no explanation as to packages - do we want to maintain same membership, up grade, down grade .................... no explanation whatsoever. I immediately rang the membership department on Friday and voiced my opinion and also my dissatisfaction that because we do not have reserved seating we were only entitled to Cat. 2 Grand Final tickets. This system seems to disenfranchise loyal interstate members - not happy!!

[saint1974]

We are reserved seat holders,social club membership we are also priority 2 .
It would be good to try and understand and given an explanation.

[saintsRrising]

I can assure you that when I and my mates joined the Social Club it had absolutely nothing at all to do with GF tickets. We were SC Members when we were copping floggings week in week out and wins were rare and included periods like 100 point floggings 3 weeks in a row. Access to GF tickets was not a consideration at all back then.

Copped floggings every week because parasites were leeching any potential profits out of the club. That's why the football club took over the social club. And the social club fought the footy club all the way over profits they made because they were aligned to St Kilda Football Club. Piss ups first. It's an absolute joke that you and your chums think you were loyal through the dismal 80's when you played the primary role in keeping the club poor.

The Saints 43's of the world will take their money and run when GF's are not likely.....

Yep, that's why they downgraded your status.

You are one sick puppy.

What a sad deluded soul you are to believe that it was the Social Club Members that held the club back. "Parasites" you call them

In the Moorrabin days quite a few SC Members just watched the game and went home afterwards without staying on. Sure the younger ones had fun in the disco, but the average Joe either left soon after, or after a beer or two. The grannies packed up their cushions and left, but according to you they were all part of the evil Social Club Members who dragged the club down

Most of the drinkers (from both teams) filed in AFTER the game and were not SC members...witness the queues outside afterwards waiting for 5PM to click over.

After training those that went then mainly had a beer or two. Hardly the piss-pots you make them out to be.

[Kate]

I can assure you that when I and my mates joined the Social Club it had absolutely nothing at all to do with GF tickets. We were SC Members when we were copping floggings week in week out and wins were rare and included periods like 100 point floggings 3 weeks in a row. Access to GF tickets was not a consideration at all back then.

Copped floggings every week because parasites were leeching any potential profits out of the club. That's why the football club took over the social club. And the social club fought the footy club all the way over profits they made because they were aligned to St Kilda Football Club. Piss ups first. It's an absolute joke that you and your chums think you were loyal through the dismal 80's when you played the primary role in keeping the club poor.

The Saints 43's of the world will take their money and run when GF's are not likely.....

Yep, that's why they downgraded your status.

Mate, you are making up as you go along. I suggest you do some research before you spout BS.

[Saints43]

Mate, you are making up as you go along. I suggest you do some research before you spout BS.

Is that right? Inform me then.

We had a seperate social & football club structure.

We paid less on wages than other clubs.

We had attendances on par with other clubs but we were always broke.

The social club and football club were at odds for years. The football club finally took over the social club as it going broke receiving very little from it's own infrastructure.

Tell me what's BS there. Mate.

[saintsRrising]

Wow....evil Social Club Members driving clubs into oblivion... or is only the Saints that are supposed to have hard financial times at some point???

Must have been that with South, that forced the to Sydney.

Was that what happened with the Hawks when they almost went under and were considering merging with the Dees to try and save themselves?

Recently even the Blues were almost belly up.

The Pies were almost went to oblivion after McAlister almost ruined them., before Eddie rode in on his white horse.

Fitzroy....

Even the Cattery has had some dark days.

But hey despite the fact many clubs have either gone out of existence, or almost did......according to Saints 43 the one and only difference at the Saints back then, were the rabid beer-swilling evil Social Club Members sucking the life out of the FC

Of course the multi-million loans, and their interest repayments taken out to build Moorabbin had nothing to do with it, nor the lack of major sponsors.....it was those damn pesky Social Club Members.

Far better if they had all stayed away..and not even been members.......err wait...

[Saints43]

Of course the multi-million loans, and their interest repayments taken out to build Moorabbin had nothing to do with it, nor the lack of major sponsors.....it was those damn pesky Social Club Members.

Unusually these ' multi-million loans' don't appear in the financial records of the day. Strange.

The club had lost money for years prior to the Snow Deli years. You and your buddies pissed the club up against the wall.

Can you explain the tug of war between the social club and the football club over whether the SC should be incorporated into the FC? And why the SC fought for autonomy for so long. After all, it was the social club to support the football club. Wasn't it?

[saintsRrising]

Unusually these ' multi-million loans' don't appear in the financial records of the day. Strange.

So Ian Drake just waived a wand and the Grandstands at Moorabbin appeared....all free?

[Saints43]

Unusually these ' multi-million loans' don't appear in the financial records of the day. Strange.

So Ian Drake just waived a wand and the Grandstands at Moorabbin appeared....all free?

Unusually these ' multi-million loans' don't appear in the financial records of the day. How much were these loans?

Can you explain the tug of war between the social club and the football club over whether the SC should be incorporated into the FC? And why the SC fought for autonomy for so long. After all, it was the social club to support the football club. Wasn't it?

[Mr Magic]

If my memory serves me correctly the Football Club and the Social Club were set up as 2 individual companies/entities to stop any cross pollination between the accounts.
This seemed to work fine whilst we had a successful period between 1965 and the early 1970's.
Then finances went pear shaped when we stopped playing in finals and the Football Club saw the profits the Social Club were still making and wanted to access that money.
Hence the shitfight to take over the Social Club by the Football Club.

I believe there was also a 'legal issue' about 'tendering' for pokies that needed them to be ultimately owned by the Football Club?

[saintsRrising]

Unusually these ' multi-million loans' don't appear in the financial records of the day. How much were these loans?

Following the Saints’ great success in the 1966 finals, the Moorabbin Council decided to make a further $100,000 available to the club, but this was not without controversy. Five of the councillors voted against the proposal and Cr Stevens moved to have the decision rescinded. Stevens pointed out that this additional loan would take the total amount that the Moorabbin Council guaranteed to keep St Kilda on the Moorabbin Reserve to half a million dollars. During the course of the debate Cr Bricker summarised the council’s financial dealings with the club. Council had advanced $250,000 for ground improvements and received repayments of $10,000 annually on the 75 year lease. It had also lent $100,000 to the club for fifteen years with payments of $10,400 coming back over fifteen years. Finally a $60,000 loan of forty years duration brought repayments of $4,010 per year. [12]

Councillors speaking in favour of the new loan argued it was not a burden on the ratepayers as it was simply a matter of lending money and getting it back with interest. Cr Hodgson pointed out that this arrangement was the same as that entered into with the Bentleigh, McKinnon and Cheltenham Youth Centres. Those in opposition to the loan reminded their colleagues that the club had failed to include Moorabbin in its name and had not appointed a representative of the council to their board. [13] The questions were also raised, “What would happen if St Kilda defaulted on the loan?” and “Was this gambling with ratepayers money?” [14]


So half a million loaned from just the Council.
In 1984 when interest rates were booming (as anyone with a mortage back then will remember) when the scheme of arrangement was put in place banks made up the single largest group of creditors.

Now why would you think that banks would be creditors?? Perhaps a loan or two???

[Saints43]

The social club and football club were at odds for years. The football club finally took over the social club as it going broke receiving very little from it's own infrastructure.

Then finances went pear shaped when we stopped playing in finals and the Football Club saw the profits the Social Club were still making and wanted to access that money.
Hence the shitfight to take over the Social Club by the Football Club.

[Saints43]

Unusually these ' multi-million loans' don't appear in the financial records of the day. How much were these loans?

Following the Saints’ great success in the 1966 finals, the Moorabbin Council decided to make a further $100,000 available to the club, but this was not without controversy. Five of the councillors voted against the proposal and Cr Stevens moved to have the decision rescinded. Stevens pointed out that this additional loan would take the total amount that the Moorabbin Council guaranteed to keep St Kilda on the Moorabbin Reserve to half a million dollars. During the course of the debate Cr Bricker summarised the council’s financial dealings with the club. Council had advanced $250,000 for ground improvements and received repayments of $10,000 annually on the 75 year lease. It had also lent $100,000 to the club for fifteen years with payments of $10,400 coming back over fifteen years. Finally a $60,000 loan of forty years duration brought repayments of $4,010 per year. [12]

Councillors speaking in favour of the new loan argued it was not a burden on the ratepayers as it was simply a matter of lending money and getting it back with interest. Cr Hodgson pointed out that this arrangement was the same as that entered into with the Bentleigh, McKinnon and Cheltenham Youth Centres. Those in opposition to the loan reminded their colleagues that the club had failed to include Moorabbin in its name and had not appointed a representative of the council to their board. [13] The questions were also raised, “What would happen if St Kilda defaulted on the loan?” and “Was this gambling with ratepayers money?” [14]


So half a million loaned from just the Council.
In 1984 when interest rates were booming (as anyone with a mortage back then will remember) when the scheme of arrangement was put in place banks made up the single largest group of creditors.

Now why would you think that banks would be creditors?? Perhaps a loan or two???

Great work. The club got a loan of $100,000. This took costs to the football club to $500,000. Didn't you state Ian Drake took out ' multi-million loans' for the Moorabbin move? 1965-1967.

And now your talking about the scheme of arrangement in 1984 (20 years later) where the banks are the largest creditors?

Perhaps it's because the social club made all the money - so you could play cheap squash - while the football club went broke with little access to funds made with it's infrastructure.

Anyway, I'm off to go and pay market rate for a few beers...

[saintsRrising]

Anyway, I'm off to go and pay market rate for a few beers...

While you are there you can ask about that non-existent free squash game...


Plus as your football membership gets you subsidised cheap games every home game as a membership benefit, I am sure that a fine upstanding gent like you will chip in the difference so that you pay the full H&A rate each week. I mean surely there would no difference between a cheap beer and a cheap game, and surely you will not want to be a hypocrite?

Or are subsidies only subsidies....when they are ones that you personally do not want to use?

[Saint Bev]

I rang the club yesterday regarding all this and this is what they said. I have been a member for 35 years with social club and live interstate, category 2.

I was told that everyone was trying to ring at once and that people missed out. With 2 categorys, people ring at different times to register for the Grand Final should we get in. I was assured that I would not be disadvantaged and miss out and that everyone still went into a ballot. I was told that people were confused with different memberships and that they were trying to simplify it.

I was also told that there are only 147 Premium Interstate Membership in all of Australia, so it wasn't a problem. I am totally gobsmacked that there would be such few members.

[thejiggingsaint]

I am yet to receive ANYTHING from the club regarding membership, but thats not unusual. I did however get an unsolicited phone call from someone at the club asking me for a one-off donation of $200.00!!!!!

[ROLS-LEE]

I think the answer that everyone wants to know is what is the difference between cat 1 and cat 2.
And what you need to qualify for each catergory.

So far we have been all categorized with out knowing why.

[Garbage]

I called the club yesterday after I got my letter, and was told that Priority 1 is '300 Club' (whatever that is) plus Social Club members who also have L2 Reserved Seats.

All other Social Club members are Priority 2.

She said they split it so that they have a separation of GF ticket bookings. Not sure why they need to do that, unless they are planning to change the farcical GF booking process.

She assured me that the Social Club cap of 11,000 still applies and we would all get a GF ticket when we make it.

[Teflon]

I think the answer that everyone wants to know is what is the difference between cat 1 and cat 2.
And what you need to qualify for each catergory.

So far we have been all categorized with out knowing why.

correct cat2 and we have no idea what that means.

[ROLS-LEE]

I called the club yesterday after I got my letter, and was told that Priority 1 is '300 Club' (whatever that is) plus Social Club members who also have L2 Reserved Seats.

All other Social Club members are Priority 2.

She said they split it so that they have a separation of GF ticket bookings. Not sure why they need to do that, unless they are planning to change the farcical GF booking process.

She assured me that the Social Club cap of 11,000 still applies and we would all get a GF ticket when we make it.

So basically it is segregation. Nothing is ever going to be fair but sounds like more cash you spend you get a choice were to sit in a gf.

[kosifantutti]

I rang the club yesterday regarding all this and this is what they said. I have been a member for 35 years with social club and live interstate, category 2.

I was told that everyone was trying to ring at once and that people missed out. With 2 categorys, people ring at different times to register for the Grand Final should we get in. I was assured that I would not be disadvantaged and miss out and that everyone still went into a ballot. I was told that people were confused with different memberships and that they were trying to simplify it.

I was also told that there are only 147 Premium Interstate Membership in all of Australia, so it wasn't a problem. I am totally gobsmacked that there would be such few members.

What is Premium interstate? I thought interstate / international membership disappeared a couple of years ago. I've always used a Melbourne address for fear of losing my GF privileges.

And this 2 category system to ease phone congestion sounds like BS to me. I would assume less people every year are using the phone to book tickets.

[saintsRrising]

Thanks for your work.

She assured me that the Social Club cap of 11,000 still applies and we would all get a GF ticket when we make it.

.......and that allocation of course includes standing room, and restricted view.

The Club keeps shifting the ground and changing the rules.....people sign up on one basis and without any consultation, off the club goes again.

Many reserved seat holders sit in groups, as do I. Shifting seats is no easy matter.

If you are in the rollover group, as many are....there will have been no advice prior.

[ROLS-LEE]

I think it is a way to ensure our high rollers get guranteed premium seats, as they could have been standing before.

[oh when the]

Nothing this Club does surprises me - they could not get the names on jumpers right the first time, took the money ok, but attention to detail is something they do not do well.

[mcadam05]

I called the club yesterday after I got my letter, and was told that Priority 1 is '300 Club' (whatever that is) plus Social Club members who also have L2 Reserved Seats.

All other Social Club members are Priority 2.

She said they split it so that they have a separation of GF ticket bookings. Not sure why they need to do that, unless they are planning to change the farcical GF booking process.

She assured me that the Social Club cap of 11,000 still applies and we would all get a GF ticket when we make it.

I'm a 16 game SC Member with a level 1 seat and I have been made Priority 1