After a season of ups and downs for the football club, it was great to finish with a flourish. I don’t believe any of us would have predicted two wins in the last two games and 13th place in the division during our early season struggles. Having all but reached safety after the Doncaster game, we made things difficult for ourselves in April, but the end result was exactly what we needed. On behalf of the members of the Watford Supporters Trust (WST), we send our congratulations to Brendan and the players for a job well done.

The Board of the Watford Supporters Trust (WST) was delighted to hear that Elton John has completed his return to Watford FC by resuming his position as Honorary Life President. Recent comments from Brendan Rodgers have made it clear that Elton had retained his interest in the playing side of the club, and the return of his memorabilia to Elton’s was a further sign that he was ready to re-engage with the club. However today’s statement makes it clear that Elton is back to support the manager, the playing staff, and the club’s board, which can only be good news for all Watford fans.

The board of the Watford Supporters Trust (WST) welcomes the decision from the club to reduce season ticket prices for next season. This is a difficult time financially for both the club and the fans, but it is important that the club retains as many season ticket holders as possible in order to keep up the levels of support for the team. The season ticket prices at Watford have been very reasonable in the past couple of seasons, but this reduction ensures that they remain affordable to a wider section of supporters.

Following the appointment of Jimmy and Vince Russo as Chairman and Vice Chairman of Watford Leisure plc, board members of the Watford Supporters Trust (WST) met with them to discuss their plans for the future of the football club.

The clear message from the meeting was that the new board is inheriting a very difficult situation which needs to be managed professionally. However they did express the opinion that there are a lot of positives for the club going forward.

The board of the Watford Supporters Trust (WST) were surprised to hear the news this week of Andrew Wilson’s decision to resign from his position as Chairman of Watford Leisure plc and as a director on the plc board. We thank him for his contributions to the club in his time as Chairman. His main task during his brief reign was to put together a new board for the plc. The make-up of the board has gone a long way towards injecting some stability at a difficult time.

The Board of the Watford Supporters Trust (WST) were delighted to hear the news of the appointment of four non-executive directors to the board of Watford Leisure plc. The expansion of the board allows a broader range of expertise to be employed in decision making and restores the checks and balances that have been sadly lacking recently.

It is with deep personal regret that I have to advise supporters of the recent death of one of our founder members, James Llewhellin, after a short illness. James was also a founder member of the Enables disabled group and, weather permitting, was a frequent visitor to Vicarage Road travelling with his father David from his home address in Eastleigh. Hampshire over the last 24 years.

Watford Leisure AGM

At the opening of the meeting, Andrew Wilson made reference to the resignations from the board of Graham Simpson and Mark Ashton. He confirmed his position as interim chairman and introduced Julian Winter as the new Chief Executive and confirmed his place on the board. He stated that there were no proposals finalized for the make-up of the board beyond the two of them. He also apologised that Brendan Rodgers was not present due to a family commitment and said that he had agreed to attend a Fans Forum that would take place in the February timeframe.

All supporters will by now have heard of Mark Ashton’s departure from the Chief Executive position at the Club, and the subsequent appointment of Julian Winter.

The board of Watford Supporters Trust (WST) have met Julian on several occasions and have always found him to be very capable and personable. His tenure as Community Director saw great strides made with the work of the Community Trust resulting in both local and national awards. We look forward to working with him further and building a strong working relationship.

The board of the Watford Supporters Trust (WST) were as surprised as anyone at Graham Simpson’s announcement of his resignation at the EGM on Monday. It was our belief that the EGM was not in the best interests of the football club and it would seem that the action taken by the former Chairman proved, ultimately, to be that which would be most beneficial for the future running of the club.