Communication is key, in any walk of life. Whether in a relationship, a business or between a football club and its supporters. In this regard, Cardiff have been found sadly lacking, for a very long time.
Swansea gave Cardiff a painful reminder of their recent superiority in the South Wales derby recently, but in the weeks leading up to that, they also demonstrated that they are far more connected with their supporters, by holding a fan forum.
Swansea director Jake Silverstein, manager Russell Martin and captain Matt Grimes were all in attendance as supporters were given the opportunity to ask an array of questions on the general health of the football club. Subjects covered included potential promotion bonuses, investment, playing style, shareholders, transfer funds and long-term planning.
Ideally, you all want to be on the same page and this sort of thing certainly helps. Supporters get the chance to air their views, the club gets the chance to explain their motivations and even if there are disagreements, it should prove an ultimately cathartic experience.
It’s not uncommon for Swansea to do this sort of thing and some of them have even been streamed live in the past, to reach a larger audience, rather than just the select few in attendance and to also provide greater transparency.
I know Cardiff liaise with supporters groups regarding travel and certain logistical issues, but I can’t remember the last time there was a formal gathering of board members, staff and fans. It is certainly long overdue.
There are certain issues that have prevented this from happening in the recent past. Primarily the Covid outbreak.
The global pandemic has restricted face to face meetings and travel, which is one of the factors preventing Vincent Tan from returning to Cardiff and attending any games. There is also the added issue with most of the board sharing their time between other outside interests, so getting people in the same room at the same time is likely easier said than done.
The last meeting of this nature that I can recall took place when Mick McCarthy was still in charge, via Zoom. I was one of many in attendance and one of the answers given struck a chord, causing increasing concern ever since. When Mehmet Dalman was asked what Cardiff’s strategy was, he stated: “We don’t have one. The reason we appointed Mick was to give us time to debate the strategy we do want to have in place. When we do have one, we will be more than happy to share that with you. We’re a work in progress.”
Since then, communication has been largely thin on the ground, so no one knows whether or not a strategy has been formulated and put into practice. Cardiff’s subsequent actions suggest that there has not.
Cardiff were on their third temporary manager and until recently, Mark Hudson had no idea how long he would remain in the role. Like Steve Morison and McCarthy before him, he was constantly asked about it in press conferences and had no way of responding. You couldn’t ask Hudson about the January transfer window because he didn’t know if he would still be in charge in December.
Towards the end of last season, Morison appeared to be a man with a plan. Once he was installed permanently, he talked ambitiously of turning over the squad and implementing a more progressive style of play. It was a bold claim and in fairness, he was true to his word, bringing in an impressive group of players, especially on such a limited budget, and they immediately set about playing from back to front.
Unfortunately, at the first sign of trouble, Morison was dismissed, despite the need for time and patience to bed in the new group and methods. Whether that was due entirely to results, some sort of personality clash or any other reason, we did not know because it was never explained.
Were the club happy with Hudson’s performance, or were they actively looking for his replacement? We did not know because managers never get a vocal show of support. Do Cardiff have funds in place if they lose their appeal in the Emiliano Sala court case, or will they go into administration if they have to pay the transfer fee to Nantes? Who knows, and unrest remains.
The problem with a lack of information is that misinformation tends to fill the void, so everyone waits for official confirmation to separate fact from fiction, but in Cardiff’s case, it’s never forthcoming.
For a perfect case study in supporter engagement, Cardiff need look no further than the Welsh FA. For so long stuffy and behind the times, they are now the epitome of a very modern football organisation and have played a blinder in recent years. Their build up to the World Cup has been emotive and pitch perfect.
Cardiff, on the other hand, are not conventionally structured, in that no one at the club seems to have Cardiff as their sole focus, so maybe we don’t have any answers because there are none, as suggested during the last forum. It could be the case that a lack of external communication reflects a lack of internal communication and everyone is in the dark.
The only thing that we can say for sure is that this is not a healthy situation. For all of the reasons already outlined, Cardiff supporters need more reassurance than most because there is no faith that anyone has their eye on the ball and the long-term health of the club in hand. Without communication, we only have the club’s actions to go by and they often appear rash or inconsistent.
With Tan attending the Hull game, Hudson finally received some assurances and some outstanding issues were addressed in an interview with select journalists, but the atmosphere at the game escalated very quickly and turned rather toxic. This was largely due to the performance, but all this other stuff is also festering away and never far from the surface.
Regular fan forums are a must because as the famous BT advert once proclaimed, it’s good to talk.