Ahead of this historic first home match back in the Premier League for 23 years, Nottingham Forest Chairman Nicholas Randall QC provides a message for our supporters in this afternoon’s matchday programme against West Ham United:
Dear Supporter,
It is with great pleasure that I am able to write to you today as we prepare to play the first Premier League game at The City Ground in 23 years. I am sure that you will make it a wonderful occasion.
It is now five years since the Club was acquired by Mr Marinakis and Mr Kominakis and I was given the great honour of becoming Chairman. I hope you will agree that significant progress has been made during that period. To a certain extent the fact of promotion speaks for itself. I am sure that none of us will forget the events of last season, the wonderful journey to Wembley and the incredible celebration in Market Square which followed. It is also a matter of pride that promotion was achieved without the benefit of parachute payments and after full compliance with all FFP Rules in the Championship.
It is also clear that significant progress has been made in many other areas of the Club. We have achieved Category One Academy status which is so important to our future development. This has been accompanied by significant success on the pitch including the wonderful achievement of the U18’s in reaching the FA Youth Cup Final at Old Trafford – the first time this landmark has been achieved in the history of the Club. Forest Women were taken back into the Club and given full time support and managerial input. I am delighted that this has been reflected in success on the pitch and the lifting of trophies. Our Community Trust has been given additional financial resources and support and is a thriving, vibrant and successful part of the Club delivering such important services throughout our community. In all these areas of the Club significant progress has been made.
As many of you will also be aware we have recently received the important boost of the decision of the Rushcliffe Borough Council Planning Committee to recommend that our application for planning permission to redevelop the City Ground be granted. It has always been our desire to remain at The City Ground site even though this decision has led to significant challenges and complexity in the planning process. We are delighted that all the hard work and efforts of people within the Club and our advisers and partners has finally come to fruition. We can now begin to plan for the next stages of the development in our quest to establish a stadium that is suitable for the modern era and which gives us the ability to sustain the Club at the top of English football.
I hope that all of the above shows the solid progress that has been made in the five years in which we have had the stewardship of your Club. The path to progress is rarely smooth but I hope you will appreciate that the owners and Board are committed to the long term development of the Club.
We are now at a new and exciting stage of the Club’s development. Membership of the Premier League brings its own challenges. We are now required to pit ourselves against the very best in the best league in the world. I can assure you that we will all be doing what we can to make this season a success. We do not simply want to be there to make up the numbers.
All of the above could not have been achieved without the support of Mr Marinakis. He has been a model owner of the Club and has always supported us with the necessary resources and more to achieve our goals. The Board is extremely grateful for this. As we seek to build a squad capable of competing at the highest level his commitment is evident for all to see.
I also want to thank all of the staff at the Club for everything that they have done over these past five years. And, of course, to thank Steve Cooper and the staff in the football department and the Academy for their efforts in building for success.
And finally I want to thank you all. You have been nothing short of incredible in your support for the Club which you love. You have supported us in huge numbers from the start. Not just in the good times but also in the bad. For this we thank you. Through our collective efforts we have been able to deliver for you the highs of a wonderful Cup run, Wembley and promotion. I promise you that from the owners downwards we will strive to make your Club a continued success and to create more wonderful memories for you.
Thank you again for all that you have done. As I have said on many occasions, we could never have asked for more. I want to end by wishing you all health and happiness and I hope you have a wonderful season.
Kind Regards
Nicholas Randall QC
Chairman