Esendagli: Our vision for an organic period of growth
Since I have had the honour of becoming the chairman of our club, myself and the committee have worked tirelessly to fulfil the promises that were made shortly after my appointment.
The first of these was to secure a return to the borough of Waltham Forest, which we are pleased to have achieved in the nick of time, after fighting our way through a considerable amount of red tape.
When I arrived at Waltham Forest, the club was suffering the consequences of being financially dependent on individuals and I immediately outlined a vision to secure the long term future of our club by taking steps to becoming a self sustainable one. Moving to Wadham Lodge was the first step to increase gate receipts.
Of the 72 clubs in the Ryman League, we are proud to be among the 20 who have recognised the need for investment in youth, by entering a squad into the u21 league. This will negate the necessity for costly loan signings and will provide opportunities for young players from the borough to shape the future squads of our club.
I would like to reiterate that the route to long term success is through investment in youth and for this reason, we are taking steps to form an academy that will cater for age groups 10 to 17. This will generate an income for the club as well as increase our presence in the community through links with schools and families.
We have also taken the decision to enter a veteran side into the respective league as this also creates a link with a very important part of our community.
The team will include ex players with a wealth of experience as well as local businessmen with the resources, commitment and desire to invest in the future of Waltham Forest FC.
This will be particularly significant as we look to increase the pressure on the local council to assist us in a bid to invest in training and playing facilities of our own.
This would be the biggest step in achieving self sustainability, as the of running three teams from Wadham Lodge does not come cheap.
We have expressed our gratitude to players and management who helped the club by sticking around last season, without any financial reward. Unfortunately and understandably, a majority of them felt that they would not be able to make the same commitment this season and have taken other opportunities elsewhere.
In light of this, we have looked to start building a young squad who are within our financial means, and share our vision for an organic period of growth.
We currently have three members of coaching staff in the u21s and four members with the first team. I have undertaken the role of first team manager and am working day and night to develop a young and energetic squad. I hope to utilise my experience in the professional and international game to gradually build a team that plays attractive and successful football at this level.
Whilst the first few results have been disappointing to those outside the club, they have been foreseen and will not cause panic or rash attempts at short term fixes. Myself and the Assistant Manager Colin Walton have a good working relationship and share the expectation that the first team results will improve significantly in the coming weeks.
Turgut Esendagli
