I understand that, but how is it different somebody using their initiative and putting £30 a month in a biscuit tin for 4 months and then paying cash as opposed to setting up standing orders for £30 over 4 months with the club which costs the club money and resource to process?

Stealth, I know where Goosey's coming from on this one - life just gets in the way of trying to save money up!
You've got sixty quid saved, then your kid needs new clothes, or unforeseen car repairs and it's into the biscuit tin. Result? Back to square on on the savings front!
Been there, done that...

A couple of my friends from college once had a good idea for saving cash. One was trustworthy with cash, the other wanted to save up for something (can't remember what it was now) but they knew they'd always want to blow it on a friday night on beer or the fruit machine. So he just gave his friend a few quid every week to hold onto from his pay packet. Eventually he saved enough and got his money back off his friend and bought what he was after.

It worked for my friends, it could work for other people too. Between those friends there was always still the option to get the cash back for any overriding priority too, just in case, but they agreed those circumstances between them.

The thing is what would you do if one of those unforeseen circumstances cropped up when you had a standing order out for Cougars? Any one with any common sense would renege on the standing order, losing what they'd put in, damaging their credit rating in the process and the club losing money that they may well have budgeted for.

I hate to say it but, the sad reality is that there will always be people who can't afford to come to Cougars. I've been there myself, being put on short time at work reduced me to living on about £15 a week to feed myself and ended up having to move back in with my parents, a situation I only just coming around to rectifying.

I'd love it everybody who wants to get and watch the club was able to, but the club has to be run as a viable business and both aren't possible.

The money in the tin is THERE, right now. The sanding order money isn't, so it's easier to leave that alone.

OK so I want to either get a season ticket or join Squadbuilder. When and how can I do it?
Go down to the club during the day – can’t as I am working all week.
Call on my way home – can’t as the club is shut.
Call at the weekend – can’t as the club is shut.
Now if I had a leaflet, handed to me while shopping, I may then take it home, admittedly shove it on the side and probably forget about it. But if one out of every ten or twenty leaflets handed out produced a result then surely it must be worthwhile?
As has been stated in another string Cougars is not well situated as they are near nothing else in the town - except the council tip - and we have no town centre outlet. If they will or can't come to us we must go to them.

Absolutely. No disrespect to Goosey, but if this didn't work in Keighley, Sky wouldn't pay someone however many thousand pounds a year to stand in the shopping centre. In the main I see no activity at this stall, but the other day I was walking past and saw one person being signed up. Based on a minimum subscription for 12 months maybe the maths must add up for Sky. So, with all their might commercially, if they see it as positive then based on our small budgets it's got to be a consideration. If the Cougars got only a handful, it's more than they had at the start of day. I accept the uptake maybe small, but as Lawkholme Len has said, if the uptake is only 1 in 50 say, over a busy weekend Christmas period this could equate to a substantial number of fans. To add to the interest it could be piggy backed as a meet the players commercial idea. On Friday the British legion rented out the old Samuels shop. No frills just based on selling. Is this an idea for a base and we could sell the odd bits prior to Christmas too. Forgive my ignorance, but I am aware we have a sponsorship deal with the shopping and had video mails to suggest a shop would open in the future, but nothing has happend since. A bit like the new website etc. I accept we might not have much merchandise at the moment and with the Stash situation maybe the club is looking at alternatives, but even to sell some stickers, signed photo's etc would be an income stream. I know a few who do and would give up time to assist the club. The simple point is you can market via internet, tv etc in the hope of fans ringing/attending in person. Some people may not get this message for a number of reasons and some need to have that face to face contact.

This may not work, but let's at least try rather than saying no, it's been tried before. How was it done before, what was the success rate, what could be improved etc. If a shopping wasn't an option then what about a supermarket?

Regarding the standing order issue, this is something for the club to consider for next season but there is no time this year. Also, as I have said in previous posts, how many staff do you think are employed to manage and administer this. I know some know it all said post dated cheques, but as the price could change I can't see how this would work. As Stealth suggested there could be those who default and the club would have to administer this and it all takes time/effort and money.

If this has already been mentioned earlier on, apologies, but with regards to dishing out leaflets, what about having leaflets added into the Keighley News, Craven Herald, Ilkley Gazette and T&A every other week until start of season that way the these leaflets are getting dished out over quite a wide area.

Great idea - if it doesn't cost much. Have an idea Newsquest or whoever may charge advert rates for this sort of thing.
Are we in the presence of the lad who gave Cougars their name in 1991?

Hi Lawkholme, I don't want to come on here too much and I won't in regards match talk as I am sure I will only be defending myself haha but just to answer to a couple of questions you raised,
firstly you can but a season ticket over the phone
secondly you can join squadbuilder by filling in the form on the cougars website and then Margaret will send you a letter with account details so you set up a standing order.
Just thought that info may be helpful to a few others as well.
Cheers JD

What about setting up a savings bank account in your own name, and then, using a Standing Order putting cash in there on a weekly/monthly basis. This doesn't have to be a huge amount, you will then get used to this amount coming out of your current account which you will then, after a while, not miss. The amount you save, you decide and, hey presto you have the best of both worlds, you have saved enough for your season ticket, and the cash is there for any emergency.
I have done this for many years and it works for me.....

I do something similar, on pay day I budget what I need for the week and transfer the excess from my current account into a linked online savings account, it takes seconds. If something crops up and I need to some more money, I transfer some back over and it clears instantly, even at weekends.

Hi JD, nice to hear from you. Actually I filled in the form on the website to join Squadbuilder two weeks ago and have heard nothing. Perhaps something wrong with the system?

Hi JD, I also filled out the online form around two weeks ago and have heard nothing since, can I suggest that the matter is looked at and once resolved we be informed on this site to enable us to fill out the form again

Please PM anyone who has not been contacted and i will sort it. In the meantime I will look into another way to take details for future squad builder members.
JD