Times are good at Dens Park right now.
It doesn’t get much better than absolutely thrashing a team in the league and your title rivals losing.
Dundee were superb against Hamilton and their recent performances bode well for what is to come this term.
One thing that may have gone under the radar over the weekend with goals flying in right, left and centre was the statement put out by Dee4Life.
Relations between the fan organisation and John Nelms have been icy – to say the least – for a long, long time.
I’m encouraged that work is being done to thaw that ice in some way.
In case you missed it, Dee4Life revealed they’d held talks with Nelms and representatives of the club with a view to getting fan representation on the board at Dens Park.
These are early, early talks, however. Working to put previous issues in the past to be able to improve things down the line.
And I don’t expect any major progress to happen soon.
It would be nice to hear from Mr Nelms himself on how he views the situation but all is quiet.
Voice
Now, I’m not a Dundee fan so I can’t pretend to suggest what supporters should feel about the man running their club.
Or whatever Dee4Life or the DFC Supporters Society have done or said in the past.
But it is a hugely important organisation in my view.
How many clubs across the land have a fan group as their second-biggest shareholder?
That retain vetoes over major decisions made by the club?
There aren’t many.
Football fans should always have a voice over what happens at their club.
At plenty of clubs, that voice is ignored.
But Dundee fans have a vehicle in the shape of Dee4Life to get that view actually heard in the boardroom.
It’s much more difficult to ignore it in there.
Make most of good times
The only way that becomes a reality is for Dee4Life to show their value to Nelms and the club as well as to their members.
That’s a tricky balance because there are plenty who might want the fan’s group to let rip at certain decisions made by the club’s owners.
That might feel good in the short term but what do you actually manage to get done that improves things for Dundee fans?
That’s ultimately the role for organisations like Dee4Life and the Dundee Supporters Association, who do plenty of good work for their members as well.
The only really constructive way to give fans a voice is to work with the club on issues, not rail against them constantly.
Once a relationship is built, then decisions made by owner Tim Keyes and managing director John Nelms can really be challenged. Answers may well be more forthcoming then, too.
Right now, things are good at the club. The team is winning, ticket prices are down and fans are turning up.
Make the most of it – build that relationship between fans and owners.
That way, when things aren’t quite so good, fans will have a meaningful voice and a way to have it heard.
An encouraging start.
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