Supporters Trust backs democratic vote to elect fans' representative to Cobblers board

The Cobblers announced earlier this week that, for the first time under the stewardship of chairman Kelvin Thomas and fellow owner David Bower, a supporter will be offered a place on the board.

After six years in charge of the club when that wasn't the case, Thomas said he felt it is 'a good time to implement' the change, that will see the elected supporter join the board, along with long-serving chief executive James Whiting.

Before Thomas and Bower took over in November, 2015, under previous chairman David Cardoza and also prior to that, there had been fan representation on the board in the shape of a designated member of the Supporters Trust.

And the club have made it clear that Trust members will be welcome to stand in this election along with any other supporter of the club.

The Trust have welcomed the move by the Cobblers, and also announced they will not be formally nominating a candidate, saying such a move would be 'inappropriate'.

But they add that any member of the Trust who does wish to stand in the election will do so with their 'blessing'.

They have also invited whoever wins the election, which will be held early in October, to become a ' liaison representatives to the Trust at board level'.

The statement on the Trust's website, ntfctrust.co.uk, reads: "The Supporters Trust welcomes the football club's decision to appoint a director from the existing fanbase.

"The Trust was set up almost 30 years ago with the aim of giving Cobblers fans a distinct voice in their club.

"This is a big step in the right direction and we hope that a clear, open and verifiable electoral process marks the beginning of a meaningful relationship between the club and its fanbase in terms of providing greater accountability and transparency.

"We look forward to hearing more about the remit of the supporter's role on the board.

"If the new director is to be truly independent, as specified in the announcement, it would be inappropriate for the Trust to formally nominate a candidate.

"However, any individual who chooses to stand, including any member of the Trust, does so with our blessing.

"We will gladly meet with the successful candidate to share the views of our members.

"At the request of West Northamptonshire Council, two councillors - one Conservative and one Labour - are this month being appointed as liaison representatives to the Trust at board level.

"We would be happy to also extend a similar invitation to the club's fan representative.

"Good luck to all candidates!"