Owing to your Mad Reporter's inexcusable lack of shorthand skills, what follows should be considered a precis of the discussion on the evening.
It was an excellent, entertaining evening, believed to be enjoyed by all. It was also all very positive, and the club is to be well thanked for organising it.
The welcome was carried out by Matthew Lenton and he introduced the top table of chairman Rob Bickerton, manager Brian Horton, assistant manager John Askey and team captain Tommy Widdrington. Matt made opening remarks and referred to the clubs 'promotion' due to the renaming of the Leagues. He went on to warn of the errors in the Macclesfield Express regarding both the timing of the game against Congleton - it is starting at 12:00 noon and the date for the present meeting.
Rob Bickerton spoke - said he was honoured and privileged to be chairman of the club and that he starts the season with optimism, but he augurs caution with it. He said he was trying to do things right and that most clubs do 80-90% right, so it is the detail that matters.
Brian Horton spoke - said he had been a manager for 20 years and that was the shortest speech by a chairman he had heard, and he hoped that the board meetings would be similarly short. He said that he had brought in Ian Brightwell to take over the young reserve squad. Steve Carroll would be moving over to take over the youth team. He said that pre-season was going well but that Steve Payne had had a knee blow up at the weekend. He had spoken to Paul Lake and Steve is going to be out for 3 to 4 months. BH spoke about the arrival of Mark Bailey, Tony Barras and Alan Fettis. He said that he thought we have people who can score goals and how pleased he was that Tipton, Tommy and Harsley had re-signed. He also mentioned the arrival of Rooney, Briscoe, Smart, Morgan and Jones. He finished by asking about his bonus for the promotion.
Question 1 was taken - the whereabouts of George Abbey was asked? BH responded that his last conversation with George had ended with George saying he was off to the First Division or Premiership and that there was no further knowledge on his situation.
Q2 - It was asked whether a replacement for Steve Payne was being considered? BH responded that Matt Carragher misses one game, but that with Tony Barras, Ian Brightwell and Michael Briscoe available, no replacement was being considered.
John Askey spoke - he thanked Brian Horton for giving him the position of assistant manager and said that the present team are as good a group of lads as we've had. He said that it was a pleasure to go into work and train together and that all were working hard. He said that Congleton was the first game and there was going to be competition for places and that he hoped the team would get off to a good start.
Tommy Widdrington spoke - he said that all were very optimistic but that it is a long season. He said that we he came to the club just under a year ago, he was also optimistic then but the team just didn't achieve what it could have. He said that the team is now more capable than a year ago and to look at the last 10 games except the Bury game and the club took 20 points. If the new season is treated similarly as groups of ten games and similar results are obtained then the club will do well. He said that the team dug in, showed resolve and got the results. He said that belief was in the dressing room. He had been relegated twice, but to go out of the League would have been bad for him.
He said this was his 17th pre-season and the lads looked well. It was bad news about Steve Payne, but John Askey had done well to bring him and Graham Potter in and their experience had been important for the club. He then made some amusing comments about some of the squad.
He then said that players didn't just put on trainers and do some running, but there was other things such as diet to be considered. He said the players were all raring to go and show their best on the magnificent pitch, which is so unlike Boston's pitch in January.
ML spoke - said that Boston were doing a sponsor-a-sod scheme to try and improve their pitch. He said that here at Macclesfield, the club believed in getting things right and as a result we had the best pitch in Division 3. He did mention that groundsman Mark Patterson had been upset to see his name wrong in the local Paper.
Q3 - the difference between the pre-season now and when non-league was asked about. JA - said the big difference was he didn't do it now! He then gave some humourous memories off training in the Peter Wragg days. BH - then intervened to advise how John and Ian Brightwell had recently got the team lost on a run around Prestbury Golf Club. JA said that they had ended up in Mottram.
Q4 - someone said how great it was to see John Askey still at the club and that there had been a number of captains recently, who hadn't shown leadership when needed on the pitch and asked TW what will he be doing. TW - replied that he had already been involved in organising the team on the field and that he is a bit of a ranter and raver. However, he said that refs these days will not allow players to speak harshly to their own team mates. He said that he considered it an honour and privilege to be named captain and that he thought the changing room was a better place now, that the players were coming together better, rather than going off on their own. He also said that he was instituting a system of fines and gave a humourous talk on some of the fines taken.
ML spoke - about Tommy being on the sidelines at a night match, giving help and advice to Michael Carr and Steve Brackenridge.
There was then a break for refreshments.
More in Part Two