COMMUNITY
Ambition – Alison McGee says she wants to be part of the next stage of Thornaby FC ’ s journey .
Durata carried out the electrical fit out , provided the equipment and certified the new buildings in line with regulations .
John said : “ We are coming in with fresh ideas and following up some previous ideas that were never previously implemented .
“ We accept how difficult it can be for grassroots and non-league football clubs to be maintained and how reliant they are on volunteers , like this football club has been in the past .
“ We have come in with fresh eyes from a business owner perspective . The feedback has been that it has been quite refreshing so far to have us involved . There are procedures and processes in place now that we have brought with us from the business world .
“ In our eyes we are working as if this is a professional football club . Even though we have no experience of running a football club , I personally have examined and researched what is needed to run a football club and everything we will look to implement will be relevant and resonate with the football people we are talking to .”
John added : “ When we have a board meeting , while the content is serious , the atmosphere is one where we can feel that we are all in this together . We would love to take this club as far as we possibly can .”
Thornaby men ’ s team is in the Northern League and the women are just two divisions below neighbouring Middlesbrough FC .
It was also announced in July that former Boro striker Andy Campbell has been brought in as director of football .
John said : “ After we met , we both hit it off because we share a similar vision . Even though Andy has a sports background and I ’ m from a business world , we have the same drive and we are on the same page .
“ It is incredible to think I used to watch Andy as a Boro fan all those years ago , but he has ambitions to improve the club ’ s outlook across all areas .
“ Andy is going to bring consistency to the training facilities . We are going to embrace and introduce new technology to take things forward from an analytical point of view .
“ We are focused on marginal gains from top to bottom , something I am personally big on . We are hopefully going to introduce small improvements initially that will make life easier for the managers of the teams .”
Having been an advocate of women in engineering for years , Durata feel there are similarities in football – and they are determined to unite a club that had been in trouble .
Alison said : “ We want to be part of the next stage of Thornaby FC ’ s journey , driving forward a club with so much potential for men and women together , girls and boys , one club .
“ Thornaby FC is more than just a team , it ’ s a symbol of unity and opportunity . Durata and I believe in the power of sports to bring people together and inspire , that ’ s why we have been hugely supportive of many sporting clubs and sports men and women in recent years .
“ By supporting Thornaby , we ’ re investing in a future where men and women have equal access to the beautiful game – one club .
“ We have a vision to make that a fantastic club where talent , not gender , determines success .
“ This is about creating a legacy , building a community and fostering a love for football that transcends generations . The ‘ one club ’ approach is massively important to us all .”
For further information about Durata check out duratauk . com
The voice of business in the Tees region | 41