Friday 7th September 2018
THE chairman and board of Dumbarton FC have met with manager Stevie Aitken this week to discuss in detail the disappointing start to their League One campaign, and to look at how to turn the situation around as the season progresses.
Speaking after the meeting and ahead of Sons’ Irn Bru cup-tie tomorrow, chairman John Steele said: “We all fully understand and share the frustration our fans have been expressing in recent weeks over disappointing results and performances.
“We have built a good squad on very slender resources, and we were certainly hoping for a much better start than the one we have seen. One win from our first five games is simply not good enough.
“However, the unavoidable reality is that we have been facing massive challenges as a result of a huge injury list impacting nine players.
“Last week we even had players on the field who chose to be there despite medical advice not to play – that shows the immense dedication our squad has, for which we are really appreciative.
“In recent matches we have also had players needing to perform out of position and new signings coming in to the first team with just one training session to prepare.
The club chairman continued: “I want to assure our supporters that everything possible is being done by the manager, the players, the staff and the board to turn things around. Representatives of the Sonstrust are also fully engaged with the situation.
“It’s important to stress that difficulties we face right now are not excuses, as some will claim. They are hard facts. It’s tough, but we have to stick together to see things through.
“We remain confident that as players regain health, the squad stabilizes, other changes are made and we continue to address plans for improvement in detail, we will see a significant difference on the pitch.
In the meantime, and despite the disappointment of recent weeks, we really need our fans to get behind the team over the next few weeks – starting with our double-header against Montrose this weekend and next.
“We have fantastic supporters and we believe they’ll do that,” concluded Mr Steele, speaking on behalf of the board and staff.