Chairman optimistic about 'Stute's future

The Waterside man admits that although times are tough for 'Stute, it's tough for everybody; but he's optimistic that the long term future is still rosy.

"We have plans which we'll be getting on with in the not too distant future, at the end of the day we wouldn't be doing these fund raising schemes - like the floodlights and the 'buy a brick' - if we felt we were in danger," he said.

"The ground development committee of Robert Ferris, Charlie Ferguson, Noel Moore and Billy Gillard are working very hard and have worked very hard for all the good work which has already taken place at the Riverside Stadium.

"We have just been passed to start work on a new stand behind the goals at the changing room end, which we hope to get started early this year, but we need people to back us and we have a 'buy a brick' scheme, which was well supported last year, but we'll be doing another push with that scheme whenever we get things finalised this month."

Just before Christmas the club announced that all the players along with John Gregg's back-room staff accepted taking a percentage reduction in their wages and Hewitt is thrilled with that decision.

"The club are over the moon that the players accepted the small per cent of a wage cut, it wasn't a massive one, but we are delighted that they have accepted it; however it's not just players who have been cut-back, it's all areas.

"Wee things like electricity and water turned off in the changing rooms after the game and other wee things to cut costs.

"Hopefully with the full backing of the committee and supporters, we'll have a bright future. We have had the backing from the players with the small wage cut, but it would be great if we could attract more supporters to games."

One way which the 'Stute chairman believes they can get more supporters through the gates is by playing more matches on a Friday night.

"On a good day we have between 300 and 500 fans but we are offering Irish League football in the Waterside and I believe we should be hitting 1000 supporters at least for every home game," he added.

"We have looked at playing on a Friday night, we have even requested more Friday night matches but both sides have to agree on it and that has been difficult.

"I know that the new executive in Belfast is trying to push Friday night football. There is also talk of maybe a later kick-off on a Saturday, or Friday night, or even Sunday football, but we'll never go down the Sunday football line.

"The only time we have been able to play Friday night was against Limavady United, Omagh Town and Coleraine, which was a once off; but it's hard to get the likes of Linfield, Glentoran, Portadown or Newry City, but we need to look at other options in an attempt to get more supporters.

"Although Friday night would suit us, it's up to the other clubs agreeing to it; but I know the chief executive (Patrick Nelson) has discussed Friday night football at a meeting, so maybe something will change in the future.

"I also know that in Newry they tried a scheme that all their junior football before Christmas kicked off early in the morning and their crowds jumped with a few hundreds fans, so that's something we might also try and look at."

The Irish Football Association President Raymond Kennedy has smentioned discussions about reverting to summer football, but the Irish Premier League chairman Jack Grundy and Hewitt don't agree with the Limavady man.

"We as a committee met two days before Christmas and discussed this idea of summer football but personally we agreed that we prefer the winter football because at the end of the day we are a part time club.

"It's different in the League of Ireland when they have all professional full-time footballers and they told the players whenever they could take their holidays, but we are amateurs.

"We have players out there who have young families and they only get off during the school term and that is when they book their holidays during July and August, so for us to tell them that they can't go on holidays would be hard.

"Maybe with the terrible weather we are having at the minute, the IFA could look at having a two week break during the winter; I know that would not suit everyone because clubs have big gates during Boxing Day, but as far as we are concerned we are either away to Distillery or home to them and no disrespect to Distillery, but we aren't going to get a fortune of money from that Boxing Day fixture and to be honest Distillery would probably agree with me.

"People shouldn't take me the wrong way, I know there's a lot of football and other sports such as rugby and golf, but I still believe despite what else is going on we as a club believe we should be hitting in and around 1,000 supporters."

Hewitt knows that sponsorship in the current financial climate is becoming more and more difficult but he knows better than most as he owns the Coffee Stop cafe in Drumahoe that every business is tightening their purse strings.

"We lost the likes of Coolkeeragh from last year, which hasn't been replaced, but we are glad and very thankful that Mr Billy Henderson of Billy Henderson Properties, is still backing the club and we are also thrilled with all our sponsors who continue to back the club.

"We have lost a few billboard sponsors and we are finding it very, very difficult because of the current financial climate to even get match or ball sponsors.

"I have even seen it through my own business here at the Coffee Stop that times are tough. We aren't getting any construction workers coming in and that was your bread and butter at the end of the day, so I know at first hand that it's just not football which is suffering at the minute."

On the playing side Hewitt who's a realist is confident that despite their poor position in the Carling Premiership, John Gregg's men will improve in 2010.

"At the end of the day the league table doesn't lie and we are second from bottom; we have had a couple of good results and some terrible ones, but the players and manager know that, but personally I feel we have a good team at Drumahoe.

"We had a lot of injuries at the start of the year and some of those injured players are starting to find their feet now, but John and his back-room staff of Wesley, Daryl (Adair) and Neil (McCauley), are putting in a lot of hours and have been doing well.

"I'll be glad to see the transfer window closing, because then everyone will be concentrating only on the football and everyone from players, supporters and committee can continue to pull in the one direction and we can start getting a few more points on the board and start moving up the table, which we are good enough to do.

"We have proved that over this season and we are the only team in the league which hasn't lost in Belfast this season, so hopefully that good run can be extended with the sides in and around us over the next few weeks and months."

The Institute chairman also took time out of his Christmas schedule to thank William Lamrock at YMCA, Bready Cricket Club, DW Gym, City of Derry Rugby Club, Lisneal College and he would like to wish all the supporters a happy new year.