WHAT a shame that the torrential rain came towards the end of last week – the mammoth effort undertaken to clear the snow proved in vain and the pitch ended up waterlogged.

It was great to see fans, staff and players all mucking in with wheelbarrows and shovels to move the snow.

I had just rearranged the day without football when the call came through that the board had called a shareholders’ meeting for 4 o’clock – the purpose of which was to explain how the current demands from the HMRC had come about.

Now a shareholders’ meeting you may think is nothing special but given the fact that the last one was either in 1996 or nine years ago, depending on who you ask, makes the site of a majority of Accrington Stanley shareholders coming together at the club a rare sight.

For me it is just another major positive step the new regime have taken and shows a commitment to openness that will gladden the heart of ever Stanley fan.

Now I must admit that I did not know what to expect as the board sat down and the meeting started, but the highlights were all positive.

The club will be paying the taxman this week and going forward the board will put in place measures to try and ensure we do not end up in the same predicament again.

The news that the club does not have to sell its best players will be music to the ears of Stanley fans across the globe.

I am sure managers and chairman from clubs keen on buying Stanley players during this transfer window would have been rubbing their hands at the thought of a cut price deal with a club desperate for cash.

Nothing could be further from the truth and under the stewardship of the new board and for the first time in a long time fans will only see players leaving the club if the deal on the table is the right one for all concerned.

The club has done its bit to improve the non match day cash situation by welcoming back Lewis Carroll to run the merchandising at the club.

This is a positive move in my eyes as Lewis is a very hard working individual and a decent keeper for the fans team to boot!

Tonight (fingers crossed) we take on Gillingham in the re-arranged FA Cup game and victory would see Premier League Fulham as visitors to the Crown Ground this Saturday.

This makes tonight one of the biggest games in Stanley’s history and I urge every fan to do their bit by getting behind the lads to help secure Stanley’s future.