An open letter to supporters from Adam Webb

An open letter to supporters from Adam Webb upon completion of the purchase of a controlling interest in St Johnstone FC.

I am delighted to confirm that we have now completed the purchase of the controlling interest in St Johnstone FC. After 140 years, the St Johnstone story begins a new chapter.

Rest assured I will work tirelessly to make sure this is a chapter about values, integrity, success on the pitch, excitement in the stands and service to the community.

First, a note of gratitude. We must all thank Geoff Brown for his 38 years of tireless and successful service to the club. If you want to understand steady, sustainable football leadership, you need only study Geoff’s tenure at St Johnstone.

I am honoured that Geoff found me to be a worthy custodian for the club’s next chapter and supporters should take comfort knowing that Geoff has agreed to continue advising me in the years ahead. I am looking forward to attending the first game of the season with Geoff on July 13.

Thanks also to Steve Brown - who led the Saints as chairman during 12 amazing years, including the historic cup double - for his warm welcome to the Saints family. Steve has also graciously agreed to be a resource as we move forward.

Another huge thanks to Stan Harris, who has agreed to continue his service as chairman during this transitional period. Stan is a true servant-leader who has never taken any pay from the club despite working full-time as our CEO for the past year.

And a final thanks to you the supporters, to the players, coaches and all staff and employees of the club for the generous welcome you have shown to me and my associates. Your optimism for the future of the club inspires us.

St Johnstone has been in the top tier for 16 straight seasons now so, historically speaking, the club is in a good position. But, in order to survive at this level, we have to grow the club. That is our predominant goal as owners.

We need to attract new fans, we need existing fans to become more engaged and we need more commercial sponsors in order to increase our playing budget and remain competitive in the Premiership. So we have to make changes to improve all aspects of the club in the coming years.

Such changes, however, will be undertaken only after engagement and consultation with supporters. I have already met with supporters once via Zoom and I look forward to doing so again in person.

I will be as open and transparent as possible about our goals and plans by providing regular updates and being up front and realistic about our successes and failures. Please make sure you are signed up to our weekly newsletter so you can easily keep up with Saints news.

The essential element toward growing the club will be playing competitive and exciting football. Craig, Andy and Gus have signed a dynamic group of players. We, as owners, have to give the coaches the necessary tools to work with. In the coming years, our goal will be to gradually and sustainably increase the player budget. We will also improve the training facilities, changing rooms, gym, physio areas and technology. These enhancements will aid recruitment and performance.

Of course, supporters also have a role in making St Johnstone a more attractive club to play for, by taking advantage of all things Saints: attending games, celebrating effort and results, buying and wearing Saints gear and supporting the club’s community efforts. We’re all in this together.

Our ambition is to finish in the top six, compete in Europe and do well in cup competitions year-after-year. This is possible, but it will take time. Working relentlessly together, we will take one step each day and advance the club. With your patience and support, our goals are achievable.

It is also important that we continue to build on the progress being made at the women’s team and our youth academy. I look forward to working closely with both areas of the club in the coming months.

As owners, we pledge to improve the matchday experience by improving McDiarmid Park. Initial planned projects include resurfacing the car park, expanding hospitality areas and adding an elevator for better access. We will also work to improve the festive atmosphere at McDiarmid. Your ideas are welcome.

In fact, we would like to hear from you with any thoughts for improvements at the club. Please email Ideas@PerthSaints.co.uk with your suggestions. I have asked that all serious ideas be forwarded to me.

In today’s digital and social media age, expanding our reach to all potential fans, wherever they are, is more important than ever before. A priority of our ownership will be to make more and better use of digital and social media channels. The club website, Saints TV and the existing socials are excellent, but we must do more.

We need independent YouTubers, podcasters and social media influencers to tell the Saints story which will only happen if we provide dynamic content both on and off the pitch.

Last, but certainly not least, we are honoured to continue the extraordinary community service efforts led by Francis Smith at the St Johnstone Community Trust. The Trust will be energised even further in the coming years based on Geoff Brown’s incredible contribution of all of the net proceeds of this transaction for the development of a community hub facility, which we anticipate will be adjacent to McDiarmid Park.

Everything we do on and off the pitch must have a higher purpose - and our primary purpose is serving Perth and the surrounding communities.

I look forward to seeing you at a cup game in July or a league game in August. In the meantime, please do your part to support the club, whether buying a season ticket, attending cup games or buying our very attractive new kits (a great gift for the whole family).

I can’t promise a cup final or European qualification this season, but I can promise that we will be working every day to make St Johnstone a club that you are proud to support.

Please help us build something special for this community. We will not complete the task in a month or even a year but, with your positive energy and support, we will get the job done.