Town Chairman Roland Wycherley celebrates 25-year anniversary.
Roland E Wycherley MBE today celebrates his 25-year anniversary as the Shrewsbury Town Chairman having taken on the role on July 8th 1996.
A boyhood Salop fan, born in Sultan Road, Castlefields in Shrewsbury, Mr. Wycherley sat down with Shrewsweb to reflect on his time as the Club's Chairman.
“Over the course of the last 25 years, it has been an immense privilege and honour to be the Chairman of my hometown football club.
"Many things have changed since July 8 1996, and Shrewsbury Town Football Club is no exception. For the fans, moving to Oteley Road was monumental, leaving Gay Meadow after 97 wonderful years with all of the memories contained there.
"In June 2007, our relocation into our new all-seated 10,000 capacity stadium was imperative for the future sustainability of our Club and has proved to be the catalyst for building our future on solid foundations - with the hope that it will enable more wonderful memories.
"Along with Montgomery Waters Meadow, the Sundorne Castle Training Ground is an exceptional facility that the Board of Directors and myself are incredibly proud of after our considerable investments in 2017. The continual sustained investment in the Club’s facilities is paramount for our growth on and off the pitch.
"Our work with Shrewsbury Town in the Community continues to be a beacon of pride for the Football Club due to their impeccable and growing work within our county for the benefit of all Salopians. With the Football Hub and the new state-of-the-art 3G surface in place, our community partners continually make a positive difference to all age groups and needs within Shrewsbury and the wider area.
"Over the years our Academy has achieved great success with so many graduates utilising the pathway to the first-team at Shrewsbury and for many, a successful career beyond. As a Club, we need to continue the hard work and produce more stars of the future which can benefit the Club - short term and long term. There is nothing that gives myself and the supporters more pleasure than seeing ‘one of our own’ playing for the first-team and then going on to greater things.
"Covid-19 has enormously impacted all of our lives over the last 18 months. Here at Shrewsbury Town, we have recognised clearly the detrimental impact this pandemic has had on the wider footballing world and ourselves. Steve Cotterill’s ordeal has demonstrated the fragility of life, and everyone at the Club is thoroughly delighted to see Steve returning to pre-season training as his health continues to improve. His fighting spirit and determination has transcended through to everyone connected with the Club.
"Looking forward, the future is positive and we are now in a strong position with the building blocks in place with Steve leading our squad into the new season - an experienced Manager who I have personally admired for many years. We have endeavoured to attain his services over the last 20 years and we are delighted to have a Manager of his calibre now leading our team.
"Finally, I would like to express my appreciation to everyone connected to Shrewsbury Town Football Club for their well wishes and birthday messages last week, each and everyone meant a lot to me personally.
"Thank you all for your undying support of the Club over the past 25 years, and I hope to see you all soon, cheering our team on to success back at the Meadow.”
Roland E Wycherley MBE
