New owner talks about his ambitions for Crawley Town as he becomes the club's new owner
First of all, may I thank all the Crawley Town supporters and staff who were so welcoming to me on my previous visit to the club for the Plymouth game. Their passion and enthusiasm for our club has convinced me even more that my decision to get involved with Crawley Town is the right one.
England is the home of football and I have always had a love of English football. For the past ten years I have been the elected president of a successful Turkish club Kayseri Erciyesspor and, through my involvement, I have gained experience and knowledge of running a football club.
For the past year I have been actively looking for the right English club to whom I can apply my football philosophy. When I heard about Crawley Town, which was formed in 1896 and has a long tradition and history, I knew it was the right club, not least because of the potential it has to grow.
With the knowledge and experience I have accrued, allied to the hard work and professionalism of the existing staff, I’m sure we can succeed. We would love to take Crawley into the Championship within the next 8-10 years. It will take a lot of dedication and we will need a foster a real togetherness between the club, the players and, just as importantly, the fans but it is possible and we have to be ambitious, to dream.
Even in a relatively short time, I have begun to understand that our fans are as passionate about Crawley Town as those of much bigger clubs. To travel five or six hours to a game, as our fans do on a regular basis, shows an incredible loyalty which is unique to English football and, I believe, one of its strengths.
I want to really promote a feeling of togetherness with our existing fan-base but also to look at ways, big or small, to get more people in Crawley and the surrounding area to support the team that proudly carries the name of Crawley Town. We need to be more proactive as a club in doing that.
We are thankful to the current owners for all they have done for the club and for their gracious hospitality in recent weeks. We wish them every success for the future.
Now a new and exciting chapter can begin for Crawley Town, a journey that I want us all to take together.
Thank you and I look forward to being with you at a match very soon.
Ziya Eren
